Why Randy Foye, Denver SG/PG is a Must-Add In All Fantasy Basketball Leagues

So for those of you who don't know, here's the situation in the mile-high city of Denver, Colorado: starting point guard Ty Lawson is nursing a strained rotator cuff in his shoulder, back-up point guard Nate Robinson just underwent surgery on a torn ACL, third string point guard Andre Miller has unofficially been released from the team, and starting shooting guard Randy Foye stepped into the point guard role and filled Lawson's shoes by dropping 16 assists.

True, Foye also had 8 turnovers and shot 4/13, but regardless, Foye is officially an elite option if he wasn't already before.  Over the past month, the Nuggets guard is averaging 16.9 PPG, 3.5 RPG, and 4.2 APG, while knocking down 3.2 three pointers a game.  Lawson will most likely return in the next one or two games, but even then, Foye has additional value in Robinson's absence.  Foye will command the normal role as starting shooting guard in addition to filling in as the second-string point guard.  We know he can shoot the ball, and now we know he can create plays for his teammates.

Bottom line: Randy Foye is only owned in 57.2% of ESPN leagues and even less in Yahoo! leagues, and is a must-add in all leagues, points or categories, head-to-head or rotisserie.  He's a true shooting guard who can shoot the three about as well as anyone and can make plays for his teammates, and he now has an elevated role in the offense and will be clocking about 40 minutes per game.  He's everything you want in a fantasy basketball player, and he's hot right now and is showing no signs of cooling off.

Week 14 Free Agent Finds

Man, has it been a crazy week in the NBA or what?  Carmelo Anthony breaks a Madison Square Garden record lighting it up for 62.  Chandler Parsons sets a franchise record with 10 made threes and an NBA record with 10 made threes in a half!  Only for Terrence Ross to hit 10 threes the following night, posting 51 points, setting a Raptors franchise record.  We saw Rudy Gay and DeMarcus Cousins get injured in the same game, and the next game, Marcus Thornton and Isaiah Thomas combine for 80 points on 29-58 shooting.  It's been quite a week, to say the very least.  So what did we learn?

Carmelo Anthony can score.  His 62-point outing was against the Bobcats, but not to take anything away from Melo, it's still 62 points.

Chandler Parsons can shoot.  Just about as well as anyone and probably the best shooter on the Houston Rockets.

Terrence Ross had a freak outing with DeMar DeRozan getting hurt with an ankle sprain.  Who knows if he can keep up that scoring outburst in consecutive games?  I don't think so.

Thornton and Thomas are good... if Rudy Gay and DeMarcus Cousins are out.  They managed to get off 58 shots between the two of them.


So at this point in the season, who's available on the waiver wire still?  Deeper leagues have real problems with the waiver wire.  Mainly, there's nobody worth having on it.  However, that doesn't mean you can't snag a solid player if you make good decisions.  So take a chance.  Here's my list of waiver-wire adds for Week 14:

1. Andray Blatche - Brooklyn Nets, PF - The main thing I like about Blatche is his consistency.  The Nets have no Brook Lopez, and Kevin Garnett is far from the KG we all used to know.  Blatche can shoot a mid-range jumper, finish in the post, rebound, and play defense.  He's a good player, and over the last two weeks, Blatche is averaging 16.4 PPG, 8 RPG, and 1.2 BPG in just 26 minutes per game.  Normally, I don't like adding players to my roster who aren't playing 30-40 minutes every night, but Blatche is nice, and he's definitely someone to keep an eye on, especially if KG starts resting or Blatche starts getting more minutes.

2. James Johnson - Memphis Grizzlies, SF - James Johnson is an interesting player.  He is literally the definition of a stat-sheet stuffer.  He won't contribute in quantity, but he will do a little bit of everything for you.  He really is the missing piece of the Grizzlies.  Over the past two weeks, Johnson is averaging 8.1 points, 4.4 rebounds, 4.1 assists, 1.9 steals, and 2.3 blocks per game in less than 23 minutes a game!  He does it all, and if you watch them play, you'll see just how important he is to their success, making big plays in late game situations.  Pick him up if you need help in every statistical category.  He should be owned in all but shallow leagues.

3. Tyson Chandler - New York Knicks, C - Obviously, Chandler should be owned in all formats.  However, his production had been slumping, so frustrated owners decided to drop him.  He's slowly getting back into the swing of things, but with all of the injuries plaguing the power forwards of New York (Stoudemire, Bargnani, and Martin) there are many rebounds to go around and Tyson can lock down the paint.  Pick him up if you're in the 22% of leagues where he's available.

4. Markieff Morris - Phoenix Suns, PF - Markieff is the better of the Morris twins, needless to say.  So when you're looking for this guy, be sure not to pick up Marcus.  Morris has been on a tear lately, averaging 17.9 points and 6.7 rebounds per game over the past couple of weeks, pretty solid numbers for a waiver-wire power forward pick up.  The problem with any Suns player is the fact that, because there are no superstars, the entire team gets involved, so it's hard to predict who that will be on any given night.  Obviously, Dragic and Plumlee will produce, but other than that, it's up in the air.  However, Morris has started to solidify his mark as a necessary player on this team, posting some stat lines of 24 pts-7rbs, 23 pts-12 rbs, and 27 pts-15 rbs in recent games.

5. Jason Thompson, Sacramento Kings, PF and Derrick Williams, Sacramento Kings, SF - With injuries falling upon Rudy Gay and DeMarcus Cousins, that opens up a lot of opportunities for the rest of the Sacramento players.  The first game following the injuries, Thornton went for 42 points, but I don't think this is indicative of the production without the Kings focal points.  However, look into Williams and Thompson.  Williams will see the highest benefit here, though.  Gay is averaging almost 17 shot attempts per game in addition to 6 rebounds, and Cousins is averaging almost 17 shot attempts per game, too, with almost 12 rebounds.  We're talking about 34 shots and 18 rebounds that need to be filled up.  Who better to do that than Williams and Thompson?

