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 points and 6.7 rebounds per game in only 26.9 minutes per game. Stretch that to 40 minutes and Villanueva would be putting up 24.1 points and 9.9 rebounds per game.

With the Pistons, expect Villanueva to play power forward. At 6-foot-11, he has the size to play the position. His all-around offensive game should allow him to flourish. Heading into the 2009-10 fantasy basketball season, he’s definitely a sleeper to explode onto the scene.

Allen Iverson of the Detroit Pistons has a strained back and will miss at least one more game. According to reports, Iverson thinks that the injury could be serious and keep him out for an extended period of time.

Even when he’s ready to play again, Iverson will be coming off the bench. The Pistons have struggled mightily since doing the Iverson for Chauncey Billups swap. The team’s trademark chemistry is missing and the selflessness of the past years is nowhere to be found.

It can’t really be a coincidence that Iverson has missed the last two games and Detroit has won both games. Especially considering that coming into those two contests, the team had lost eight straight games.

In the past, Iverson has said he doesn’t welcome the idea of coming off the bench. If he wants to protest the move, he may try to prolong the time he’s going to miss due to this back injury.

Any way you slice it, Iverson’s fantasy value has plummeted. At best, he could return in a few games and play 30-35 minutes of the bench. At worst, he becomes disgruntled and he doesn’t play for the rest of the season. Fantasy basketball owners beware.

Brook Lopez, New Jersey Nets
Starting now for the Nets at center, Brook Lopez is starting to establish himself. While he’s still very much inconsistent, he’s scoring skills as both a scorer and a rebounder that should keep him in the starting lineup. It’s not out of the question that he could become a double-double machine sooner rather than later.

Courtney Lee, Orlando Magic
With news that Mickael Pietrus broke his rest and is out for an indefinite amount of time, Courtney Lee should see an upshoot in playing time as a result. The rookie shooting guard can shoot, score and provide decent complementary stats. If he can move into the starting lineup, that’d be a big boost for his fantasy worth.

Amir Johnson, Detroit Pistons
Amir Johnson is back into the starting lineup. He began the year as a starter before falling out of favor and falling out of the rotation. However, it should be noted that he’s starting mostly due to an injury to Richard Hamilton. Only start Johnson as long as Hamilton is sidelined.

Andrea Bargnani, Toronto Raptors
The Great Tease is at it again. Filling in for an injured and sick Jermaine O’Neal, Andrea Bargnani had a big game. This followed a series of uninspired performances off the bench. When he’s going right, Bargnani is a center who can score, hit three pointers, block shots and chip in with a few rebounds.

According to reports out of Detroit, the Pistons are set to change their starting lineup. With a number of shaky performances as of late, the lineup change doesn’t come as a shock to followers of the team.

The new starting lineup for the Pistons will feature Rodney Stuckey at point guard, Allen Iverson at shooting guard, Richard Hamilton at small forward, Tayshaun Prince at power forward and Rasheed Wallace at center. The player who got bumped of the starting lineup was center Kwame Brown, while Stuckey is the new addition.

At first glance, obviously this new lineup is rather small. Interior defense and rebounding could very well be a problem. However, fantasy-wise this lineup should make each player a slightly more productive rebounder. In fact, Prince may see a significant rise in rebounds.

On the offensive end, this lineup change should be good for everyone. The Iverson at point guard experiment failed, as he was unable to create shots for others. Stuckey should be able to create shots and play much more like a true point guard. If Stuckey is given big minutes to go along with this promotion, he automatically becomes a fantasy relevant player. 12 points and five assists per night with some good complementary stats makes him a solid bench guard for your fantasy unit.

The other big winner is Iverson. He no longer has to worry about point guard duties and can instead go back to concentrating on scoring the basketball. Prince too may be able to hit a few more three-pointers now that he will have a bigman defending him.

If this lineup doesn’t create wins for Detroit, the next move would be re-inserting a bigman into the starting lineup and benching one of Iverson, Hamilton or Prince. Keep a close eye on the Pistons over the coming weeks to see which players are getting minutes and how their fantasy production changes.

