Empty the Bench

Lamar Odom, Los Angeles Lakers

There’s obviously one big reason why the Lakers haven’t fallen off a cliff following the injuries to Andrew Bynum and Pau Gasol (hint: his first name rhymes with the first name of a famous Jedi), but Odom has been the unsung hero of the Lake Show’s continued success. The knock on Odom has always been that he’s too passive, too unwilling to assert himself on the court despite his rare combination of size and skills that should allow him to dominate on most nights. Lately, however, he’s been nothing short of an absolute force on both ends of the floor, especially on the glass. On the season, the 6-10 Odom is averaging a career-best 10.5 boards/per, a number that has been positively impacted by a stretch in which he’s pulled down at least 10 rebounds in 22 of the past 26 games. This includes 22 last night against Golden State (and oh, by the way, he also tacked on 19 points, 4 assists, 2 steals, and 4 blocks). Odom now has a streak going of six straight double-doubles.

Drew Gooden, Chicago Bulls

Though half of his teammates are lining up to buy the first ticket out of town this summer, Gooden seems to have taken a liking to the Windy City. Since joining the Baby Bad Bulls in the trade deadline deal that sent Ben Wallace to Cleveland, the six-year vet (it seems like he’s been around a lot longer than that, doesn’t it?) has put up some of the best averages of his career over his first 15 games with his new team. Despite the constant meddling of the team’s rotation by interim coach Jim Boylan (or perhaps because of it), Gooden is logging the most minutes (a shade under 32/per) he ever has, and his per-game averages of 14 points, 9.1 boards, 1.5 blocks, 1.7 assists, and 47% FG are all marked improvements on his stats in Cleveland. It’s not necessarily translating to team wins, though—the Bulls are 5-10 during this stretch.

Five more players patting their fantasy owners on the back after the break…

Danny Granger, Indiana Pacers

Despite their recent four-game winning streak and an outside chance at worming their way into the Eastern Conference playoffs, the Pacers suck, okay? That said, there’s actually quite a few players on the roster that are getting ‘er done. Regular ETB readers know we’re big fans of third-year stud Danny Granger, who’s been filling the stat sheets up all year but especially since the calendar flipped to March. “Rangy Granger” has scored in double digits in all 10 games he’s dressed for (he sat one out), averaging 21.9 points thus far; that currently stands as his best scoring month of the season. He’s also blocked at least 1 shot in all but two games and is averaging a touch under 2 steals/per. He’ll need to keep it up for the Pacers to continue entertaining playoff hopes because, as I said, they kind of suck.

Antawn Jamison, Washington Wizards

I don’t want to hear about Gilbert Arenas anymore in conversations about the Wizards. He’s been more of a distraction than anything else this season (especially lately), and if I have to listen to him pontificate once more about how proud he is of his teammates for staying afloat despite his injury, I’m going to throw up. Here goes: Washington’s 36-33 record would not be all that much different than it is now even if Arenas had missed just a few games, not 51. And it would be worse if his position was reversed with Caron Butler, who is much more valuable to this team overall. While the Wiz could certainly use Arenas’ late-game heroics and volume scoring (at times), the fact is that they are a better defensive team, a less selfish team, and more of a team period with Gilbert not on the floor. And that’s why Washington would be wise to spend all that money saved up for resigning him this summer elsewhere… but that’s for another post.

See, here I am trying to write about the unheralded high level of play from Antawn Jamison and he’s pushed back to the second paragraph because of his outspoken teammate. I’ll give Arenas one thing: he certainly demands attention. But, anyway, Jamison: he leads the Wiz in scoring (21.8), rebounding (10.4), and steals (1.3), with that latter stat aided by a running 22-game streak of at least 1 swipe. He’s had 6 steals twice in that span. Prior to Sunday night’s win over the listless Pistons, when he went 0-3 from behind the arc, Jamison was hitting 2.3 longballs/per. That’s a big reason why the Wiz are 8-3 since March 1, why they’ve risen to 5th in the Eastern Conference standings, and why Arenas’ continued absence isn’t as big of a deal as Arenas says it is.

Antonio McDyess, Detroit Pistons

His silky shooting touch hasn’t been there, but Dice has taken it upon himself to carry the rebounding load for the Pistons. I already touched on it last month, but since then he hasn’t simply kept up his torrid pace, he’s exceeded it, with 10+ in six of the last seven games including 17 (11 offensive) on March 14 against the San Antonio Spurs. His fantasy owners can’t be pleased with the 7 points/per and sub-.500 shooting, but some of that has to do with his teammates not setting him up as much in the sweet spots he’s comfortable in. McDyess gets in an offensive groove when he sets a pick either on the wing or at the top of the key, then pops open on the switch for a clear look at the basket. Lately, he’s been either ignored more than usual (realistically, he is the fifth option amongst Detroit’s starters) or given the ball in an uncomfortable position. Coach Flip Saunders says he’s aware of it and that it will be addressed; if that does get corrected, fantasy owners might be looking at a 10 and 10 guy for their playoff run.

Al Jefferson, Minnesota Timberwolves

Big Al gets a lot of love at ETB. His moves in the post mesmerize, his work ethic impresses, and his defense… well, his defense is going to get better over time and we have the stats to prove it. Understand that just because a player racks up blocked shots it doesn’t necessarily mean he’s playing shutdown defense or become a help-defender extraordinaire (cough, Amare Stoudemire, cough). But when Jefferson, who has never averaged more than about 1.5 blocks over the course of an entire season, goes on a binge like this, we can’t help but notice and take it as an encouraging sign that the young man’s overall game continues to grow. Over the T’Wolves last eight, their new franchise player is averaging 2.25 blocks and has rejected 4 shots in two of the past four. Five of the team’s 18 wins have come during this stretch despite his 19.5 points/per in March being the lowest scoring month all year. That says something, I think, about the Wolves needing him to become a more consistent shot-blocker.

Troy Murphy, Indiana Pacers

That’s right, two of these seven players are Pacers—don’t ever accuse of us not having pity on those less fortunate in the NBA. We thought the dopey 6-11 Murphy had left his across-the-board contributions in Golden State, but after an injury-riddled 2006-07 season he’s come on nicely and again become a valuable asset in fantasy hoops. Sporting that lovable “PF/C” tag that seems more common than ever this fantasy season, Murph is averaging at least 1 three-pointer for the first time in his seven-year career and has equaled his career-best of 2.3 assists/per. He’s put up at least 11 points in 24 of his past 25 games, and over his last seven he’s just been nutty: 18.3 points, 9.9 boards, 2.9 assists, and 50% FG. Eat your heart out, Chris Bosh.

Tags: Lamar Odom, Danny Granger, Al Jefferson, Antonio McDyess