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Toronto Raptors guards Leandro Barbosa is a streaky player. When he gets hot he can fill it up. Right now he’s sizzling.
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He’s averaging 11.8 points per game on the year, but he’s upped the ante to 16.8 ppg over his past five games. Along with the scoring binge, he’s averaging 1.2 three-pointers, 3.2 rebounds, 1.0 assists, 0.2 blocks, and 0.8 steals. Barbosa is shooting 46.6 percent from the floor during his hot streak, 37.5 percent from downtown, and 76.9 percent from the line.
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Barbosa qualifies at the point guard and shooting guard position, which gives you some added positional flexibility. He’s owned in 10.0 percent of Yahoo! and 2.3 percent of ESPN leagues.
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As long as he continues to stay healthy and see 25+ minutes per game, he should provide some decent scoring. In the nine games he played 20+ minutes he has averaged 15.1 ppg and 1.0 three-pointer per game. For his career he averages 1.5 three-pointers per game.
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The Raptors play three games on the road this coming week against the Hawks, the Celtics, and the Clippers, as well as one at home against the Trail Blazers. He’s scoring average is nearly identical at home (11.8) and on the road (11.9).
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Don’t expect a scoring spree like Kobe is in the midst of, but as long as he continues to play 20+ minutes he’ll give you a decent bump in points and three-pointers. As always, make sure you have somebody that you can drop (and not miss) before picking him up.
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• Do You Believe in Amir?

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I was going to title this article “Do You Believe in Amir-acles?” but decided the cheese factor would be just to high.
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What isn’t cheesy, though, is the way that Amir Johnson has been playing for the Toronto Raptors. With back-to-back double-doubles he won’t last long on the waiver wire. He’s currently owned in about sixty percent of fantasy leagues, so you better act fast.
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We’ve long heard about Amir’s potential, but he has struggled to deliver. Last year he topped the 25+ minutes per game threshold, but failed to consistently put up big numbers.
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He finished the year shooting 56.8 percent from the floor, which is a category he absolutely excels in (58.7 career mark). That was the only plus category he had.
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He shot well from the line (78.8 percent), but that didn’t move the needle much in the category. Neither did the 6.4 rebounds, 1.1 assists, 0.7 steals, or 9.6 points per game. His block numbers (1.2 bpg) were solid, but he wasn’t confusing anybody for Mt. Mutumbo.
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Amir’s sudden hot streak doesn’t mean he’s going to be a double-double threat the rest of the year, but his three-game averages of 13.0 points and 11.7 rebounds certainly turns heads. As is the five double-figure rebound games out of nine played.
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Amir is playing a season high 28.1 minutes, which certainly is a contributing factor to his success. He’s shooting 61.8 percent from the floor and 73.3 percent from the line. He’s averaging career highs in rebounds (7.8), assists (1.3), and steals (0.9). He’s matching last year’s block numbers (1.2) and is scoring 8.8 ppg.
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Also check out:

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• DeMar DeRozan DeDominating
• Should You Add Jonas, Brother?

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Toronto Raptors guard DeMar DeRozan is off to a great start. He has scored 20+ in his past two games and three of his past five.
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In his past game he hit a career-high five three-pointer. Not just a career-high for a game, it matched his career high for a season. DeRozan hit a combined nine three-pointers in his first two years in the league. He’s already topped that number at ten.
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DeRozan made a big scoring leap last year, going from 8.6 ppg as a rookie to 17.2 ppg. His playing time increased by 13 minutes so the increase was to be expected.
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So far DeMar has played slightly fewer minutes than last season, but that won’t be an issue.
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DeRozan is a scorer. He is athletic and he just has a knack for getting the ball in the hoop. Given his athleticism, he’s not a particularly good rebounder. In fact, his current pace of 4.0 rpg is a career high. Don’t expect a large amount of assists either. That’s not his game.
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Until this year he was a two category player. He could give you scoring and a nice field goal percentage. Not that it’s not enough to have a guy that’s been an 18+ scorer since the calendars turned to 2011 last year, but his added three-point touch is a fantasy game-changer.
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Suddenly he’s giving you three categories, plus his decent rebounding numbers and improved free-throw shooting (84.0 percent), making him more valuable than most of us thought he’d be.
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I would not recommend trying to “sell high” on him. I think there is more to come from DeRozan. In fact, I’d do the opposite and see if you can get him at a reasonable price.
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Also check out:

