Points Per Game
1. Gerald Wallace CHA – 21.0
2. Allen Iverson DEN – 21.0
3. Kevin Martin SAC – 20.3
4. Bostjan Nachbar NJ – 19.8
5. LaMarcus Aldridge POR – 19.5

Gerald Wallace Mix …

Rebounds Per Game
1. Marcus Camby DEN – 15.0
2. Al Jefferson MIN - 13.4
3. Kevin Garnett BOS – 10.6
4. Shawn Marion PHO – 9.6
5. Jeff Foster IND – 9.2

Assists Per Game
1. Steve Nash PHO – 9.5
2. TJ Ford TOR – 7.6
3. Chris Paul NO – 7.0
4. Earl Watson SEA – 6.3
5. Delonte West SEA – 6.2

Blocks Per Game
1. Dwight Howard ORL – 3.0
2. Pau Gasol MEM – 2.8
3. Theo Ratliff MIN – 2.8
4. Alonzo Mourning MIA – 2.5
5. Josh Smith ATL – 2.4

Steals Per Game
1. Monta Ellis GS – 3.0
2. Andre Iguodala PHI – 2.6
3. Rajon Rondo BOS – 2.4
4. Ronnie Brewer UTA – 2.4
5. Esteban Batista BOS – 2.0

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Josh Smith, Atlanta Hawks
Smith is going to be a stud this season for the Hawks. In Atlanta’s win against the Wizards, Smith had 24 points, 11 rebounds, six assists and four blocks. He’s starting next to Marvin Williams at a forward spot, which will lead to Smith being able to grab as many rebounds as he can handle. He should also see his blocked shot numbers rise.

Andray Blatche, Washington Wizards
Blatche has been very impressive in the preseason for the Wizards. He continually plays a lot of minutes, which could very well be an indication that Washington plans on giving him extended minutes this season. Against the Hawks, Blatche had eight points, seven rebounds, two assists and two blocks in 29 minutes.

Nate Robinson, New York Knicks
Robinson has had a relatively quiet preseason. And while he’s competing with a bunch of quality guards for playing time, Robinson has the potential to have a very good season. He’s a great athlete and is a very natural scorer on the NBA level. Against the Celtics, Robinson finished with 20 points, nine rebounds, four assists and one steal.

Paul Pierce, Boston Celtics
While everyone in Boston is excited about the additions of Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen, fantasy basketball owners are wondering how those two players will affect the stats of Paul Pierce. Pierce averaged 25 points per game last year but with few other capable scorers on the team, Pierce was expected to carry the load. If Monday’s game was any indication, Pierce should still carry a big part of the scoring load this season. With Garnett and Allen also logging big minutes, it was Pierce who led the way with 29 points, eight rebounds, three assists and three steals in 40 minutes.

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Points Per Game
Bostjan Nachbar, NJ 27.0
Gerald Wallace, CHA 22.8
Kevin Martin, SAC 21.5
LaMarcus Aldridge, POR 19.5
Dwight Howard, ORL 19.2

Rebounds Per Game
Marcus Camby, DEN 15.0
Al Jefferson, MIN 13.0
Shawn Marion, PHO 12.8
Kevin Garnett, BOS 10.0
Jeff Foster, IND 10.0

Assists Per Game
Steve Nash, PHO 10.0
T.J. Ford, TOR 6.4
Darrell Armstrong, NJ 6.0
Boris Diaw, PHO 6.0
Delonte West, SEA 6.0

Minutes Per Game
Boris Diaw, PHO 34.5
Martell Webster, POR 32.2
Marvin Williams, ATL 31.8
Ricky Davis, MIN 31.6
Joe Johnson, ATL 31.4

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Brandon Bass, Dallas Mavericks
Bass has had a couple big preseason games in his last two outings. The Mavericks were high enough in the summer to give him a guaranteed contract. That said, there chances aren’t great that he earns a spot in the Mavs’ rotation. However, keep an eye on him because he can rebound and score when given minutes.

