Fantasy Hoop: Buzzer beaters

We've reached the final weekend before the start of the NBA regular season and the big fantasy draft push in anticipation of Tuesday's tip-off. Just about half of Yahoo! leagues have yet to conduct their drafts. With that in mind, let's take a look at the current percent-owned numbers established by the leagues that have already drafted and call out some notable players that are still available in most of those leagues. If you've already drafted, consider these players relative to your current roster and see if an add/drop is in order; and if you are drafting in these next few days, be sure to keep these players in mind as you are perusing the available players lists in the final rounds.

Matt Barnes (Pho – SF) 57-percent owned
Barnes has been named the starting SF for the Suns, a move that shouldn't come as a surprise to many at this point – the team's intention to keep Grant Hill's regular season minutes low has been no secret. The fact that he will start certainly makes Barnes notable, even if this edition of the Suns doesn't exactly resemble the free-wheeling teams of recent history. The plan is for Hill to play roughly 25 minutes per game, and your expectations for Barnes should be right about the same. In 64 career starts, Barnes has averaged 31 minutes, 10.5 points, 1.2 threes, 6.1 boards, 2.5 assists, 1.3 steals and 0.6 blocks. He's an intriguing end-of-the-bench option in standard leagues, but a healthy Hill could serve to limit Barnes' upside for much of the season.

Wilson Chandler (NY – SG, SF) 52-percent owned
Fantasy owners need to take note any time Mike D'Antoni throws out Shawn Marion comparisons. Obviously, those expectations are a bit unrealistic in terms of specific numbers, but Chandler (6-foot-8, 220) is a very versatile player on offense and defense, much in the same way Marion is. His preseason line has shed some light on his potential for multi-category success (6 G, 24 minutes, 12.5 points, 1 three, 7.3 boards, 1.1 steals, 1.1 blocks). Quentin Richardson may be the team's starting SF on opening night, but it's hard to imagine that Chandler doesn't emerge as a key player in the D'Antoni system and as one of the more impactful fantasy free agents.

Tyrus Thomas (Chi – SF, PF) 51-percent owned
A significant contingent of fantasy owners has been frustrated by Thomas' inconsistencies to this point in his career. That is likely a major factor in his being owned in just half of leagues at this point. That doesn't change the fact that if/when Thomas puts it together, he's going to be a fantasy goldmine. Could it be this season? His preseason performance (6 G, 28 minutes, 11.1 points, 29/32 FT, 10 rebounds, 1.1 steals, 2.5 blocks) has fueled rumors that he could emerge as the starting power forward, pushing Drew Gooden to center and Joakim Noah to the bench. Thomas should absolutely be on a roster in standard leagues, if only until we begin to see how this situation is going to play out.

Rudy Fernandez (Por – PG, SG) 50-percent owned
Fernandez certainly hasn't disappointed his growing legion of followers in the preseason, averaging 12 points, 1.8 threes, 3.4 boards, 4 assists and 2.6 steals in 29 minutes of five games. The major (only?) question surrounding the 22-year-old Spaniard is how great his scope of opportunity will be on a deep Portland squad. Nate McMillan has made it clear that, even with the injury to Martell Webster, he prefers that Rudy (and Travis Outlaw) lead the team's second unit. As the sixth man last season, Outlaw managed just under 27 minutes per game, and that's probably near the ceiling for Rudy if the major contributors on the team stay healthy. With that said, if his preseason numbers are any indication, he's got the ability to make a solid impact even off of the bench. At worst, Fernandez will be a better fantasy option than a low-impact veteran whose upside is clearly established.

Marc Gasol (Mem – C) 41-percent owned
I've been lukewarm on Gasol from the outset – he's big and lumbering, which seems a bad fit for the up-tempo Grizz, but he's flashed some skills passing out of the post and on the defensive end, where that bulk will come in handy. Even as the team's starting center, he figures to be in something of a timeshare with Darko Milicic, so don't go overboard with expectations. In eight preseason games, Gasol has averaged 7.3 points, 5.9 boards, 2.3 assists, 0.9 steals and 0.9 blocks in 25 minutes.

