On the first day of free agency, the Detroit Pistons had already reportedly agreed to terms with Ben Gordon. Later in the day, the Pistons landed their second players — Charlie Villanueva. According to various reports, Villanueva will receive a contract worth about $7 million per year over five years.
For fantasy basketball purposes, Villanueva’s value goes up following this move. It appears as if he’s finally found a team willing to invest in him and give him the opportunity he needs to succeed. In a per-minute basis, Villanueva has always put good numbers on the board.
Last year, Villanueva averaged 16.2 …read more

Manu Ginobili, San Antonio Spurs – 22.46 PER
Quietly, Manu Ginobili is one of the best players in the NBA once again. In a recent game against the Phoenix Suns, Ginobili scored 30 points and hit 18-of-18 from the free throw line. If his minutes start rising, he could become a fantasy basketball power.
Charlie Villanueva, Milwaukee Bucks – 19.98 PER
With Michael Redd out for the season, the door has opened for Charlie Villanueva. He’s starting now and should get plenty of minutes and plenty of shot attempts. He’s shown All-Star type ability at times in his career and he’ll get a …read more

The Milwaukee Bucks were delivered a devastating blow when they learned that Michael Redd will miss the rest of the season due to torn knee ligaments. Redd’s injury occurred during a recent game against the Sacramento Kings.
After attempting a shot near the basket, Redd landed awkwardly and ended up tearing both his ACL and MCL in his left knee. The injury is considered significant and Redd will face a long recovery process.
In the fantasy world, Redd owners in redraft leagues can safely drop him. In dynasty leagues, he’s still worth keeping around even if he won’t be 100% next season.
On …read more

According to the current NBA rumor mill, there’s a potential deal floating around that has the Houston Rockets trading Carl Landry to the Milwaukee Bucks for Charlie Villanueva. Additionally, the Bucks are likely to be sending Tyronn Lue to the Los Angeles Lakers, with the Lakers sending Chris Mihm to the Rockets and the Bucks also getting either Brent Barry or Luther Head.
Obviously, the two biggest names in this potential trade are Carl Landry and Charlie Villanueva. If Landry lands with the Bucks, he will probably get to play more minutes. In Houston, Landry was stuck behind a lot of …read more

Although the NBA season just started, this is a great time to hit the waiver wire and look for gems and fantasy basketball steals. Which players looked good on the opening night of the NBA? Check out these fantasy basketball players.
Mario Chalmers, Miami Heat
Mario Chalmers started for the Miami Heat at point guard and played a great game. Threatening to get a triple double in his first game, Chalmers is a definite pickup in all fantasy basketball formats. The only word of caution is to realize that the Heat were playing the Knicks — who are perhaps the worst defensive …read more

Here are five players who have started to breakout and should be looked at as potential waiver wire pickups:
Andray Blatche, Washington Wizards
Blatche busted out in a big way on Tuesday. Against the Philadelphia 76ers, Blatche had 26 points, eight rebounds, four assists and a block. Equally impressive was his shooting – 12-of-14 from the field, including 1-for-1 from three-point land. Brendan Haywood turned an ankle during the game, which could spell more playing time for Blatche. Pick him up if you have the chance.
Kenyon Martin, Denver Nuggets
If you watch Martin play, you would never guess that he has had to …read more

I’ll take a look at some Week 1 busts and breakdown whether there is any hope for the player as the season progresses.

Kirk Hinrich, Chicago Bulls
Hinrich has been horrible over his first four games. He seemingly can’t do anything right and is a big reason why the Bulls sit at 0-4. Is there hope? Yes. He’ll be fine. Consider it a mini-slump that he’ll get over within a few games.
Charlie Villanueva, Milwaukee Bucks
Villanueva has been shooting the ball horribly and still can’t seem to get back into the flow that he had as a rookie. Is there hope? …read more