Dein erstes Forum » en starts the season slowly but heats up when given

Sydney ruckman Callum Sinclair says the battle for spots at the top of the AFL ladder can be overwhelming and daunting, as his Swans prepare to host leaders Hawthorn on Thursday.The Hawks have clear air on 48 points, but just four points separate the next seven clubs, with the Swans, Crows and Bulldogs on 44, and the Eagles, Giants, Cats and Kangaroos on 40.A loss to the Hawks at the SCG could send the second-placed Swans sliding out of the top four, depending on other results later in the round.It can be a little bit overwhelming and daunting at times, I think that might be the case, Sinclair said at the SCG on Monday.It probably just shows the strength of the competition that if youre not on your game one week, it can really cost you and the race for top four is getting tighter and tighter every week, so theres very little time for mistakes.We need to keep the momentum going in our squad because the top eight is just so tight at the moment.You drop a couple of games and youre going to drop pretty low.Sydney will be going for back-to-back wins over Hawthorn having triumphed by 14 points at the MCG back in May.Its going to be a pretty fierce contest, obviously they are going to be fired up that we got the four points against them last time, Sinclair said.They probably dont like losing two games in a row to us, so were expecting a pretty combative contest, but I think our boys are up for it.He thought Hawthorns ability to change game plans was one reason why they were doing so well despite being only 13th in the competition in the contested possessions category.They are just an awesome side, theyve got multiple plans. Sinclair said.If plan A is not working theyve got plan B and plan C, so they are just a great total football side and theyve got a few strings to their bow, so its going to be a tough ask.He credited young Swans ruckmen Toby Nankervis and Sam Naismith for stepping up in the absence of the injured Kurt Tippett.Sam obviously had a really big influence on the game last week and Toby with his competitiveness and aggression has been a real plus. Tony Romo Youth Jersey . On Mar. 16, coming off a "fight of the year" performance at UFC 154 the previous November, St-Pierre faced Nick Diaz at UFC 158 in what would be his eighth defence of the welterweight title. Using his superior athleticism, St-Pierre cruised to a five round, unanimous decision victory setting up a much-anticipated title defence against number one contender Johny Hendricks. Chuck Howley Youth Jersey . 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The 2016-17 fantasy basketball campaign is just six days old,?so its important to keep some perspective.If you dominated the first week, that does not mean you have the championship locked up. If your team has been a complete disaster, do not panic.We always warn against using small sample sizes, and six days out of a 25-week campaign is just that.Still, questions arise and need to be cleared up. Just how good can Russell Westbrook and James Harden be? What about Bradley Beal and Kris Dunn? Will Tim Frazier maintain value once Jrue Holiday returns? How should you handle adding and dropping players early on?Dont worry; we have the answers for you.At the start of each week this season, Ill tip things off by posing and seeking answers to five key questions, thus The Starting Five.This weeks contributors are ESPN Fantasys Joe Kaiser and Kyle Soppe and DFS expert Renee Miller.Lets say Bradley Beal manages to avoid any nagging injuries this season for the first time in his career. Where do you put his fantasy ceiling?Kaiser:?Beal is someone I ranked lower than most heading into the season, in part due to his lengthy injury history since joining the NBA. That isnt the only reason, however. Known as a good shooter, Beal has a career shooting percentage of just 42.6 and has never averaged more than 1.9 3-PPG in any of his first four seasons. Given that hes also not a big rebounder, distributor or steals guy from the guard position, I see his ceiling no higher than 50th, even when healthy for a full 82 games.Soppe:?Statistically speaking, I dont see why he couldnt finish 2017 as a slightly poorer version of 2016 Kemba Walker. The Wizards lack other options, something that I believe can result in a major usage uptick should Beal find a way to avoid the injury bug. The relationship, or lack thereof, with John Wall is a narrative to watch, but until we see it translate to on-the-court issues, Im overlooking it. Dont forget that Beal is only 23 years of age and has almost 250 games of NBA experience under his belt.Miller:?Beal is a true shooting guard. Hes a career 42 percent shooter from the field and shoots 39.6 percent from 3-point range. With little in the way of peripherals to offer you, Beals ceiling is limited. That said, hes a very good complement to a ball handler like Wall. In my mind, when healthy Beal is a solid, matchup-proof 20/3/3 kind of player with the occasional 40-point game.New Orleans Pelicans point guard Tim Frazier (3 GP: 13.7 PPG, 9.3 APG, 1.3 SPG) is available in more than 50 percent of ESPN leagues and should be added in all formats. The question I have for you is what sort of value you think Frazier will have once Jrue Holiday returns from tending to his family?Kaiser:?If you look back to last season, when the Pelicans ended the campaign with Holiday on the shelf due to a fractured orbital bone and Tyreke Evans also shut down, Frazier came off the bench behind veteran Toney Douglas and averaged 29.3 minutes in 16 games, averaging 13.1 PPG, 4.4 RPG, 7.5 APG and 1.4 SPG. However, Holiday is a much better player than Douglas, and Evans is expected back in December as well. With Holiday in the lineup, I expect Frazier to see a steep decline in minutes and production. Once Evans returns as well, Frazier will likely be able to be dropped in most leagues, especially when you consider the other guards on this roster (Buddy