Preseason Player Previews

Top 5 Impact Rookies

1. Adam Morrison - Impact by default. Immediately the new face of the franchise, he will log major minutes and hoist the most shots. Also probably the most overrated college prospect since Keith Van Horn. There will only be on Larry Bird people..the earlier everyone understands this the easier it will be for us to move on.

2. Rajon Rondo - I can only imagine how good this kid would be if Phoenix had kept him. He is lightning fast and is probably one of the 5 best rebounding guards as soon as he plays his first game. With the unsettled backcourt in Boston don't be surprised if he is top 3 in the ROY race.

3. Brandon Roy - Scouts love this kid and he will get every opportunity to prove them right. Perfect team and situation will allow him to flourish.

4. Andrea Bargnani - The #1 overall pick should show why he made Charlie V expendable. Only fear with him is that he may not be physically strong enough to play in the frontcourt over an 82 game season.

5. Rudy Gay - On talent alone may be best player in the draft. One of the main beneficiaries of the injury to Pau Gasol. Will get plenty of PT as Memphis tries to fill the void.

Breakout player candidates

Mike Dunleavy - This years Boris Diaw. A favorite of new coach Don Nelson. Will be asked to play a "point" power forward role this year which looks like it could translate to 10-15 fpg in the lesser heralded rebounds, assists, stls and block categories.

Chris Wilcox - After spending his career behind All-Star Elton Brand, Chris will finally have an opportunity to showcase his talents. On a team of shooters and slashers, Chris should thrive around the basket.

Marvin Williams - Now we will see why he was chosen as the 2nd overall pick. Baby Al was moved to give him his shot and he should not dissapoint.

Kevin Martin - The only thing keeping this kid and becoming a 17-20 point scorer is minutes. With Peja and Bonzi out of the picture he should see plenty.

Raymond Felton - This is officially his team. No more controversy. Showed last year that he is almost as capable as CP3 at filling up the stat line when given the opportunity. This year he as more weapons with the addition of Morrison and a healthy Okafor.

J.R. Smith - He will also be noted below in the change of scenery category. He has all the attributes of your prototypical NBA 2 guard. Range beyond the 3, a 40+ vertical and a total lack of defense.

Darko Milicic - Some draft experts were saying he should be the #1 overall pick instead of King James. Obviously they have all been fired since then. He finally got a chance to take the court late last season and showed flashes of why everyone had been so high on him. He should take the next step this season on a young talented Orlando team.

Players who should benefit the most from offseason team change

Tyson Chandler - A fresh start should do him well. Still very young and now determined to show he can do more than get injured and collect paychecks.

Speedy Claxton - Any point guard can put up decent stats when surrounded by the athletic and versatile young talent, but it helps when the PG actually has some skills... and Speedy does.

Charlie V - Not that he didn't do well up in Canada, but the frontcourt up there got crowded in a hurry when Bargnani was drafted at #1. He should see the minutes he deserves in Bucktown.

J.R. Smith - Probably the best of the bunch, and not just saying that because I drafted him. J.R. was deep in the NO doghouse and he should thrive on a Denver team that has been starved for a good 2 guard. Only question is if there will be enough shots to go around.

One Injury Away

Dajuan Wagner/Monta Ellis - We all know that Baron is going down...the only question is when. When he is out one of these 2 will get a chance to showcase their offensive arsenal

Marcus Williams - Best PG in the draft fell all the way to New Jersey. A perfect fit as a back-up to Kidd and the perfect replacement when the tread on Kidds tires start wearing down.

Shaun Livingston - OK..maybe a little baised to put another one of my guys on the list, but he has the talent to be special. Problem at this point is that he plays behind a very saavy veteran who not only still has a little left, but is also a great leader.

Paul Millsap - If I get to list the good on my team I might as well list the bad. Mr. Boozer is bound to miss some time again this year, we just don't know why yet. Millsap is essentially the same type of player and would put up respectable numbers if given similar minutes.

Randy Foye - Who doesn't love this kid. Comparisons to D. Wade are very optimistic, but he definitely has a bright future. Too bad they are stuffing him behind Mike James, Ricky Davis, Hassell, Hudson, Jaric, etc. Even with that expect big things by mid-season.

Marcus Banks - He should learn alot from the 2-time MVP. He could never replace Nash if you are a Phoenix fan, but would great for fantasy owners should Nash go down.

Comeback Players

Knicks (Stephon Marbury, Eddy Curry, Q Richardson, Steve Francis, etc) - Without the shackles of Larry Brown, Knick players should be free to resume their selfish, stat stuffing ways.

Mock FA Draft

The highly anticipated Free Agent Draft is upon us once again. We have gathered our panel of experts to give us a preview of what we might expect tomorrow.


1)Wicked - Raja Bell
Wicked snatch up the jewel of this year's FA draft. A player who can step in and contribute at the SG position.

2)Storm - Vladmir Radmanovic
Storm solidify their SF position and hope that VR can flourish in his new surroundings.

3)Storm - Sarunas Jasikevicus
A top 3 FA pick for the 2nd consecutive year.

4)Storm - Erick Dampier
The self-proclaimed 2nd best center in the NBA.