Andrea Bargnani, Toronto Raptors
Bargnani is starting to really blossom north of the border. He led the Raptors in scoring in Toronto’s victory over the Bulls. He had 19 points in 25 minutes, making 7-of-12 shots from the field. He’s never going to be a big rebounder or shot blocker, but Bargnani is highly skilled and should eventually turn into a reliable starter.

Andray Blatche, Washington Wizards
Blatche is having a great preseason for the Wizards. In fact, he is leading the team in scoring in addition to his typical all around play. He led the Wizards in scoring again on Friday night with 20 points. Blatche also chipped in with eight boards, four assists and three steals in 24 minutes.

Wizards Training Camp vLog

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Aldridge in summer league play …

Marvin Williams, Atlanta Hawks
Much like Aldridge, Williams has had a solid career to date. And like Aldridge, expect Williams to really blossom this year. He seems to have a starting spot locked down and should be able to put up nice all-around numbers. Against Portland, Williams had a team leading 18 points and seven rebounds. With Williams and Josh Smith manning the forward position for Atlanta, expect Williams to get a lot of rebounds due to the lack of a true power forward.

Andray Blatche, Washington Wizards
Blatche had an active summer in which he got arrested and followed that up by signing a new contract. If Blatche can keep his mind on improving his basketball game, this guy has tons of natural ability. He’s big enough to play power forward and quick enough to play small forward. If he gets consistent minutes this year, he’s a guy who could put up numbers across the board. For example, in Sunday’s preseason action, Blatche finished with ten points, five rebounds, four assists and two blocked shots.

Al Thornton, Los Angeles Clippers
Thornton is a rookie who is looking good in summer league. Against the Warriors, Thornton had a team-high 24 points in 27 minutes of action. He shot 11-for-15 from the field and also pulled down five rebounds. It’s unlikely that Thornton starts this season but he could carve out a role as a scorer off the bench for the Clippers.

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JJ Redick, Orlando Magic
Redick has had back to back solid games. In his last outing, Redick came off the bench for 19 points in 26 minutes. He nailed five of his six shots, including all three of this three-pointers. Redick isn’t going to give you much more than a scorer who can hit for a nice percentage, but he’s playing well and should see plenty of minutes this season.

Louis Williams, Philadelphia 76ers
Williams played exceedingly well during summer league and is also playing well in preseason. Williams has a similar skill set to that of Allen Iverson – meaning he’s a scoring, small shooting guard who can score from a lot of spots on the court. With 33 points on 12-for-18 shooting against the Nets on Friday, Williams has to be a candidate for a starting gig in Philly.

Jose Barea, Dallas Mavericks
Barea has had two solid outing in the Mavs’ first two preseason games. Barea is in the running to get a regular spot in the rotation, which would allow Jason Terry and Devin Harris to play off the ball a little more. On Friday, Barea had 17 points and five assists in a team-high 29 minutes.

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We’re starting to get an idea of players who are starting and who aren’t starting for their respective teams. This is important to note because perhaps the most important aspect of finding a quality sleeper is to make sure the player is actually going to play minutes.

Starting ensures a good amount of minutes, at least in theory.

Here’s a list of borderline fantasy basketball prospects who seem to be close to locking up a starting spot on their team based on Thursday’s preseason action:

• Andrea Bargnani, Raptors
• Marvin Williams, Hawks
• Antonio McDyess, Pistons
• Daniel Gibson, Cavaliers
• Stromile Swift, Grizzlies

Conversely, here’s a list of borderline fantasy basketball prospects who seem to be coming off the bench, at least to begin the season:

• Walter Herrmann, Bobcats
• Al Horford, Hawks
• Darko Milicic, Grizzlies
• Mike Conley, Jr., Grizzlies
• Steve Francis, Rockets

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Julian Wright, New Orleans Hornets
While all indications point to Wright coming off the bench for the Hornets, it’s hard to ignore what he’s doing in preseason. In Wednesday’s game against the Pacers, Wright had eight points, ten rebounds, four assists, two blocks and a steal in 26 minutes. So far in the preseason, Wright has 18 rebounds in 36 minutes of playing time. That’s very impressive, especially for a guy who should develop into a capable wing player. Keep an eye on him in redraft leagues, however it’s dynasty leagues where Wright looks to be a very good selection.

