Josh Smith III

There's no realistic reason to expect that his numbers will improve considerably. If anyone ends up taking him as their #1, they better hope that they get a steal with their #2 - he's not at the level to carry a team

Are you telling me you wouldn't be freaking out if you got say Josh Smith, Gerald Wallace and Marcus Camby with your first 3 picks? Punt points and dominate everything else...nab AK-47 in the 4th (Rondo in the 5th?, too high?) and laugh at the competition as you have already won steals and blocks, are killing on boards and ahead of the game on TO's.

It would, of course, be the all-injury dream team, but it would be unbeatable if everyone stayed healthy.

Note to people who don't know what we are talking about:
I, and to a lesser extent Scott, am obsessed with players who can get crazy blocks/steals and punting points. People overpay for points and points are often associated with high TO's. If you can break out dominant stls, blks and boards, and be ahead of the game on TO's, you are very difficult to beat. Now you bring in a 3 point sharp-shooter or two (usually low turnover guys because they catch and shoot), and now you are threatening another cat and helping TO's some more. All that being said, it's not like you are getting killed on points, so if you pick up some volume scorers who don't do much else later, you have a good opportunity to get some stuff done depending upon the opponent. (see...fantasy basketball is better than fantasy football)

7 cat fantasy top 15

7 categories: points, boards, dimes, stls, blks, 3's, TO's.
Pre-draft top 15 (in no particular order):
Wade, Kobe, KG, Gilbert, Nash, Kidd, Marion, Dirk, Yao, Brand, LeBron, Bosh, Josh Smith, T-Dunc and AI.

From Scott:

If any of these 13 guys were there, would you leave them on the table for JS? LeBron, Kobe, Dirk, KG, Arenas, Pierce, Marion, DWade, Paul, Yao, Bosh, Pau, Brand

Yes. I would leave Pierce on the table (I am trying to win a championship which means I need the guy around at the end of the year). Gasol and Brand are somewhat borderline. Gasol I would only take if his situation changed. It's hard to take a guy at the end of the first round who doesn't want to play for the super young team he is playing for. Brand is steadier, but Smith's upside is higher.

Josh Smith II

Okay, I benefitted from J-Smoove in every league I was in last season, so I'm a big fan. Part of the reason for this is that I was able to pick him up in the third (or fourth!), where he was a bargain. This was justified by his last-month performance in the previous season, which pointed to a significant increase in 06-07. I should always be so lucky.

For next year's draft? I won't be surprised to see him go late in the first round...if Chris has a pick there (AK47 anyone?). Smoove's value for next year is around pick 14 - there's no realistic reason to expect that his numbers will improve considerably. If anyone ends up taking him as their #1, they better hope that they get a steal with their #2 - he's not at the level to carry a team. If any of these 13 guys were there, would you leave them on the table for JS?

LeBron, Kobe, Dirk, KG, Arenas, Pierce, Marion, DWade, Paul, Yao, Bosh, Pau, Brand

And there are others who are at least of arguably equal value - Dwight Howard, Nash, etc.

Don't go overboard. Remember - I picked him in the 4th round and didn't even make the playoffs!

Josh Smith

Depending upon your league's format, Josh Smith is a first round pick. For those of you not paying attention, J-Smoove had 16.4 / 8.6 / 3.3 with 1.4 steals and 2.88 blocks! The steals were 7th highest amongst non-guards (19th overall) and the blocks were 2nd in the league to Camby. He also made 38 3's. If your league does not do percentages, you have a stud (his %'s are weak). Consider a) He is 21 years old and b) he played the whole year without a PG. I refuse to believe that ATL is stupid enough to go through another year without a PG. Whether it be Mo Williams or Mike Conley Jr., they know that hole absolutely has to be filled.

Expect similar block, steal, assist, and rebound numbers next year (his boards fluctuate wildly by the matchup) with an up tick in scoring. I see him getting himself right up to that 20 ppg mark, making him an extremely valuable player in 5-7 category leagues. Don't be shocked to see him go right around the bend of the first round.

If you need any other reassurances, he is nearing his restricted free agent year and he hasn't been payed yet, so you can imagine that he's going to do everything in his power to get the max (and then stop trying like most NBA players).