Weekly Update: The Randolph Trade

Here is a point/counterpoint analysis of the Zach Randolph/Monta Ellis trade:

Ballbach:

I always thought one of the possible chinks in ATTIC's armor was Yao and the inevitable season ending injury that usually occurs in January/February. Marc didn't really have a backup center. Plus all of his guards are guards, none of them have G/F eligibility. So even with a healthy Monta Ellis, he'd probably end up benching either him or Udrih on days when most teams have a game.

So when you traded Randolph to him for a guy that just had screws removed from his ankle and is still a month away from returning, I couldn't understand why. You could have at least gotten Kevin Love in addition to Ellis, thus getting some sort of production, instead of Maxiell who was picked up off waivers a couple of days/weeks prior to the trade and has been virtually useless this season.

I guess the timing of the trade was my biggest problem. If it was made a month from now when their might be some actual visual evidence of Ellis being able to jump, then yeah, maybe it would make more sense. And I can also see the urgency on your side with concern to Randolph because he's in LA now and that is a crowded front court and his value could take a drastic dip if either Camby or Kaman aren't traded. I just thought you could have gotten more, you were in the driver's seat.

Bajorek:

I hear what your saying and can see how you'd be fired up on this trade but because I'm not doing anything else right now, allow me to give you a brief explanation of why I did it.

I think Ricky Bobby's father said it best, "If your not first, your last." Like Ricky himself, that saying has had a tremendous effect on my life and the reasoning behind most things I do. I would rather have two straight horrible seasons with 1 title than 3 consecutive years in 4th place. It's obvious that this isn't my year for any fantasy sports so I'm turning my focus to creating a roster of young kids with big upside and cheap contracts so I can keep as many of them in the off season as possible. Unfortunately I've only been able to make one trade but I'm very happy with it. I knock something like 6 bucks off the table and move one of my many big men for a young guard who has the talent to fill up the box scores on any day.

Like you said, I might have been in the drivers seat on this one and looking back on it, I should have tried to get a throw in prospect to give myself more depth. All I can really say is that Ellis has been on my radar for about a year now and I'm happy to get him just before he comes back from the injury/suspension rather than drafting him and having him on my bench for the first two months of the season. I believe I drafted Randolph in the same round as Ellis and consider those first few months with Randolph as a bonus. If Ellis has a good season when he does come back, good but that's not my real concern. The true test is if he can put up 2007-2008 stats next season and the years after that.

Ballbach:

I believe Ricky's father also coined the phrase, "It's the fastest that get paid, and the fastest that get laid"

In your anxiousness to get laid I think you lost sight of the fact that you probably could have made that same trade a month later, and thus could have enjoyed more "bonus" time with Zach. Or at the very least, you should have been compensated for having to be stuck with Ellis on your IR for at least a month (ie. An upgrade over Maxiell, or some D-Leaguer, or a pick, or something).

I respect the All or Nothing sentiment, but bailing on a season in the beginning of December, when it doesn't end until mid April seems a bit premature. But you have a game plan for the future, and as long as you are continuing to rotate your starters, I can't fault you for anything. I'm just happy you're enjoying the league so far.

Bajorek:

The only things I enjoy are sausage, warm Busch Light, and the Bears. Don't flatter yourself, this league blows.

Ballbach:

(After I cry uncontrollably for 20 minutes, the conversation ends).

*Bajorek's last line may or may not have been fabricated by the author.

Power of 40

Here are the top performances from December 8th through December 14th:

1. Stephen Curry (57) vs. Chattanooga
-41 points, 5 threes, 6 assists, 4 rebounds, and a steal.

2. Stephen Curry (51) vs. West Virginia
-27 points, 10 assists, 4 rebounds, 4 steals, 4 threes, and 2 blocks.

3. Jordan Hill (50) vs. San Diego St.
-25 points, 14 rebounds, 6 blocks, 4 assists, and a steal.

4. Luke Harangody (48) vs. Boston University
-23 points, 15 rebounds, 5 assists, and 5 blocks.

5. Blake Griffin (40) vs. Maine
-22 points, 10 rebounds, 3 assists, 3 blocks, and 2 steals.

6. Samardo Samuels (40) vs. Austin Peay
-21 points, 12 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 blocks, and 2 steals.

