http://www.debate.org/opinions/is-basketball-better-than-football

Many debates have been had over the talk about which is better, basketball or football, but I believe that basketball is better because injuries are less frequent, it is more fast paced, and they are paid much higher. Basketball has always been my personal favorite sport since I was a kid, while other kids have fell in love with football. I never got how people loved football, as people are always getting hurt and have to sit out, but maybe it motivates them to want to play more. I have player basketball for over 6 years and have never even been seriously hurt. Despite football and basketball having the same type of injuries, in football it occurs way may. According to debate.org 69% of people prefer basketball over football anyway. Basketball is also way more fast paced because it doesn’t stop, except for timeouts, when football stops after every play. Even with the fast pace and basketball still doesn’t even compare to the injury rate of football. I believe everyone is just in love with football for a phase, where everyone just wants to hit each other and get out aggression, but it will just pass over. Despite these advantages of basketball, football is still a great sport. It is always very competitive and and physical, and its always fun to watch someone get hit hard or get a touchdown. Both sports are great, but basketball is obviously the better choice because of the reduced injuries and more playing time, the fast paced games, and because the professionals get paid way  more than the professionals in football.

 

The Lakers last night pulled an upset that nobody, even the experts, saw coming. The game had been close between the Lakers and Clippers opening night, until around the fourth quarter when the Lakers bench exploded for about 50 points in the last 15 minutes to give the Lakers a 116-103 win over the Clippers. People everywhere, including me being a Clipper fan, were very shocked when the Lakers pulled off this big win to start off the season. People in fantasy leagues became curious too, because players like Jordan Farmar, Xavier Henry, and Jordan Hill put up a total of 50 points all together, coming off the bench. Many have picked up the 3 players already in an effort to improve their fantasy teams by these impressing stats, including me, as I picked up Jordan Farmar and Jordan Hill just after the game last night. These guys will be producing promising stats this season, and it looks like it will be consistent for the entire season. They aren’t shy of minutes either, and they have great all around stats for a couple of players coming off of the bench. Even though I hate to say it, the Lakers may possibly be a force this season too. The Clippers had a sure win and they let the game go at the end. Giving credit though, the Lakers surely did want the win way more than the Clippers did. The Lakers deserved this win, and players on the come up like these guys may be a great improvement and benefit to your very own fantasy team.

 

As the season nears, and the preseason is coming to a close, players in the draft are showing what they will bring this year. Players like Lebron James are consistently doing great, as he won MVP of the league last season. Many predict a lot of players to be the same as they were last year, or even worse. Players who have gotten worse include Dwight Howard, Joe Johnson, and Rudy Gay. Most of these players have either gotten worse by aging, injuries, or just straight up declining in the stats. As some of these players still average some pretty good stats, they may not influence your fantasy league as much as you may have hoped this season. There are many players who have gotten better too, including Harrison Barnes, Iman Shupert, and Eric Bledsoe. With Bledsoe now being a main player on the Suns this season, he is going to be of great importance and will be a very good player this season, while getting lots of minutes. Shupert has always showed his scoring mentality and is displaying in the preseason that his scoring is here to stay. Harrison Barnes is also an all around player, and has showed great ability in some small-big man type plays. Some of these players may be a good pickup this year, and if your drafts haven’t come up yet, you might want to try and steal some of these players on the come up. While you do this, you also may want to consider avoiding some of the decreasing players. A link below will take you to some of these improving players and decreasing players in the league.

 

Improving players-http://bleacherreport.com/articles/1801251-predicting-the-15-most-improved-players-in-the-nba-entering-2013-14-season

Decreasing players-http://bleacherreport.com/articles/1484636-8-nba-stars-getting-worse-in-2013/page/2

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Teams likely to do poorly this year still may have a few good players that may benefit your fantasy team. Players like Spencer Hawes and Kelly Olynyk can be very effective on your roster. Fantasy is all about the players, and how you choose them can be a big deciding factor. Most sleepers may even be hidden in the non-drafted players post drafting, available for the choosing. Having a team of these sleepers could benefit your roster. Even trying to trade for some of these players can help. I found Ray Allen at the bottom of my draft, and I easily picked him up on my own team, which will also give me some good points on the board. As the season is approaching it will be important to at least attempt to replace some of your worse players with some of these hidden sleepers, if possible. Especially rookies coming in, they may be a good help too. Doing some research, I found that people like Cody Zeller, Victor Oladipo, and Michael-Carter Williams will most likely be a good improvement to your fantasy team. Cody Zeller averaged 18 points and 9 rebounds against the Grizzlies during the preseason. Also, over 4 games, Victor Oladipo averaged 19 points per game, 4.3 rebounds per game, and 5 assists per game. Lastly, Michael-Carter Williams was doing okay, despite a bad game, led the team in assists. All of these players and more can benefit your team, and down below will be a link to even more Rookies and sleepers you may have never thought of, that may in fact benefit your team.

http://www.nba.com/rookie-ladder/

 

 

This year’s draft will include some of the best players the league has ever seen. For fantasy this year, it will be even more important on how fast you can pick up these soon to be greats. Big talk has always surrounded the main picks of the draft, such as last year’s league MVP Lebron James, and one of the scoring leaders, Kevin Durant. The first few rounds in the draft may be easy to choose from, as the greats are very easy to choose, but as the draft goes down the list, players like Pau Gasol become more important to be seen. Lots of talk has been surrounding who is better, Pau Gasol (left) or Dwight Howard (right) , as seen in the picture above. I believe this year Pau Gasol will have a great year, like he normally does, because he isn’t too old yet, and his numbers are always consistent. Dwight Howard has always been such a flashy player, whose skills can’t match his mouth. Dwight in my opinion is overrated, and Pau Gasol is a great player to have on your team this year. Other top picks like these big men include Tim Duncan and Tony Parker, a power duo who always are consistent in their numbers, despite their age. If you’re also looking for a guard-type player, Kemba Walker and Rudy Gay are always greats and will give your team a boost. As the drafts are coming up, I hope some of these top pick recommendations will help you in your own draft this season!