Eastern Conference Breakdown

November 18, 2008 3:30pm CST

Atlanta Hawks Marvin Williams' scoring is down nearly two full points this season, but he has added an element to his game that makes him more valuable than he has been in the past - three-point range. The small forward hit just 1-of-10 attempts a season ago, but has already converted 11-of-17 this season...Flip Murray is quietly off to a strong start this season, averaging 12.9 points through his first nine games. He is playing more minutes and launching more three-pointers than ever before. The 29-year-old is good for a few rebounds, assists and steals per game and is worth consideration in deep formats.

Boston Celtics
Rajon Rondo attempted just one field goal in Saturday's overtime victory in Milwaukee. For the season, he is taking 3.5 fewer shots per game and is scoring a mere 7.1 points per game. To make matters worse, he has hit just 22-of-41 (53.7 percent) free throw attempts through 11 games. The third-year guard's assists and steals are up, but his drain on other categories make him no more than a bench player for fantasy purposes...Kevin Garnett had been enjoying his best run this season prior to being suspended one game for a scuffle with Andrew Bogut. Expect him to come back strong.

Charlotte Bobcats

Is Adam Morrison coming around? He averaged 15 points per game in three games last week but did little else to help would-be fantasy owners aside from hit threes. His inability to defend and his knack for turning the ball over will probably keep him under 25 minutes per game in Larry Brown's rotation. Still, he has performed well considering a forgettable rookie season and missing all of his second season after undergoing knee surgery. Should a Gerald Wallace or Jason Richardson trade be pulled off, Morrison could be worth adding to your roster.

Chicago Bulls
Andres Nocioni suddenly found himself in the starting lineup last week when Drew Gooden went down with a sore ankle. More importantly, he had his best game after Gooden returned, and it seems Vinny Del Negro is finding more ways to get the 6-foot-7 forward more involved. Following a slow start, he has turned it on in his past four games by averaging 15.0 points, 6.0 rebounds, 2.5 treys, and 1.0 steal in just over 32 minutes per game. The Bulls currently rank 27th in the league in field goal percentage, and Nocioni should see more scoring opportunities, as he is one of their few reliable jump-shooters.

Cleveland Cavaliers
Mo Williams looked far more comfortable in the Cavaliers offense last week as he averaged 20 points and five assists in three games (all wins). In six home games, the point guard has averaged 18.5 points while posting just 12.0 per game through four road contests. He should remain a Top 20 player at his position going forward, and possibly even higher if he gets it going from behind the arc. He is attempting nearly 1.5 more threes per game but has only converted 32.7 percent of them.

Detroit Pistons
Tayshaun Prince's production this season is superior to any other year he has been in the league for three reasons. First, he is pulling down 7.7 rebounds per game, three more than his career average. Since Allen Iverson joined the squad, that number has increased to 8.8 per game. The second reason is he is being more aggressive when he gets the ball on offense. He is getting to the line 4.6 times per game and converting 87 percent of his attempts once he gets there. For his career, he has hit 77.8 percent of his 2.6 attempts per game. Finally, he has been red-hot from three-point range. Prince has hit 13-of-22 (59 percent) from behind the arc. He is a career 37 percent shooter from that range. All of these factors have Prince averaging a career-high 16.9 points per game and have him ranking among the best fantasy small forwards in the league through his first 10 contests. However, it would be very optimistic to expect him to continue this type of production and he resembles an excellent sell-high option.

Indiana Pacers
Jeff Foster has filled in admirably for Troy Murphy and Rasho Nesterovic at different points in the early going, but he comes off of the bench when both are healthy, as they are right now. While he still is good for at least six or seven rebounds per game no matter where he is at the opening tip, the rest of his numbers all fall significantly when coming off the bench. Until Foster earns a starting gig, he is not fantasy worthy, but keep an eye on him. Given 30-plus minutes per game, Foster is a more adequate option than players like Ben Wallace, Anderson Varejao, Nick Collison and Erick Dampier.

Miami Heat
Udonis Haslem's numbers at center have been as good as anyone could have hoped. His rebounds have taken only a marginal hit, while his scoring has jumped. Best of all, Haslem is limiting his shot selection and the career 50 percent shooter is hitting 62.5 percent of his attempts. He will never be a shot-blocker and rarely will produce a stat line that wows you, but Haslem is a very consistent big man who knows how to help his team win...Like most rookies, Michael Beasley is battling some consistency issues. Through 10 games, he has shot 50 percent or better in four and 30 percent or worse in three. The forward has put up good numbers in the early going, and fantasy owners can expect them to improve as the year goes on.