JJ Redick, Orlando Magic
The Magic seem to be giving Redick a chance to earn a starting spot in their rotation. So far, so good for Redick. Against the Bobcats, Redick started and scored 17 points while knocking down 5-of-8 three point attempts. While he’s never going to be a great defender, rebounder or assist man, Redick can flat out shoot the ball. If he starts and plays big minutes, he’s going to take and make a lot of three-pointers.

Ronnie Brewer, Utah Jazz
Brewer has been the talk of Utah’s training camp and that seemed to carry over into the first game of preseason. Brewer led the Jazz with 17 points, hitting 6-of-8 shots from the floor. Even more impressive, he scored those 17 points in 21 minutes. If Brewer continues to play at this level, he could easily win the starting shooting guard spot for the Jazz.

Martell Webster, Portland Trail Blazers
Webster has been a disappointment so far in his Portland career after being a high lottery pick. Perhaps that’s about to change after Webster had an outstanding first preseason game. He scored 28 points and connected on 11-of-14 shots from the field, including 4-for-6 on three-pointers. Webster is still only 20-year-old, so he has plenty of time to grow as a player. This game could be a springboard onto bigger and better days for Webster.

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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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Here’s a look at a player from each team that stood out:

Josh Smith, Atlanta Hawks – Smith finished with 22 points, 11 rebounds and two blocked shots in his preseason debut. What was really interesting is the Hawks started a small lineup with Smith and Marvin Williams at the forward positions. If that’s going to be the case going into the season, Smith could play minutes at power forward, which would help his rebounding and blocks stats. Smith is immensely talented and this performance did nothing but reinforce that notion.

Dwight Howard, Orlando Magic – With 30 points and 11 rebounds to go along with four blocks, Howard had a huge preseason opener. The 30 points is the number to be most impressed with because Howard can at times have trouble scoring. If he adds scoring to his repertoire, he’s going to be even more of a fantasy stud. However, the problem with Howard in the past has been turnovers, and his five turnovers didn’t do anything to reduce those fears.

Wilson Chandler, New York Knicks – While Chandler probably won’t get enough minutes to be considered in a redraft league, Chandler looks like a nice prospect for a keeper league. In his first game against NBA players, Chandler had nine points, six rebounds, two blocks, a steal and an assist in 19 minutes of action. Isiah Thomas has a history of drafting well and Chandler could very possibly be another steal.

Reggie Evans, Philadelphia 76ers – Evans started for the Sixers on Monday. That’s a good sign for fantasy owners looking for a guy who can rebound. Evans is a ferocious rebounder who could very well lead the league in rebounding if given enough minutes. The fact that he’s apparently in the mix to be a starter for Philly should bump up his fantasy stock.

Rodney Stuckey, Detroit Pistons – Stuckey was very impressive in his first action with the Pistons. He scored 15 points in 19 minutes, connecting on 5-of-7 shots from the field. Stuckey seems to have locked up a spot in the Pistons’ rotation, however he has a lot of competition for minutes. If he can carve out a niche where he plays 25 minutes a game, he could have a big rookie season.

Marcus Slaughter, Miami Heat – Slaughter led the Heat in scoring on Monday with 17 points. The Heat, who were playing without most of the best players, didn’t put up much of a fight against the Pistons. That said, Slaughter was still impressive. The 22-year-old Slaughter played in Europe last year and had a great season. The Heat have given him a shot and Slaughter should stick in Miami. He’s traveled a similar route to Udonis Haslem and is a similar type player.

Marcus Slaughter Mix …

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