Allen Iverson, Denver Nuggets
Like Bryant, Allen Iverson doesn’t score as much as he used to. That said, he might be an even better fantasy basketball player. His field goal percentage is high and so are his assist numbers. If you drafted Iverson this year, you should be happy with your investment.

Manu Ginobili, San Antonio Spurs
Manu Ginobili has always been a player who was better in the NBA than he was in fantasy basketball. But this season, Ginobili’s greatness translated to his stats as he was able to play more minutes and shoot the ball more. He was a fantasy stud this season.

Jason Richardson, Charlotte Bobcats
Fantasy owners didn’t know what to think of Jason Richardson after he was traded to the Bobcats in the offseason. Richardson did a good job of playing better than expected and was a top five fantasy basketball shooting guard in 2008.

Kevin Martin, Sacramento Kings
Although he struggled with various injuries, Kevin Martin was very good when he was healthy. He scores the ball easily, shoots great from the line and doesn’t turn the ball over much. In the coming seasons, Martin will be a really nice fantasy player – as long as he can remain healthy.

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1) Dirk Nowtizki, Dallas Mavericks
He gets to the line a whole lot and he hits for a great percentage. Since Avery Johnson has become coach, Nowitzki has taken the ball to the basket much more often. As a result, his free throw attempts peaked in recent years. If you have Nowitzki on your fantasy basketball team, you are well aware of how consistent he is at the line.

2) Chauncey Billups, Detroit Pistons
While he doesn’t get to the line as much as Nowitzki, Billups is an even better free throw shooter. He’s the Pistons’ go-to free throw shooter and will get to the line in bunches. Once he’s at the charity stripe, he’ll knock ‘em down.

3) Kobe Bryant, Los Angeles Lakers
Few players in the league get to the line as consistently as Bryant. He seemingly gets to the line at least a half dozen times each game. With a solid free throw percentage, Bryant does nothing but help you in the free throw shooting category.

4) Kevin Martin, Sacramento Kings
If you look at Martin, he doesn’t look like the type of player who can get to the line a lot. But he’s actually extremely good at getting to the line by drawing body contact. He’s also a very good free throw shooter and his best years are still ahead of him.

5) Chris Bosh, Toronto Raptors
All of a sudden, Bosh is a deadly free throw shooting. By hitting in the mid-80% range, Bosh has taken a step up in the fantasy rankings. He’s now a free throw line asset. While this sudden spike could be an anomaly, it’s equally as likely that this percentage is here to stay.

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2. LeBron James, Cleveland Cavaliers
Perhaps the best player in all of the NBA, James is also great in the fantasy world. The scary part is he’s still getting better.

3. Chris Bosh, Toronto Raptors
Bosh is an underrated bigman superstar – in both the NBA and in fantasy basketball. His skill level seems to rise each month he’s in the league.

4. Josh Smith, Atlanta Hawks
Smith is an athletic freak and he’s also blessed with a lot of natural ability. He’s as explosive as anyone in the league.

5. Rudy Gay, Memphis Grizzlies
Although the Grizzlies are having another down year, Gay is emerging as a star. In fantasy basketball, he’s been fantastic in recent weeks.

6. Andrew Bynum, Los Angeles Lakers
Bynum is only 20-years-old but he’s already achieved fantasy greatness. His potential going forward is limitless.

7. Al Jefferson, Minnesota Timberwolves
While it was definitely tough to trade away Kevin Garnett, Jefferson will dull some of that pain. This kid can play.

8. Kevin Martin, Sacramento Kings
Martin is a largely unknown player due to him playing at a small college and now on the struggling Kings. However, Martin is simply an amazing scorer.

9. Dwight Howard, Orlando Magic
While his game isn’t completely fantasy friendly, his domination in real life still translates over to the fantasy world.

10. Deron Williams, Utah Jazz
Williams is point guard who will only get better as he ages. Right now, he’s already arguably a top five point guard in the league.

Funny Deron Williams commercial …

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2) Manu Ginobili, San Antonio Spurs
Ginobili has always been a good fantasy player, but this year Ginobili has been a great fantasy player. He’s doing everything and the amazing part is he’s averaging less than 30 minutes per game for the Spurs. He’s been hot all season so there aren’t many indications that he’s due to cool off.

