When the NBA announces its All-Star rosters Thursday, fantasy owners will be cackling in a
corner somewhere. Our All-Stars are a different breed.
Some superstars, like Kevin Durant and LeBron James, are at the top of the fantasy pile as well. But others are overrated — thanks to various holes in their games.
The free-throw issue
Blake Griffin, Dwight Howard, Andrew Bynum and Josh Smith are all tremendous assets to their respective squads. They also cause fantasy owners to be dead last in free-throw percentage every week. It’s almost impossible to overcome that.
Past their prime
A wise man once said that Father Time is undefeated. But year after year, owners insist on over-rating players on the downside of their careers. Tim Duncan, Elton Brand, Jason Kidd, Paul Pierce and Dirk Nowitzki are former greats that are no longer worth the price tag. With the condensed schedule wreaking havoc, youth is being served. The old guys are missing games and playing less minutes.
The little things
An NBA?star can get away with just scoring and rebounding or passing. A fantasy star can’t. If players aren’t going to block, steal or make 3-pointers then their value is capped. Tony Parker, Luis Scola and David Lee are very nice real-life players that can’t hack it in the fantasy world.
