LeBron or Durant? Wade or CP3? Choose which star will out duel the other in the 2012 NBA All-Star Weekend Fantasy Basketball Game.

If you think there are no fantasy basketball games available this weekend due to NBA All-Star Weekend, think again! Fantazzle Fantasy Sports Games is offering the NBA All-Star Weekend Fantasy Basketball Game for its users.

The first fantasy basketball game of All-Star weekend will start at 9pm ET on Friday, February 24, 2012 with the Rising Stars Challenge. This game will feature the Rising Stars Challenge (Friday), the Three-Point and Slam-Dunk Competitions (Saturday) and the NBA All-Star Game (Sunday). The second game at Fantazzle will start Saturday at 8:30pm ET and will only feature Saturday’s Three-Point and Slam-Dunk competitions and Sunday’s All-Star Game.

Fantazzle offers three different formats – pick’em, limited lineup and salary cap – for its daily and weekly fantasy basketball games. The fantasy basketball pick’em game allows users to select one player over another from a series of predetermined match-ups. The user with the most correct selections wins. For example, LeBron James vs. Kevin Durant; choose the player that will finish the NBA All-Star Fantasy Game with the most points and you win! It’s as easy as 1-2-3.

The fantasy basketball limited lineup games require users to select one player from a pool of five players for each position, with each lineup consisting of two centers, three forwards, three guards and two utility players. Lastly, the fantasy basketball salary cap games give each user a fantasy budget of $1,000,000 to create a fantasy basketball roster. Once again, each team must be made up of two centers, three forwards, three guards and two utility players.

Fantazzle fantasy basketball games have a unique scoring system. Points, rebounds and assists are worth one point each. For example, field goals are worth two points, free throws are one point and three-point field goals are three points. However, steals and blocks are worth two points each. In addition, Fantazzle offers free live scoring for all our fantasy basketball games, so you don’t need to have ten different box scores open to keep track of your team every day of the week. Make your fanciful fantasy come true at Fantazzle!

Fantasy Nascar is ready to roll for the new season

Do you love fantasy sports, good competition and the possibility of making some money? Do you enjoy following professional racing and being the owner of    your  favorite drivers? If you even considered answering yes to any of these questions then Fantazzle Fantasy Racing is for you.

Fantazzle offers the most unique fantasy sports games online to give you the best and most enriching experience you can have.The different types of fantasy racing games offered include weekly and segment-long salary cap, challenge and pick’em formats. Owner’s will have a $1 million budget to pick a lineup of drivers who they think will perform the best and get them the most points. The fantasy racing pick’em allows users to choose between predetermined match-ups — the user with the most correct selections, wins! For example, Jeff Gordon vs. Tony Stewart; choose the driver that finishes highest and you earn a point, finish with the most points and you win. The fantasy Racing Challenge game allows you to pick five drivers from five different groups of drivers matched together by skill and production. 

Fantasy Racing scoring is similar to the NASCAR Sprint series scoring system. Drivers will be rewarded based on where they finish the race, as well as certain extra points for being ahead by a lap and having the most laps in the lead etc.  Fantazzle offers free live scoring for fantasy sports games and shows up to date standings of the league you are in. You have the ability to click on other teams and show head-to-head scoring between the opponents after the lineups have been locked in.
It’s fun. It’s easy. It’s Fantazzle. 

Lincanity

Is now the time to trade Jeremy Lin for a bigger name player? Who do we expect to do big things this year on the base paths? Join us (Dave Lawson & Zac Fluewelling) in our podcast discussion of both issues.

DAILY FANTASY BASKETBALL GAMES –> PLAY NOW

Weighing in at 200 pounds and standing 6’4″ … Jeremy Lin. The man who has been an elite talent at every level of basketball, but is continuously overlooked by scouts. He plays in The Big Apple, where the Knicks roster has the likes of repeat all stars Carmelo Anthony and Amar’e Stoudemire He unquestionably wins the nickname battle, and offers the better “underdog story” as an undrafted player from Harvard.

