Looking Back At Your 1999-2000 Fantasy Basketball Team
It’s Tuesday and in one week the 2009-10 NBA season will officially begin. Many of us are already gathering notes together for our basketball fantasy drafts. You can hardly control your excitement, right? Well, Sidelines can’t control its excitement. So in the five weeks leading up to the season tip-off, we’re thumbing through our old fantasy notebooks, cringing at our past selections and revisiting our top 10 fantasy picks from each of the seasons that introduced us to a new decade. This week: the new millennium. Karl Malone was the reigning MVP at the age of 35, still the oldest anyone has ever won the award. Tim Duncan was all David Robinson needed to finally capture his first championship title. Only 50 games were played in the lockout-shortened ’99 season. And it appeared as if the heir to Air Jordan could be found in a Toronto rookie named Vince. The year ahead would see future Hall of Famers Dominique Wilkins, Joe Dumars and Charles Barkley play their final seasons.
Enjoy and we’ll see you on October 27.
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Waasssuuuup, fantasy ballers. SportScape Sidelines back again to hook you up with this year’s basketball studs. If you followed our advice last year your team probably won. If you follow us this year, you’ll no doubt be as dangerous in your league as Y2K viruses are to our world. So stop humming “Oops … I Did It Again” and follow us as we review the 10 best the game has to offer.
And now: The best bets for your 1999-2000 fantasy all-stars!
10. Grant Hill, ORL
Hill, perhaps the most fully rounded player on this list will have his first shot at a full season in Motor City with Jerry Stackhouse, a power duo almost two seasons in the making. Assuming both these guys stay healthy (and there’s no reason to think they wouldn’t) they’ll help each other become one of the premiere powerhouses in the East once again.
09. Jason Kidd, PHO
It wouldn’t be insane to think Kidd might average a triple-double one of these years. He averages nearly 17 points and eight boards while leading the league in assists-per-game last season with 10.8, more than a full assist better than his previous high. He’s the best true point man in game full of great ones.
08. Stephon Marbury, NJ
Marbury didn’t exactly enjoy sharing the spotlight in Minnesota spotlight with Kevin Garnett. But now that he’s with New Jersey and the shoot-first point guard can call the team his own, there won’t be anything to stop this guy from going gonzo all over the league. A happy Marbury is a quiet and productive Marbury. If he continues growing, he’ll be on his way to the Hall of Fame 15 years from now. He’s that good.
07. Chris Webber, SAC
Oh, the free throw percentage! Webber! Webber, practice your charity tosses, my man. He shoots .486 while standing three feet to the left with a defender in his face, but only .454 when everything stops. If he could just shoot .650, he’d be the best power forward in the game. Statistically, that free throw percentage wrecks your team.
06. Tim Duncan, SAS
We know the big goober in the middle can play. We also know he can win. What we don’t know is how high his ceiling is. Is he just as good without the Admiral taking heat off of him? Robinson isn’t long for this league and, as good as Duncan is now, I can see him tapering off when Robinson’s team becomes his team. Because I’m teetering, he gets the middle of the list.
05. Kevin Garnett, MIN
Statistically, Garnett and Duncan are similarly ferocious stat-stuffers. Actually, Garnett’s just ferocious in general. With Marbury out of town, it’s totally his show and stat-wise he’s going to eviscerate most power forwards in this league. Heck, he’ll probably take a few SF with him.
04. Gary Payton, SEA
Payton’s 8.7 assists-per-game average was third behind only Marbury and Kidd. But what makes the Glove special is that he consists of the best of both those other two PGs. He scores nearly as many points and threes as Starbury (21.7, 1.7) and, like Kidd, rebounds, blocks and steals in higher numbers than someone as small as Payton is expected to (4.9, 0.2 and 2.3). When you choose Payton, it’s as if you’re choosing Marbury and Kidd.
03. Karl Malone, UTA
You know why Garnett and Duncan aren’t ranked higher? Because the Mailman hasn’t retired yet. I’m willing to concede that either one of those younger guys might be considered better than the quickly aging Charles Barkley. But Malone? Duncan and Garnett would have to have pretty remarkable careers. He’s 35 years old and he’s missed two games in the last seven seasons. Think about that. No clue how many seasons he’s got left in him, but I hope it’s enough to win a ring.
02. Allen Iverson, PHI
Iverson is a PG the way Superman is Clark Kent. Call it whatever you’d like, the Answer is a shooter. Three years in the league, this mighty mite has never averaged fewer than 22 points. Shoot, steal, repeat. His declining assists are a bit alarming. He’s be in the No. 1 spot if he dished the ball more than 4.6 times a game …
01. Shaquille O’Neal, LAL
… Well, and if the big fella wasn’t also in the league. Honestly, who can stop this guy? Not ‘Zo. Not Mutombo. Not Ewing. Not Robinson. He’s a scary, scary force. A force that scores nearly 30 points a game, grabbed 11 boards and blocked 1.5 shots per game last season … and he’s not really trying. God forbid Kobe Bryant continues to improve, not only will the Lakers be really good, but Shaq might feel the need to step up his game. I can’t imagine what that would be like.
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NOTE: Look for us next week as The Sidelines looks ahead at your 2010 Fantasy WNBA team.
… Just kidding. Those don’t exist.
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