7. Tyler Hansbrough (40) vs. Oral Roberts
-26 points, 9 rebounds, 2 steals, 1 assist, 1 block, and a three.

8. Jack McClinton (40) vs. Robert Morris
-24 points, 9 rebounds, 4 assists, and 3 threes.

Weekly Update: Humpty's Dumpties

We Wear Short Shorts may or may not be getting too big for his britches as evidenced by his recent rant on the league home page warning others to be on the lookout for his suddenly aroused group of misfits. And sure, Jason's squad has made some noise of late, but relying on Baron Davis, Marcus Camby, Andrei Kirilenko, Tracy McGrady, and newly acquired head case Ron Artest to be healthy and productive at the same time is like asking the cast of Party of Five to reunite and be relevant again. The only problem is:

Baron Davis (Neve Campbell)- She used to be hot and is best known for her make out scene with Denise Richards in the movie Wild Things. But then Neve cut her hair real butch (Baron signing with the Clips) and hasn't been the same since. If only Mike Dunleavy would let them play ball.....and if only the injury prone Davis didn't just sign a fat contract....and if only he wasn't a 6'3'' guard who's game depends heavily on explosiveness (he's one more knee injury away from being Steve Francis), and if only he wasn't turning 30 at the end of the season. Did I mention he was a Clipper?

Andrei Kirilenko (Jennifer Love Hewitt)- She has big boobs and a skinny waist, AK47 has funny hair and a propensity for blocking shots. In the end though, neither of them are very interesting but continue to find work based on a diluted sense of potential. Both could shine brightly if put in the right situation though(Kirilenko- a team that has heavy minutes available for a defensive PF and Jennifer would look mighty nice in bed, aka, the pornography industry).

Marcus Camby (Matthew Fox)- Charlie Salinger was the eldest and tallest of the Salingers thus making him the center and leader of the parentless group of youngsters. But just as Charlie was diagnosed with cancer, so will Camby fall to yet another injury. He started the year wounded and will probably be on the shelf again. I actually like Camby so I won't keep harping on him. Camby's fantasy resurgence in Denver sort of parallels Matthew Fox's stint on Lost when you think about it.

Tracy McGrady (Scott Wolf)- Bailey was the Mac Daddy of all the character's on the show and his light shined the brightest. Some predicted he might be the next Scott Baio. He literally had thousands upon thousands of teenage girls lined up around the corner with sticky undercarriages just waiting to hand out their virginity in a fit of uncontrollable hormonal rage. And now? What has Mr. Wolf done lately? Both he and T-Mac have fallen so far off the radar it's damn near comical. In my humble opinion, McGrady is in the same class as the O'Neal brothers. Injury plagued has-beens who's contracts will kill your team.

Ron Artest (Lacey Chabert)- Ah, little Claudia. Nobody paid attention to you, nobody cared that you could play a musical instrument. Nobody cared about Ron Ron at St. John's, nobody hailed him as the next best thing. He spent a few years in Chicago on crappy teams with Elton Brand and didn't really receive mainstream attention until he got to Indiana (Mean Girls). Just like the smallest child in any family, Ron is always willing to puff his chest out and declare how great he is to anybody willing to listen. And speaking of puffing your chest out, Lacey, where did those come from? Hubba hubba.

I think Jason got Artest at a pretty reasonable price. I usually think of Gooden as more of a boner than a basketball player and with all the rebounders on We Wear Short Shorts, he was very expendable, probably to the point where Jason was thinking of dropping him. Chalmers is a nice young point guard but I'm not so sure the he and Gooden are enough for Artest. It's not a trade that should be subject to veto, not at all (Gooden is hauling in nearly 9 boards a game right now), just saying that I thought Artest would bring in a little more in a trade scenario. My trades could be subject to the same ridicule.

