Atlanta Hawks 

If you need an aging point guard that has lost a step in the past few years then look no further than Mike Bibby.  I had always liked Bibby when he played with the Sacramento Kings but he lost his Midas touch on the mid-range jumper and his ability to blow by defenders in the half court.  However, he still will knock down the open three and distribute to a much-improved cast in Atlanta.  Bibby has some mileage left but waiting in the wings will be my sleeper Acie Law IV.  Law gained some valuable court time this summer by playing in the Rocky Mountain Revue (NBA summer league) and made some noise by making the All-Revue team.  Often injured Speedy Claxton will see some playing time but don’t count on him for an entire season.  The real stud in the Hawks backcourt is Joe Johnson.  He put the team on his back last year and nearly pulled off a post-season shocker in the Celtics series.  Johnson averaged 21.7 ppg. and grabbed 4.5 rebounds last season.  He also shot 38% from beyond the arc, showing good durability in playing all 82 games.  Picking him in the second round of your draft would be a steal.  The Hawks also signed veteran guard Flip Murray this summer.  Since he is a combo guard, Murray will provide some backcourt depth at both guard spots. 

Boston Celtics

The Celtics will show no championship hangover this year.  Their backcourt play last year was Herculean and it should only improve.  Take ultra-quick point guard Rajon Rondo for instance; he outplayed the Lakers backcourt in the playoffs and was rewarded, as the Celtics picked up his contract option for ’08-09.  He will look for an upgrade in salary and a new contract at the end of the season.  Ray Allen had some off court family issues during the Lakers series but they will not affect his ability to produce numbers.  Allen averaged 17.4 ppg and 3.7 rebounds last season.  He was also deadly from three point land, shooting 39%.  Eddie House proved to be a key acquisition last season.  He was instant offense off the bench and provided a spark to the team every time he stepped on the court.  Often overlooked Tony Allen will see more playing time after recovering from knee injury during the ’07-’08 season.  Look for Allen and House to take most of the reserve minutes from a cast of young talents like Bill Walker, Gabe Pruitt and J.R. Giddens. 

Charlotte Bobcats

Hey everybody, the Bobcats have a new coach.  This is no surprise due to the poor leadership provided by ex-Coach Sam Vincent last season.  In cometh Larry Brown, who provides a wealth of experience and a tradition of making something out of nothing.  He is also famous for being tyrant-like towards his point guards.  This could be a challenge for third year pro Raymond Felton.  Although Felton is a fellow Tar Heel, Brown will not show any sympathy for his lazy play and mental mistakes.  Don’t be surprised if Brown pulls the trigger early and inserts first round pick D.J. Augustin.  Augustin was taken 9^th overall in this years draft from Texas.  He is lightning quick and Brown has already shown some confidence in Augustin’s game by splitting equal time between both point guards.  Jason Richardson lived up to his lofty contract last season.  He was all Michael Jordan expected him to be but J-Rich had no help last year in the backcourt.  Richardson is rapidly becoming one of the best 3-point shooters in the NBA.  He made 243 treys last season, the fourth best single-season total in NBA history. Richardson averaged 21.8 ppg and 5.4 rebounds, a classic scoring machine and human highlight reel that plays in a poor media market. He’s a guy you take in the first round.  Former Cavalier and Bull player Shannon Brown signed with the Bobcats this summer but he will provide zero fantasy value.  

Chicago Bulls

This should be a very exciting season for the upstart Bulls.  They have the number one draft pick/hometown hero Derrick Rose. Rose has a “pass first, then score” mentality, which will blend well with the athletic bigs on the team.  Look for Rose to fill the stat sheet with assists and steals, because it may take a while for him to build up consistently high point totals. Ben Gordon was the team’s leading scorer last season, averaging 18.6 ppg and 3.1 assists. Larry Hughes is a natural scorer but his shot selection has been questioned throughout his career. Kirk Hinrich is back in the fold but his name has been brought up in trade rumors in the local newspapers. Look for Thabo Sefolosha to see more court time for the feisty Bulls this season. 

Cleveland Cavaliers

The Cavs are coming off a disappointing performance in the Celtics series and some blame goes to the backcourt.  Delonte West was up and down in the series, which seems to be his mode of operation.  Boobie Gibson was hurt in the series and it really affected the Cavalier offense.  Gibson was able to get a brand new deal done over the summer, which means LeBron James likes to play with him.  Look for Gibson to get near 20 ppg and 5 apg. this season. The team will need his offensive production to balance his defensive shortcomings. The Cavaliers picked up Mo Williams from the Milwaukee Bucks over the summer. Williams is a shoot first point guards, which may take some scoring pressure off James.  Williams averaged 17.2 ppg last season, five points better than his career average.  The Cavaliers will need him if they want to go deeper into the playoffs this season.

Detroit Pistons

Chauncey Billups is a hard-nose player who gives his all, every time he enters the court.  Billups had a career high FG% of .448 last season.  That was great for him, but some of his other numbers suffered in the process.  His assist total was slightly down at 6.8 apg., and a hamstring injury really slowed him down in the Celtics series last season.  He may be on the downside of his career but his scoring will not change, so look for Billups to average about 17 ppg.  Richard Hamilton is equally as consistent as Billups and their play blends well together. Hamilton led the team in scoring last year with 17.3 ppg.  The emergence of Rodney Stuckey in the backcourt could cut into the veterans’ minutes. Stuckey is a rising star; so keep an eye on him as the year progresses. 

