re: Pelican Talk Fantasy Basketball League, Year 6

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Bledsoes only real question is his durability. He's always been a borderline elite fantasy performer thanks to his mini LeBron game and that should continue along the lines of 17/6/4. Another great thing about Bledsoe is that his usage rate is always very high.

Clarkson should be stellar in a 6th man role ala Jamal Crawford. I'm really not that worried about either Lou will or young due to the investment in JC. He won't get you a ton of extra stats but will have free reign on a much more relaxed offense rather than Byron Scott's tomfoolery. He's also still pretty young and has some upside hes the kind of pick I like in the 90s.

I had a blast with Devin booker last season and wasn't surprised when he was sniped. He's not just an elite shooter but he also puts up good numbers in the box score and should improve even further. He will have some nights here and there where the shot won't fall but is such an exciting player with big time upside. He also has 2 very good PGs to get him the ball.

Etawn will have a sneaky useful season. He's a smart player that knows his role and is able to play at least 2 positions. He won't give you much more than 10-12 points with a handful of dimes/boards/steals but he'll be consistent and can get hot. He's a nice glue piece that won't hurt.

Turner is always really streaky and i don't expect much to change in POR. One main difference is he won't be asked to do much scoring wise and is always a quality stat stuffer akin to tyreke. With less on his plate I could see somewhat better efficiency with bodes well but again he's streaky

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KD looks stellar as a warrior and his ultra efficiency is what makes him a top 5 player IRL and in fantasy. There is a slight risk that there could be musical chair type nights but I think it's overblown. Due to said efficiency he really doesn't need a ton of shots to put up a stellar line(last the other night with 26/10/4 on 18 shots)

I'm not completely sold on Barnes but he'll have all of the opportunity. Id be very satisfied with 16/7/2 and just take the lows with the highs. The guy has talent and on a roster that's somewhat barren.

Milsap is one of the safest studs in the game. He stuffs the sheet like few can and is ultra efficient. His boards will take a moderate hit with d12 around but I think the assists could rise a bit.

Covington is one of the nicest value picks. He's had a couple injuries here and there but is similar to milsap in that he can put up some stellar numbers across the board without hurting you. They need his spacing so i don't foresee the young guys like Simmons/Saric hurting him and should stick around 28-31 mpg.

Thompson is a mid range PF/C with a decent amount of upside. He won't be counted on to score but is a rebounding machine that can do enough elsewhere to give you good value along with easily being the second best big on that roster. He could and probably will average a double double.

Illyasova is one of the bigger fantasy teases around. He'll flash some great good things but then will have 3-4 straight games of poor play. Sabonis isn't there yet so he'll get some run and give value until later.

Marc has been injury prone in recent times but he's one of the safest centers around. He's a walking double double that posts dimes and great FT%. He won't excite you most night but a consistent 20 fantasy points a night is perfectly acceptable,i could also seen him take a bit more of a burden scoring as well.

Overall this is a well built team that has good depth around and upside along with surefire studs

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I was honestly a little surprise that lillard lasted that long. He was really one of my favorite second round pick of that draft. He's pretty much a lock for me 2 average 25 points 6 assists about four boards in one of the best tandems basketball. I like the addition of Turner to get him even better looks as he's just a killer.

Schroeder will be an under-the-radar but solid point guard play. He reminds me of Mike Conley in his early years and should average around what he averaged in 2010 to 2012 in my opinion. He has higher upside for boards due to size and has plenty of other upside as a young player in a friendly system with tons of weapons.

RJax is a proven commodity but it really depends on how he comes back from his knee issue. I really like the Gamble but I am a little worried we'll see how he does but it could turn out to be a huge pic.

Frasier was awesome last night and will be for the next month until jrue comes back. He'll average numbers in the neighborhood if what grevis did in 2012 and should have some value even when jrue comes back. He'll be a great fit on that bench unit that needs his playmaking.

Klay is better in leagues that can benefit from his three-point barrages than points leagues like ours. It's not all bad because he's more than just a shooter and can do damage on the stat sheet. He'll have a nice season of course but the musical chair nights might happen.

I love hoods game and hes in for an under the radar season but I think you reached a bit. Utah has plenty of options in that backcourt and could hurt consistency. He's a guy that'll run hot and cold.

Ariza is a pretty textbook example of a slightly above average fantasy SF. He'll have very consistent lines of 12-13 points 5-6 rebs and 2-3 asts with decent %s. He won't carry you but will contribute.

I like thad young better and he'll have his usual unheralded fantasy season. He's a great fit for Indy's squad and his 2014 nymbers(14.1 ppg 5.7 rebs 2.3 asts) is a pretty safe bet.

I love Whiteside in Mia with the opportunity he has. He's got some flaws(namely FT% and injuries) but he's an elite double double guy that has incredible opportunity with a lack of scorers in Mia(no bosh/DWade gone/Joe gone etc). He's a top 3 center in our league imo.

Brook as an established asset and a top 10 C that similarly to Whiteside has great opportunity. He's a solid 18/8 that shoots very well and is the best true scorer there,he also has some better PGs(like Lin) to get him better looks. He needs a little time to adjust but there's a lot to like there.

ZBo has no upside put is a good fill in and should be fresher with less minutes.

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Wall is one of the bigger risk reward guys you'll find. He's a walking triple double in a PG friendly system and has plenty around him. He has had some procedures but looks good,id just keep my ears to the ground and stay cautious.

Hill and Collison are two rock solid back up PG options on teams that hat have good guard depth. Both will be 15/6/3 guys that can carry you on walls off nights or in the util spot. I like both a lot and there's some good value here.

Fournier has no oladipo(and skiles)around that should mean that this is the year he truly becomes a star SG. He's a shooter that needs to continue developing his other stats(made some progress last year). He's an underrated FG% guy for a SG and has all the opportunity to bust out. I also like the SF eligibility.

DWade seems rejuvenated a bit and should put up a good mid to mid high tier season. I don't like the fit and his durability is a concern but he was a nice value pick that you didn't overpay for and should easily return value.

Kawhi has such an awesome game and it's a little weird seeing a spur putting up such crazy numbers. I think you can really make the argument that he's the best fantasy SF and 2nd best IRL SF. His only real concern is pop but he's the main man and will be treated as such.

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Dirk will have one final quality season. He'll miss some games here and there but will post efficient numbers with the occasional big game.

I like markieffs fit in WSH a lot. Brooks will use him akin to Ibaka and should do well there. Something like 15/7 with good %s is a good bet and should build off last season. Nice late value

Horford went a bit later than I suspected. He's a textbook second banana on a fantasy team that that does everything well and is on a team that fits him perfectly. 17/10/4 with his usual excellent percentages is a great bet and could easily exceed that.

Deing has a lot of upside in that starting unit. We've seen what he can do on the bench and his post all star numbers(30 mpg 11.5 ppg 7.3 reb 2.0 ast 1.6 blk 1 stl) are a good bet for this season with 13-14 PPG upside.

Bogut is one of the most injury prone guys in the league and is better irl than fantasy wise. Hrs got a good game but won't get enough minutes to really shine.

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