But Jason, I sincerely hope you were kidding when you briefly raved about your D-League squad in your Not So Fast speech. I was the one who drafted Chalmers for you and I only threw you that bone because I felt sorry for drafting the great honkey duo of Hansbrough and Harangody after you bailed on the draft. Then after given an extra week to prepare for the final 4 rounds, you go ahead and draft Yue Sun, Marco Belinelli, and Tiago Splitter. The only thing I'll give you credit for is drafting Spencer Hawes because that guy is a stone pimp.

I don't mean to rag on your team alone, the five guys mentioned above are all good players, I just wouldn't be able to sleep at night knowing they were all on my roster. But what I do intend on doing, is lambasting the ridiculous Zach Randolph trade.....which will happen in next week's update. Until then, keep on trucking.

Power of 40

Here are some of the top performances from December 1st through December 7th:

1. Stephen Curry (56) vs. N.C. State
-44 points, 4 threes, 3 assists, 3 steals, and 2 rebounds.

2. Sam Young (47) vs. Vermont
-28 points, 9 rebounds, 3 assists, 3 steals, 2 blocks, and 2 threes.

3. Gani Lawal (46) vs. Penn State
-34 points, 10 rebounds, 1 assist, and a block.

4. Luke Harangody (45) vs. Ohio State
-25 points, 16 rebounds, 2 steals, an assist, and a block.

5. Patrick Patterson (44) vs. Miami
-19 points, 16 rebounds, 4 assists, 2 steals, and 3 blocks.

6. Hasheem Thabeet (44) vs. Buffalo
-21 points, 18 rebounds, 1 assist, and 4 blocks.

7. Lester Hudson (43) vs. Morehead St.
-24 points, 10 rebounds, 3 assists, 3 threes, 2 steals, and a block.

8. Earl Clark (42) vs. Ohio
-17 points, 14 rebounds, 8 assists, 2 blocks, and a three.

9. Jeff Teague (41) vs. Bucknell
-26 points, 5 rebounds, 4 assists, 4 threes, and 2 steals.

10. James Harden (40) vs. Jackson St.
-22 points, 8 rebounds, 4 assists, 4 threes, and 2 steals.

(And in a very non-Power of 40 fashion, Tyler Smith of Tennessee recorded a triple-double against N.C. Asheville by posting a line of 12 points, 10 rebounds, and 10 assists)

Power of 40

Here are some of the top performances from November 24th through November 30th:

1. James Harden (58) vs. UTEP
-40 points, 6 threes, 8 rebounds, and 4 assists.

2. Patrick Patterson (53) vs. Longwood
-28 points, 12 rebounds, 6 assists, 4 blocks, and 3 steals.

3. Stephen Curry (53) vs. Florida Atlantic
-39 points, 5 threes, 4 rebounds, 4 assists, and a block.

4. Blake Griffin (51) vs. UAB
-32 points, 15 rebounds, 3 assists, and a steal.

5. James Harden (51) vs. Baylor
-32 points, 4 threes, 9 rebounds, 3 assists, and 3 steals.

6. Luke Harangody (47) vs. Texas
-29 points, 13 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 steal, 1 block, and a three.

7. Blake Griffin (46) vs. Purdue
-18 points, 21 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 steals, and 2 blocks.

8. Sam Young (45) vs. Belmont
-33 points, 7 rebounds, 2 steals, 2 threes, and 1 assist.

9. Jeff Teague (43) vs. UTEP
-29 points, 6 assists, 3 rebounds, 2 blocks, 2 threes, and a steal.

10. Ty Lawson (42) vs. Notre Dame
-22 points, 11 assists, 6 rebounds, 2 steals, and a three.

11. Tyler Hansbrough (42) vs. Notre Dame
-34 points, 5 rebounds, 2 blocks, and a three.

12. Lester Hudson (41) vs. Arkansas St.
-23 points, 5 threes, 7 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 steals, and 2 blocks.

