DNB's: Fantasy Guru: Pacific Division Depth Chart

Before we start off, here are the links to the Eastern Conference depth charts:

Atlantic Division 

Southeast Division

Central Division 

Pacific Division

Los Angeles Lakers

Position	Player	Player	Player	Player
C	D. Howard	J. Hill	R. Sacre
PF	P. Gasol	A. Jamison	E. Clark
SF	M. World Peace	D. Ebanks
SG	K. Bryant	J. Meeks	A. Goudelock
PG	S. Nash	S. Blake	C. Duhon

The Los Angeles Lakers have a straightforward chart to deal with.  Barring any serious injuries four out of the five positions have solid starters.  However, the aging Nash and Bryant may be rested more or less throughout the regular season.  That leaves some openings for minutes at the one and two spot.

Meeks has never really been a substantial threat or even a marginal sleeper throughout his career with the Sixers.  I see him as much of the same on this squad.  He may be useful for the odd three but the more athletic Goudelock may push for back-up minutes to Bryant.

At the PG, Nash will be rested plenty throughout the regular season and that gives Blake some minutes to play with.  However, Blake has really been the same old story in Los Angeles.  He has had all the opportunity to shine but with a few young bodies in there, we may see him sparsely used.  I’d avoid him in most cases; unless you are completely desperate for a couple three pointers and decent percentages.

Howard missed some time in Orlando last season and word out of camp has been good in terms of his health.  He was not expected to play in the season opener but look for the management team to push for him to play as it will create much hype for their first game.

Sure bets: Howard (early), Gasol (early), Bryant (early), Nash (early)

Sleepers:  Jamison, Goudelock, Ebanks

Pass on: Blake, Meeks, Clark, Sacre

Los Angeles Clippers

Position	Player	Player	Player	Player
C	D. Jordan	R. Turiaf	R. Hollins
PF	B. Griffin	L. Odom	T. Thompkins
SF	C. Butler	G. Hill	M. Barnes	T. Leslie
SG	C. Billups	J. Crawford	W. Green
PG	C. Paul	E. Bledsoe

The Los Angeles Clippers have have a solidified starting line-up.  On top of that, they have one of the best second units in the league with new additions Lamar Odom and Jamaal Crawford.  Both of these guys are comfortable coming off the bench and both have collected the 6^th man award in recent years (Crawford in ’09 and Odom in ’10). 

It doesn’t end there.  The Clippers have picked up Matt Barnes and Grant Hill to bolster their perimeter.  However, all these second unit guys should lose some production value.  In particular, Barnes and Hill will most likely depreciate in fantasy value.  You may be able to count on Barnes for some steals and threes, but it is unlikely that he will get any significant minutes on this team.

Another interesting second unit player is Odom.  He is coming off of a disastrous season with the Mavericks.  His year ended in embarrassment as he was called out by former teammate Dirk Nowitzki, which led to his removal from the team.  Well, Lamar is back in lala land and will look to bounce back with the other NBA team in Los Angeles.  Lamar is a versatile big man that can handle the ball.  This gives him an edge over some of the other guys he is competing with for minutes.  If he does get his act together, there is no doubt he will be utilized fully.

Sure bets: Griffin (early), Jordan (mid to late), Paul (early)

Sleepers: Odom, Crawford, Bledsoe

Pass on: Hill, Barnes, Turiaf

Golden State Warriors

Position	Player	Player	Player	Player
C	A. Bogut	F. Ezeli	A. Biedrins
PF	D. Lee	C. Landry	D. Green	J. Tyler
SF	H. Barnes	B. Rush	R. Jefferson
SG	K. Thompson	B. Rush	J. Jack
PG	S. Curry	J. Jack	C. Jenkins

There is an interesting battle for the Small Forward position brewing in the bay area.  Rookie Harrison Barnes has been impressive in camp but Brandon Rush has been right with him in the thick of things.  Aging vet Richard Jefferson seems to be the odd man out here. 