The shaggy Rubio comes in at 180 pounds in a slender 6’3″ frame. Drafted fifth overall in the 2009, “Testigo” has been playing professional ball since he turned 14 years of age. He plays in Minnesota with possibly the most talented big man in the game today in Kevin Love. Rubio started the season as a reserve, but was inserted into the starting lineup as he outplayed those ahead of him.

For the sake of comparison, I will evaluate Rubio’s first 15 career starts (dating from January 13th to February 7th) and compare Lin’s six career starts to them. The reasoning behind using these parameters is to compare Rubio’s production over an extended period of time, and what we can expect from Lin moving forward. Both players average between 38-39 minutes per game, so that isn’t a confounding variable. In addition to projecting Lin, it is worth acknowledging Rubio’s greatness.

–> Free Fantasy Basketball Games Available Now – Click to Enter <–

With the stage set, and the NBA world in the midst of Lin’s run, lets take emotion out of this, and take a pure look at the numbers. Lin has proved to be the better scorer, and we will revisit that point shortly. But first, both are point guards that have been described as “play makers” and “pass first” ring leaders who make those around them better. Rubio handed out 9.87 assists per game, while Lin is a tad behind with 9.5 helpers per contest. With Stoudemire back in action, Lin’s assist totals figure to be here to stay, but I’ve got my questions when Melo returns. While the two may be able to co-exist, Melo’s ability to create his own shot figures to take away from Lin’s assist opportunities. Rubio is the flashier passer and is working with less talent, so his assists are based more on his abilities than the gifted players around them. Both have proven the ability to find the open man at an elite level, but with less changing to Rubio’s situation, I like his potential moving forward a little more than Lin’s from a passing stand point for fantasy basketball games.

The argument for Rubio can be made when it comes to valuing the basketball. The Timberwolve averaged 3.07 turnovers per game (more than three assists per turnover) while Lin is turning the ball over six times per game (a shade over 1.5 assists per turnover). Lin’s turnover ratio figures to decline with the return of Melo, but the odds of him cutting the turnovers in half is to much to expect.

Not as sexy stats (but these stats count equally in salary cap fantasy basketball games) are rebounds for a guard and thefts. Lin is averaging a respectable 3.83 rebounds to go along with 1.5 steals per game. Neither are elite numbers, but they are solid. Again, the return of Stoudemire and Melo would seem to indicate that Lin’s rebound totals may have already peaked. Rubio’s sticky fingers accounted for three steals per game in his first 15 starts, including six games with at least four steals. Despite being 20 pounds lighter, Rubio is more of a presence on the glass as well, with 4.87 rebounds per game.

Alrighty, now onto the scoring difference, the driving factor behind Super Lintendo. Lin is pouring in 24.33 points per game over his six game streak that has the NY Stock Market on fire. While his shot attempts have dipped a bit (26 shots in two games with Stoudemire), Lin is taking 17.33 field goals a night. Compare that to Rubio’s 11.8 points per game on 10.33 shots, and it seems clear that Lin will always dominate this area. Yes, Lin is more aggressive than Rubio and appears to have a better feel of where shot blockers are. But neither shoots the ball particularly well, meaning teams will begin to adjust. Rubio faced that adjustment period and is now adapting his game and implementing more drives to the basket and mid range jumpers. With Kevin Love spreading the floor, I could see Rubio’s shot total increasing as the season does, as they don’t have a true paint clogging big. Growing more comfortable, and with teams playing off of him, it would not shock me to see Rubio average roughly four more shots per game.

The opposite is true with the Knicks, who have Tyson Chandler (who, until further notice, is not allowed to shot from beyond the restricted zone) and Amar’e on the blocks. Not to mention that Melo has worked on exploiting physical match ups by taking the quick, but undersized, forward that typically guards him into the paint. That combined with teams game planning for Lin, and I don’t think it’s unreasonable to project closer to 13 shots per game. Make those adjustments, and by using their points per shot (Rubio – 1.14 and Lin – 1.4), the difference in points per game shrinks from 12.5 to 1.5.

