Corey Brewer is playing out of his head lately. He scored 25 point last night on 10-17 shooting, 2-4 from downtown. In addition to 25 points, Brewer contributed 5 steals, 6 assists 5 rebounds and 1 block. How can these numbers be possible from a guy averaging 8 PPG for his career? A fluke? When looking at his past 7 games, one would think otherwise:

18 .0 PPG, .487  FG%, 3.0 RPG, 3.3 APG, 2.7 SPG

Brewer kept Minnesota in the game last night against the Oklahoma City Thunder. He managed to somewhat contain the uncontainable Kevin Durant. To help offset Durant’s 31 he poured in 25, which exceeds anything imaginable when predicting this match up.

Brewer is living up to his lottery pick expectations. (Credit: picapp.com)

If Brewer can avoid disappearing offensively, as he occasionally does,  he might just to live up to  the hype surrounding being the 7^th overall selection of the 2007 NBA Draft. This season he has started all 43 game,  averaging 31:06 MPG, 12.7 points, 4 rebounds, 2 assists, and 1.5 steals.

This is leap from his first 2 seasons, closer to 1 full season at 84 total games. In that span he averaged 6 points a game shooting a sub .400 FG%.

After sitting out the majority of last season due to knee surgery, he has returned with offensive tenacity his reputable defensive skills further refined. He is considered Minnesota’s defensive stopper by head coach Kurt Rambis:

“He really likes it when we stick him on a guy and say, ‘Go shut that guy down.’ You know Kevin is not going to overpower Corey, so it’s a good matchup length-wise and height-wise. Corey did a real good job on him.”

As Brewer’s offensive game continues to improve his role will become more pivotal for Timberwolves’ future. He has eclipsed 20 points in 3 out of his last 5 games, and it appears to have emerged this month.

If he continues down this path of offensive brilliance, David Kahn can thank Kevin McHale for at least on of his moves while McHale was still the GM. Honestly, back in 2007, who didn’t think McHale was absolutely crazy to select Brewer with the 7th overall pick?

Please log in to your fantasy basketball team account right now, and search the name: Chris Douglas-Roberts of the New Jersey Nets.

Click “Add” and immediately add him to your starting lineup.

This kid is emerging into a star caliber player this year.

CDR is lighting up an NBA arena near you! (Credit: picapp.com)

CDR gets to the line with high frequency and making a superb percentage (91.5). He is shooting near 50% from the field for the year.

He hits the boards ripping around 6 a game. He is also collecting 1 steal per game.

He is averaging 27 points a game over his last 3 games, pushing his season average to 18 per contest. All of this after recovering from the N1H1 virus.

He is becoming the man in New Jersey.  Even with Devin Harris returning, I do not think it will affect him. CDR is dropping game no matter what this season.

Douglas-Roberts plays on a horrible team (0-13), which will result in big minutes for him all season to continue his development.

Pick him up, before someone else in your league burns you by adding him.

Danilo Gallinari of the New York Knicks was a relatively unknown quantity heading into this season. It is becoming growing more apparent that this kid is going to be very good.

He missed the majority of last year with – big gasp here in the basketball world – a back injury requiring off season surgery.

I will make make your team better! (Credit: picapp.com)

He might still be under the radar in many fantasy leagues, and if so, you should grab this kid immediately. Like right now!

Mike D’Antoni has cleared the way for him to develop by making him a starter. Starter minutes for the Knicks offense will translate to monster numbers.

I honestly agree with D’Antoni stating he is the Knicks’s best shooter.

Gallinari shoots with high volume and at a high percentage, netting 50% downtown  and 47% overall from the field.

He is averaging 22 PPG, and has decent all around stats to fill in assists (1.3), rebounds (4.7), steals (0.7 ) and blocks (0.7). All of those categories will increase as the season progresses.

We will have to wait and see, but my gut feeling tells me this kid is for real. Claim him off the wire effectively immediately!

