Dwight Howard scored his first triple double this week, including an impressive 10 blocks.

Atlanta Hawks

Josh Smith has a bruised ankle and will be out for two to four weeks, so he could miss up to 15 games.  Othello Hunter and Solomon Jones are the backups but they do not garner any fantasy value.   The Hawks have a favorable schedule this week.  They start with back-to-back games with the New Jersey Nets and end the week with the Charlotte Bobcats.  I would start my Hawk players with no hesitations.  Maurice Evans has come on of late so keep a watch on him.  Think about picking him up if you need a utility player.  He will get you points and rebounds but no steals and assists.         

Boston Celtics

Ray Allen only hit one of nine from behind the arc against the Hawks on Wednesday.  Allen is not shooting well from deep this year.  He is only 2 for 16 in his last two games, only shooting 27% from the distance on the season.  Leon Powe has cooled off in his last three games only scoring 4.0 ppg.  Tony Allen dropped 23 points against the Detroit Pistons this week but he turned around and had just two points against the Hawks on Wednesday.  Allen is a head-scratcher at this point in the season.  However, I would recommend holding on to him due to his streakiness.  Hopefully, you can catch him when he’s warm.     

Charlotte Bobcats

Sean May is losing favor with Coach Brown.  The coach has changed his line-up by starting Jared Dudley at power forward and sitting May.  Dudley is sporadic on offense and he is a liability on the defensive end.  He is not worth a fantasy slot yet.  Jason Richardson had arthroscopic surgery on his right knee Wednesday morning.  The scope did not reveal any structural damage, which is a good sign.  He is scheduled to miss one to two weeks.  Rookie D.J. Augustin and Adam Morrison should see increased playing time.      

Chicago Bulls 

Kirk Hinrich had thumb surgery and will be out for at least three months.  He mentored Derrick Rose on the court so hopefully this injury will not deal a blow to the rookie’s confidence.  Larry Hughes returned to action on Thursday night against the Dallas Mavericks after missing time with a dislocated shoulder.  Hughes has no fantasy value yet but he may crack the starting lineup with the injury to Hinrich.  The coach prefers Hughes to Thabo Sefolosha.  I guess this explains why Sefolosha racked up a DNP on Thursday night.  If I were you, the waiver wire would have his name written all over it.  The Bulls have also signed guard Lindsey Hunter.          

Cleveland Cavaliers

LeBron James was named the NBA's Eastern Conference Player of the Week for games played Nov. 3-9. It was the 14th time in his career he's won the honor. In four games during the week, James averaged an NBA-high 34.5 points and 9.8 rebounds and made 46.9 percent of his shots. He's now leading the league in scoring at 28.1 points per game.  Ben Wallace left during the third quarter with a knee contusion after scoring 11 points on 4-of-4 shooting (3-of-3 from the foul line) with six rebounds, three assists, and one steal on Thursday.  Wallace will be day-to-day at best but then again aren’t we all.

Detroit Pistons

Coach Michael Curry has gone small ball to spice up his team.  During the fourth quarter of the Pistons' win at Sacramento, Curry used a three-guard set with Richard Hamilton and Allen Iverson being joined by either pint-sized point guard Will Bynum or shooting guard Arron Afflalo. Tayshaun Prince slid over to the power forward spot.  Bynum and Afflalo has seen more floor time since Rodney Stuckey had recent dizzy spells and missed the West Coast trip.  Stuckey will regain his role in the normal rotation very shortly so do not make any drastic moves.     

Indiana Pacers

The Pacers are becoming one of those sleeper teams in the NBA this season.  They are currently on a three-game winning streak and the team is playing with a lot of chemistry.  They defeated the Nets on Wednesday 98-87.  T.J. Ford flirted with a triple-double for the third straight game when he had 18 points, nine assists and eight rebounds. The Pacers, who are on a three-game winning streak, had six players score in double-figures. Marquis Daniels added 16 points. Indiana, which was without three starters, had 15 steals.  If you need a back-up center Jeff Foster is cooking with gas right now.  He scored in double-digits for the third straight game. 

