Round 3 saw the Super Sunday filled with scuffles and tense games. Brisbane returned to the NBL in a way led by Trice and Buford who also performed well in the fantasy standings. Prather returned the Jungle and scored from Half Court on his way to a great round and the battle recommenced between Oglivy and Boone for which centre is the Fantasy game star. Oh and the official rankings commenced.
This round the article has been laid out a little differently to focus more on analysis you may not be able to get anywhere else.
THE AUSSIE HOOPLA NBL OPEN STANDINGS
Ranking in the Aussie Hoopla NBL Open Standings from Round 4
With the official rankings commencing only from Round 3 onwards, the Aussie Hoopla NBL Open is the biggest league that has run from Round 1. That all being said The Random Muppets from Glen Davis have taken the lead at 1512 points through 3 rounds.
This is an open league and still free to join. Enter the league code LC32MXAH and join in now.
ROUND 4 RESULTS
New Zealand 90 (Sosa 52, Vukona 51, Pledger 41)
Sydney 73 (Ellis 23, Leslie 22, Cadee 20)
Sydney was eaten up inside. Unable to put anything inspiring together and simply too poor defensively. This was the low point of the season so far for the Kings. Without Lisch it was even worse. It’s hardly worth discussing. Ellis got the top score for Sydney once again.
New Zealand put up good scores and have bumped up their averages. Pledger could be the main player worth considering. He is economical at the centre position and may be able to continue this performance more regularly.
Vukona was propped up by the double double and it needs to be remembered how poor Sydney where which gave him the boards needed to get this score. Sosa remains quite cheap under $1 million. Looking at how Sydney played again if this will continue is unsure. Combined with the Melbourne game below New Zealand were easily the team of the round.
Brisbane 83 (Buford 46, Jervis 46, Trice 45)
Cairns 78 (McCarron 31, Loughton 29, Weigh 21)
Brisbane’s ‘return’ to the NBL could not have started better. Buford and Trice were everything that was expected. Their scores were made up of points across the box score which is a good sign going forward and further backed up with their Illawara performances. Cairns continued to show their fantasy risk status. Although their game was good it is so spread across the team now that its hard to predict who will rake in the fantasy points. McCarron is the only Cairns player averaging over 30. Around his price point, there are still a few imports that can be considered who are performing. If you have Cairns players though they have 2 double rounds in the coming 4 weeks which will come in handy.
Perth 89 (Brandt 42, Tokoto 36, Cotton 28)
Melbourne 84 (Prather 40, Boone 38, Wesley 37)
Melbournes Adnam continued to ascend. It was the story of the Perth front court though with Brandt playing great all game. Tokoto show man play won him a lot of points across the box score which is a good sign for consistent scoring. Brandt was the story though as he remains under a million and is averaging around 30 he is a cheaper option than Boone or Oglivy.
Adelaide 114 (Shorter 50, Sobey 46, Johnson 42)
Sydney 84 (Leslie 64, Ellis 35, Cadee 32)
Just when you think Sydney have hit rock bottom. This happens. Little impact from the squad with the imports still shining. 2 players do not make a team though and its now full meltdown mode for Sydney. Positive for fantasy coaches is Ellis and Leslie remain consistent enough.
Not sure how Majok Deng got the official man of the match.
Sydney with no defense. Adelaide with a walk in the park. A high scoring affair and Adelaide fans left the day fairly optimistic given the Childress news. Its official Shorter best value Point Guard coming into the game. Expect is value to take another nice bump here. A poor schedule for them in the next 4 rounds though means a tough decision whether to hold onto him or let go. His style of play fits with Adelaide and he is scoring his points in a variety of way.