Tonight DeJuan Blair begin what will serve to be his season long testament that he is clearly the steal of the 2009 draft. Blair was poised like a veteran displaying us a game well beyond his years.

His contribution with 14 points and 11 boards was impressive. It reinforces my argument that the San Antonio Spurs are my favorite pick to win it all this year.

Blair has star written all over him. (ESPN)

In a blowout victory over Chris Paul’s Hornets, Blair also owned the glass grabbing 5 offensive and 6 defensive rebounds.

He scored his 14 points  shooting 7-10 from the field, with 3 assists.

He did this is in 23 minutes.

He got to his spots on the floor easily. On defense he disrupted several shots by David West. He was effective playing against taller players.

I know this is only 1 game, but look out folks, this kid is will live up to his nickname “Beast.”

Every year during fantasy drafts people attempt to predict which players will drop off, and which will rise to new heights in production. Some of this can be attributed to a change of team, sometimes it is simply due to a player passing his prime.

In other cases, players rekindle their careers by having monster years in a new change of scenery. This season, pundits predict the following players to experience decreases in their numbers due to a new team. I believe the exact opposite, and here are the reasons why.

Richard Jefferson – San Antonio Spurs

Jefferson should be huge for San Antonion this year. (Credit: oddjack.com)

People are saying he is the 4^th fiddle in San Antonio. If anything, Jefferson will receive many wide-open threes as result of being paired with the best big man passer in the league, Tim Duncan. He will not bear all the pressure like he did in Milwaukee.

Expect the game to come easier playing for the best team he has ever been a member of. His point totals and rebounding might not improve, but his shooting % should see a dramatic increase as he will undoubtedly be benefiting from Poppovich’s system.

Shawn Marion – Dallas Mavericks

Marion will benefit from Jason Kidd. (Credit: picapp.com)

Shawn Marion is simply not suited for half court offense. We saw this as he faded away in Toronto and in Miami. Now, in Dallas, with Jason Kidd pushing the ball, look for Marion to be revived with the run and gun fast break basketball style in Dallas.

Marion should yield big numbers and have a high impact in multiple categories. He should have his best season since he last played along side Steve Nash in Phoenix.

Ron Artest – Los Angeles Lakers

Artest will fill multiple categories this year. (Credit: picapp.com)

Media predictions are claiming Artest should see a decrease in numbers this year. I have already seen him available lower than usual in the draft, which makes him possibly the biggest steal of the draft. He is an 8-category threat, and hits a huge amount of 3s.

Even if his scoring decreases, his all around stats should rise substantially within the Lakers’ system, making him a valid selection for your team. If you plot your draft course correctly, he should still be around later than usual.

Fantasy basketball has returned, and I have a few picks to offer the readers that I think will be highly beneficial to any fantasy roster. Other than the usual suspects, these 3 picks should pack a huge impact to any fantasy league roster.

Here are my top 3 “steal of the draft” picks for this upcoming season.

Hope they put you into first in your league!

Expect big time production from thie young big. (Credit: picapp.com)

Marreese Speights

Speights is highly productive and has  strong numbers in limited play. Look for him to break out big time this season. He scores well inside, and has tremendous athletic ability and mobility for his size.

If he gets the minutes, he should serve well at a utility roster spot for  blocks, steals, and rebounds. He will not hurt your FG or FT %, and has low turnover rates as he always protects the ball.

Look for Randolph's value to sky this year. (Credit:picapp.com)

Anthony Randolph

Finally a starter, Randolph will shoot a high FG and FT %, and possibly average a double-double this season. With Brandon Wright pretty much a wash for the season, look for Randolph to log big minutes.

He is less of a secret since his breakout performance during the Las Vegas Summer League, and he will fill the stat sheets in multiple offensive and defensive categories, and is worth considering drafting him higher than he ranks. Worth drafting when you get into the 7th round.