13. Ty Lawson (40) vs. N.C. Asheville
-22 points, 8 assists, 5 steals, 3 rebounds, and 2 threes.

Week 5 Review

Recently, Jason was wondering about our league's system for ranking players. To help further illustrate how a typical player rater works in fantasy leagues using rotisserie scoring, here's a clip from Seth Landman article on ESPN.com:

"Many of you wonder why the player rater is based on stat totals and not averages. The rationale here is that standard fantasy basketball leagues are played in a roto format. As you are no doubt aware, in roto leagues, the standings are based on where your team finishes relative to the league in each category. With the exception of the shooting-percentage categories, roto scoring is based on the accumulation of totals.
For example, a player who averages 17 points per game over 82 games is worth almost exactly the same as a player who averages 23 points per game over 60 games. The player who averages 17 points is probably a pretty good scorer, maybe the second- or third-best on his team. The player who averages 23 points is probably an All-Star. Either way, over the course of the whole season, each player provided your team with basically the same number of points.

What this means is that the player rater is focused on what has happened previously. It tells us which players have been the most valuable fantasy entities overall (and in each category) over the course of the season. This is one piece of useful information for fantasy players.

Of course, there are many more useful pieces of info out there. Fantasy basketball is fun because it is about predicting what players will do tomorrow and each subsequent day after that. We always use past performance as a basis on which to make our speculations about what is about to happen.
Just as we need to temper our enthusiasm about the player who has been just an average performer but is ranked fifth overall three games into the season because everyone else has played two, we also need to put into context the player who puts up gaudy averages in a tiny sample of games.

At the end of the season, the Player Rater, more than any other tool, will provide us with a clear picture of which players actually went out and had the best fantasy seasons for us. The usefulness of this information is, of course, up for debate, but so is all information we receive. If there were a perfect way of judging who the best fantasy player will be from today through the rest of the season, there would be no point in playing fantasy. Let's just be glad we still get to argue about the relative value of all the tools at our disposal; it's one of the conversations that makes sports great.

As for the current Player Rater, each team has now played at least 14 games, so we're starting to see the stats reflect the truth a bit more each day. Still, in case you haven't counted, Sacramento and Milwaukee are the two teams who have played the most games with 19. Clearly, there's still a range here, so when you see Spencer Hawes and John Salmons of the Kings continuing to hover in the top 20 overall, make sure you supplement that piece of knowledge with a healthy bit of skepticism."

Hopefully that helps clarify things.

There hasn't been a lot of movement in the standings over the past couple of weeks but that's not from a lack of effort. There has been over $100 worth of transactions made already and the season is only one month young. Everyone appears to be actively setting their lineups and the trade chatter remains strong. Although, we are still looking for our first non-commissioner involved trade. This past week the Cagers completed their 3rd trade of the season when they shipped center Brad Miller to Arlie's Hogs in exchange for Randy Foye. With Josh Boone and Andrew Bogut on the shelf due to injury, the Hogs were without a center and the Cagers were happy to help out. After shipping LeBron, Devin Harris, Mike Conley, and Mike Miller out of town via trade, the Cagers were looking for some assist help at the guard position, and the deal was born. Also on the trade front.......

How do all the naysayers like the Nowitzki trade now??? Where are all the torches and pitchforks and sour pusses? Is the 25.3 points and 6.4 assists per game from Harris enough for you all??? For those of you who flapped your trap without thinking first, you owe Pete Lunchbox a huge apology. Alright, perhaps that's a bit dramatic, but you get my point. Harris is awesome.

We're also starting to see some of the injured ducks return to action. Deron Williams, Tony Parker, Manu Ginobili, Jason Richardson, and Michael Redd have all seen playing time in recent days and can be used by their respective owners once again.

So far this season, four players have been elevated from the D-League ranks to NBA fantasy squads. We Wear Short Shorts brought up Spencer Hawes and Mario Chalmers while ATTIC promoted Ramon Sessions and D.J. Augustin. Hawes and Sessions were no brainers since they were productive 2nd year players who wouldn't be eligible for the D-League in 2009, but Chalmers and Augustin are rookies who could have been carried over into next season without salary cap ramifications had they remained on the D-League squad. All four players are currently sitting in the top 100 on the player rater so as long as Chalmers and Augustin keep playing at that level it will help justify the early promotion. And so far, those two haven't done anything to suggest they weren't worth the call up. But when the dollars get tight in the off season and everyone's trying to keep as many players as possible heading into 2009, there might not be enough room on the NBA roster for the two talented point guards. Time will tell.