Indiana Pacers

Jamaal Tinsley is a thing of the past in Indiana.  This guy is talented but he’s made too many mistakes off the court, which Larry Bird will not tolerate.  T.J. Ford is the new Pacer point guard.  He seems to be fitting in pretty nicely and can run the up-tempo style that Coach Jim O’Brien prefers.  Ford’s FG% has increased each season and he averaged 12.1 ppg last year.  This speedy point guard also takes care of the rock as his assist/to ratio is among the league leaders.  Jarrett Jack will also provide some stability in the Pacer backcourt.  Mike Dunleavy has some fantasy relevance.  Dunleavy dropped 165 three pointers last season which ranked third amongst shooting guards in the league.  Dunleavy is a big two-guard so he will crash the boards.  Keep in mind that he also played all 82 games last season. 

Miami Heat

Dwayne Wade is coming off an Olympic gold medal in Beijing, China.  Usually it takes a while for the Olympians to get rolling.  I think Wade played so well that he will not let fatigue set in.  He can still triple double you on any given night as long as he stays healthy.  Wade only played 51 games for the second straight season so factor that into your fantasy draft plans.  Look for Mario Chalmers to see a lot of court time.  He looks like a player and Pat Riley also loves his game and the ability to take over point guard duties for Wade.  Jason Williams announced his retirement over the summer.

Milwaukee Bucks

There is a buzz in the air in Milwaukee this season.  Olympian Michael Redd is optimistic about the deals his team made over the summer.  One key player they acquired was Richard Jefferson from New Jersey.  Redd averaged 22.7 ppg and he lived behind the arc dropping 130 3FG’s.  Mo Williams has departed to Cleveland so the Bucks will look for four-year veteran Luke Ridnour to increase his scoring production. 

New Jersey Nets

Vince Carter averaged 21.3 ppg last year but the rest of his stats declined.  He is an overrated player who lacks the motivation to play all out on a nightly basis.  All indications are buyer beware with Carter.  Richard Jefferson has fled to Milwaukee so there will be a void in scoring.  In comes Devin Harris.  Harris averaged 14.8 ppg last season and looked really comfortable leading the way in Jason Kidd’s absence.  However, I did recently catch an ESPN clip where he got schooled by an average Joe in a charity game.  This shouldn’t happen so I have to question his defense.  

New York Knicks

Isaiah Thomas really screwed this team up.  You would think Zeke could at least provide some leadership from a backcourt perspective since he is one of the NBA’s all-time greats but that was far from the case.  Jamal Crawford and Stephon Marbury should equal a good tandem but they are notorious ball hogs.  Crawford should excel in the up and down style of new head coach Mike D’Antoni.  Crawford averaged 20.6 ppg and 5 dimes.  Take him as a sleeper in your fantasy league.  They added Chris Duhon from Chicago over the summer but he will not provide much value.  Little 5’9” Nate Robinson is an exciting player but his playing time was erratic with Zeke at the helm.  I’d be curious to see how his role changes under the new coach.  Robinson averaged 12.7 ppg last season and he really crashed the boards for a small guy.

Orlando Magic

The Magic really lost some players in the backcourt over the summer.  Maurice Evans, Keyon Dooling and Carlos Arroyo are all removed from the team.  The backcourt for the Magic is not really a strong suit.  Jameer Nelson is an accurate three-point shooter but he lacks the attempts and made field goals.  He is more of a distributor of the rock than anything else.  The team picked up Michael Pietrus from Golden State but he has minimal fantasy value.  Look for the bigs of Orlando to carry the scoring. 

Philadelphia 76ers

Andre Iguodala had a breakout season in ’07.  He averaged 19.9 ppg plus 5.4 rpg.  He played great defense and his jump shot showed improvment.  Andre Miller has remained a solid professional since he entered the league. He’s never been a score first point guard, so 17.0 ppg and 6.9 apg is really good for Miller.  Willie Green showed some people he could play last year as his minutes increased to 26.6 mpg.  Louis Williams also had a productive year, and was rewarded with a five-year deal in early August.  Williams averaged 11.5 ppg coming off the bench.  Look for Kareem Rush to be a sleeper this year.  The addition of Elton Brand should free some space for the Sixers backcourt.  Opposing teams will collapse on him in the paint so the guards should see more clean looks at the rim.

Toronto Raptors

Guard Jose Calderon was given the keys to run the team on a full time basis.  The Raptors choose him over T.J Ford.  Calderon signed a five-year $40 million contract extension over the summer. Calderon is a great decision maker and excellent shooter.  He averaged 11.2 ppg and 8.3 apg last season while leading the league in assist-to-turnover ratio.  Calderon was the only player in the top 10 in assists to play fewer than 34 minutes per game and not be a regular starter.   

Washington Wizards

DeShawn Stevenson had a breakout season due to the Gilbert Arenas injury last season.  Arenas claims he is fully healed this year and his team is primed and ready to beat the Celtics.  I often wonder what Arenas is smoking at times because, though exciting to watch, the Wizards never provide any substantial excitement during playoffs.  I like the ’07 draft day pick up Nick Young. Young will make some strides this year and cut into Stevenson and Antonio Daniel’s playing time.