• Should You Add Jonas, Brother?
• Court is in Sessions
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• Don’t Drop It Like It’s Hawes
• Roster Rubio

Hedo Turkoglu gave Portland the Carlos Boozer treatment by calling an audible and coming to terms with the Toronto Raptors.  Quite simply Hedo is following the dollar sign as Toronto isn’t nearly the team that Orlando or Portland is, especially if Chris Bosh skips town next Summer as expected.  With Jose Calderon running the point, Hedo’s assist total will likely go down.  He’ll have to share touches with Bosh and Andrea Bargnani, but is scoring average shouldn’t suffer.   His reputation, however, is a different matter entirely.

Hopefully you’re going deep into your fantasy playoffs.  If you are there are a few situations around the league to keep your eye on.

The Bad Teams
If you have any Golden State Warriors players on your fantasy team, you know where I’m going with this.  Don Nelson is making it a point to play some of his younger players.  Corey Maggette, Andris Biedrins, and Jamal Crawford have been given healthy nights off in order to try his younger players.  If you’re in a daily league you can make adjustments, but if you’re in a weekly league it’s almost impossible to play any Golden State players.

The Toronto Raptors could put Shawn Marion in that category if they don’t feel The Matrix is in their long-term plans.  He’s a free agent after this season.  The Raptors may also shut down Chris Bosh and Jose Calderon, who have battled through minor injuries this year.   They both played in the Olympics for their respective countries and could use a little R & R.

Caron Butler of the Washington Wizards could be a shutdown candidate.  He’s dealing with a hamstring injury now, and he could easily be given the last week off.

The Good Teams
This concern isn’t just limited to the bad teams though.  Once the good teams are locked into their seed, they can start to rest up before the playoffs.  The Cleveland Cavaliers are a likely candidate.  They maintain a solid lead over Boston and Orlando, and they could start reducing the minutes of LeBron James, Mo Williams, and Zydrunas Ilgauskas.  If Boston or Orlando can get some separation from the other, both teams could rest some of their stars.  Kevin Garnett is working to get his legs under him so he should be fine, but Ray Allen, Paul Pierce, and Rajon Rondo could see reduced workloads.  Dwight Howard, Hedo Turkoglu, and Rashard Lewis  could experience that for the Magic.

The Los Angeles Lakers are running away with the West and have a deep bench.  Kobe Bryant, Paul Gasol, and Lamar Odom could see a reduction of minutes.  With Kobe essentially out of the MVP race, that won’t be a factor in keeping him in the lineup.  Two through eight in the West is pretty tight so those teams likely won’t be able to rest up.

Keep these things in mind as you set your lineup for your championship run.

Shawn Marion once again finds him dealt to an inferior team.  Last year it was for Shaq.  This year he’s being moved along with Marcus Banks to Toronto for Jermaine O’Neal and Jamario Moon.

The biggest winners in this trade is the Matrix.  With Marion leaving Dwyane Wade’s side he’ll likely get more than the 10.6 field goal attempts he averaged with the Heat.  He’ll be playing with a Point Guard (Jose Calderon) that more closely matches Steve Nash’s skill set, which should see his 12.0 points per game go on the incline.  Michael Beasley is playing just 24.3 minutes per game. 

At first glance I thought that Michael Beasley would see a bump in production, but the Heat are adding two guys who should see extended minutes.  Jermaine O’Neal and Jamario Moon will likely play around 25 minutes for the Heat.  JO’s scoring won’t change, but he should see a little increase in rebounding.  Instead of sharing the post with Chris Bosh and Andrea Bargnani he’ll be sharing it with Beasley and Udonis Haslem.  Jamario Moon will get some run, but I don’t see him being a fantasy factor any more barring injury.

The biggest losers in the trade are probably Andrea Bargnani and Udonis Haslem.  Shawn Marion is playing for a payday, and after his slow first half with Miami, he’s going to want to showcase his skills to the rest of the league.  Chris Bosh is going to get his so someone is going to take the hit. To me that guy is Bargnani.  Udonis Haslem will see his minutes diminish as the heat work JO and Moon into the mix.  Plus, JO’s presence will take away some of his rebounding prowess.