Neither point guard had their best game, but their playmaking abilities were on full display in Minnesota. Jeremy Lin was able to get to the rim as usual, but struggled to finish against the tall front line of the T-wolves, as he missed 11 of 12 shots in the second half; the eleven misses would have been a career high for an entire game.With his shot not falling, he set up teammates with a game high eight assists. He now has 7+ assists in every start of his short NBA career. He is an assist man at the bare minimum in salary cap fantasy basketball games and weekly fantasy basketball games, with a ceiling that touches the sky at this point.

Ricky Rubio also handed out eight assists, and also struggled from the field. Testigo seemed to force the issue, as he attempted 15 shots, his second highest total of his career. His 4:1 assist to turnover ratio was among his best this year, but the two turnovers came in the last 25.9 seconds and cost his Wolves a shot to end Linsanity. His turnover numbers have been down of late, an encouraging sign that he is becoming comfortable to the pace of the game. Like Lin, his assist numbers will remain elite, and I view his diminishing turnover rate as a good sign for his scoring potential. One adjustment at a time, but Rubio will become an elite fantasy basketball point guard sooner rather than later.

The point guards recorded 42% of the games assists. That number would have been even high if the Knicks stars were healthy. I foresee more nights were one of these guards records double digit assist nights than both do not.

“–> Free Fantasy Basketball Games Available Now – Click to Enter <–”

The nation has been swept up by the Harvard grad and his underdog story, but his stats don’t dominate Rubio’s over the last five games. Ever since Lin was inserted into the starting lineup, he has tallied 40 assists and 22 turnovers in 195 minutes of action. Over the same five game stretch, Rubio has tallied 42 assists and 12 turnovers in 165 minutes. Neither distributor has found his range, as Lin has knocked down one triple in 12 attempts, while Rubio is 1/11. The difference lies in Lin’s willingness to attack the rim, and finish by himself. He is outscoring Rubio, but the free throw attempts tell the story. Rubio is shooting a better percentage, but Lin has attempted 23 more free throws, and thus has 15 more points to show from the stripe.

Kevin Love is showing no signs of rust after serving his two game suspension. His 32 point 21 rebound performance displayed his ability to dominate, and the 53 points + rebounds was a season high. Love made all 10 of his free throws, the third time in four games in which he has attempted at least 10 free throws, and made them all. Over that span, he has connected on 97.5% of his free throws. Love was on the bench for less than five minutes on Saturday, the sixteenth time this season he has played at least 40 minutes. Maybe the T-Wolves are burning out their all pro, as Minnesota was only won seven of those games. Either way, Love’s production is elite and unique. As a big, his ability to help your percentages is just as valuable as his superior rebounding in daily fantasy basketball games.

The Knicks leading free throw shooter was 75% from the line, while the T-wolves had four players make all of their free throws, and only missed one as a team.

Their were plenty of good rebounders in this game (Love and Tyson Chandler in the front courts, and Lin, Rubio, Michael Beasly, and Landry Fields in the back court), but none of them recorded twice as many offensive rebounds as any other player. That stat belongs to Nikola Pekovic, who grabbed 13 rebounds, six of which came on the offensive end. Not a sexy name, but will provide good numbers for his price tag in Fantazzle’s salary cap games.

The Timberwolves were on pace for 124 points at half time, and saw their point production fall at least 12% every quarter.

The Knicks largest lead was all of two points, while Minnesota led by as much as 11 in the early going.

New York abandon their big men early in this game, and went with a four guard lineup. For the game, Knick forwards combined for 11 points while their guards tallied 87. The Minnesota guards recorded less points (31) than Love, losing that  match up by 56 points. Don’t have to be a math major to know that that’s tough to overcome.