Rodney Stuckey recently got a reminder what an NBA court tastes like. While going up for a layup, he might the immovable force that is Shaquille O’Neal. The result was Stuckey flying to the ground and Shaq getting ejected. You can see the Stuckey video at the end of this entry.

While Stuckey was able to continue to play, his season so far hasn’t been as great as expected. Many NBA experts expected him to make a big jump in his second season in the league. That simply hasn’t happened yet.

Compared to his rookie season, his stats are up just a little bit. Most fantasy owners are probably looking elsewhere for production, even if they invested a draft pick in Stuckey.

Is there hope for Stuckey’s stats to improve? What Stuckey needs more than anything is a boost in minutes played. One way for that to happen is if he takes over the starting point guard job for the Detroit Pistons. In that scenario, Allen Iverson would move to shooting guard and Richard Hamilton would come off the bench. That makes sense for the Pistons but it’s doubtful that Hamilton would like a move that would make him a reserve.

If Stuckey remains a bench player, he’s going to remain a borderline fantasy basketball option. He’d only really become valuable if an injury were to strike Iverson or Hamilton.

Here is the video of Rodney Stuckey getting slammed to the floor by Shaq:

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The fantasy basketball impact of the Allen Iverson for Chauncey Billups trade is difficult to piece together. It’s such a drastic difference for both teams that it may take a few months to sort out. The trade, which was completed earlier in the week, sends Allen Iverson to Detroit for Chauncey Billups, Antonio McDyess and Cheick Samb.

First of all for the Nuggets, they finally have a star point guard to build around. Every since trading away Andre Miller, Denver has struggled to find a floor general. Although Billups isn’t as good as he was a couple seasons ago, he’s still an elite point guard. Expect his fantasy basketball numbers to remain relatively the same in Denver.

The biggest winner on the Nuggets roster is Carmelo Anthony. He’ll get a lot more shots now that he doesn’t have to share with Iverson. Anthony should once again challenge for the league lead in points per game. His percentages should also improve now that he has a player to set him up. The other big winner on the Nuggets is JR Smith. He should see way more time at shooting guard and could blossom into a big time scorer who could lead the league in three-pointers made. The big loser on the Nuggets is obviously Anthony Carter, who will go from starter to limited bench player.

For the Pistons, things aren’t nearly as cut and dry. Iverson likely will first begin as the team’s point guard. But throughout his career, Iverson has struggled running the show. With so many different pieces to feed, it’s questionable whether he’ll be able to be a full-time point guard. If he can’t survive at point guard, that opens the door for Rodney Stuckey to play even more. There’s even a chance that the Pistons could opt to start Stuckey and Iverson in the backcourt and then bring Richard Hamilton off the bench. Another option is for Tayshaun Prince to become a pseudo point guard and let Iverson play off the ball.

Amir Johnson and Jason Maxiell should also see the fantasy stocks rise due to taking up more of McDyess’ minutes. However, rumor has it that McDyess may return to Detroit after a buyout - a la Brent Barry and the San Antonio Spurs last season.

Photo credit: Newscom

Shawn Marion, Miami Heat
Although Shawn Marion is usually one of the safer bets in all of fantasy basketball, his situation just isn’t as great as usual this year. He no longer has Steve Nash helping him out and is instead in a lame duck type situation with the Heat due to his expiring contract. Not only that, the Heat have a lot of players that could get time at the forward positions including Michael Beasley, Udonis Haslem, James Jones, Dorell Wright and Yakhouba Diawara.

Carlos Boozer, Utah Jazz
Before you look at his stats and conclude that he had a good season last year, don’t forget to look at his playoff statistics. With the Jazz trying to make a run in the Western Conference, Boozer was oftentimes the team’s weakest link. He’ll likely bounce back but he showed a lot of vulnerability during the 2008 playoffs.

