HOOPSWORLD | Basketball News & NBA Rumors

by Tommy Beer, USA TODAY Sports

Although the 2012-13 NBA season is barely a week old, several players have already seen their stock spike. We all know about Houston Rockets guard James Harden and many other top picks who have played extremely well, but several mid-to-late round selections have greatly exceeded expectations.

Obviously, we don’t want to read too much into such a small sample size. Yet, on the other hand, shrewd general managers are should always ready to act (and react) quickly early in the season.

O.J. Mayo, Dallas Mavericks

After spending the last couple of seasons as a backup in Memphis, Mayo signed with the Mavs this summer to become Dallas’ starting shooting guard. And after two solid, if unspectacular games, to start the year, O.J. has been a beast in the Mavs’ two most recent contests, scoring 30+ points each time out. (Mayo had topped the 30-point plateau just once over his previous three seasons with the Grizzlies.)

O.J. is shooting a remarkable 50.9% from the floor, 66.7% on three-pointers, and 90.9% from the charity stripe. While those percentages will certainly come back down to earth, Mayo is earning the trust of both his teammates and his coach, which bodes well going forward. With the Mavericks’ top player, Dirk Nowitzki, sidelined indefinitely, it appears Mayo may emerge as one of the new focal points of the Dallas offense.

Dion Waiters, Cleveland Cavaliers

From a fantasy perspective, Waiters was drafted into an ideal situation. When Cleveland surprisingly selected him with the fourth overall pick back in June, he joined a young Cavs team that was without a true starting-caliber shooting guard and was short on scoring power. When Waiters won the starting two-guard gig in training camp, eyebrows were officially raised, and he started to rise on draft day cheat sheets.

Since the season tipped off, Waiters’ stock has only continued to climb. The Syracuse product poured in 17 points in his NBA debut. On Tuesday night in Los Angeles, Waiters exploded for 28 points, including a season-high seven three-pointers. According to the Elias Sports Bureau, Waiters is the first player ever to have seven or … [For more on Mavs' Mayo heads list of early risers in fantasy hoops, click here.]