Melbourne 76 (Boone 70, Prather 49, Ware 22)
New Zealand 88 (Newbill 41, Sosa 37,Abercrombie 35)
Melbourne ineffective in this game. It appears Goulding and Ware on the same side produced some troubles with deciding where to go too on some plays. Most the team was simply ineffective whilst Boone and Prather carried the defensive and offensive efforts. Some foul issues also nullified Melbourne. Here are the positive fantasy takeaways – Boone is consistent, Ware can make fantasy points even when he can not get on the scoreboard unlike Goulding and Prather may still be the best SF in the league.
New Zealand took it to Melbourne and frustrated them all game long. Abercrombie scored bunches in this game and was highly influential in game. He did his work when New Zealand needed it. It was the guards who steal the fantasy show though, with Newbill and Sosa firing well. They look like a team starting to gel and they are also cheapish still in fantasy.
Illawara 105 (Kay 56, Oglivy 49, Conger 36)
Brisbane 96 (Buford 51, Kickert 34 Trice 31
Illawara kick-starting their season on the first trip home. 4 games on the trot above 30 for Conger. Oglivy and Kay bounced back with excellent all-round stats.l
Buford out of the blocks here and 2nd overall for the round. His game was a good mix of rebounds and points and one more rebound would have seen him take top spot over Boone. Good signs from him and how important he will be for Brisbane. Kickert had a huge scoring game but added little else on the stat sheet.
He averaged over a 30 this round though which is right around his value of $1 million. Also worth noting Stephen Holt. He put 17 points into the game but only walked away with 23 fantasy points. This might improve over coming weeks as some rounds he has added assists and rebounds but so far a bit too reliant on the baskets.
Cairns 90 (Egwu 49, McCarron 41, Gliddon 35
Perth 69 (Brandt 23, Tokoto 22, Cotton 19)
Perth hit the road for the first time in this game and came up against a dogged Cairns. Egwu and McCarron provided the fantasy points with season highs. What was most impressive was the box score spread for them. Egwu contributed points, rebounds, assists, and steals. He remains at $945k and is reasonably priced at the moment if looking to free some funds. McCarron got the bulk from points but also went about contributing stats and assists. He is around the $1 million now. Cairns has 2 doubles in the next 4 rounds and holding one may not be a bad strategy. Carrera is worth noting as he is still at the million mark and if you missed Ellis he could be a good PF choice. He scored a 29 built with rebounds points and 3 pointers showing multiple ways he can get the fantasy points.
Perth was poor in this first game on the road for them. Also, they have a lack of upcoming double rounds which makes them even less appealing. Most notable is the liability Cotton has been through 4 games. This is due to his fantasy points relying heavily on his scoring. If you are backing him it’s important not to panic as he still as the huge upside. If Perth plays well he will generally be doing well.
Brandt is emerging as a value Centre from the round overall at under $1 million and staying over 20 points each game this round and remains a value pick even if just for the bench.
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TOP PLAYERS & TEAM OF THE WEEK
Top 3 Point Guards
Edgar Sosa: 87 points
Travis Trice: 74 points
Jason Cadee: 53 points
Edgar Sosa appears as the option to consider on a budget. A 50 and a 37 on a double round see him take out top spot this week. After the change in value he is a $1.02 million and Rounds 5 and 6 New Zealand play 4 games. He performed well and contributed across the box score and this should translate into consistent scores. Cadee’s elevated score is not as promising as it comes off double scores and he is unlikely to maintain this score.
Top 3 Shooting Guards
Travis Leslie: 85 points
Mitch McCarron: 72 points
Devonte Newbill: 66 points
Travis Leslie continued his form in face of poor team form. He continues to contribute the scores and it does not look like stopping. Sydney’s schedule may mean considering trading out may be the option though. Mitch McCarron continues to be a good option on double rounds and maintained his performance. Devonte Newbill averaged above 30 in a great round for New Zealand and along with Sosa could be the sleeper choices in coming weeks as the prices remain lower than the other options.
