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Trade Reaction: Marion to Toronto, O’Neal to Miami

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In a deal expected to be finalized Friday afternoon, the Miami Heat traded Shawn Marion and Marcus Banks to the Toronto Raptors for Jermaine O’Neal and Jamario Moon.

Has a guy ever been traded hours after hitting a game-winner?  Well he has now.

Anyways, this trade better suits the Heat’s system, and fulfills Pat Riley’s desire for a big.  But for Toronto, it makes them a legitimate playoff team.  At the moment, they are second-to-last in the East, but only four games out of a playoff spot.  This gives them a trio of Jose Calderon, Marion, and Chris Bosh that might be capable of going on a tear and making some noise.

As far as fantasy goes, one has to assume Marion’s numbers go up.  We’ll likely see Bosh play some center and Marion play at the four, because behind O’Neal, was Jake Voskuhl on the depth chart.  Winners here are Marion, Jason Kapono, and Joey Graham.  They’ll be picking up Moon’s minutes plus some of the minutes created by the shifting around of Bosh to center.

On the Miami side, not much should change.  They basically had no center, so this helps there.  Michael Beasley might get some more minutes, and it remains to be seen if Moon starts.  If not, Beasley would likely get the nod.  This effectively kills any value that Jamaal Magloire and Joel Anthony had in deep leagues.

I’m predicting some noise made by Toronto…


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First Look: Friday, February 13

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Thursday actually turned out to be a real good basketball day.  In the three games, a last second Shawn Marion dunk pushed the Heat past the Bulls, the Celts had to outscore the Mavericks by 13 to win in the 4th, and the Warriors just about threw away a game that should have been locked up halfway through the 4th.  Let me say this.  Jamal Crawford’s shot selection is awful.  Oh, and Monta Ellis can ball.  Dude is legit.

Thursday’s best: Easy one here.  Rajon Rondo baby.  His line: 19 points, 15 rebounds, 14 assists, and a steal on 9-14 shooting.  That’s right kiddies, his second career trip-doub.  Good enough for me.  At the same time, I’m inclined to drive down to US Airways Center first thing Friday morning and slap Robert Sarver upside his greedy little face.

Thursday’s worst: Luol Deng.  Who can figure this guy out?  He’s really struggling overall this year, with some really good streaks and some really awful streaks.  Stuff like this makes me really believe that the Bulls are cursed.  This is the guy John Paxson refused to trade for KOBE BRYANT.  His line? A studly 6 points, 3 boards, 1 dime.  Nice, dude.  Nice.

Keep an eye on: Golden State.  Something tells me they’ve got a trade up their sleeve.  And a good deal can really let them make some noise.  I know, they’re 12 games out of the playoffs.  But if Phoenix blows things up, they’re sitting in 9th.  It’s not too crazy to imagine, and they look like they might be heating up.

What to watch for tomorrow: The Rookie Challenge!  What an awful game this usually is (besides the two LeBron James/Dwyane Wade/Carmelo Anthony years).  But hey, it’s a basketball game with no defense.  Sort of like watching the Knicks play themselves in scrimmage.  Except there’s a little bit of talent in the rookie/sophomore game.

I’ll still bringing you this column all weekend, taking a look into the All-Star festivities.  Aren’t you just lucky.


Trade Winds Blow, Are Your Teams Ready?

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A flurry of trade rumors have surfaced recently with the deadline now just less than two weeks away.  That being said, let’s take a look at some of the newer and more credible rumors and what they may mean to your fantasy team.

Amar’e Stoudemire
Oh boy, where do we start here?  He’s rumored to be going anywhere from New York to Detroit to Toronto to Portland to Chicago.  Various outlets have reported GM Steve Kerr’s willingness to deal anyone on the team not born in Canada.  Besides STAT, Shaquille O’Neal is also rumored to be on the block (along with the whole team), but chances are even his All-Star season can’t make up for the contract he’s carrying around.  While possible, that seems a little less likely.

The Fig Cap: What jersey will he be wearing on Opening Day?

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Dropping Dimes Mock Draft: Round 2 Pick 7 - Steve Nash

Steve Nash and Amare StoudemireI would like share with my faithful Dropping Dimes readers (yes, all two of you) that I have recently tied the knot with my long time girlfriend, Vivian. She has been by my side for close to eight years and has brought out the best in me during our time together. She has endured my infatuation with fantasy sports for many seasons and understands that another season of madness will be soon upon us.