3) Kevin Martin, Sacramento Kings
Some league pundits wondered whether last year was a bit of a fluke for Martin. Martin has responded to those questions by putting up even better numbers this year. He’s quickly proving himself to be one of the best pure scorers in the NBA.

4) Michael Redd, Milwaukee Bucks
Redd is playing very solidly, as usual. His shooting numbers are great and his all-around numbers are good enough. If you are in the market for a shooting guard you can trust, Redd should be near the top of your wish list.

5) Josh Smith, Atlanta Hawks
Smith has been erratic this season, but when he’s on – he’s really on. As a shooting guard, he can give you a massive amount of blocks and very healthy amount of steals. He’s also a very good rebounding when compared to other shooting guards. Once his offense improves (he’s shooting less than 39%), he could begin to climb this ranking.

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1) Kevin Garnett
If you have Garnett on your team, you have to be happy with his production. He’s giving you production in every category except three-pointers. There’s a great chance he finishes in the top three this season.

2) Shawn Marion
Although Marion had a tumultuous summer, his fantasy game is as good as ever. Even though his free throw percentage is down a bit, he’s still near the top like usual. Once his free throw percentage improves, he could very well move into the top spot.

3) Chris Paul
Paul was projected to be really good but he’s been amazing so far. Other than blocked shots, Paul gives you everything you could want. His free throw percentage is great, he’s hitting three-pointers now and he’s an assist machine.

4) Jason Terry
Terry comes off the bench for the Mavs but he looks amazingly comfortable in that role. He’s giving you a bit of everything, while at the same time he’s not turning the ball over. Don’t expect him to remain a top five player, but he could finish in the top 25.

5) Kobe Bryant
Bryant’s scoring is down a tad and his turnovers are rather high, but other than that he’s doing a great job in the fantasy world. Obviously a trade could have a huge impact but as of now, expect Bryant to remain around this area in the rankings.

6) Manu Ginobili
Ginobili is giving a bit of everything this year. He’s bound to cool off sooner or later but so far this season, he’s been a huge steal. It’s extra amazing to consider he’s ranked this high while not only coming off the bench, but also not even playing that many minutes.

7) Allen Iverson
Since his field goal percentage is high and his turnovers aren’t as bad as we’ve seen out of him in the past, Iverson is playing at a top ten level right now. He’s streaky so his field goal percentage should dip but so far, so good for Iverson owners.

8) Kevin Martin
Martin is having a fantastic season. He improved greatly last year and seems to be taking yet another step this year. He’s a talented scorer that is a dark horse to lead the league in scoring this year. He’s definitely a fantasy player to have on your side right now.

9) LeBron James
James is putting up sick numbers across the board. The only reason why his ranking is lower than expected is his free throw percentage is a bit low and his turnovers are a bit high. If he can correct that, he could surge up the rankings with the way he’s playing.

10) Rashard Lewis
Orlando’s big offseason acquisition is paying off so far. He’s shooting the ball really well and is producing well in most every category. It’ll be hard for him to live up to the contract he got from the Magic, but this is a good start.

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Kevin Martin, Sacramento Kings
Martin was inconsistent last season, leading some fantasy players to wonder how he’d perform this year. So far in preseason, Martin has looked better than ever. On Thursday, Martin had 25 points in 24 minutes of action. While he doesn’t do much in the rebounding or assist department, Martin is a great scorer who should be able to build upon what he did last year.

Al Horford, Atlanta Hawks
Horford had an outstanding game against the Bobcats. In 34 minutes of action, the rookie had 22 points, 12 rebounds and four blocks. Those are superstar numbers. That said, Horford is a bit of a fantasy enigma. He has great potential, however he’s likely going to be coming off the bench. The bench isn’t a place you want your fantasy player living. However, if Horford starts, as he will eventually, he’s definitely a very nice fantasy prospect.

Gerald Wallace, Charlotte Bobcats
Wallace showed fantasy owners a bit of a reminder of what he’s capable of on Thursday. He scored 34 points, grabbed ten rebounds, got two steals and blocked two shots. That type of production makes Wallace a very good fantasy player who could end up being one of the best fantasy players in the NBA.