Spencer Hawes (Sac – C) 40-percent owned
Hawes has had an inconsistent preseason (8 G, 27 minutes, 11.4 points, 7.9 boards, 2.3 assists 1.1 blocks), but he punctuated it nicely with his performance on Thursday against the Rockets. In 40 minutes, he totaled 25 points, 16 boards and three assists, and that was with Yao Ming playing 33 minutes for the opposition. He showed his promise in eight starts last season (33 minutes, 12.3 points, 7.6 boards, 2.3 assists, 1.6 blocks) and made it a point to be in better physical condition for the coming season. He'll start for the first five games as Brad Miller serves a suspension and, given the current state of the Kings' roster, it's not out of the realm of possibility that Miller and Hawes could play together. Whatever happens specifically, Hawes is certainly looking at an expanded role in his sophomore season.

Bobby Simmons (NJ – SG, SF) 39-percent owned
Things are pretty simple when it comes to Simmons. He's looking at starter's minutes for the Nets at small forward and should be in line for pretty steady usage on the offensive end. While his ceiling isn't huge, his per-35 minutes over his past three seasons include 14.1 points, 1.1 threes, 5.1 rebounds, 2.3 assists and 1.2 steals. It's likely that Simmons' ownership number will climb fairly precipitously once the regular season gets underway.

Andray Blatche (Was – PF, C) 37-percent owned
The loss of Brendan Haywood (potentially for the entire season) has created a serious void for the Wizards and an exceptional opportunity for Blatche in his fourth NBA season. While he's looked poor at best in the preseason (34% shooting, 0.5 blocks, 2.8 turnovers) and Etan Thomas figures to line up at tip-off as long as he's healthy, Blatche remains the key to covering for the loss of Haywood. His per-30 minute averages from the 2007-08 season included 11.1 points, 7.6 boards, 0.9 steals and 2.0 blocks, and I don't doubt that he'll out-produce a number of center-eligible players currently ahead of him in terms of percentage owned.

Nate Robinson (NY – PG, SG) 35-percent owned
Robinson has seen his stock rise with each passing preseason game. He's emerged as something of a Leandro Barbosa clone for D'Antoni's Knicks, averaging a team-high 19.7 points and 2.3 threes in six games (26 minutes). Count on the lightning-fast Robinson having significant involvement in the Knicks' backcourt, regardless of the uncertainty of the depth chart at this point.

Luke Ridnour (Mil – PG) 33-percent owned
In case you need catching up, here's what you need to know about the Bucks' point guard situation: Ridnour is the starter and cult favorite Ramon Sessions (currently 47% owned) isn't even a sure thing as the backup. While Ridnour has emerged as the player to own of the two, he figures to be more help on the back end of roto rosters given his career per-30 minute averages: 10.2 points, 0.6 threes, 5.6 assists and 1.2 steals.

Delonte West (Cle – PG, SG) 26-percent owned
West remains neck-and-neck with Sasha Pavlovic for the role of starting shooting guard alongside Mo Williams. His two-week absence from the team earlier in the preseason, during which he sought help in his battle with depression, may have set back his cause in the short-term but should only help his chances to make an impact on the court in the long term. It's a situation worth monitoring, as the competition still has yet to be decided. West is just two seasons removed from a top 50 nine-category season.

Amir Johnson (Det – SF, PF) 21-percent owned
Johnson has been declared the Piston's starting power forward because of the team's desire to limit Antonio McDyess' minutes and their faith that Johnson's athleticism and energy will translate directly to the box score. He's played sparingly in his career (73 G, 13 minutes per in three seasons) and hasn't exactly wowed during the preseason (8 G, 19 minutes, 5.8 points, 4.4 boards, 1.1 blocks, 3.3 fouls) but he remains an intriguing late-round choice for those targeting blocks and boards. In his brief career, he's compiled per-30 minute averages of 9.3 points, 8.9 rebounds, 0.9 steals and 3.1 blocks.

Jamaal Tinsley (Ind – PG) 10-percent owned
I know, I know. The only thing I'm telling you to keep in mind is that you can't completely rule out a trade to the Nuggets. If that were to happen, Tinsley would certainly be rosterable in fantasy leagues for as long as he was able to stay healthy.

Nicolas Batum (Por – SG, SF) 2-percent owned
Batum has emerged as the favorite to start at small forward for the Blazers in the wake of Martell Webster's injury. While he'll be quite low in the pecking order on offense, he's shown the penchant for producing defensive stats in the preseason (0.7 steals, 1.3 blocks in 19 minutes per game) and should at least be on the radar for deep-league owners.