5)Rebels - Michael Jordan
No upgrades are available among the players left on the board, but they can't pass up the opportunity to acquire a new player. Having once owned every player currently playing in the NBA the Rebels count on another comeback.

6)Amazons - Pass
7)Wildcats - Pass
8)Spoilers - Pass
9)Storm - Pass
10)Ducks - Pass
11)Waves - Pass
12)Legends - Pass
13)Legends - Pass
14)Bandits - Pass
15)Wicked - Pass
16)Singularity - Pass
17)Hilltoppers - Pass
18)Dust Devils - Pass
19)Waves - Pass

20)Gangstez - Earl Watson
The Gangstez are surprised they made a pick also...but they have roster space, so what the hell.

21)Rage - Pass
22)JAM - Pass
23)Rush - Pass
24)Singularity - Pass

Country vs Fantasy Allegiance

It would have been wonderful to have had a few of my players selected to compete in the WCOB. That is mainly because that would have indicated that the talent on my squad is reaching All-Star level. Unfortunately we are not there yet, but fingers crossed for 2008.

Watching the competition I couldn't help but wonder how fantasy owners felt watching their players play for various countries. I pretty much live in a pro basketball wasteland where there are no real team allegences. I am free to root for my players no matter who they play against. Many people criticize fantasy sports saying it ruins sports fans by making them root against their home teams to advance their fantasy teams. I now follow my individual players closer than I follow any team and really considering them "my guys" no matter who they play for.

I wonder if fantasy owners' allegiance to their players extends beyond the fantasy season. If the US had beaten Greece would Pablo have been happy to see Paul or Bosh go down early in the 1st with an ankle sprain in a game against Spain? I know there would have been some unhappy people if Lebron, Wade, Carmelo, etc. had gotten hurt even if it meant a gold for the US. A World Championship would be great, but is fantasy success now more meaningful? I know I was guilty of calcing fpg of players when I heard the stat lines from some of these WCOB games. It can be a very fine line.

That being said...any one who has a player from the "Redeem Team" who would like to avoid the injury risk and patriotic conflict associated with international play I have several players to offer in exchange who will definitely not be competing in 2008....

Wizapins History

Charlotte Observer - September 2, 2006

In 2003 the FBF brought basketball back to the Charlotte region to fill the void left in the North Carolinians hearts after ruthless owner Geroge Shinn moved the beloved Hornets to New Orleans.

Despite early success, the Charlotte fans were slow to embrace their new team. The fanbase felt uneasy about this new owner fearing that he may also leave the area for greener pastures when the opportunity presented itself.

Fearing a that history would repeat, the citizens of North Carolina banded together and were determined to create the first state owned franchise. Because of its firm religious ties the state could not raise the money needed by traditional means such as lottery and were forced to use non-traditional methods such as extortion, fraud and bake sales to raise the money to purchase the franchise. In 2004, the dream was realized when North Carolina was awarded a second FBF franchise.

In an effort not to invade the market of the Charlotte franchise, the Wizapins decided to call Central North Carolina home in hopes of duplicating the success of local college basketball powerhouses UNC and Duke.

Talent was thin in Year 1 as the team could only afford players who would play for ben-gay or other talented, but unknown prospects. The fledgling franchise won only 7 of 38 contests in the 04-05 season, but the fans flocked to the stadium due to the teams creative " 6th Man for a day" and "Bring Latrell to Work" promotions.

Following year 1 the fanbase was upbeat about their prospects for their future. Young talent like J.R. Smith, Trevor Ariza and Chris Wilcox showed flashes of potential and old timers like Latrell Sprewell and Joe Smith seemed healthy enough to not die during the off-season. To top it off the young franchise won the draft lottery and was awarded the number one overall pick in the Rookie draft.

Front office personnel were enamored with center Andrew Bogut, however the NC fans were clamoring for local product Chris Paul. Not wanting to create controversy the team decided to take the cowards way out and trade the pick. In the deal they got C/PF (Despite what Sportsline.com or realgm says) Carlos Boozer and a mid first round pick.

In a second shocking move the front office then dealt J.R. Smith and the mid-first for Allen Iverson and the #8 overall pick. It appeared that the second year franchise was determined to make a serious push to reward their fans and put a competetive product on the floor in 2005. But the excitement was short lived. In an expletive laced news conference in which AI mentioned practice 16 times Iverson made it clear that he was not the man to build a franchise around. In a hasty move the front office packaged him, Trevor Ariza, and the #8 for the unproven Shaun Livingston.

With that bold stupid move it was clear that management had absolutely no direction. To make matters worse Carlos Boozer spent the entire 2005/06 FBF season on the DL with a miriad of boo-boos and tweaks. Attendance waned and the Wizapins finished the season with just 1 victory.

The franchise in Charlotte was thriving with the addition of the one-minute-Wiz AI. Fans and State officials began questioning if it had been wise to form a second team. Rumors of contraction began to swirl and the fans couldn't have been more indifferent. But suddenly during the summer of 2006 the landscape of North Carolina Basketball changed. Just as feared Charlotte's owner was able to secure a lucrative deal to move the Charlotte franchise to Connecticut and suddenly the Wizapin were the only show in town.

Only time will tell if the Wiz will be winners, but at least they are here to stay.