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Elton Brand:  ¿0aElton Brand is playing as well as any forward in the NBA right now.  If he ¿0akeeps this up he will start generating MVP talk.  Brand is a double-double ¿0amachine; he was working on a streak of nine consecutive double-dips heading into ¿0aSaturday, when his owners had to settle for 30 points and only nine ¿0arebounds.  How about this for a point of comparison:  Brand is ¿0aaveraging more points than Ray Allen and more rebounds than both Kevin Garnett ¿0aand Jermaine O’Neal.  Brand is also fourth in the league in blocks at 2.6 ¿0aper game and third in the league in field goal percentage at 55.5%.  Brand ¿0ais the only player in the NBA to rank in the top 10 in all four categories.   ¿0a

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Brevin Knight:  ¿0aBrevin Knight is consistently one of the more underappreciated players in ¿0afantasy hoops.  There was talk prior to the season that Knight might get ¿0apushed aside by lottery pick Raymond Felton.  However, Knight continues to ¿0aplay well and has a stranglehold on the starting job in Charlotte.  Once ¿0aagain, Knight is quietly putting up great numbers.  He is currently fourth ¿0ain the NBA in assists (8.2) and is tied for first in steals (2.5). In addition, ¿0aBrevin leads the league with a 4.55 assist-to-turnover ratio. 

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Paul Pierce and Ricky ¿0aDavis:  These two guys are ¿0abecoming a dynamic duo.  Pierce is playing some of the best basketball of his ¿0acareer.  He is averaging career highs across the boards; including points ¿0a(27 PPG) and rebounds (9.1).  The Truth is also shooting a career high ¿0a49.8% from the floor and 44.2% from behind the arc.  Playing Robin to ¿0aPierce’s Batman has been Ricky Davis.  Ricky D is now second in the NBA in ¿0aminutes per game (42.3), trailing only Allan Iverson.  The last time Davis ¿0aaveraged over 36 minutes a game was back in ’02-’03 with the Cavs.  That ¿0aseason he was a fantasy stud, averaging 20.6 points, nearly five boards and 5.5 ¿0aassists.  M.C. Ricky D has proven what he can do when he gets the playing ¿0atime.  So, if you own Ricky, hold onto him – he has shown no signs of ¿0aslowing down   

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Kurt Thomas:  ¿0aKurt Thomas had a putrid first month in the Valley of the Sun.  However, it ¿0alooks like he is finally starting to get his groove back.  Averaging less ¿0athan 8 points and 7 boards in the month of November, he was left for dead in ¿0amany a fantasy league.  However, those vultures that picked up his carcass ¿0aon the waiver wire may reap the benefits in the near future.  With Brian ¿0aGrant out three months due to knee surgery, Kurt Thomas is the only low-post ¿0apresence on the team and is starting to perform like the player the Suns thought ¿0athey were getting from the Knicks.  Over his last four games, Krazy Kurt is ¿0aaveraging a robust 13.7 rebounds and 10.7 points.

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¿0aBoris Diaw:  Boris Diaw is a very ¿0aintriguing fantasy option.  He spent two disappointing seasons with the ¿0aHawks, but has had a resurgence with the Suns since coming over in the Joe ¿0aJohnson deal.  Diaw is a truly unique player who can play every position on the ¿0afloor – he has even started a few games at center.  Has there ever been a ¿0afantasy player that is eligible at guard, forward and center!  In his last ¿0afive contests, Diaw is averaging 36.5 minutes, 14.6 points, 6.4 boards, 7.8 ¿0aassists, 2 steals, 1.4 blocks, while shooting 59.2 % from the field.  ¿0aSeriously.  If he is still available in your league – stop reading this and ¿0ago pick him up now. 

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Channing Frye:  ¿0aMr. Frye continues to impress.  Named the Eastern Conference Rookie of the ¿0aMonth for November, Frye ranks second among all rookies in scoring (15.4 PPG), ¿0afield goal percentage (51.1%) and blocks (.85) and is third in rebounding (5.7).  ¿0aInteresting tidbit of the day: Channing Frye is the first rookie since David ¿0aRobinson (1989-90) to post three or more consecutive 20+ point games while ¿0aplaying for Coach Larry Brown. 