Top 3 Small Forwards
Perin Buford: 97 points
Casey Prather: 89 points
Jean-Pierre Tokoto: 58 points
Buford was on fire all round and will continue to play a big part in Brisbane. This could translate to consistent points. Brisbane plays twice this round and if he keeps this up he could be the first choice small forward this round. Casey Prather has done what he was hired to do but his value reflects this also which makes him a tougher choice. Tokoto took a step back this round overall but this was on the back of the bad loss on the road to Cairns. He still seems to be good value for money but could be hitting his fantasy value ceiling going into Round 4.
Top 3 Power Forwards
Mika Vukona: 74 points
Daniel Kickert: 66 points
Tai Wesley: 60 points
Mika Vukona with a pair of great performances took it out. More options appearing at power forward but the averages are still lower than Perry Ellis who has become most players first choice. However, some points of difference are here finally. Tai Wesley and Mika Vukona will play games in rounds 5 and 6 and both are worth watching as they are on par with everyone else with the average scores.
Top 3 Centres
Josh Boone: 108 points
Nnana Egwu: 70 points
Daniel Kickert: 66 points
Josh Boone and then the rest this round overall. The gap is huge here and a lot of centre choices could come from whether you want to spend money elsewhere. Egwu is set to keep up big minutes and Kickert has potential to have some big games. Both are around $1 million and are a huge discount on Boone, but the scores reflect this too.
The official team of the week for Round 3
AROUND THE NEWS
Adelaide 36ers
Josh Childress is coming. It will be interesting to see how many people jump on him and exactly how he fits this week. He starts at $1 million and adds to the options for the PF spot.
Sydney Kings
Sydney seems in trouble and signed Jeremy Kendle as an injury replacement for Kevin Lisch. Rumblings continue that another import big man is coming but just who and when remains unclear.
Cairns Taipans
It appears Michael Carrera will miss at least one game from the matchday reviews on Sunday. This is disappointing as he looked like he might be able to compete with Ellis for the fantasy team power forward spot.
Everyone else
Monitor closely the outcomes from the Sunday match day reviews as there were a number of players that need to accept fines or will miss 1 to 2 games this week.
GAME TO WATCH
Friday Night – Cairnse vs. Adelaide @ Cairns Convention Centre @ 7:30 pm
Childress will arrive in Adelaide and will be interesting to see how big a role he will play. On the other side, Carrera will be interesting watch. Cairns have two double rounds in the next 4 weeks and along with Childress options are now appearing in the PF spot to challenge for Ellis’ position.
Still, this is the one to watch to see if Childress makes a big impact.
PLAYERS TO WATCH
Josh Childress – Adelaide only having one game this round it’s a good round not to jump straight on anyway and see how he fits in.
Perin Buford – Will this form continue? They hit a stretch of single rounds soon, but if he keeps his scores this high it might not matter.
Stephen Holt – Not the best start fantasy ppoints-wise but he has a solid role with Brisbane. Under a million now and the SG spot is more limited in game than some give it credit for being. Goulding is over priced, Cotton is appearing over priced and Clarke is also up and down. It could end up being a position that is worth a steady pick. Follow his round this week and work out if he is worth the risk.
Devonte Newbill – After New Zealand’s week one of the guards had to be selected. Newbill along with Sosa are still great value for money and seem to share the ball. The only downside is when one scores high the other may score lower. Keep an eye on this as he is another SG option who also could be hugely valuable over the next 4 rounds as New Zealand have doubles in rounds 5 and 6.
Angus Brandt – Seeing if he emerges as one of the dangerous big men could be a story of the year at this point. Bargain price for what he is producing in these early stages and monitoring him again this round could indicate if you even should be spending the money on Boone or Oglivy.
Join us in the game by our open to anyone with no limit traditional fantasy league. League code is LC32MXAH.
That’s it for now. Good luck with week 4.
Disclaimer: All of the news in this article is at the time of writing and from publically available material.
Jonathan Prestwich is a Melbourne United fan introduced to the game by his children. He missed a half-court shot but they gave him the prize anyway...... maybe they felt sorry for him. Follow him on twitter @johnoprestwich
