Fantasy NBA: The Corey Brewer All Stars

Named after the legendary Corey Brewer, the players below are not studs by any means, nor are they worthy of individual awards. These players specialize in one category and one category only. In this exercise, I’m going to highlight players you could have found later in your draft or on the waiver wire that specialize in only one category. If you have deep rosters, then the players below have been valuable to your team in the season’s first half. Rostering these players going forward should keep you in the race. Most should be affordable as I tried to highlight players outside the pre-season top 100 (per Yahoo!).

Points: Michael Beasley SF/PF, Minnesota Timberwolves (Preseason Rank 112)

All Beasley was a change of scenery. And a crappy team with just one other star (Kevin Love). Beasley scores a ton, averaging 20.3 PPG, but he does contribute in areas, just not extremely well. Nick Young would be another player (PR of 249) who primarily scores and is probably a better example, but he’s averaging "only" 17.3 PPG due to inconsistent playing time. Young has really turned it on as of late, and all he does is score. Seriously, check out the Wizards’ box scores – nothing else but points.

More of the Corey Brewer All Stars after the jump...

Rebounds: Kris Humphries PF, New Jersey Nets (PR 251)

Humphries has done a pretty impressive job of duplicating Troy Murphy’s numbers on the defensive side of the ball. Mr. Kim Kardashian is 9^th in the league in rebounds per game (9.2), and more than likely could have been found on your waiver wire. Unfortunately rebounding is the only thing he does remarkably well as he averages more RPG than PPG. I wanted to include Blake Griffin here since he was relatively cheap in drafts, but he’s been a fantasy monster (outside of Free Throw Percentage) in all aspects of the game.

Assists: Jose Calderon PG, Toronto Raptors (PR 103)

From an assist perspective, Calderon is back. For those of you who rostered Calderon in the 2008-2009 season, you may remember he carried your team in assists and FT% with 8.9 and 98.1%, respectively. His 98.1% FT mark is the NBA’s ALL-TIME RECORD! Unfortunately the high expectations led to Calderon being a top pick the subsequent season, and he flat-out disappointed his owners. The legendary Jarrett Jack split time with Calderon, creating a messy situation in Toronto. The good news is Calderon was a cheap pick this season and Jack’s departure helped generate more minutes for Jose. Averaging 8.5 APG on the year (good for 7^th in the league), Calderon has not contributed much elsewhere. Where’s the 98.1 FT% shooter we once knew?

Blocks: Serge Ibaka PF/C, Oklahoma City Thunder (PR 132) & Darko Milicic PF/C, Minnesota Timberwolves (PR 133)

These similarly ranked players are grouped together as they are putting up eerily similar numbers to one another and go seemingly unnoticed in fantasy circles. Fantasy owners love to chase the high scoring types, and Ibaka and Milicic are allergic to scoring (both players average under 10 PPG). Although Ibaka is averaging more rebounds than Darko, shouldn’t a 6’10" behemoth with his athletic ability be averaging more than 6.9 RPG? Milicic averages 2.3 BPG, good for 3^rd in the NBA. It’s good that the former first-round bust is finally contributing somewhere.

Steals: Corey Brewer SG/SF, Minnesota Timberwolves (PR 167)

Mike Conley and Kyle Lowry could have been decent additions in this category, but both players are averaging over 6 APG, thus contributing in other categories. Besides I couldn't exclude Brewer from his own all star team! Brewer has developed a rep for being a thief as he does absolutely nothing else remotely well. The guy can’t score, he can’t shoot (career-low 37.4 FG%), doesn’t rebound or pass the ball and rarely blocks shots. Brewer is 8^th in the NBA in swipes and at the bottom of the league in everything else. I kid, I kid.

Three-Pointers Made: Mike Bibby PG, Atlanta Hawks (PR 171)

There was a day when Bibby was very fantasy relevant. Unfortunately those days are over. Once upon a time, Bibby was a fantasy stud contributing in steals, assists, rebounds, three-pointers as well as points. It’s safe to say that the wily vet is past his prime, but that doesn’t mean Bibby can’t contribute to your fantasy team. He is 6^th in the league in three-pointers made with 101; however his shooting ratios are simply atrocious. The PG from Arizona also forgot how to score and pass.