The Warriors have an interesting bunch of players to look at here.  David Lee will most likely give fantasy owners more of the same solid value that he has given since New York.  Bogut when healthy will have plenty of touches and rebounds.  Landry is also another nice piece to consider in the late rounds for some good percentages and rebounds.  You will want to avoid Biedrins completely this season.  Fantasy owners gave him one last chance for redemption and Biedrins failed miserably.  He is a black mark on your free throw percentage and does not cover that issue up in any other category.  He is a must pass.

Klay Thompson should give fantasy owners some good value as he is slated to start at the two.  There should be some caution hovering around Stephen Curry at this stage.  Although word out of camp regarding his ankle is positive, he is a chronic case and will have issues throughout his career.  That being said, Curry is still a solid PG moving forward.  If he stays healthy for long stretches of the season, he will give more than enough value in many categories.

Sure bets: Lee (early), Bogut (early to mid), Curry (early to mid), Thompson (mid)

Sleepers: Rush, Landry, Jack

Pass on: Jefferson, Biedrins

Sacramento Kings

Position	Player	Player	Player	Player
C	D. Cousins	C. Hayes
PF	J. Thomspon	T. Robinson	T. Outlaw
SF	T. Evans	J. Johnson	J. Salmons	F. Garcia
SG	M. Thornton	J. Fredette
PG	I. Thomas	A. Brooks

Sacramento is in a serious situation at the three.  At this stage they have been experimenting with Evans moving to small forward to make room for Thornton at the two.  In their first preseason game, Evans was able to put up a nice stat line for 20 minutes.  However, I just see Evans as a little undersized for this role.  He will have difficulty covering some of the bigger SFs in the league.  Look for the Kings to experiment a great deal with their rotation. 

At this stage the bigs in Sacramento are set.  Cousins and Thompson should start the season in the starting lineup.  However, rookie Thomas Robinson is breathing down the inconsistent Thompson’s neck.  If this is another lost season for Sacramento, Robinson will surely end up starting at some point. 

The glut of small forwards on this team includes a bunch of has beens that should be devalued in the context of fantasy basketball no matter what comes out of camp.  Salmons, Outlaw, Garcia and former Raptor James Johnson will all be battling for minutes.  I give the edge to James Johnson since he is young, athletic and isn’t a defensive liability. 

Thomas and Brooks should go into the season battling to start at PG.  Brooks had a couple of stellar seasons in Houston before he fell out of favour.  A year in China may have revamped his attitude.  Look for Brooks to prove that he is worthy of his former role as lead QB on the floor.

Sure bets: Cousins (early), Evans (mid), Thornton (mid)

Sleepers: Thompson, Robinson, Thomas, Brooks

Pass on: Outlaw, Salmons, Garcia, Johnson, Fredette

Phoenix Suns

Position	Player	Player	Player	Player
C	M. Gortat	J. O’Neal	C. Frye
PF	L. Scola	M. Morris
SF	M. Beasley	J. Dudley	P.J. Tucker
SG	J. Dudley	W. Johnson	S. Brown
PG	G. Dragic	K. Marshall	S. Telfair

The new look Phoenix Suns come into this pre-season with a lot of question marks and position battles.  The only real sure bets to give fantasy owners good value are Marcin Gortat and Luis Scola. 

The real battles on this team begin at the two and three.  Michael Beasley seems like a good bet to start at the three since he is by far the most talented of the bunch.  He should be set to receive a lot of looks. 

Competing with Beasley, we have Nash era perimeter player Jared Dudley looking to stay relevant.  He has been shooting the lights out in camp and should get his minutes on this team.  Dudley’s shooting touch and his experience with Alvin Genrty gives him the edge to beat out Wesley Johnson and Shannon Brown for the shooting guard position. 

Sure bets: Gortat (early), Scola (mid), Beasley (mid) Dragic (mid)

Sleepers: Dudley, Johnson

Pass on: Frye, O’Neal, Brown

The Steve Nash Project

From the day Bryan Colangelo set foot in Toronto as G.M, the idea or dream that he could bring Steve Nash home to Canada was alive and well. Just when you probably thought the idea was dead there is one last chance to bring Steve Nash home. If Canada Basketball can do it, why not Bryan Colangelo too? You have to figure where Steve Nash decides to go will be the end of the line for him in terms of his career. The problem starts when you understand why Steve is leaving Phoenix in the whole first place. It is to have one final run at a championship right? That isn't exactly the Raptors future in the next three years is it? Can Bryan Colangelo convince Steve Nash otherwise? He did convince him to leave Dallas and comeback to the team that originally drafted him in the Suns. It was not like the Suns were looking like a playoff contender at the time. In case you forget the Suns were 29-53 and looked nothing like a team that would turn into 62-20 team the next year with Steve Nash as part of the mix. Mike D'Antoni who took over during the season before Nash arrived was only 21-40. That all said Steve Nash had time to wait if things had not made such a dramatic turnaround.

