Top Performers - January 22nd Edition

The NBA had a full schedule of games on Monday, January 22nd. With 26 teams playing last night, there was bound to be some great lines, some not so great lines, some strange lines, and some unexpected lines. Today, I'm going to look at all four of these.

Best Performances of the Night:
Dwyane Wade (PG, SG), Mia - 42 Pts, 6 Reb, 7 Ast, 3 Stl, 1 Blk,1 3Ptm, 17-29 FG, 7-8 FT, 4 TO
Wade had an excellent game even though his Heat lost to LeBron & the Cavs on Monday. What was especially nice about this showing was his low turnover number (for Wade). He touched the ball a lot, and it seems like he didn't really force things (I didn't get a chance to watch the game, so please comment if you saw otherwise).

Ryan Gomes (SF, PF), Min - 35 Pts, 11 Reb, 3 Ast, 2 3Ptm, 11-15 FG, 11-12 FT, 3 TO
I really wanted to put this in the "Surprise lines of the night" group, but he was just too good not to show up here. It's not that Ryan hasn't been playing well this month; he has, scoring 20+ in 4 out of 10 games thus far. He was just incredibly efficient, and the consistent 3 point shooting is a new weapon this season. To be honest, his 3Pt FG% is actually down from 38% last year to 32% this year, but now that he's shooting more, it's another dimension of his game to help fantasy teams out there.

Performances that we could have done without:
Fred Jones (SG, SF), NY - 2 Pts, 1 Reb, 4 Ast, 2 TO, 0-4 FG
With Marbury going down, Jones' minutes have gone up. Unfortunately, this wasn't one of his best performances.

LaMarcus Aldridge (PF, C), Por - 8 Pts, 5 Reb, 3-12 FG, and that's it.
There were worse overall performances, but since many teams out there count on this guy to consistently produce, I figured I'd single him out. He did foul out, although it didn't happen until there was 19 seconds left to play in overtime. His scoring average & shooting percentage has come down each successive month this year, so hopefully he'll have something left in the tank for the second half of the season. If you're a Blazers fan, no worries since they continue to win...but for Aldridge owners, many of whom drafted him between the 4th & 7th rounds of their fantasy drafts, we keep our fingers crossed.

Strange Line of the night:
Jamaal Tinsley (PG), Ind - 2 Pts, 0 Reb, 12 Ast, 1 Stl, 3 TO, 0-3 FG
That was weird, although he has only scored in double digits twice in six January contests. The assists are helpful, but where did the rest of his game go? At least he's produced double digit assists in four of his past five games. If you've got him, keep him in your lineup & enjoy the dimes.

Surprise Lines of the night:
Marko Jaric (SG, SF), Min - 16 Pts, 8 Reb, 10 Ast, 3 Stl, 3 3Ptm, 5 TO
Marko has put up some great games this year, but he's been very quiet of late. This is going to wake up some fantasy owners out there. Although this was a very nice day at the office for Jaric, I'd be careful before running out there to the waiver wire to pick him up. 1) I don't expect him to put up these kind of numbers daily, even thought he's dating the very attractive Adriana Lima & 2) Randy Foye is going to be back soon (yeah, you've head that one before), and Foye will certainly eat into Jaric's minutes. If you're in a very deep league, you might want to keep an eye on him; all others should keep an eye on his girlfriend.

Kendrick Perkins (C), Bos - 24 Pts, 8 Reb, 1 Ast, 2 Stl, 1 Blk, 2 TO, 9-12 FG, 6-6 FT
Wow, that was unexpected. He put up his first double digit point game of the month (and set his career high in points), although it was against Eddie Curry & the Knicks (Curry isn't exactly known for his defense). Since Perkins is probably owned in deeper leagues out there, some owners will be smiling about this performance...at least until he comes back to earth in his next game.

Matt Barnes (SF), GS - 20 Pts, 7 Reb, 4 Ast, 2 Stl, 1 Blk, 1 TO, 8-12 FG, 4-4 FT
Barnes has had games like this before, but with Don Nelson's player rotations, it's tough to judge when someone is going to go off from this lineup. Barnes is the kind of player who will help you in most categories, but I'm still nervous putting almost anyone from Golden State in my fantasy lineup (with the exception of Baron Davis, Stephen Jackson, & Monta Ellis).


Kareem Rush (SG), Ind - 25 Pts, 5 Reb, 1 Ast, 1 Stl 1 TO, 5 3Ptm
This offensive explosion doesn't come as a complete surprise, as Rush was recently inserted into the Pacers starting lineup & is averaging 13 PPG thus far in January. If you're in need of 3's & points, pick him up while he's hot & playing. If you think of him as a Rashard McCants-style guy, you'll be happy with his production...just don't expect much help in other categories.

Looking ahead, there are only 2 games on the docket on Tuesday, although for those of you who don't have NBA League Pass, the Kings play at 10 PM EST on NBA TV.

Until next time...