/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/27925829/20131127_lbm_ax3_180.0.jpg)
We're heading into week fifteen of the Fantasy Basketball season. That means in most standard leagues the playoffs are five weeks away. So teams in places 5-8, you have some work to do in order to make that final push and get into the championship playoff round. For teams 1-4, please don't sit tight. Shore up that roster and get right for the playoffs. For the rest it's better luck next year.
The following question came in today;
Manu Ginobili is out for at least 3-4 weeks with a strained hamstring. What should I do in my Yahoo 10 team head-to-head league?
I suppose it all depends on where you are in your league standings and your league format. If you have an injured reserve space on your roster and you don't have a higher profile injury already taking that place I suppose you could place him there. He will get better and more than likely will still average about 20-23 minutes a game. His numbers have been steady, so that would be the first option.
Must Reads
If you don't have that option, then what you need to do is look at where you are in the standings. If you have a team that's comfortably in the Championship round of the playoffs, then you could consider just keeping him on the roster and waiting until he's healthy. If you are the owner of a team right on the bubble (5-8) then you really have no choice but to drop him and find another option.
Ginobili has been a Fantasy Basketball stallion for years. It's hard for me to say this -- especially since I've been pushing him on owners all season long -- but I would drop him no matter where I was in the standings. He gave us all one last good ride, but in my opinion Manu Ginobili is no longer an option in any standard league format.
R.I.P Fantasy Manu. I'm gonna miss you!
Here are some options for those of you who need a replacement for Ginobili.
Terrence Ross SG SF Toronto: Ross has had some big games (51 against the Clippers) and some duds but with games this week against the Jazz, Kings and Clippers he might just be that dual eligible replacement you need to replace Ginobili. Look for about 1 trey and a couple of rebounds per game. He's not a long term replacement by any means but he'll help you out this week. (Stats)
Courtney Lee SG Memphis: Lee has come up big a few times since being traded to Memphis. When Dave Joerger plays Lee more than 30 minutes he produces straight across the board and will make a nice addition to a roster in place of Ginobili. Now that Mike Conley is out for at least a week and maybe more someone in that backcourt will need to score and Lee is more than capable to do just that. (Stats)
Marco Belinelli SG Spurs: He'll be the one more than likely to get the bulk of the minutes. The problem with Belinelli from a Fantasy standpoint has been his consistency. He's produced some big games this season so there's something there and with four games this week and darn near the entire Spurs team banged up he'll have plenty of opportunities to score for your fantasy team. (Stats)
On today's Phil Naessens Show Rotowire's Kyle McKeown and I discuss injuries, answer questions and tons more, Indy Cornrows Managing Editor Tom Lewis and I discuss all things Indiana Pacers and Kevin Lipe and I talk all things Memphis Grizzlies. You can listen to the program on the player provided below or download it here.
PtR Fantasy League
In the PtR Fantasy League Tarheel triple moved into sole possession of first place knocking off Kawhisenberg Level while MG20TD21's pulled off a major upset defeating Duncan Donuts. These last five weeks should prove to be very interesting. For all scores and results please see the link below.
http://basketball.fantasysports.yahoo.com/nba/35869
Good luck this week Fantasy Owners!