Hield, Lance Stephenson and Langston Galloway) who deserve minutes.Soppe:?Not much. But the second part of this question is the real interest: When does Holiday return? That is an unknown at this moment and why Frazier needs to be universally owned. Holiday is dealing with some very serious family matters that are far bigger than basketball and is no sure bet to return at all this season. The scoring may dip a bit, but the former Nittany Lion Frazier is an assist asset at the very minimum with the potential for much more, given the 30-plus minute role that he is currently fulfilling.Miller:?Very little is the short answer. Holiday is a very capable guard when hes healthy and will get the lions share of minutes/guard usage when he returns. Its also a team that runs through Anthony Davis. The good news for Frazier is that he is getting crucial experience right now that will come in handy if Holiday should miss more time during the season. Im only interested in Frazier if he starts.Who will average more points and assists per game this season: Russell Westbrook or James Harden?Kaiser:? If you look at the first three games, the thing that jumps out is the amount of shots Westbrook has taken (28.7 per game) compared to Harden (20). Its just a few games, but that leads me to believe Westbrook will be a bigger scorer than Harden this season. I think the assist numbers will both hover around the 10-11 range for both players, with Westbrook having a smaller advantage there than he has in previous seasons due to Hardens bigger role as a point guard under coach MIke DAntoni.ddddddddddddoppe:?Give me Harden. Westbrook should hold the assist edge, but Im banking on Hardens ease of scoring giving him the win here. Westbrook gets to the line, but Harden is on a different level, and not only do those points add up in a hurry, they create a higher scoring floor. Add in Hardens advantage from distance, and I think he nears 40 points-plus-assists per night while Westbrook finishes in the mid-30s.Miller:?Whomever youre fortunate enough to own is starting every single chance you get, so this is really more of a fun exercise than any advice. Westbrook should enjoy the leagues highest usage all year long. If forced to pick, I go with Westbrook to lead in points and assists and possibly every other statistical category as well. The man is a beautiful basketball machine.Ricky Rubio suffered an elbow injury Saturday night. Given his propensity for injury throughout his career, he is bound to miss time due to this or another malady at some point. What sort of production would you expect from rookie Kris Dunn (68 percent ownership) if Rubio sits early this season?Kaiser: Dunn struggled mightily with his shot in the preseason and didnt attempt many 3-pointers. His greatest attributes as a rookie will likely be generating steals and assists, especially since there are so many other options on the young Timberwolves who can score (Karl-Anthony Towns, Andrew Wiggins, Zach LaVine). Even in extended minutes, I expect him to put up so-so numbers in his rookie season, but hes certainly worth a flyer in deeper leagues, where he might still be available. He has the talent to exceed my expectations.Soppe:?Better than Rubio. Listen, I love Rubio as much as anyone, but Dunn is the superior athlete and comes with a much more versatile skill set. He wont offer the assist numbers of Rubio, but he walks into the NBA as a better scorer and should add strong defensive numbers as well. In this scenario , I would prefer Dunn over players like Darren Collison and LaVine, both of whom finished as top-20 point guards last season.Miller:?Backup point guards are typically more reliable for fantasy, including DFS, than replacement big men. Dunn is a rookie who struggles on offense, which is a concern to me. Many point guards dont develop a good defensive game until much later in their careers, but Dunn seems to prioritize that aspect of the game. He needs to improve his shooting, but as a low-priced backup guard, Dunn could post lines of 4 points, 6 dimes, 3 boards and 4 steals and be a nice matchup-based play if Rubio misses time.What is your philosophy on balancing being aggressive on the waiver wire with being patient about players you drafted who are off to a slow start?Kaiser: You have to consider a players upside and his history when it comes to determining how long youre willing to wait for him to bust out of an early-season slump. Someone like Kenneth Faried, for example, is a proven rebounder and scorer who doesnt contribute in a lot of other ways. If he starts the season slowly in his new role off the bench, hes someone worth cutting, because even when hes right, hes not a major contributor in category leagues due to his lack of versatility in fantasy. Someone like Alex Len is a different story. He often starts the season slowly but heats up when given more of an opportunity, and hes a player at a thinner position (center) who is capable of not only contributing as a scorer and rebounder, but also as a shot-blocker. That upside requires a bit more patience before you decide to cut him.Soppe:?Im patient. Some may call it stubborn, but I trust the work I did in the preseason, so Im not adjusting my thoughts on a player before Thanksgiving, regardless of how wrong (for better or worse) I may have been. Like baseball, basketball is a long season, so you have the luxury of time. I see many reactive owners make moves early on, likely overcompensating for a mistake they dealt with during the fantasy football season. You drafted these players for a reason: #TrustTheProcessMiller:?As a rule, I give good players a chance to be good. If your second- or third-round pick isnt producing in the first week of the season, wait it out. It doesnt mean you cant be aggressive on the wire; that depends on the structure of the league and how competitive your league mates are. Being aggressive early could afford you some nice trade bait when your slow starter finally comes around. ' ' '