As part of Friday Free-for-all, I attempted to list my fantasy basketball keeper rankings from that point forward. The main issue I found with this ranking was due to trades and injuries, the rank would fluctuate constantly. Even worse the trading deadline had yet to occur. Not to mention, I constantly move some players up and down based on my own hunches. Now that the trading deadline has come and gone, let's take a stab first at the Point Guards followed by the other positions in these ensuing weeks. I'll provide a little bit of analysis as to why some players have risen or fallen since my last rank. Here's the top 7 unchanged even with the Deron Williams trade to the Nets (Previous rank in parenthesis):
Chris Paul, New Orleans Hornets (1)
Derrick Rose, Chicago Bulls (2)
Deron Williams, New Jersey Nets (3)
Stephen Curry, Golden State Warriors (4)
Russel Westbrook, Oklahoma City Thunder (5)
Rajon Rondo, Boston Celtics (6)
John Wall, Washington Wizards (7)
The rest of the top 30 including risers and fallers after the jump...
8. Steve Nash, Phoenix Suns (9)
9. Chauncey Billups, New York Knicks (15)
10. Brandon Jennings, Milwaukee Bucks (10)
11. Tony Parker, San Antonio Spurs (11)
12. Jason Kidd, Dallas Mavericks (12)
13. Jose Calderon, Toronto Raptors (14)
14. Devin Harris, Utah Jazz (17)
15. Kyle Lowry, Houston Rockets (19)
16. Jrue Holiday, Philadelphia 76ers (13)
17. Ramon Sessions, Cleveland Cavaliers (21)
18. Darren Collison, Inidana Pacers (18)
19. Mo Williams, Los Angeles Clippers (24)
20. DJ Augustin, Charlotte Bobcats (25)
21. Ty Lawson, Denver Nuggets (16)
22. Raymond Felton, Denver Nuggets (8)
23. Mike Conley, Memphis Grizzlies (22)
24. Jameer Nelson, Orlando Magic (26)
25. Kirk Hinrich, Atlanta Hawks (UR)
26. Andre Miller, Portland Blazers (28)
27. Luke Ridnour, Minnesota Timberwolves (UR)
28. George Hill, San Antonio Spurs (UR)
29. Aaron Brooks, Phoenix Suns (23)
30. Ricky Rubio, Minnesota Timberwolves (20)
Bubble: Jonny Flynn, Minnesota; Beno Udrih, Sacramento; Toney Douglas, New York
Dropped Out: Jeff Teague, Atlanta Hawks (30); Eric Bledsoe, Los Angeles Clippers (29); Baron Davis, Cleveland Cavaliers (27)
Biggest Risers:
Chauncey Billups, New York Knicks 15 to 9
This move unsurprisingly coincides with Raymond Felton's drop from 8. Billups, the "throw-in" to the Carmelo Anthony deal, has usurped the starting PG role in Mike D'Antoni's offense with authority, averaging 23 PPG, 6 APG, 2.5 3PG, 1.75 SPG and 90% FT as a member of the Knicks. I had Billups at 15 because I was afraid he'd wear down and had Ty lawson lurking in his shadows. The 34-year old has dominated when healthy with the Knicks, and Mr. Big Shot should continue to put up huge numbers in that electric offense as long as he remains healthy.
Ramon Sessions, Cleveland Cavaliers 21 to 17 & Mo Williams, Los Angeles Clippers 24 to 19
The Baron Davis for Mo Williams deal impacted 3 players involved, the two mentioned above and the aforementioned Davis. The unhealthy Davis dropped out of the top 30 as I think Sessions runs away with the starting job and Davis eats his way out of Cleveland. After all, Davis did infamously feud with his current coach back in New Orleans. Mo Williams moves from a timeshare in Cleveland to a nice opportunity in Los Angeles where he can dish out the ball to the likes of Eric Gordon, Chris Kaman, and Blake Griffin. Williams needs to stay healthy to warrant this ranking, and he may even move up past Sessions.
Kyle Lowry, Houston Rockets 19 to 15
Lowry and Aaron Brooks were sharing PG duties at the time of my original ranking, but Brooks fought with the staff in Houston and eventually wound up in Phoenix backing up Steve Nash, knocking Brooks down to 29. Even as a part-time starter, Brooks is still averaging 6.5 APG on the season. This number has gone up to 7 per game since the All Star Break. I'd expect 15 Points and 7 assists per game as his floor. He should take the job and run with it.
Biggest Fallers:
Ricky Rubio, Minnesota Timberwolves 30 from 20
I can't knock Rubio out of the top 30 completely in a keeper league as he would have an immediate impact upon entering the league. However the recent PG play of Luke Ridnour (27 in the rankings) and Jonny Flynn in Minnesota have raised my doubts of Rubio having a ton of impact immediately. Flynn has been passing the ball extremely well lately and looks to share PG duties with Ridnour. I don't know what to make of the situation in the off-season when Rubio is looking to come to America. Ridnour signed a deal in the past off-season and Flynn is in his second year. Rubio would need a trade to a PG-needy team to have any real impact. At that point, who knows if his game will translate over to the NBA.
Raymond Felton 22 from 8 and Ty Lawson 21 from 16, Denver Nuggets
At the time of my last rankings, Felton was on his way to a career-season running the point in the electric Knicks offense, and Lawson was showing a promising future as Chauncey Billups' heir apparent. Unfortunately for these two young and talented Tar Heels, they now share the point in Denver for the short and perhaps long-term. Lawson seems to be handling the change rather well even going for 23-6-5 against Utah last night while Felton failed to amass double digit scoring.for the second straight game. Perhaps Lawson is ranked too low; I need more time for this ranking, but the timeshare doesn't bode well for either of these players.
Do you disagree or agree with any rankings? Feel free to chime in the comments below. SG Ranks will come next week...