It is also not like Steve Nash thinks like everyone else does in many ways. It seems hard to imagine that Nash would take the easy route to a title and take his talents to South Beach. Although he did say he would consider it in an interview late in the season. He said at his press conference where he was named G.M of Canada Basketball that he would consider all situations that were presented to him. Does the idea of coming back home to Canada appeal to Steve Nash? He has said in the past it does. Also former Raptor, Nash team mate with the Suns and soon to be fellow free-agent Leandro Barbosa said that Nash has said to him he would like to end his career as a Raptor. Colangelo said even when trading Barbosa to the Pacers the Raptors would consider bringing him back. As we learned earlier this year the Raptors had a chance to bring Nash to Toronto long before Bryan Colangelo ever appeared in Toronto.

Still Steve Nash is starting to show signs of his age and this whole idea seemed much more appealing a few years ago than it might today. You would also want to have a point guard of the future for Nash to mentor behind him. Although with Nash's injury issues and not being able to play the same amount of minutes he has in the past a raw rookie back-up might not be great. Jose Calderon if he was willing would be an excellent and perhaps over qualified number two behind him if he were to remain. Calderon in a contract year despite being the team guy that he has always been labeled may not embrace this idea to much. If he did stay the Raptors point guard play would rank among the best in the league. You could also move Calderon and find that point guard of the future. Still the Raptors would be wasting an opportunity not having a point guard of the future as part of the mix if Nash was here.

If Colangelo is going to bring in Nash you would need to address some things with this roster beyond that in order for Nash to really be successful. Which makes the idea of Jose as his back-up seem unlike at best given he is set to make over 10 million next season. Nash is going to get paid a rather larger amount one would figure even at his advanced age. What the Raptors truly lack for Steve Nash to be successful here is three point shooting. You could likely bring back Barbosa and that would give you one shooter but you would likely need another. That likely has to come at the small forward position. If your starting line-up is going to be Nash, DeRozan, Bargnani and Jonas you need a second option to shoot the three beyond Bargnani you would think. Whatever the case, the Raptors would need more than just Nash to make a dramatic turn around. That team that Nash joined in Phoenix already had a lot of talent in place with guys like Stoudamire, Marion, Joe Johnson and Barbosa. Does a group of Bargnani, DeRozan, and Jonas along with a draft pick to come offer enough? It is up for debate and Steve Nash is not that same guy that walked into Phoenix and ended up winning two MVP awards.

Nash has never been known as a defender in his time in the NBA. Dwane Casey is all about playing defense. That said in his later years with the Suns the focus had changed to a more defensively responsible team. In addition if Casey found a way to hide Jose Calderon on defense in his scheme, he can find a way to hide Steve Nash.

There is a part of you as a Canadian that can't help but want to believe this is possible. Unlike the Raptors signing of Jaamal Magloire, this is a Canadian that would fill seats at the ACC. Steve Nash instantly makes the Raptors more relevant just by showing up and putting on a Raptors number 13 jersey. The same things that make him viable to run Team Canada, are the same things that would work in terms of marketing side of the Raptors. There is no question that MLSE in it's new form with both TSN/Bell and Sportsnet/Rogers would love to have Canada's greatest basketball player in their organization. It will mean a huge jump in ratings for the Raptors potentially and it should establish them truly as this national brand that they have tried to be since the Grizzlies left for Memphis. In terms of non-basketball related things this is a slam dunk in terms or marketing, merchandising and ratings.

