With injuries and ineffectiveness abound, coaches often start tinkering with their lineups after a couple of weeks because they’ve now seen what their players can do over a handful of real games. This week features a number of new starters absolutely worth grabbing and a few former starters that have been squeezed out and should be given the boot. Let’s take a look at our top buys and sells for Week 3.
Buy:
Jordan Hill (Owned in 27 percent of Yahoo leagues): Hill is now starting at power forward for the Lakers and posted a phenomenal 39 points, 26 rebounds, four blocks, and three steals over his first two starts. He’s now av
eraging a very strong 17.3 points, 15.4 rebounds, and 1.9 blocks per 36 minutes while shooting 60 percent from the floor. Get him and get him soon before you miss out on a potential break out.
Corey Brewer (34 percent): Brewer has played at least 30 minutes in seven of his nine games and has scored double-digits in seven of nine as well. He scored a season high 27 points on Wednesday and has now scored at least 17 points in four of his last five games. He won’t give you much outside of points and the occasional steal but he is a must-own if he keeps putting up close to 20 points per game on most days.
Terrence Jones (8 percent): The Dwight Howard–Omer Asik experiment didn’t work out so the Rockets have decided to promote Jones to a starting role. He has responded nicely, posting 17 points, 21 rebounds, and seven blocks over his last two games. Jones didn’t play much in his rookie season last year but did average a solid 11.1 points, 7.3 rebounds, and two blocks per game in games in which he played 20+ minutes. On the season, he averaged 13.6 points, 8.5 rebounds, and 2.5 blocks per 36 minutes and this season is averaging 11 points, 9.3 rebounds, and 3.0 blocks per 36 minutes. As long as he’s starting, he’s definitely worth owning.
Martell Webster (17 percent): Webster is another new starter, taking over for the injured Trevor Ariza. When given the minutes, Webster has been solid, putting up double-digits in all but one game in which he has seen 24+ minutes. On Wednesday, he played a season-high 35 minutes and posted a terrific 21 points, 10 rebounds, and four assists while nailing three three-pointers. If he keeps seeing 30+ minutes in Ariza’s absence, he’s definitely worth putting out there.
John Henson (25 percent): Henson hasn’t seen the big minutes spike we had hoped for when Larry Sanders went down but he has scored double-digits in five of his last six games and has solid rebound and blocking numbers. Outside of his first game in which he only played 17 minutes, he’s averaging 12.8 points, 6.3 rebounds, 1.7 blocks, and shooting 58.6 percent. I would definitely grab him if I need a solid fantasy big man, even if the minutes aren’t there.
Sell:
Omer Asik: Asik is certainly no Pau Gasol and, after seeing his 10.1 points, 11.7 rebounds, and 1.1 blocks per game from 2012 drop to 5.0 points, 7.2 rebounds, and 0.6 blocks this season, the Rockets decided it was Terrence Jones time. He was averaging about 20 minutes per game anyway so it’s no big loss. It is a shame though, considering how promising Asik looked last season.
Amar’e Stoudemire: It’s becoming clear that between his injuries and his age, Amar’e isn’t going to bounce back to the elite forward he was a few years ago. He’s only played in four games this year, never appearing on the floor for more than 13 minutes. He hasn’t scored over five points nor gotten more than three rebounds – though he has achieved five turnovers in an 11-minute span, impressive in its own right. It’s time to cut him loose.
Kris Humphries: Like with Amar’e, if you were hoping for a potential bounce back from the former Mr. Kardashian, it’s time to cut your losses. Humphries is averaging a mere 11 minutes, 4.0 points, and 2.8 rebounds per game and it doesn’t look like the opportunities will be there for any sort of relevance. He’s only owned in about 25 percent of leagues but if you’re one of those unlucky souls, do yourself a favor and grab one of this week’s buys.