Trivia question: Who is the only franchise in the league to retain all 12 original draft picks?

Answer: The Miller Lite Muff Drivers (now that's loving what your cooking)

Open Letter to ATTIC

Marc, unfortunately for you, the championship won't be determined by who has the longest arm pit hairs. If it was, I could understand the giddy Rob Deer posting.

Little do you know, about the cancer you are undertaking. Sources close to the Cagers have reported that James routinely took exception to being benched on days he didn't have a game. James thought his name brand recognition alone would carry the Cagers to first place and he didn't think it was necessary to "give minutes" to the likes of Thaddeus Young and Jordan Farmar.

Things got even worse when German native Dirk Nowitzki was brought aboard to help the team. James couldn't deal with the fact that Dirk was taller, didn't have tattoos, and refused to wear a headband. James tried to convince other white players on the team that Nowitzki was a Pansie and that they shouldn't pass him the ball. Brad Miller and Marc Gasol recall numerous occasions in which LeBron would belittle Dirk behind his back, making claims that the German forward smelled like cabbage and that his German national team was a joke (alright, that one is true). James also was the one who went to general manager Andy Ballbach in the first place to force him into trading away David Lee and Mike Miller for reasons that should be obvious by now. And when Ballbach brought in Dirk just to spite LeBron, that was the straw that broke the royal camel's back.

Reports also went on to say that LeBron, after hearing that Kirk Hinrich would be out for 3 months with a thumb injury (and subsequently released from the team), pooled together 20 members of his posse to urinate on the front lawn of Hinrich's 12 acre estate. A move best described as classless and kind of funny, but still classless. The posse then rented out a Chuck E' Cheese and played Whack a Mole until 3am while young children peered through the front window with quivered lips and a broken heart.

For Ballbach, it was the little things that started adding up. LeBron was more worried about late night commercial shootings or conference calls with Japanese business powers than he was with correcting his poor free throw percentage or correcting his duck-like walk with his toes pointed outward. The racial tensions were just too high and LeBron had to go. One has to wonder how LeBron will mesh with new teammates Yao Ming, Mike Dunleavy, Kevin Love, Beno Udrih, and to a lesser extent, Jason Kidd. How will they co-exist?

The season is young and everyone still has a chance for championship glory. And the Cagers for one, are very excited about what the Big Gay Al era has in store for them. And with the racial issues now put aside, Dirk is free to whip up delicious batches of chocolate cake, potato salad, and apple strudel for all to enjoy without the fear of ridicule. The chemistry is as good as it's ever been and everyone is focused on the same goal, winning the championship that has apparently already been won.

Power of 40

Here are some of the top performances from the past week:

1. a) Stephen Curry vs. James Madison (52), Oklahoma (58), and Winthrop (53)
-He averaged 35.7 points, 5 threes, 8.3 assists, 3 steals, and 2.3 rebounds a game.

b) Blake Griffin vs. Mississippi Valley St. (47), Davidson (50), and Gardner-Webb (66)
-He averaged 26.7 points, 20.3 rebounds, 3.3 assists, and 3.3 steals a game.

2. James Harden (50) vs. Pepperdine
-33 points, 12 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 steals, and a three.

3. Lester Hudson (47) vs. Elon
-29 points, 7 rebounds, 6 assists, 3 steals, a block, and a three.

4. Jeff Teague (45) vs. N.C. Wilmington
-31 points, 5 rebounds, 5 steals, 2 assists, and 2 threes.

5. a) Luke Harangody (44) vs. Loyola Marymount
-27 points and 17 rebounds

b) Patrick Mills (44) vs. Fresno St.
-27 points, 6 steals, 5 assists, 4 threes, and 2 rebounds.