There is also the fact that Colangelo's job is on the line. That plays a factor in this for him obviously. If there is one thing we have learned about Bryan Colangelo in his time here, it is that if he likes a player that seldom changes. We have seen many former Suns end up Raptors and his extreme loyalty to his number on pick in Andrea Bargnani. Once Colangelo likes a player, it seems to stick in his mind. The irony in all of this is the last time this happened in Phoenix it was Mark Cuban that questioned how much Steve Nash ultimately had left. Two MVP trophies later the answer was clear he had a lot left. These days it would be more than Mark Cuban that would question how much Nash has left. Deron Williams is the guy that the big name teams will be chasing with Cuban at the front of that line.

The major concern is when things go away for a point guard it tends to be a fast and painful process. Still is the chance to create something truly special to hard for everyone to pass on including Nash? I guess will find out eventually. The one thing that is true be it a good move or a bad one, if Steve Nash is coming to Toronto, the Raptors will have more attention than they have had since the days of Vince Carter. I fight with if this is a good idea or not basketball wise. It is hard to be objective about Steve Nash. It is also hard to go down this road again on if he will come here or not. The one thing that is good is this is last time we will regardless of how it turns out. While I believe Steve Nash can truly save Canada Basketball in many ways. I have a harder time with him as a player saving the Raptors as well. Colangelo has made worse gambles in his time here than betting on Steve Nash. I just wonder if this was a move that would have worked better when Jay Triano was coaching and Chris Bosh was still around than it does now.

DNB Preview From Starbucks

Today was a bit messed up so a quick tee up of tonight's Suns vs Raptors game from the Starbucks over by the ACC. Steve Nash and Vince Carter both in the ACC at the same time on the opposite side from the Raptors should make for an interesting crowd reaction. Kinda like CHEER BOO, CHEER BOO!!!. Vince will still get booed right? Or do we all hate Chris Bosh more now. Judging by the reaction to Bosh in comparison to Carter when he first came back probably not.

The Suns sit in 10th still not out of it in the West Playoff Race and did make a move yesterday sending Goran Dragic to Houston for Aaron Brooks. Will know once I hit the ACC if Brooks will go but it seems a safe bet he does. I don't quite understand the logic in the move for the Suns but not like I understand a lot of the moves yesterday except the ones made by OKC. They needed a some tough bigs and get one of the best defenders in basketball in post in Kendrick Perkins. The Raptors did nothing yesterday and James Johnson is it. I am not surprised at all by the Raptors lack of activity. Word on the street was they were trying to shop Reggie Evans and his expiring contract yesterday but never found a deal they liked? Colangelo also made mention of a lot of interest in the Raptors pick in the upcoming draft but he was not willing to deal it right now based on not knowing what it was. Just ask Leaf fans about dealing first round picks no matter what you get back in return. Isn't that right Brian and Phil. Wow a leaf reference in the Dino Nation Blog. That may be a first.

As for tonight's contest it will be interesting to see if Raptors can take any momentum from a big win for them it taking out the Bulls who beat the Heat last night 93-89. The negative side of me says it was the first game after the break for Chicago and it was clearly easy for them to overlook the Raptors with a big showdown with the Heat the next night. That being said the Raptors fought off a huge performance from one of main candidates in the MVP race in Derrick Rose and for once finished off a good performance. That is taking steps in the right direction.

Demar DeRozan took those steps as well as he was matching Rose at times down the stretch and we are seeing signs that DeRozan like Carter has may one day lead this franchise as it's main guy. DeRozan while a huge fan of Kobe Bryant also was a fan of Vince Carter and what he did. Demar has had to shots and winning the Dunk Contest like V.C did and both times ended in controversy. Back when Vince won he never had any props either he just had a far more dominate performance than anyone else. That is what the dunk contest is suppose to be. I am going to attempt to talk to both tonight will see if I have any luck but that is a short preview for tonight not in our normal format but I find it odd working on a computer in a Starbucks. This would not happen in a Tim Horton's in Hamilton. But happy to be back in Toronto my 2nd home mostly on Fridays. Also jacked for halftime tonight. Maestro Fresh Wes was the bomb when I was young. Let your backbone slide baby. But at my age that is likely not a wise thing.

Time to drink my coffee and get ready to head over to ACC. Be tweeting my face off from there pre-game on @Dinonationblog.

