With the NBA season well under way now, players are starting to assert themselves and show their worth as contributors. Be it as a sixth man or a starter, there are players who are on the rise in terms of fantasy value.
These four Eastern Conference players have shown that their early season contributions may just be a glimpse into their potential. Here are four players who were likely passed over on initial fantasy drafts that are now making some noise for their respective teams.
Fantasy GM’s can take advantage of these up and comers as their fantasy values are all going up. Even if you decide not to hold onto any of them for too long, take them now with the intention of selling or trading them when their value has capped out.
Remember that by increasing your salary cap value early in the season you will have the flexibility to acquire more expensive and more stat-stuffing players closer to the end.
A.J. Price - Washington Wizards
Taking full advantage of his opportunity to play and get minutes with the injury to John Wall, Price has produced nicely as the starting Wizards point guard. His shooting percentages are not very good and he will need to work on a jumper to become a consistent scorer, but for now he is using his speed and athleticism to beat defenders off the dribble and get to the rim.
Saturday night versus the Indiana Pacers, A.J. recorded his first double-double of the season as he lodged 12 points and 14 assists. Through the first five games he is averaging 10.8 ppg, 8.0 apg and 4 rpg while logging over 33 minutes of playing time. Keep an eye on this kid as he would have gone undrafted in every league and is likely available in yours. Price is also in the last year of his rookie contract and he knows he is auditioning for a job elsewhere as Wall is going to be the starter in Washington once healthy.
Larry Sanders - Milwaukee Bucks
The Milwaukee Bucks are seriously hurting at the center position. Samuel Dalembert is doing nothing productive and Joel Przybilla has been equally ineffective. It has been the play of Larry Sanders off the bench that has given the position some production. Although still coming in as a backup, I wouldn’t expect it to be long before Sanders is starting on a full-time basis. Through five games the Bucks center has posted averages of 27 minutes per game, 12.0 ppg, 9.2 rpg, 1 apg and 2.6 blocks per game.
To be an effective starter he is going to need to temper down the personal fouls, once he can get 30 + minutes a night he should be a viable double-double guy for your roster. Keep your eye on the schedule as the Bucks have some busy weeks ahead where Sanders could really contribute.
E’Twaun Moore - Orlando Magic
In his first season with the boston Celtics, Moore saw only 8 minutes of court time a night and had 29 games where he didn’t play at all. He went from that to this season with the Orlando Magic where he is so far averaging 34.4 minutes a night. Given the increase in playing time, the production will obviously go up as well. Keep in mind that the increase in playing time wouldn’t be given if the talent to play wasn’t there.
Through the season’s first five games Moore is averaging 14.6 ppg, 4.4 rpg and 4 apg. He is shooting .476 from the field and a blistering .579 from three point land. Moore has capitalized on his playing time and even when Jameer Nelson returns to the lineup; Moore should still be starting aside him in the backcourt.
Jonas Jerebko - Detroit Pistons
Jerebko is entering his third season with the Pistons and he looks to have procured the back up power forward role on the team. He started off the season with three solid games; however, the last two games has seen his production fall off. This emulates the production pattern from last season, as he again started off well and cooled throughout the season.
Jerebko can produce decent enough fantasy points so long as he gets the minutes, shoots the ball well and remembers to rebound. If he can carve out some scoring opportunities in the offense, he should put up over 10 ppg. Current averages of 9.1 ppg, 2.9 rpg and .09 apg, to go along with 1.4 steals per contest are not going to blow you away. He is still quite a deep sleeper pick as the production is inconsistent. Watch for him to get hot or slip into the starting lineup due to an injury.