Miami Heat

The injury bug has returned to Miami.  Shawn Marion (strained groin) has missed the last two games and remains day-to-day.  James Jones (right wrist surgery) is out until mid-January. Jones, Miami's best three-point shooter, thinks he'll be back sooner, however.  Jamaal Magloire (broken bone left hand) is out until mid-November. Magloire has not been cleared for non-contact drills but he's expected to be at least one week from returning.  Dwyane Wade committed four turnovers against Portland. Wade leads the league with 4.3 turnovers per game…Ouch!

Milwaukee Bucks

Luc Mbah a Moute made his first NBA start Wednesday night against the Spurs, replacing Charlie Villanueva at power forward. Mbah a Moute played 35 minutes, scoring 11 points and grabbing seven rebounds.  Villanueva suffered a hamstring strain in the second quarter of this game, didn’t return and therefore is day-to-day.  Moute is not worth a shot yet but keep an eye on him with the increased floor time. 

New Jersey Nets

Devin Harris missed his third straight game with a sprained ankle but he should be back in the mix on Friday.  Keyon Dooling, filling in for the injured Devin Harris as the starting point guard, put up good statistics in the three games: 15.0 points, 4.0 assists. Dooling got a chance to get some game time conditioning and his shooting touch back after he missed so much of pre-season with an ankle injury.  Coach Frank will play Dooling even though Harris returns.  Add Dooling as insurance to your fantasy squad.

New York Knicks

I hope the Knicks kept their receipt because it’s possible the team will lose the services of rookie Danilo Gallinari for the rest of the season.  Gallinari has seen several specialists who all recommend surgery to repair a bulging disk.  Wilson Chandler is playing better after nursing a recent flu bug.  He looked more agile and assertive on Wednesday in Memphis, going 11 for 12 from the field and finishing with a career-best 27 points.  Try to steal Chandler in the upcoming weeks. 

Orlando Magic

Dwight Howard was unstoppable in Wednesday's victory over the Oklahoma City Thunder.  Howard had his first career triple-double.  The most impressive statistic was 10 blocked shots on the night.  Brian Cook has been the forgotten man for the Magic this season, but he finally scored his first points Wednesday night in the blowout victory over the Thunder. Cook, who had a defined role last season before he was injured late, has lost his playing time to Tony Battie, who returned this season.  Jameer Nelson played his best game of the season, getting 17 points and 10 rebounds against the Thunder. The 10 rebounds were a career high for Nelson.

Philadelphia 76ers

The Sixers have lost three out of four games in ugly fashion.  The team is not gelling well with Elton Brand and they look stale on defense.  Look for a shake up in the starting line-up if things continue to go south.  Willie Green recently gave the Sixers 17 points and nine assists versus the Raptors in 31 minutes off the bench.  Green is up and down so he will leave you hanging on most nights.  I would stay away right now. 

Toronto Raptors

Jose Calderon left the game early on Tuesday versus the Sixers with a tight hamstring.  Without Calderon, the Raptor could not get into their offense with the likes of reserve guards Will Solomon and Roko Ukic. The former is trying to re-adjust to the NBA after being in Europe for six seasons, the latter is a rookie trying to figure out what's going on and neither was capable of getting Toronto going for any length of time.  Andrea Bargnani hit 6-of-11 shots and a three for 15 points, five rebounds and two blocks on Wednesday.  He displays raw talent but fails to put two positive games together in a row.

Washington Wizards

This team is bad and not bad meaning good either.  The Wizards are 1-5 and things will continue to look bleak until Gilbert Arenas gets healthy.  However, rookie center JaVale McGee recently had the best game of his career against Utah, finishing with career highs in points (13) and rebounds (11). He also blocked three shots.  Keep him on the radar for a week or two.  He could be a flash in the pan.  Antonio Daniels returned to the starting lineup after missing their last game with a knee injury. He played 13 unproductive minutes.