Raps Perfect Summer Season

So the Raptors finished off their Summer League schedule with 2 wins. On Friday they took care of the Kings 88-82 then on Saturday beat the 0-4 Hornets with no DeRozan or Weems 101-93. So the Raptors end up finishing summer with a perfect 5-0 record. They opened a lot of eyes and were on of the best teams in Las Vegas playing a very exciting brand of basketball. Demar DeRozan in 4 games had the 3rd best scoring average in the Vegas league with 21 points per game. Only John Wall and Reggie Williams were better. Wall lead the Summer league averaging 23.5 per game.

The Raptors as a team in Summer league averaged 98.8 PPG while giving up only giving up 84.8 PPG. Keeping in mind at Summer League they only play 4 Quarters at 10 minutes a piece. Basically the same totally game time as in the NCAA. Along with DeRozan his fellow Young Gun had a nice summer league. Sonny Weems averaged 17.5 PPG and had some amazing hi-lite dunks along with DeRozan. Weems has talked about wanting to work on his 3 point shot and based on Summer League still work to do going 3-13 ( 23.1%). DeRozan was great from the field shooting the lights out at 58% and was all about getting to the hoop and getting to the line (38 times in 4 games). Weems also was good in that regard getting to the line 24 times. Both need to do a better job in finishing it off with DeRozan making 24-38(63.1%) and Weems just 13 of 24(54.1%). But overall 2 thumbs up for the Young Guns performance.

Ed Davis the Raptors first round selection averaged 12.6 and 6 rebounds in 5 games of action. Davis had a brutal second game getting just 4 points and 4 boards. He also had a big defensive outburst with 5 blocks vs Sacramento which inflated his blocks average to 1.8 per game. I don't remember what Chris Bosh did in summer league. In fact, Summer League was not the huge deal it has been built into by some today. In terms of Davis he had good moments and bad moments. Which even though it is hard to remember I am sure was the same with Chris. But for anyone to expect Ed Davis to grow into another Chris Bosh you are hoping for far to much. He is a different type of player. He likely is ahead of Bosh at same point on defensive end. But his offense is far behind and likely never catches up. Still to make conclusions on this kid, good or bad, based on Summer League is just wrong. The fact he is playing for pretty much his first competitive basketball he has played since his wrist injury at UNC. So the bar should have been set low. I think he did more than what you might have realistically expected.

Solomon Alabi after his first game looked on track to be a star for the Erie Bayhawks the Raptors D-League Affiliate. That still could end up happening. But he did showed improvement along the way in his summer league. He ended up with 8.2 points with 5 rebounds per game. He unlike DeRozan and Weems was very good at the line making 15-16 at the line. He also averaged a block a game. He still looks pretty raw and that is why playing in the D-League seems to be in his future. If he doesn't get time with the Raptors he is better served being there at points during the season. Will see how it works out, but being 7ft 1 he could develop into a shot blocking presence, something the Raptors have always lacked.You can't teach height as they say. He like many from Africa looks at Hakeem as an idol and someone to be like. While Raptor fans memories of Hakeem are no dream, there is no denying that if Alabi could be half as good in his career as Olajuwon everyone would be thrilled. That being said Demar DeRozan's Idol is Kobe, admiring someone and being them is 2 very different things.

Others that made an impact for Raps in Summer League were Joey Dorsey who lead the Summer League Raps with 9.8 Rebounds. Dorsey was brought in late last season and should be on the roster for camp in the fall. The other guy that stood out was Bobby Brown. The basketball player not the guy that married Whitney. There was nothing cruel about Brown's performance as he looked good working with both DeRozan and Weems at the point. He averaged 12.4 points and 4 assists(tied for team lead) and 1.2 steals. If it was my prerogative, I would love to seem him get a shot and be brought in, if Jose Calderon does get moved. Here is all the stats on all that were a part of the undefeated Raptors in Vegas.