6. Gani Lawal (43) vs. Mercer
-27 points, 9 rebounds, 3 blocks, 3 steals, and an assist.

7. Hasheem Thabeet (42) vs. Miami
-19 points, 14 rebounds, 7 blocks, 1 assist, and 1 steal.

8. Chase Budinger (41) vs. UAB
-27 points, 6 rebounds, 4 threes, 3 assists, and a block.

Week 4 Review

There weren't any major questions posted this week in terms of the rule book. Trades were the clear/cut topic of the week, as the league saw it's first two trades executed, both of which involved first rounders.

Trade number one:

Cousy's Cagers trade Devin Harris, Mike Miller, David Lee, Mike Conley, and a 1st round pick

to

Handsome City Inc. for Dirk Nowitzki and Anthony Parker

I wasn't specifically targeting Nowitzki but I had been throwing out 2 for 1 offers to a few owners in hopes of freeing up space to sign Ray Allen and his sweet ass jump shot. I had the most cap space at the time and was one trade away from being able to sign Allen, so when Handsome City asked me what it would take to get Devin Harris, I made him an offer. Whether you thought it was a fair deal or not, you can't argue that this was a completely lopsided trade, worthy of being vetoed on first sight. Perhaps under a different format, this trade wouldn't be as acceptable but you have to remember that Harris is a young point guard on the rise who is under contract for the next 5 years, a contract that never exceeds $10 million in any one of those seasons. Where as Nowitzki's contract will be $20 million in 2009 and $22 million in 2010. There's no way I'll be able to keep both Paul Pierce and Nowitzki next year when they would be taking up $40 million of my payroll (nearly 2/3 of the estimated $62 million off season cap). Now I'm not going to act like I wasn't happy to be getting a player of Nowitzki's stature, but the acquisition did force my hand into making deal number two:

Trade two:

Cousy's Cagers trade LeBron James, JaVale McGee, and a 4th round pick

to

ATTIC for Al Jefferson, Rudy Gay, and Ramon Sessions.

While I did accomplish my goal of signing Ray Allen via the Nowitzki trade, it did come at a price. Allen's $18 million contract put my team nearly flat up against the cap with little room to maneuver. I no longer had 12 guys on my team that I felt were worthy of consistent playing time and I wanted some roster flexibility back in my life. I had Jefferson and Gay tabbed as 2nd rounders coming into the draft and they're two players I've coveted for sometime now. I'm happy to have them and Sessions on board and hopefully this trade works out for both sides. ATTIC should have Monta Ellis and Mike Dunleavy returning from injury sometime within the next weeks/month and has D-League standouts, D.J. Augustin & Jason Thompson, waiting in the wings to take a roster spot as well, so trading away quantity for the best player in the league probably wasn't that hard to do.

On a lighter note.....

The Bucks had an all you can eat hot dogs, nachos, popcorn, and soda promotion on Friday night. Dan (Zephyrs), Adam (minority owner of Arlie's Hogs) and myself attended the Bucks/Knicks game and we all got our money's worth by night's end. My final boxscore read: 5 hot dogs, 2 nachos, 2 popcorns, and 2 sodas while Dan piled home 6 dogs of his own. Adam showed some surprising restraint and his stat line is not even worth putting into print. The Bucks came away with the victory against the shorthanded Knicks by the score of 104-87.

And in a stroke of pure genius, Todd (Arlie's Hogs majority owner and GM) had McGinn's sports bar customize him a grilled cheese burger on Saturday night. He opted to go with Swiss in one cheese sandwich and cheddar in the other. When the waitress first brought it out, it looked like the bread wasn't flat enough and I figured the taste of bread would dominate the sandwich. But I was way off. The burger patty itself was the perfect size, not too thick where it starts tasting like a hunk of meatloaf and not too thin where it could get lost in the crowd. The bread wasn't flattened too aggressively and not overly greasy. Each bite was like chomping into a cheesy cloud of bliss, soft and buttery. Pickle chips and ketchup were the only other ingredients added to this hand held heart attack, I may have opted for lettuce and tomato as well, but it was delicious as presented. It took me back to when I tried stuffed crust pizza for the first time, I knew regular burgers would never be the same for me again. It didn't take a lot of arm twisting to get the waitress to ask the cook if this concoction could be whipped up and they only charged $9 and some change for the wonder burger and some fries. Quite a deal since a grilled cheese alone went for 4 or 5 dollars and a burger alone was 7 or 8 dollars.