Blair could end up being the bigest draft day bargain. (Credit: picapp.com)

DeJuan Blair

Odds are he will be passed on a lot like he was during the 2009 NBA Draft, but you should consider watching him on the waiver wire at the bare minimum. Blair is a rebounding machine, and scores points in bunches.

Keep your eye on him as the season begins, depending on how Gregg Poppovich uses him, he could be the steal of yet another draft by mid season. Let’s face it, Blair was a dominant force for Pitt last year, and has been nothing less than amazing during the preseason.

5. Shaun Livingston G Oklahoma City Thunder: A career thus far plagued by injuries, most notably the one suffered in February 2007 against the Charlotte Bobcats in which he suffered a debilitating knee injury, dislocating his left kneecap after landing awkwardly following a missed layup, resulting in the left leg snapping laterally. Livingston injured almost every part of his knee, tearing the anterior cruciate ligament, the posterior cruciate ligament, and the lateral meniscus, badly spraining his medial collateral ligament, and dislocating his patella and his tibia-femoral joint. Ouch. During a brief stint late in the season, Livingston averaged 7.8 points on 53% shooting with 3.3 rebounds and 2 assists in 23 minutes per game. Will see time off the Thunder bench to make up a solid three-guard-rotation with rookie James Harden and Russell Westbrook.

Landry is a strong defender of the paint and a rebounding force (Credit: picapp.com)

4. Carl Landry F Houston Rockets: A solid rebounder and finisher in the paint. With Ron Artest gone, and Yao Ming done for the season, Landry will see the floor much more. Averaged 9.3 points and 5 rebounds in only 21:18 minutes a game. If he’s on the floor for 30-35 minutes per game, his numbers should flourish. Landry attacks the rim, shooting a solid 75% from the line. The bottom line is this guy is just flat out tough. How many people do you know who could evade assailants in a foot race after being shot in the leg? That is exactly how tough Landry is.

3. Ryan Anderson PF/C Orlando Magic: He is the one of the reasons Courtney Lee was shipped to New Jersey.  The Orlando Magic love their 3-point shooters, and Anderson will fit right into their system with his ability to launch from deep. Anderson is fierce on the offensive glass, and has been tearing up the NBA Summer League competition. With Rashard Lewis being slated to move back to small forward after Hedo Turkoglu’s departure, Anderson could open up the middle for Dwight Howard by forcing big men out of the paint to defend his shooting. Will improve the Magic’s spacing. Few sets will be run for Anderson to score, but his offensive rebounding will get him many easy buckets.

CDR will have a solid year with Carter gone (Credit: picapp.com)

2. Chris Douglas-Roberts G/F New Jersey Nets: CDR must be one of the happiest player in the NBA now that Vince Carter has departed for Orlando. It is obvious New Jersey is going young, and Douglas-Roberts is a superb talent. He displayed potential late last season, and averaged over 12 points in the games he started. In April he averaged 10.8 points with 2.1 assists and 2.5 rebounds in almost 27 minutes a game. As his minutes increase we expect CDR to settle into his role, and be a solid performer at the NBA level.  At 6’7”, he has the athletic ability to move to the 3 if Courtney Lee is the starter at off guard. CDR was the leading scorer (18.1 points a game) on the Memphis team that went to the NCAA Title game in 2008. Too bad about those free throws. Carries a heavy chip on his shoulder, and look for him to do something about it this year.

"See what happens when I get minutes Nellie?" (Credit: picapp.com)

1. Anthony Randolph F Golden State Warriors: The youngest player in the NBA last season didn’t get consistent minutes until the team was eliminated from playoff contention and decimated by injuries. Don Nelson isn’t the most nurturing of coaches with young players and chances are Randolph would have blossomed sooner under the tutelage of a different coach. Scored 24 points and 16 boards against Tim Duncan and the Spurs in one of the final games of the year. Could one day soon be considered the best player from the 2008 Draft. Lamar Odom had nothing but praise for Randolph after they faced off last season, stating he could be a HOF caliber player.