Milwaukee Bucks
On the same night that rookie Luc Mbah a Moute replaced him in the starting lineup, Charlie Villanueva came up with a sore hamstring and has not yet returned. In his two starts, M&M has put up averages of 15 points and 12 rebounds while providing solid defense. It appears Villanueva could lose out on a starting job to a fourth player in four years in the league. First, it was Rafael Araujo, then Ruben Patterson, followed by Yi Jianlian and now Mbah a Moute. Villanueva's frustration will not likely end soon, as coach Scott Skiles emphasizes something that he does not provide - defense...Center Andrew Bogut was off to a lousy start before Skiles challenged him prior to the Spurs games last week. Since then, he has averaged 13 points and 13.7 rebounds in three games. Still, Bogut is a lousy free throw shooter (45.9 percent), prone to foul trouble (4.6 per game), and a turnover machine (2.91 per game).

New Jersey Nets
Following a sub-par start to the season, Devin Harris has been incredible in his last three appearances. While scoring 38, 30, and 33 points in those games (all Nets' wins), Harris got to the free throw line an astonishing 50 times and converted 45 of those attempts. In his last two games alone, he has totaled 20 assists and four steals against just two turnovers. Few point guards will put together stretches such as this, but you can expect Harris to remain aggressive the rest of the way, as it is clear the Nets will need him to be in order to win.

New York Knicks
The point guard situation seems to be just fine in New York in the absence of Stephon Marbury. Starter Chris Duhon has done what he's always done - take care of the ball, hand out dimes, and play sound defense while shooting under 40 percent. However, it has been his backup, Nate Robinson, who has been making noise in fantasy circles. He has been making the most of his 28.6 minutes per game and has shown the ability to get white-hot with his shot. The 13.9 points and 4.4 assists per game are nice, but it's the 2.3 steals, 4.1 rebounds, and 2.0 threes per game that have him climbing up the point guard rankings. Duhon and Robinson have provided an effective broil and sizzle to what coach Mike D'Antoni's been cooking in New York.

Orlando Magic
Rashard Lewis continues to struggle with his jumper this season and he's only hitting 39 percent of his shots. Of particular concern is that he is hitting only 27.5 percent of his three-point attempts. He has shot under 38 percent from that range only once this decade. The Magic can't be happy that the guy they're paying $16.4 million this season is scoring just 16.5 points per game and neither are his fantasy owners. However, it seems likely that Lewis' numbers will climb...Hedo Turkoglu is having identical struggles. He is shooting 38 percent from the field and 28.6 percent from three-point range.

Philadelphia 76ers
Thaddeus Young has emerged as the leading scorer for the 76ers in the early going. After accumulating 48 points in his last two games, he is now averaging 16.3 on the season to Elton Brand's 15.5. He has shot over 60 percent in his last three contests and his performance has coincided with a three-game win streak for the Sixers. Most of the Sixers' numbers have been up during that stretch and it seems the team is learning how to play around Brand after getting off to a rough start...Samuel Dalembert's numbers have all fallen off from last season and the biggest reason is the arrival of Brand. The Sixers like to play small a lot and that often leaves Dalembert on the bench. He is averaging just 27 minutes per game, down from 33.2 a season ago.

Toronto Raptors
Jermaine O'Neal seems to be finding his rhythm after a disappointing first six games. In his last three, the center has averaged 17.7 points and 13.3 rebounds. Although his shooting percentage is just over 40 percent, he makes up for it with 84 percent free throw shooting and 1.7 blocks per game. Expect him to rediscover his shot before long...Jose Calderon endured a rough four-game stretch that saw him average just 7.5 points per game on 35 percent shooting before finally coming up with an injured hamstring. He missed the Raptors last game and could miss more time. Starting in his place, Will Solomon had an impressive 15-point, 11-assist performance in a win over the Heat.

Washington Wizards
JaVale McGee has emerged on many fantasy radars after averaging 14.3 points, 7.8 rebounds, and 1.25 blocks while shooting nearly 60 percent despite limited minutes in his last four games. His 20 minute per game average is more than both Etan Thomas and Andray Blatche. He appears to be the best option of the three, but it would be a surprise to see this type of production from the rookie out of Nevada on a consistent basis...Lingering knee injuries have robbed Antonio Daniels of any fantasy value he may have had in the absence of Gilbert Arenas. He has missed a few games already and Juan Dixon has done OK in replacing him.