For fantasy basketball purposes, this would be very good news for Emeka Okafor. While he seems to have hit a production ceiling with the Bobcats, he could become a much more efficient player if put next to Chris Paul. As we’ve seen with Chandler, Paul is very good at setting up easy shots for his bigmen.

On the other hand, Chandler going to the Bobcats would rob practically his entire fantasy basketball value. Considering that Chandler is trying to overcome a couple of injuries and recently failed an NBA physical, he likely wouldn’t be worth drafting in fantasy basketball if this trade goes through.

If the Bobcats make this move, it’ll likely be due to economics. Chandler has much less money left on his deal compared to Okafor.

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Wallace laid on the ground for several minutes before he was taken off the court and transported to the hospital. He will remain hospitalized for at least another day. Although it is not known how much NBA action he will miss, it’s obvious that he’ll miss at least a few weeks worth of games.

For the elbow, Bynum was accessed a flagrant foul. The NBA has not yet ruled on whether Bynum will receive any further punishment.

Here is the video of Gerald Wallace getting injured by an Andrew Bynum elbow:

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Ray Allen, Boston Celtics
At points last year in the playoffs, Ray Allen looked like he may be headed to the end of his NBA career. This year, especially in the month of December, Allen has looked very good. For the month, he shooting 53.1% from the field, 44.9% from the three-point arc and 92.3% from the free throw line.

Rashard Lewis, Orlando Magic
To start off the 2008-09 NBA season, Rashard Lewis wasn’t shooting the ball very well. This month, he’s turned it around. Most impressively, he’s hitting 44.9% from three-point land on his 6.8 attempts per game. For the month, his scoring average is up to 21.2 points and he’s helping the Magic race up the standings.

Emeka Okafor, Charlotte Bobcats
In his first month under Larry Brown, Emeka Okafor looked lost on the offense end. Now he’s tearing it up offensively. For the month of December, Okafor is shooting better than 61% from the field and is averaging 18.1 points per game. To put that in perspective, he averaged only 10.3 points per game in November.

Photo credit: Newscom

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For Richardson, this should be good news for his fantasy basketball potential. Playing next to Steve Nash, Amare Stoudemire and Shaquille O’Neal, he is sure to get plenty of open looks. Since the lane will be somewhat clogged with Stoudemire and O’Neal down low, look for Richardson to shoot a lot of three-pointers. That shouldn’t be a problem for him considering that he was the top three-point shooter in the NBA last season in terms of makes.

In addition to 6-7 three-pointers a game, Richardson’s points per game should be able to get back around 20 points per game. His rebounding and assists could also see a spike due to the fact that the Suns play at a much faster pace than the Bobcats. In fact, the Bobcats are one of the slowest paced teams in the entire league.

Dudley doesn’t gain much fantasy appeal due to this trade right away, but keep an eye on the role he is given. Chances are that he’ll be a deep bench player but the Suns may have bigger plans.

Diaw wasn’t having a very good season with the Suns but could possibly turn it around with the Bobcats. He has a good chance to start at power forward next to Emeka Okafor. If he sees a major jump in minutes, he could revert back to the Diaw who was a very good fantasy player a few seasons ago. That said, the slow pace of the Bobcats will likely keep him from getting anywhere near his best career stats.

Bell’s fantasy appeal will be dependent on how many minutes he gets. But considering that his fantasy appeal is based on his ability to take and make a lot of three-pointers, don’t count on that carrying over to Charlotte. Bell’s days as a fantasy relevant player could be done.

Photo credit: Newscom

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Russell Westbrook, Oklahoma City Thunder
During summer league, Russell Westbrook looked amazing. While he hasn’t looked as amazing in preseason, he still is showing a lot of promise. He might not start getting a huge amount of minutes early on but by late in the 2008-09 fantasy basketball season, expect Westbrook to play around 30 minutes per game.

DJ Augustin, Charlotte Bobcats
In Charlotte, Larry Brown will undoubtedly be extremely hard on his point guards. With starter Raymond Felton truly being more of a shooting guard, you can expect DJ Augustin to get plenty of minutes at point guard. If Brown puts Felton into the dog house, Augustin would be next in line to start.

Mario Chalmers, Miami Heat
Even though Mario Chalmers was a second round pick, he fell into a perfect situation in Miami. He has a chance to start at point guard and play next to Dwyane Wade. While he’s not going to be a bigtime scorer at the NBA level, he’ll be able to get a healthy amount of assists and steals. He should also be able to knock down the NBA three-pointer.