Six games on the schedule for today, anything you want to see? Thoughts on the story that is Jeremy Lin? Tweet me @unSOPable23

This was a tight game throughout, as the Lakers largest lead was four points, and that came halfway through the overtime period.

Pau Gasol has taken this month (four games) to separate himself from the “soft” title that the public, and Chris Paul, have saddled him with. The Laker forward tallied 14 rebounds last night, giving him 58 in February. As a consistent double-double threat with solid percentages, Gasol is a better option than his brother, and most other big men in fantasy basketball games.

Kobe Bryant miss his two three point attempts, the first time in seven games in which the Black Mamba hasn’t canned a long ball. Still not sold on Kobe as an elite long term option, and the lack of 3′s doesn’t help. If his legs tire, he will rely on the jumper, which hasn’t been friendly to him this year. I believe he is overpriced in most salary cap basketball games.

The artist currently known as Metta World Peace has peaced out of the box scores of late. He managed two points against the Celtics, giving him one made field goal or less in seven of the teams last eight games. Even when he makes multiple shots, they rarely come in bunches, as he has only recorded double digit points twice since late December.

Matt Barnes, who doesn’t start and played less than 18 minutes on Thursday, attempted more free throws than the entire Celtics roster. And we aren’t talking about a guy who shoots a lot of free throws, as Barnes has attempted 0 FT’s in half of the Lakers games this season.

Onto the home team, who recorded a season high 97 shot attempts. It took them 25 less shots to score a season high 107 points against the Heat on December 27th. Less is often more with this Celtics team, as they are at their best when they slow the tempo down and give Pierce and KG time to get what they want. A fast pace means little fantasy basketball production from every Celtic besides Rondo.

Many of those shots came from Kevin Garnett, who let a season high 23 shots fly from the field. It is reasonable to think that in a game in which KG took that many shots, that his point total would reflect the aggressive style. Not so much, as Garnett scored 12 points, a total he matches or surpasses in 72% of Boston’s games. KG only attempted two free throws, as a result of settling for perimeter shots. This is a disturbing trend, as Garnett has attempted two or fewer free throws in more than half of the games this season.

Boston only had three players attempt a three pointer, but they combined for 19 attempts.

“–> Free Fantasy Basketball Games Available Now – Click to Enter <–”

A day after every team who won the assist battle won the game, the Celtics out assisted LA by nine and lost. Rajon Rondo and Paul Pierce combined for 14 helpers, more than the Laker team.

The “Big Four” of Boston accounted for more than three quarters of the Celtics production. They scored 75.9% of the points, took 76.3% of the shots, and took every free throw.

Twelve games highlight tonight’s NBA schedule, what would you like to see broken down and dissected? Tweet me @unSOPable23 with requests.

The single biggest scoring difference in a quarter was in the fourth, where the Timberwolves outscored the Grizzles by seven.

This game saw 165 total points scored, 24 of which came via three pointer. In contrast, the Magic scored 51 of their 102 points courtesy of triples last night against the Heat. We’ve seen this story before from these two teams, don’t rely on any of their players as consistent long ball threat in weekly fantasy basketball.

The 31 total points scored in the second quarter was not only an NBA low for last night, it was also matched or outdone by a single team six times last night.

This was not a game for those who like scoring guards. The two starting guards for the Wolves (Ricky Rubio and Luke Ridnour) and the two guards who played the most for the Grizz (Mike Conley and OJ Mayo, they only started one true guard) combined to shoot 6/33 from the field. Things aren’t usually this bad, but counting on efficient scoring from this guards is an error in judgement. Pick them in salary cap fantasy basketball for the play making ability, but know that you’re leaving a gap in scoring on most nights.

Rubio, “testigo” if you’re hip with nicknames, grabbed seven rebounds and handed out only one assist. This was the first time in his short career that Rubio failed to tally at least as many dimes as boards. He connected twice from the free throw line and only once from the field, the fourth time in five games this month in which his FTM has equaled or surpassed his FGM. While his scoring is a roller coaster ride, this is the first real down game he’s had in assists. He will bounce back as Love returns, and remain a great option in all fantasy basketball formats.