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Marcus Camby, Denver Nuggets
Talk about a good opener to a season. Even though it’s only preseason, Camby showed his fantasy potential by pulling down 23 rebounds in only 25 minutes of action. As always, if Camby stays healthy he’s a great fantasy player. He can rebound, block shots and isn’t horrible in any aspect of his game. The problem has always been his health, or lack thereof.

Kevin Martin, Sacramento Kings
Martin showed last year was no fluke with 27 points in 23 minutes of action in his first game of the preseason. Martin was a very good scorer last year but was streaky at times. If he can put it together for an entire year, he could become one of the better scorers in the league. He has a lot of ability and seems to have a natural knack to score the ball.

Oleksiy Pecherov, Washington Wizards
Pecherov is a bigman prospect who the Wizards brought over from Europe this season. He’s a perimeter shooting bigman who had a successful stint during summer league for Washington. He’s not a great redraft prospect because he’s likely to come off the bench. However, in a keeper setting, he’d be a good guy to take a look at to see if he can develop a little more. Against the Cavs, Pecherov finished with 10 points and six rebounds in 18 minutes.

Daniel Gibson, Cleveland Cavaliers
Gibson became a postseason legend last year. This year, he’s looking to build upon that status. In his first preseason game, Gibson led the Cavs in scoring with 13 points on 5-for-9 shooting from the field. More importantly for fantasy owners, he started the game for Cleveland. As a starter, Gibson is a pretty good fantasy sleeper that should be able to put up good scoring and shooting numbers this year.

Matt Bonner, San Antonio Spurs
Bonner doesn’t figure to be a huge factor in fantasy basketball, but he’s a guy to keep an eye on. If he earns a big role with the Spurs, he’s a guy who can give you unique production out of the power forward position. He can shoot the three, hit free throws and grab rebounds, plus Bonner rarely turns the ball over. Against the Mavs in San Antonio’s preseason opener, Bonner had 14 points and nine rebounds in 25 minutes of action.

Maurice Ager, Dallas Mavericks
Ager’s stats weren’t very impressive (five points and six rebounds) but it looks like he’s going to play a bigger role this season with the Mavs. He led the team in minutes played (28) and seemed to be a big part of their offensive and defensive schemes. If Ager averages a solid amount of minutes, he could turn some fantasy heads.

Hilton Armstrong, New Orleans Hornets
Armstrong has been impressing the Hornets this summer and continued to do so in the team’s preseason opener. He finished with 12 points, six rebounds and four blocks in 26 minutes of action. While Armstrong probably won’t start this season, he plays behind two injury prone players in David West and Tyson Chandler. If either one of those guys go down, Armstrong could fill in and play big minutes.

Andrew Bogut, Milwaukee Bucks
Bogut was the number one overall pick a few years ago and has yet to truly play as well as the Bucks had hoped. He’s been good but not good enough to warrant a top pick. However, he’s still young and could still grow into more of a star. His first game in preseason looked like a step in the right direction. Bogut totaled 14 points, three rebounds and two assists in 22 minutes of action.

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Kevin Martin, Sacramento Kings
Martin had wonderful stats last season and was a great story, He’ll continue being an important part of the Kings’ attack, That said, he’s not a top ten fantasy shooting guard as some are stating, He doesn’t do enough other than score and even his scoring dipped as the season went on last year, Look for other options rather than Martin this year.

Monta Ellis, Golden State Warriors
Ellis was another feel good story last season as he won the Most Improved Player award, While that was a great accomplishment, he shouldn’t be considered a top 20 shooting guard prospect, He’s going to likely come off the bench for the Warriors and in the playoffs, some of his weaknesses were exposed last season, Let someone else draft Ellis.

Ricky Davis, Minnesota Timberwolves
Davis is getting a lot of looks by fantasy players who see him as a top 20 fantasy shooting guard, I couldn’t disagree with that assessment more, The Timberwolves are in a rebuilding mode and won’t feature Davis, Davis could very well get traded, at which point his fantasy status will have to be reevaluated.

Remember when Ricky Davis intentional missed a shot to get a rebound and his triple-double?
(Ignore the lame stuff at the end of this video.)

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