Antawn Jamison, Washington Wizards
Early in preseason play Antawn Jamison went down with a knee injury. While he should be okay for the regular season opener, he’ll likely be slowed for a few more weeks. Additionally, Jamison is getting to the age where his stats should start to decline. Some of his stats from last year, such as his rebounding numbers, will likely be on the decline this year.

Rasheed Wallace, Detroit Pistons
Rasheed Wallace has a lot of minor aspects that could make him a fantasy basketball bust in 2008. First of all, the newly 34-year-old Wallace should start to see some of his physical skills decline soon. The Pistons are also interested in playing some of their young bigmen more such as Amir Johnson and Jason Maxiell. Plus don’t forget that Joe Dumars is said to be thinking about breaking up the nucleus of the Pistons, which would most likely have a negative effect on Rasheed.

Chauncey Billups, Detroit Pistons
While Chauncey Billups could have another solid season, there are some red flags. First of all, he has Rodney Stuckey behind him and Stuckey is viewed as the future of the franchise in Detroit. Second of all, Joe Dumars seems ready and willing to trade Billups if the right trade becomes available. If Billups ends up in a bad situation, his value could plummet.

Mo Williams, Cleveland Cavaliers
Common sense says that if you play next to a very good passer like LeBron James, your fantasy value will rise. However, that hasn’t really been the case. A lot of players have gone to Cleveland as good fantasy players and then fall off the map. Williams should be okay but don’t over value him.

Randy Foye, Minnesota Timberwolves
Ever since he’s come into the league, Randy Foye has gotten fantasy love around the draft time. But each of his first two seasons, he underachieved. He’s once again ranked highly but that is based mostly on hope instead of reality. Don’t draft him expecting a huge jump in numbers.

Beno Udrih, Sacramento Kings
While in San Antonio, Beno Udrih had problems with dedication and staying healthy. He played very well in a short stint on the Kings but don’t let that fool you into thinking he’s a safe player. Now that he has financial security, he could fall back into being an undermotivated injury risk.

Gilbert Arenas, Washington Wizards
It’s easy to give up on Gilbert Arenas. He’s gone from Agent Zero to Agent Injured. It seems like every other blog he writes is about him undergoing a new surgery. That said, when he’s healthy he has a light greener than just about any player in the NBA. In fantasy basketball, that is gold.

Marcus Williams, Golden State Warriors
Being at the helm of the Golden State Warriors’ run and shoot offense should do wonders for Marcus Williams’ fantasy value. As long as he stays healthy and stays in shape, there’s really no reason for him not to be a huge contributor — until at least Monta Ellis is healthy.

Rodney Stuckey, Detroit Pistons
As a rookie, Rodney Stuckey flashed superstar potential at times. While he’s still stuck in a log jam, that could change at any given time. A trade or an injury could push Stuckey into the starting lineup where he’d do much fantasy basketball damage.

Ramon Sessions, Milwaukee Bucks
Although brief, Ramon Sessions’ stint with the Bucks last season was phenomenal. He looked very good and his stats were off the charts. If he’s given a chance to start during the 2008-09, he might end up the point guard sleeper of all point guard sleepers.

With the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games a thing of the past and training camp approximately one month away, let’s take a look at 2008 NBA power rankings:

1. Boston Celtics - The defending champs are the team to beat.
2. Los Angeles Lakers - The Lakers with Andrew Bynum will be tough.
3. San Antonio Spurs - The Spurs always seem to lurk near the top.
4. Cleveland Cavaliers - With the addition of Mo Williams, watch out.
5. New Orleans Hornets - James Posey will add a mean streak in NO.
6. Detroit Pistons - The Pistons should once again win a lot of games.
7. Houston Rockets - Ron Artest could make the Rockets great.
8. Utah Jazz - The Jazz might be a tad overrated heading into 2008.
9. Phoenix Suns - The window is closing fast for the Suns.
10. Orlando Magic - Dwight Howard will make sure the Magic win.

Here is a Dwight Howard highlight reel video:

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