With Kevin Love suspended, Minnesota failed to have any starter record over 10 rebounds for the second consecutive game. With Love in the lineup, that has only happened three times this season. In fact, this happened in less that 9% of the games in 2010-2011.

For Memphis, every player that attempted a three ball made one. Conversely, 75% of Timberwolves who jacked up at least one  triple didn’t register a make.

Marc Gasol scored 12 points and shot under 33%. This is the first time in 35 days in which the Grizzles overcame a woeful performance like that from their all star center to win a game.

“You miss 100% of the shots you don’t take.” The old adage proved true, as the Grizzles took 14 more shots, and despite shooting a lower percentage than the T-wolves, outscored Minnesota by eight points from the field.

Memphis out assisted the visitors and won, as was true for every single game last night.

Got a game or a team you’re interested in? Let me know, and I’ll break their next box score down for you

Ricky Rubio leads all rookies in assists, steals, and double-doubles

In one of the most awaited rookie seasons in recent years, Ricky Rubio, has been more than effective for not only a rookie but for any point guard in the NBA thus far. He may not be starting in Orlando later on this month for the annual All-Star game, but he will be helping Minnesota remain in the playoff picture.

After a few years of playing over in Europe, winning multiple awards and championships he was finnaly drafted 5^th oveall by the Timberwolves in 2009. After opting out of his contract it wasn’t until this season that he finnaly got on the court for Minnesota.

After his first 10 games of his career, Rubio was averaging a respectable 10.2 PPG, 8.1 APG, 1.6 steals per game and the Wolves were hanging on to a 3-7 record. Since Rubio has been inserted into the starting lineup the Wolves have gone 8-5. He now has 53 assists on the season and 202 assists which rank him second only to Mike Conley and Jose Calderon, Respectively. He is also currently sitting in third in defensive rebounds for NBA Point guards behind John Wall and Kyle Lowry.

If you are looking at Points per game Rubio doesn’t compare to the likes of a Derrick Rose or a Russell Westbrook, but for weekly fantasy basketball, Rubio is right up there at the top for NBA Point Guards. The numbers Rubio doesn’t put up in points is made up largely to his huge difference in steals, assists, and rebounds.

The timberwolves are a very young team, in fact the second youngest in the NBA behind Sacromento at a 24.74 average age. With young players such as Wesley Johnson, Kevin Love, Nikola Pekovic, Derrick Williams, and Rubio himself the road ahead only looks bright. They’ve already shown improvements so far and with team improvements usually come individual improvement for daily fantasy basketball.

For the rest of the Season, my top 5 Fantasy Point Guards are Derrick Rose, Deron Williams, Russell Westbrook, Brandon Jennings, and Rick Rubio.

It is for this reason that I value “plus/minus” as a valuable statistic to keep an eye on. This statistic reflects the success of a team when a specific player is on the court. Sure, it likely isn’t a category in any fantasy basketball league, but it can go a far way to determining future fantasy production. If a players team is outscoring the opponent every minute he is on the court, the Coach will have no choice but to play him. It sounds simple, but not many owners are willing to go out of their way to look up a stat this isn’t directly counted in your fantasy basketball league.

Here is a list of some of the leaders in plus/minus ratio, and consequently players that I believe will see extended minutes in the near future.

Wesley Matthews (+157) – Portland is an elite team, and it’s not just LaMarcus Aldridge. Matthews’ value will continue to rise as his game grows.

Andre Miller (+154) – The Nuggets are a high scoring squad, and when Miller is at the controls, they are even more lethal

Kyle Korver (+145) – A good source of three point shooting and percentages. The compact schedule and the Bulls success with him on the floor are positive signs moving forward. Taj Gibson is another Bull who is having a positive impact in a big way (+129)

Jodie Meeks (+140) – The 76ers lack a go-to option, and Meeks is efficient on the offensive end. His scoring benefits from the lack of a big time play maker, and playing alongside Jrue Holiday (who tops the league with a +206) will only help.