A few other free agents I thought I'd throw out there in case you're daring that might do some work for you: DeMarre Carroll, Atlanta SF; D.J. Augustin, Chicago PG (if available); Miles Plumlee, Phoenix C; Taj Gibson, Chicago PF; Larry Sanders, Milwaukee C; Alec Burks, Utah PG (as long as Gordon Hayward is sidelined and potentially upon his return)

Best of luck to all in Week 14 of Fantasy Basketball!

Week 13 Free Agent Finds

Topping off the list of this week's free agent finds are a few Chicago Bulls.

1. Taj Gibson - Chicago Bulls, PF -

 I've got multiple arguments for him.  First off, fantasy-wise, Gibson really isn't that far below Boozer in general.  Rather, he's very close.  Now also consider that Gibson gets a few less minutes per game, but still gets the crunch time playtime.  Now, figure in that Carlos Boozer has been nursing a calf injury; he's not even playing tonight against Cleveland.  This will be Boozer's third missed game in his last ten.  Gibson will be taking the start, and likely more minutes even when Boozer returns.  In the previous two games Boozer missed, Gibson landed 10 points, 12 rebounds, and 3 blocks against Atlanta and 19 points, 10 rebounds, and 3 assists against Phoenix.  Gibson is in for a big game tonight and strong numbers as long as Boozer's injury lingers around, which could be for who knows how long.

2. D.J. Augustin - Chicago Bulls, PG -

This isn't the same D.J. Augustin that ran Charlotte a few years back or the same one that took a backseat to George Hill in Indiana last season.  He's different.  He's matured, smarter, a better shooter... all of the things you want in a point guard.  Augustin is no Derrick Rose, but he's better than Kirk Hinrich, Marquis Teague, and Mike James, all completely irrelevant in this case.  It doesn't come down to Hinrich vs. Augustin; it just comes down to whether or not to pick up Augustin.  I'll convince you.  Hinrich starts still, and I'm not too sure why.  But Thibodeau is a good coach, and I won't question it.  Either way, Hinrich is officially ruled out for about a week with a hamstring injury, making Augustin able to run the offense from the get-go.  Now Hinrich hasn't missed any action yet, so the following stat line is while Hinrich was getting 30 minutes a game.  Over his past six outings, Augustin has averaged 18 points, 7 assists, 2.8 rebounds, and 2.7 threes a game.  Now you're not going to see Augustin's minutes skyrocket to 46 (you might, it's Thibodeau), but you will see increased production due to the absence of Kirk Hinrich.  Pick him up, and give him a week.  If you're not happy, drop him.  But you will be.

3. Channing Frye - Phoenix Suns, PF -

In short, Channing Frye is a power forward who is a three-point specialist.  Not many power forwards can successfully guard him, and he's too tall in the post to be effectively contained by a small forward.  He's hard to match up with, and he's hot right now.  The Suns' center, Miles Plumlee, is nursing an injury right now, offering more rebounding opportunities for Frye, who already averages 5.5 boards a game.  Through his last 11 games, Frye has hits four threes six times.  He's also grabbed almost 6 rebounds a game.  Shooting power forwards sometimes have it tough, but the Suns have an excellent point guard in Goran Dragic, who is averaging over 7 assists over his last few games.  I mean he learned from Steve Nash, he's got skill.  Anyways, pick up Frye for this week and see how he fairs out for you.

4. - Randy Foye - Denver Nuggets, SG - 

I'm not going to go into huge detail about Randy Foye right now; I'll keep it short and sweet.  In his last six games, Foye is averaging 18.7 points, 3.3 rebounds, and 4.2 threes a game.  He's hot.  He sat out his last game because of a stomach bug, not an injury.  He's feeling it right now, and he's playing well.  Ride him while he's hot and see how it turns out to you if you need a shooter.

If these guys are still available (although unlikely in your league), grab them immediately: Jared Sullinger, Celtics PF; Jimmy Butler, Bulls SG/SF; Eric Bledsoe, Suns PG/SG (if you can afford to hold onto him for 2-4 weeks); Darren Collison, Clippers PG

*If you own Jordan Crawford, please trade him away now or drop him for a better option.  You need to realize he may be a great back-up scorer, but he's just that, a back-up.  He will be behind Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson.  Unless either of them get hurt for an extended period of time (which isn't unlikely with Curry), he has very little value.

X-Factor of the Week: Greivis Vasquez, Raptors PG

This guy is lethal.  He's deadly.  We're talking about 12 assists per game, league-leading.  The problem?  He's sitting behind Kyle Lowry.  Keep an eye on this situation.  Over his last two games, Vasquez has really found his game even off the bench, averaging 13 points, 8.5 assists and 6 rebounds.  The Raptors claimed they were no longer interested in trading Lowry, given his outstanding play as of late and the team's recent success.  HOWEVER, they will have that same success with Vasquez running the show, and I think Toronto knows that.  They have a starting point guard sitting on their bench, playing 20 minutes per game.  He's finally fully recovered from his ankle surgery in the off season, and the Raptors stated that they are no longer "marketing" Lowry.  They aren't out looking to trade him, but he will be a free agent at the end of the year, and if somebody wants to trade for him, the Raptors will consider it.  I've almost picked up Vasquez just in case this happens, to hold onto him.  What I'm saying is, if you hear so much a rumor that Lowry is getting traded, immediately pick up Vasquez, whatever you do.

Good luck to all in Week 13!