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A few notes on some other players endearing themselves to fantasy owners:    ¿0aJoe Smith is currently sidelined by a bum left knee that has forced him to miss ¿0athe last four games.  Smith is still debating whether or not to have ¿0asurgery on the knee, which would keep him out of action for four to six weeks.  ¿0aAs long as he on the sidelines, Jamaal Magloire ¿0aand Andrew Bogut will see an uptick in their ¿0aproduction.  Jamaal is averaging 12 and 11 over his last five games….With ¿0ainjuries to Josh Howard and Jerry Stackhouse, in addition to the release of Doug ¿0aChristie, Marquis Daniels has been given a ¿0agolden opportunity to showcase his skills. He has been very impressive and look ¿0afor him to continue producing while Howard and Stackhouse remain sidelined.  ¿0aIt looks like Howard may be out for another 7-10 days…Damon ¿0aStoudamire looks like he is finally starting to get back on track ¿0adown in Memphis.  Over his last five, Mighty Mouse is averaging 18.2 ¿0apoints, 5.2 dimes, 4 boards and 2.6 three-balls (while shooting 58.9% from the ¿0afloor). 
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¿0aSTOCK DOWN:
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¿0aDarius Miles:  Bad news for the ¿0aDarius Miles owners among us.  The Blazer forward, who had been enjoying a ¿0abreakout season, is sidelined indefinitely due to cartilage damage in his right ¿0aknee.  Miles had an MRI exam on Sunday which indicated that he might need ¿0asurgery.  He is going to get a second opinion at some point today.  ¿0aApparently there is no time table for Miles’ recovery as of now.  Not good ¿0anews.     

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Gerald Wallace:  ¿0aGerald Wallace followed up his career week with a four game slump.  Such ¿0ahas been the career of young Gerald Wallace since he has come into the league.  ¿0aHis outside shot is too inaccurate for him to be a consistent scorer.  ¿0aHowever, he will get you a handful of steals and blocks.  Over his last ¿0afive, he is averaging 13 points and 5.6 boards – I assume he will be around ¿0athose numbers for the rest of the season.  

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Kenyon Martin: ¿0aAlthough Kenyon Martin has finally shown a pulse after an injury plagued and ¿0aineffective first month, do not bet on him being able to sustain it.  BNS’s ¿0aown Steve Kyler is reporting that sources close the Nuggets have hinted that ¿0aK-Mart will need to have micro-fracture surgery at some point to fix his ailing ¿0aknee.  I recommend trying to move K-Mart now in hopes you can get back ¿0asomething of value.  His fantasy stock is as high as it has been all ¿0aseason, so someone in your league may bite.    

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Peja Stojakovic: ¿0aKnee injuries – you can deal with.  Ankle problems – OK.  But when a guy ¿0ais missing games and countless shots because of a sprained pinky finger – that ¿0ais a little harder for fantasy owners (and Kings fans) to stomach.  In ¿0afairness to Peja, the sprained digit is on his shooting hand.  Still, the ¿0aonly thing more embarrassing in the last few months than the play of Peja has ¿0abeen Carmine Gotti’s performance on VH1′s "But, Can they Sing?"  Two years ¿0aago, Peja was one of the game’s more effective and efficient fantasy players.  ¿0aIn the last two seasons, Peja has seen his PPG average, rebounding totals and ¿0ashooting percentage all drop precipitously. 

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A few notes on some other players causing fantasy headaches ¿0aand heartbreak:  A popular early season sleeper, ¿0aSmush Parker may have a tough time holding onto his starting job in ¿0aLA.  Smush is averaging only 2.6 assists on the year and has more turnovers ¿0athan assists in his last five games.  Sasha Vujacic may start seeing more ¿0aand more minutes for the Lakers…Another point guard who started the year off ¿0aon fire was T.J. Ford.  Ford has ¿0astruggled of late but is still posting solid numbers and is still playing heavy ¿0aminutes.  However, Mo Williams has been tearing it up as of late and may ¿0achallenge T.J for some minutes at the point….While ¿0aRon Artest has been playing fairly well, I expected bigger things ¿0afrom the NBA’s best record promoter.  I predicted he would have a monster ¿0ayear and thought he would post MVP-like numbers.  Ron-Ron is still scoring ¿0ain bunches and leads the league in steals….Jamal ¿0aTinsley is not usually mentioned when people discuss the most brittle ¿0aplayers in the NBA, but maybe he should be.  Jamal has missed 72 games over ¿0athe last two seasons.  Tinsley is sidelined once again – this time he is ¿0adealing with a  sore groin that will likely keep him out for a few more ¿0agames.  Sarunas Jasikevicius is great short term pick-up and a nice ¿0ainsurance policy if you own Tinsley.   
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¿0aPlease send any and all fantasy-related questions to¿0atbeer@hoopsworld.com

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