In the fantasy b-ball world, the unity of mega-talents Amare Stoudemire and Steve Nash benefited many fantasy GMs for the past couple of years. But it’s Shawn Marion that will be linking forces with the two-time MVP on this fantasy team.

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Dropping Dimes Mock Draft: Round 1, Pick 12 - Dwyane Wade

Dwyane Wade The end of the first round appears to be the land of boom-or-bust.  Just a pick earlier, we saw Gilbert Arenas fly off of the board.  Not long before him, Caron Butler’s entrance into the first round could make or break a few seasons.  Needless to say, getting this guy with the 12th selection this season could prove to be quite a steal, assuming he plays to even half of the level which we saw against the rest of the world during the Olympic games.

Though he ruined many of fantasy seasons last year, I have no hesitation in selecting…

Dwyane Wade, PG/SG, Miami Heat

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Dropping Dimes Mock Draft: Round 1, Pick 6 - Shawn Marion

Shawn Marion got his wish last season when he was traded to the Miami Heat. Marion felt he was not getting the spotlight he deserved in Phoenix playing in the shadows of Steve Nash and Amare Stoudemire. In Miami, he’d be able to spread his wings and show his true talents. Well, the grass is not always greener on the other side. Let’s say that his fantasy performance last year in Miami was more like that of “Matrix Revolutions” and not like the original “Matrix” movie we loved in Phoenix. Not bad but not as good as the original.  Let’s take a peep what you can expect from the Matrix this season.

Shawn Marion Miami Heat

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Dropping Dimes Mock Draft: Round 1, Pick 4 - Amare Stoudemire

So the top three picks are pretty much no-brainers.  Nobody outside that trio should be considered to picked that high this year.  That said, a strong group follows them up, and in our mock, Amare Stoudemire was the lucky fourth.

With Injury concerns subsiding and a full summer of rest with no Olympics, he’s the safest big man pick on the board outside Kevin Garnett.  The reason I took him above KG is because of the dip we saw in his numbers in Beantown and the explosion of Amare post-Shaq.  Read on to see more.

The Fig Cap: One more shot at a title?  Suns fans are holding their breath…
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Dropping Dimes Two-on-Two Tourney: Round 1, Games 3 and 4

LeBron driving past Chris KamanLBJ and his Cavs got the job done against the Washington Wizards in game one of their first round series. Confidence should be admired, but adding fuel to the fire against someone like LeBron seems like risky business. Just ask Chris Bosh’s girlfriend.

Let’s recap the opening two games and set up the two-on-two matches for the upcoming week.

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Dropping Dimes Two-on-Two Tourney Begins!

DescriptionOur one-on-one tourney was a blast to conduct last year and you can click on the link to check it out. Spoiler alert! The link takes you to the winner being crowned and the page has links to all of the match-ups.

So what better way to follow that up but to double the pleasure, double the fun and make it a two-on-two tourney, people! G’yeah! There are only four more days before the regular season comes to a close. Thankfully us hoopheads have two months of playoff action to look forward to, but fantasy play dies down in favor of baseball, golf and barbeque unless you and your buddies set up a playoff pool. So check back every Sunday and give us your ten cents for the match-ups we set up for you! Who will be the “Dynamic Duo” when all is said and done?

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Consolation Playoffs in the NBA?

Baron Davis and his beard taking a jumperMost of us fantasy fanatics are in some sort of consolation play this week. After all, only two teams in each league can vie for the championship. How are things over in the “real” NBA? Well, the Golden State Warriors are playing almost .600 ball and are still trying to claw into playoff position. How’s that for a tough break?

In my league with family and friends, the teams in the consolation bracket battle for draft position next year. The winner of the consolation playoffs gets the first overall pick, the runner-up gets second pick and so on. It’s enough incentive for everyone to continue setting their lineups, and it’s enough of a prize that people take it seriously enough to put forth the effort. If you have a league with little GM turnover year to year, this is something you can do so that everyone can enjoy fantasy hoops right to the very last day, not just the finalists.

Perhaps the NBA should adopt a consolation playoff format and the winner gets first pick in the draft. This certainly would guard against bad teams tanking it at the end of the season.

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