Junk food and basketball, a great combo for fantasy owners, a deadly combo for athletes. Good thing I'm not an athlete. Until next week, this is your wheelin' and dealin' commish signing off wishing you and yours a Happy Thanksgiving.

The Power of 40

Every Monday I will try to highlight some of the top performances of players from our D-League rosters. Taking a page from Bill Simmons, a performance will be considered noteworthy if a player meets or exceeds a total of 40 in combined points, rebounds, assists, steals, blocks, and threes. I believe the Sports Guy's benchmark of 40 only includes points, rebounds, and assists but I'm expanding on his idea so more players can be included.

With that said, here are some of the top performances from the past week:

1) Stephen Curry (55) vs. Guilford
-29 points, 10 assists, 9 steals, 3 rebounds, 3 threes, and a block.

2) Lester Hudson (53) vs. Maryville
-27 points, 8 steals, 7 assists, 7 rebounds, and 4 threes.

3) Luke Harangody (47) vs. South Carolina Upstate
-30 points, 14 rebounds, 1 steal, 1 assist, and a three pointer.

4) Hasheem Thabeet (46) vs. Western Carolina
-23 points, 17 rebounds, 5 blocks, and a steal.

5) Blake Griffin (46) vs. American
-24 points, 18 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 steal, 1 block, and a three pointer.

6) Yi Jianlian (44) vs. Miami Heat
-24 points, 10 rebounds, 5 threes, 4 assists, and a block.

7) James Harden (40) vs. Mississippi Valley State
-24 points, 10 assists, 3 rebounds, and 3 steals.

If you don't know who owns which players, then I suggest taking a look at the league's spreadsheet to get yourself up to date.

Week 3 Review

This past week, Jon Kison asked:

Is there a certain amount of time a player must be on your roster before he is considered keeper eligible?

The answer is:

There is no set number of days or games a player has to exceed while on your roster to be considered keeper eligible. A player could be signed on the last day of the season and as long as they meet the contract/salary guidelines for being keeper eligible, they can be kept.

That is why transactions are $5 a piece during the final two months of the season, to discourage owners from hoarding players that would otherwise be eligible for next season's D-League or NBA draft.

And as a reminder:

On the "league home" tab of the homepage there is a "calendar" option which lists the daily roster deadlines for each day of the season. By definition, the roster deadline is a half hour before the tip off of the first game of the day.

I mention this because Jason sent me a message on Saturday, November 15th at 5:58pm CST requesting to have Marcus Camby, Baron Davis, Andrei Kirilenko, and Drew Gooden inserted into his lineup. I did not see this message until Sunday and eventually told Jason I could retroactively start Kirilenko and Gooden but not Camby and Davis since the Clippers/Warriors game started at 12:30pm PST on Saturday. By the time Jason submitted his request, that Clippers/Warriors game was probably already finished, which is an honest mistake since most west coast games don't start until 9pm CST.

So for future reference, if you have any post deadline roster changes that need to be made, I will activate/reserve the players involved:

a) As long as the game of the players being activated or reserved hasn't started yet.

b) I will not sub in players who have yet to play, for players in your starting lineup that had a game but did not play due to injury.

c) I will not execute any retroactive add/drops for owners after the deadline has passed.

Since we as owners are allowed to set our lineups nearly a week in advance, I'm anticipating this shouldn't be a common occurrence, but in the rare instance such a request is submitted to the commissioner, these are the guidelines I will and have been basing my decisions on.

Keep up the excellent work and until next week, this is your commissioner signing off.

P.S. I was hoping Matt Kroening would take me up on my suggestion of changing his team name from Failing Farmers to Farming the Fallopian Tubes, but he settled on Farming for Fattys. While I'm glad he decided on the name change, I'm not very confident that he made the right decision. What we can all agree on is how disgusting his new team logo is, unless you're into that kind of thing, then it's probably somewhat arousing.