ETB’s 2008-09 Fantasy Basketball Rankings Bazaar, Vol. 1, Issue 4 - Hoopsters 61-80

- The Season's Over -

ETB’s 2008-09 Fantasy Basketball Rankings Bazaar, Vol. 1, Issue 4 - Hoopsters 61-80

October 16, 2008

Andrei Kirilenko Can Check the Best of Them

Andrei Kirilenko and Kobe Bryant Photo Credit: Icon SMI

61 Andrei Kirilenko, Utah, F: The potential for fantasy dominance is obvious. Unfortunately, Kirilenko has had trouble playing to his own strengths and staying in Coach Sloan’s good graces over the last two seasons so it’s easy to forget he was a first-round pick not long ago. Andrei still managed to finish among the top 50 in fantasy last season, and you won’t find anybody in the league who can match his five-cat contributions when AK-47 is on his game. I’m willing to gamble here.

62 Andrew Bogut, Mil, C: Bogut came into his own as a center in 2007-08, improving markedly in points, rebounds and blocks. The 1.7 blocks a game were more than triple what he put up in 2006-07, and at 23 years of age there’s still plenty of room for improvement. If you miss out on the big guns, Bogut is a capable top center.

63 T.J. Ford, Ind, PG: You have to gameplan for TJ’s deficiencies, but he’s one of the last players on the board with a legitimate chance at double-digit assists. There’s no reason Ford can’t log heavy minutes and dominate the ball in Indiana, and they have some scorers who can finish. Turnovers are still an issue, but the FG% made a huge leap last season.

64 Peja Stojakovic, NO, SF: Peja is a major gamble given the ongoing health problems, but the guy can fill it up when he’s on. He won’t do much for you in the steals, blocks or assists categories but the three-pointers are elite and the man averaged less than 1 turnover a game last season.

65 Chris Kaman, LAC, C: With Elton Brand out of town there’s no reason to think Kaman won’t get plenty of chances on offense. After a blazing start to last season he really fell off after the All Star break last season though, and it remains to be seen how he will play with Camby - they’ll be competing for blocks and boards every night.

66 Tracy McGrady, Hou, G/F: I felt compelled to rank T-Mac in the top 70, but there’s absolutely no way I’m touching him this season. He’s already got a laundry list of ailments. It’s jut not worth it, let his ongoing injury melodrama be somebody else’s problem to deal with all season.

67 Tyson Chandler, NO, C: The 1.5 blocks were OK, but I’d like to see a few more from such an offensively challenged player. That said, he has a good shot at being among the league leaders in rebounds and FG% once again. The Paul-to-Chandley oop is one of the prettiest plays in basketball.

68 Samuel Dalembert, Phi, C: Count me among Bert’s supporters. A late comer to the basketball scene, his fundamentals and footwork get better every year. With Brand drawing doubles Dalembert should be open often, but he may lose some rebounds to Brand as well.

69 Jason Terry, Dal, G: I don’t see how Jason Terry comes off the bench all season, he’s just too good. Even if he does, the all-around efficiency is a thing of beauty to fantasy owners. We’d like to see the points, assists and minutes return to 2006-07 form, but only 1.1 turnover a game and 85.7% FTs helped balance that out.

70 Charlie Villanueva, Mil, F: This is an aggressive ranking for a 26-year-old who didn’t finish in the top 150 last season, but we expect a breakout year from Charlie V this season. He’s going to be given plenty of minutes, and the man produces fantasy lines when given the opportunity. Decent points and boards with a few blocks, a few threes, a few steals and low turnovers - call him Sheed Light.

Hoopsters 71-80 after the jump…

71 Tony Parker, SA, PG: Expect Mr. Longoria to see an increased role on offense while Ginobili recovers, but that FT% can be brutal from your point. If you’re booting FTs, then you might be able to bump Parker up 10-15 spots. His greatest asset as a PG has been decent assists and points with a very strong FG%, but his shooting from the field has gotten worse each of the last two seasons.

72 Ray Allen, Bos, SG: Ray Allen was nothing like his former self last season, but he still managed a decent campaign all things considered. I expect him to take another step back this season though, in terms of minutes and health. The guy is 33, and that’s when players break down. Maybe he will and maybe he won’t, but do you want to be holding the bag if he does?

73 Manu Ginobili, SA, SG: Manu’s talent and production clearly warrant a much higher ranking than this, but I’m not convinced he’ll be the same for a while. It’s the type of injury that lingers, and even optimistic projections don’t have him returning before mid-December.

74 Richard Hamilton, Det, SG: Hamilton’s contributions are all about filling it up on extremely good percentages. As a guard, you can use that to excellent effect in H2H play. The lack of threes is annoying from your SG, but the increasing assist totals are a welcome sight.

75 David Lee, NY, PF/C: I’ve got a feeling Lee will fit in nicely with Mike D’Antoni’s offense. The FG% guru should see plenty of playing time with Randolph on the block and Curry too fat to be effective. The center eligibility is a real treat for a guy who can shoot over 80% FTs and doesn’t turn the ball over.

76 Leandro Barbosa, Pho, G: A good source of threes, points and steals on strong percentages in hard to come by this late. D’Antoni is gone, but that might mean an expanded role for the younger Barbosa. There’s upside here too: if Nash were to go down The Brazilian Blur would become an elite fantasy contributor.

77 Stephen Jackson, GS, G/F: The three-pointers and steals are great and the scoring will be there too with Monta on the sidelines. Still, I just have to own a guy who shoots a lot and hovers around 40% FGs with nearly 3 turnovers a game. It takes a lot of work elsewhere to make up for that. Jackson is another player I felt compelled to rank this high, but won’t be touching.

78 Jermaine O’Neal, Tor, PF/C: Are you getting the former MVP candidate finally healthy and rejuvenated in new surroundings? Or are you getting a broken down has been who can’t shoot and turns the ball over? It’s your call, but he might be worth the gamble at this point.

79 Al Horford, Atl, PF/C: We’re Al Horford fans at ETB. He’s the kind of tough inside presence the Hawks needed, and as a rookie proved he can be a double-double machine in this league. The blocks and steals need to make a dramatic improvement, and I think they will in his sophomore campaign.

80 Mehmet Okur, Uta, SF: Memo is as mercurial as they come, but has gotten consistently worse across the board the last two seasons. You never know when he’s going to drain ‘em from downtown or kill your FG% or bang for some boards or camp out in the corner. He reportedly showed up to camp in great shape, so hopefully that goes a long way towards improving his consistency.