Drive to the Finals Picks - April 24, 2011

The Intuition Statistician

Must - Amar'e Stoudemire

• With two teams potentially swept and out of the playoffs today, look to pick the best player you have available between either the 76ers or the Knicks. Stoudemire or Carmelo averaged the highest RPA throughout the regular season for both teams. Therefore either one of these guys are a solid pick for tonight.

Bust - Dwight Howard

• Save Howard! Although the Magic are down 2-1, there are two teams that could be eliminated today. If the Hawks win tonight, then Howard is a for sure pick in Game 5. It's too early to count the Magic out. Use any super stars from either the Knicks or 76ers. Howard has been a monster in all three games and it seems like he's not going to slow down. Having him available in further rounds could allow you to make a huge jump in your playoff league.

Stat Guru:

Must - Josh Smith

J Smoove has been flying under the radar for the Hawks in the playoffs. I don't know about you, but I actually forgot about his presence on the court.(not sure how I could) He's been averaging 27+ PRA for the game as a versatile forward. Apart from his defensive ability, Smith can shoot, slash to the basket and take players off the dribble. Atlanta will look to defend home court and I expect Smith to be a huge factor in Game 4.



Bust - Chris Paul

Well would you look at that, my Lakers have finally picked up the slack and have shut down the Hornets primary option. Without David West, the Hornets have a lot of holes in their offense, looking to players like Trevor Ariza and Carl Landry for any sort of scoring outside Paul. Now that the Lakers have keyed in on Paul and with his wrist injury suffered in Game 3, his impact will take a huge hit in this game. Paul is still averaging 20 points and 10 assists for the series, but I expect to see those numbers dwindle tonight.

Fantasy Fresh Wes:
Must - Chris Paul
The Danilo experiment didn't pan out so I'm going with a safe pick tonight.  If the Hornets stand any chance at staying in this series, they have to win tonight. More importantly, CP3 is going to have to regain the magic he had from Game 1 and put up big numbers across the board.  I considered Jrue for this pick, but don't want to be forced between taking one of Dwight or CP3 if they both face elimination on Tuesday.

Bust - Jrue Holiday

As I stated above, superstars are beginning to face elimination at this point in Round 1, and I would regret not using these fantasy monsters. I do expect the Sixers to come out strong and maybe even steal a game, but I don't expect Jrue to have huge numbers, with the team relying on Iggy and Brand this game. Consider Jrue a bust from here onward.