Goran Dragic, Phoenix Suns
Another second round selection, the Suns are extremely high on Dragic. In fact, Suns management had him rated as one of the top handful of point guards in the entire 2008 NBA Draft. Although he’s playing behind Steve Nash, the fact that Phoenix runs a point guard oriented offense should help Dragic’s stats. Don’t expect points but Dragic should be able to do everything else.

George Hill, San Antonio Spurs
George Hill is the sleeper of the fantasy basketball rookie point guard prospects. Coming out of tiny IUPUI, Hill was drafted by the Spurs late in the first round. After struggling in summer league, Hill bounced back and played very well in preseason. He’s a guard in the Monta Ellis mold he can play the passing lanes on defense and knock down shots offensively. He’s currently dealing with an injured thumb but he could possibly be fantasy viable at some point during the 2008-09 fantasy basketball season.

Keep an eye on rookie point guard George Hill.

Photo: Newscom

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Michael Beasley, Miami Heat
Most league pundits expect Michael Beasley to put up decent stats. But don’t forget that this sleeper was just a certified beast as a freshman in college. If he can adapt quickly to the NBA, he could end up the year as a top eight power forward in fantasy basketball.

Emeka Okafor, Charlotte Bobcats
Emeka Okafor is coming off of a season to forget. His progress seemed to stall and he just wasn’t as good as he was in previous years. With Larry Brown now in the fold to push him on a consistent basis, look for Okafor’s production to rise across the board.

Jermaine O’Neal, Toronto Raptors
Over the last few years, Jermaine O’Neal has been been slowed significantly by injuries and a bad environment. Now that he’s in a new situation, there’s a chance that he could return to his former self and be a fantasy basketball game changer.

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This was a good decision by Houston. Landry has a lot of potential and was one of the best rookies in the NBA last season. The Bobcats missed out at getting Landry for a good price but they gave it a good shot.

Here is a Carl Landry video showing some of what he did during his rookie season with the Houston Rockets:

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Carl Landry, a restricted free agent with the Houston Rockets, signed an offersheet on Wednesday with the Charlotte Bobcats. The contract is believed to be worth $9 million over three-years.

In his one year in the NBA, Landry showed very good promise. Although he’s a bit small for a power forward, he makes up for it with toughness, athleticism and quick jumping ability. A second round draft pick, his stock coming out of college was hurt due to concerns about his knees.

If the Bobcats land him, they will be getting him for a very fair price. Landry is a good prospect and very well could develop into a starter level of player. In fact, his PER in his rookie season was one of the top twenty PERs in the entire NBA.

If you are a betting man or woman, bet on the Rockets matching the offer. They know first hand the ability that Landry has and it’d be unwise to lose him over such a small amount of money. The only reason they’d decide to pass on him is if they feel the contract will limit their financial flexibility going forward.

Photo: Newscom

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5. Charlotte Bobcats
Larry Brown will turn around the Bobcats. That said, it likely isn’t a one year project. Expect a few headaches this year until LB can get the team playing the way he wants.

4. Memphis Grizzlies
The Grizzlies are starting to assemble a nice amount of talent. If Pau Gasol’s brother pans out, the Grizzlies could surprise.

3. Oklahoma City Thunder
The former Seattle Supersonics still won’t be ready for the big time. However, with a future Big Three of Kevin Garnett, Jeff Green and Russell Westbrook, the future is bright in Oklahoma.

2. Minnesota Timberwolves
The Timberwolves are still reeling from the Kevin Garnett trade. Although they have good talent, that talent isn’t going to provide many wins this year.

1. New Jersey Nets
The Nets don’t seem too concerned with winning basketball games. The summer of 2010 and a shot at LeBron James can’t come soon enough for New Jersey.

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Said head coach Sam Vincent: “He’s feeling a lot better. The headaches are gone. I think it’s just a matter of him getting the final clearance to get back involved in full contact. From there we’ll get him in some practices and let him and see how he responds to that. If he clears that well then we’ll get him back to playing.”

Wallace got off to a relatively slow start in fantasy basketball this season but had really picked it up as of late. Fantasy owners will welcome back Wallace with open arms whenever he’s ready to lace up his sneakers again.

Until he’s ready to return to the court, expect Matt Carroll and Jared Dudley to play more minutes for the Bobcats.

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