Some other things of note:

Mark Ivaroni has decided to take a job with Vinny Del Negro with the Clippers as reported by Doug Smith in The Star. The former Bulls coach has brought him in to work on his staff. With the addition of P.J Carlesmio it is really not a huge loss for the Raptors. Ivaroni was suppose to have been in charge of the defense for the Raptors in his one season on the job. Clearly he did not have much, if any success, good luck to him with the Clippers. Job security in Clipperland is never that good. If not for the hiring of Carlesmio the optics of this would look bad. To move to the Clippers from Raptors for basically the same job. But it is safe to assume, his role with the Raptors would be less with Toronto.

While some former Raptors have rejoined the Atlantic Division in the coaching ranks. Sam Mitchell the former Raptors head coach and former player Popeye Jones have joined the staff in New Jersey. Sam joining New Jersey had been reported awhile ago. While Jones has been an assistant with a number of teams over the years. Happy for both and they both should be great additions to Avery Johnson's staff in New Jersey.

Still a long way off, but Raptors Training Camp may be heading to Vancouver after a couple years in Ottawa. A clear sign this may in fact be the case is the Raptors will play the Suns in Vancouver on October 6th. The Nash Cup? The Hedo Bowl? Not sure what you would call it, but the Raptors vs Nash is good business. Suns were in Vancouver last year and packed the place for Nash and the Suns. It was a sell out. Note to NBA how is that team in Memphis drawing? Not sure if this will be a home or road game for the Raptors in Vancouver. Raptors like to call themselves Canada's team, but Nash is B.C's own (British Columbia not Bryan Colangelo). In any case should make for a fun environment for a basketball game. Cheer Nash Vancouver but BOO HEDO!!!

Good to be back at it. Sorry, I had a bunch of things to take care of and did not get a blog to you on Friday. It is the summer time so things are a little different for both me and for you as readers. But we will keep things rolling all year long.

Suns Vs Raptors- Summer League Blog

Come join me for a live blog of the action from Vegas of Raptors and Suns. This game is being aired on Raptors-TV for those with access to that channel. It actually stars at 4pm but we will do it base on Raps T.V start time of 6.

L To Be Proud Of

The Raps and the Suns but on a hell of a show. This was a basketball game that any fan of the game would enjoy. I have been live blogging games since December and can not remember to many that were better than this one. It would all come down to a final shot from Hedo who had made 2 clutch 3's down the stretch but he would not make a third. Raps lose a real heart breaker 101-100. But as angry and truly vexed as I was about the eventual win over the Clippers, I am the exact opposite about this game. You may say that is nuts cause the Raptors get L for this game and a W for the other. However this game was a much more complete and better overall effort from Toronto despite the outcome. If they can carry this with them to Denver and Utah they will have a chance to win. If you missed the game and want to re-live it in real time as it happened you can check out the live blog from The Score that I did.

Chris Bosh continues to impress with another double double effort of 25 points and 10 rebounds. Amare Stoudemire was the games high man with 30. While Canada's own Steve Nash had 20 and 9. While Hedo Turkoglu who was questionable with a bad hip had his best game as a Raptor by far scoring 20. For the rest of the stats check out the Boxscore.

The Raps gave a solid consistent defensive effort. There were some bad moments in the 3rd and into the 4th along the way but a much more balanced effort overall. Amir Johnson continued to shine in getting on the glass and battling hard. Marco Belinelli had some moments early but faded late. It was a rough night at the office for Jarret Jack. Calderon got the majority of time and deserved it. He had a couple of steals and was not nearly as bad as he usually is on the defensive end. Sonny Weems got some more PT and did nothing to dis-credit himself from getting more. He had one of the highlight moment on the night with an nice alley opp throw down.

The Raptors trade blows with the Suns and did not look out of place doing it. The first quarter of this game was a clinic on great offense from both teams as the Raps out dueled the Suns to a 33-31 first quarter lead.

The short Coles Notes version to all of this is that if this team can play like that night in and night out they will at the end of the day be much better than the current 5-5 record that they currently hold. Even though it was a loss on the night the Raptors if they can build from this will be a much better squad in the long run.

So if you can ever be truly happy about an L that is what I am. This was a team that at the end of the day I could be proud of and the their superstar could be proud of as well. There will be other games and other chances but the Raps played like winners despite the L is the standing saying differently. If you missed this one it really is a shame and I encourage you to try and catch a replay of it...well worth watching.