Jeff Teague (+120) – Teague was a favorite of mine coming into the season, and I love what I’ve seen so far. The numerous athletic bodies around him helps his assist numbers, while his scoring has increased. Teague is worth the money in salary cap fantasy basketball games.

There is one major exception to this rule, and it is Joel Anthony. The Heat are +133 with him on the court, but his ceiling is very low and not worth the investment. In general, the players who are exceptions to this rule are the role players on great teams. I’m not touting Mario Chalmers as an elite PG just becuase of his +184 ratio. It’s a fickle stat, but make sure to use it in Fantazzle fantasy basketball games, just don’t blindly look at the leaders and assume they are destined for greatness.

Bayless' success doesn't mean much for his Raptors, but fantasy owners can rejoice

The Toronto Raptors brought all that they had to South Beach on Super Sunday, but came up just short, losing 95-89 to the Heat. Courtesy of Cam White’s request, here is a closer look at the Raptors/Heat box score.

The 95 points scored by Miami was the second fewest in a winning effort this season. Typically when they win, they score 100+ points and provide weekly fantasy basketball owners with more to cheer about.

Udonis Haslem recorded nine rebounds and eight points, the 11th straight game with at least as many rebounds as points. As a cheap option for rebounds and solid percentages, I like Haslem in salary cap fantasy basketball games.

LeBron James made at least 10 free throws for the sixth time this season. The Heat have won all but one of those games. Looking at everything other than points (he managed 30 for the 13th times this season), the Raptors kept James from dominating. They held him to a season low two assists, and forced him into five turnovers. Sunday’s game was the seventh time in eight games in which the King has turned over the rock at least four times. Sure, he may have his flaws, but I have no problem keeping him as my top option for any and all fantasy basketball games.

Joel Anthony’s offensive impact was missed if you blinked during this game. He took only one shot, giving him five attempts in 67 February minutes of action. In those three starts this month, Anthony has more rebounds (11) and fouls (6) than shots. But don’t count him as a useless spectator, as the Heat find a way to dominate when he is in the game, outscoring Toronto by 16 with their starting Center on the court. That matched Dwayne Wade for the best plus/minus in the game.

Speaking of unflattering stat lines that have an odd correlation to winning, we have Shane Battier. The pride of Duke was held scoreless for the eighth time this season, with the Heat winning seven of those contests.

This game was decided at the stripe, where the home town Heat shot 13 more free throws, and outscored the Raptors 29-15 from the free throw line.

Miami’s “Big Three” gets all the hype, but the Raptors “Big Three” (ok, they aren’t called that, but bare with me) of DeMar DeRozan, Jared Bayless, and Linas Kleiza hung right with them. The trio from North of the border combined for 59 points, only eight less than the Heat’s group of all stars. Kleiza has filled the void left by the injured Andrea Bargani. His fantasy basketball value may be peaking as Bargani isn’t far from returning.

Toronto scored 61% of their total points in their two highest scoring quarters.

DeRozan is coming along nicely as a solid player in this league, but he isn’t yet a star player who can win his team games. He scored 22+ points for the seventh time this season, with Toronto only winning three of those games. He attempted 10+ free throws for the forth time this season, usually a good sign of attacking the basket. But the Raptors are 1-3 in those games.

Jerryd Bayless stepped his game up, but less is more with his shot attempts in 2011-2012. At times he can be a volume shooter, and when he attempts 10+ shots from the field, Toronto has dropped four out of five. DeRozan is capable of being a big time fantasy basketball contributor sooner rather than later, while Bayless is still at least a year away from any type of consistent production.

Back to a full slate of games today, what game would you like an extended analysis of? Post or tweet me @unSOPable23