NBL Fantasy | Naar, it's a short Christmas break
This weekly column is produced by Dean Zardo and Steve Chalmers.
With just two days to organise your squad for Round 13, with one of the days being Christmas, it means that this week's NBL Fantasy round up will be short and sweet.
But don't let that turn into your preparations being short and sweet - because that will cost you. We're still packing all this information inside for you to make your #NBLFantasy squads the best they can be as we're all turning the corner where we can see the playoff action upon us (it's coming quicker than you think!).
Round 13 is the Christmas round, and the NBL competition staff have gifted all fans an abundance of games. All teams play twice for the only time this season which means that your entire squad plays doubles...yay!
However, don't sit on your laurels knowing that you already have everyone playing. You can ALWAYS make your team better and there's plenty of planning to do - you know, Round 14 comes after Round 13 (and Round 15 after 14 and so on).
Worth the wait
We spoke last week about casting a keen eye over the Illawarra Hawks and how they would come out in terms of roster movement, starting line-ups, closing line-ups and how their minutes would be spread.
While we may not have received a solid answer on all of them so far, there's plenty to dissect.
One - they're not THAT bad of a side when they're clicking.
Two - it's now known you won't be touching their new import duo.
Three - Emmett Naar is another mid-season value add that has been usually really rare to find at this time of year.
Sydney landed another goldmine
Fantasy owners thought they couldn't believe their luck when Jae'Sean Tate was a fantasy beast during a time where his value went through the roof earlier this season.
Shaun Bruce was a bench point guard who could lock down a spot and never had to be looked at again if you were on the bandwagon.
Now, the Kings' latest signing looks really scary when he's locking down the 5 spot when Andrew Bogut isn't on the floor as Xavier Cooks excelled in Sydney's contest against South East Melbourne Phoenix on Monday night.
Nine points, nine rebounds and three blocks saw Cooks land 54 fpoints and will continue to go from strength to strength for this ladder leading Kings squad.
The Stars
Eric Griffin (Adelaide 36ers)
Plenty to like about Griffin this season. Started off well before a slight dip in form, but he has really hit a purple patch right when the Sixers have needed someone to stand up. Fans were the winners when Jacob Wiley entered the league and Joey Wright has looked to have secured another winner here.
The Value
Will Magnay (Brisbane Bullets)
We've already touched on Emmett Naar so we'll go to second fiddle here, but Magnay wasn't too far behind. Look what he can produce when given the opportunity and he has the mindset to do so! Inserted into the starting line-up alongside Matt Hodgson, Magnay felt right at home doing a little bit of everything - including three triples!
Pressure Cooker
Nathan Sobey (Brisbane Bullets)
Cameron Gliddon has been the one much talked about as the player that seems to have lost a step (and plenty of minutes) in his time up in Brisbane. However, it seems as though Sobey has lost a lot of his confidence as well as of late. After a great start to the season, where he was looking like one of the main cogs of a finals bound team, Sobey has averaged just 20 fpoints over his last five and he's now priced at a measly $1m.
Injury List
CairnsKouat NoiAnkle - Test Illawarra Aaron BrooksAchilles - SeasonSam FrolingAnkle - TestDavid AndersenKnee - TestLaMelo BallFoot - UnknownMelbourneAlex PledgerAnkle - Will PlayCasey PratherHamstring - 3 to 5 weeksTohi Smith-MilnerConcussion - TestNew ZealandGlen Rice Jr.Contract TerminatedCorey WebsterOn Loan - ChinaRJ HamptonHip - 3 weeksAter MajokUnknown - UnknownSouth East MelbourneAdam GibsonCalf - TestSydneyCraig MollerAnkle - 2 weeksKevin LischAnkle - 1 weekDidi LouzadaCalf - 2 to 3 weeks
The Tweets
We see you! Anything that catches our eye, we'll attempt to share with all of our readers.
https://twitter.com/NBL_DT/status/1207608771494592512
https://twitter.com/tomhersz/status/1207941320095887360
https://twitter.com/Watto_PJ/status/1207950918999691265
https://twitter.com/MickRandallHS/status/1208289755584032769
https://twitter.com/NrlPlayerStats/status/1208389647811928064
The Summary
So, you've come here for a reason haven't you? Who do you bring in for the next round? Let's make it simple, below are a few names (at different levels) who you can target:
Doubles in Round 13: ALL
R14 Doubles: ADL, BRIS, ILL (Keep in mind)
PG: Jerome Randle (Adelaide) $1.34m
PG: Emmett Naar (Illawarra) $0.72m
SG/SF: Anthony Drmic (Adelaide) $1.22m
SF: Scotty Hopson (New Zealand) $1.18m
PF: Eric Griffin (Adelaide) $1.35m
PF: Xavier Cooks (Sydney) $0.73m
For those you should be keen to oppose
South East Melbourne and Sydney don't play twice again until Round 16, so if you have one of their lesser guys this is your chance for an upgrade. Dane Pineau has made his cash now and could be one of those options as an example.
Merry Christmas to all of our Box Score readers, Pick and Roll fans and of course NBL Fantasy players! Have a happy and safe holiday period.