Nate Robinson and the 41 Point Game.

DBefore I get to the post, I just want to let everyone know that the new version of the spreadsheet will be available around 6pm EST today. It has some really cool new features including a separate player analyzer. To access the spreadsheet you need to be receiving my posts via feed. If you do receive posts via feed (use any one of the links on this page, including the Google connect link on the right) then at the bottom of the feed will be a ‘footer’ which will contain the latest password. This is the only way I can ensure users are blog subscribers. Do note that sometimes the feed has a delay, so it can take a bit of time before you get the post in your feed. One way to check and make sure you are getting the posts via feed is to also subscribe for comments via feed, since those go out all day. I can also send the password through comments if need be. Once you have the password, enter it by clicking on the button clearly marked at the top right of the page. The redirect will take you to the spreadsheet. If the redirect doesn’t work, it’s likely your web browser. Try changing to a different browser (I.E. or Firefox) and see if that helps. Also try disabling the popup blocker.

Trust me, I am working day and night to make this a more efficient process.

On to the topic of the day and that topic is Nate Robinson. I gotta admit, I don’t watch many NY Knicks games so the whole Nate Robinson scores 41 caught me off guard. During the performance and particularly after it, following through the next day, I received some reader questions asking my opinion on him. My opinion was the same after his performance as it was before his performance, he’s useless. Look, we all know Nate is very talented and really could be either a starter or a solid sixth man on any squad. Prior to the whole Mike D arrival, Nate Rob was in that exact role.



But there are rumors and innuendos and hearsay that will have you believe that Mike D and Nate Rob didn’t get along or they both were in love with the same girl or whatever. Fact is the numbers tell you that Robinson is not fantasy worthy this year mainly due to inconsistent play and decreased minutes. Does scoring 41 points change all that? Nope, not one bit. It was a great effort, but it wasn’t like he was going to be inserted as a starter the very next night.

Now some fantasy sports analysts would have you jump on the train with your eyes closed. They care not about the past, and just need something to write about, so they’re going to tell you to grab Nate with reckless abandon. Stupid, Stupid, Stupid. But don’t worry; thief’s got your back. Look over the course of any season there’s going to be many instances of this, some random talented player making it all happen at once with a stellar performance. Before you go adding and dropping an trading, ask yourself…

Has this guy been a starter all year? Will he likely be a starter going forward? Was this a ‘breakout’ game, i.e. has he never come close to this before, or have we seen this picture before (Nate had a 41 point game last year too). Most importantly, who can I possibly drop to acquire Nate (if he’s already owned, forget it, you don’t need to be paying top dollar here). I’ll say this, feel free to add Nate to your roster if and only if you are dropping a guy that you are pretty confident no one in your league is going to pick up. That’s the only case of adding him. My bench is Barbosa, Griffin and Allen Iverson, Nate doesn’t fit that bunch.

Most importantly, if you do go out and add this guy to your squad, KEEP HIM ON YOUR BENCH! 10 out of 10 times (ok that exaggerates a wee bit) this guy is going to put up a 6 point clunker in the very next game. One performance does not make a guy fantasy start able. Make him prove himself, cause once he’s in you can’t take it back. Don’t let Joe Schmoe influence you into dropping a very useful player for him, Joe doesn’t care about your team, he cares about pushing out a story. What Joe is good for is reporting, not opinion, so read that story again and take in what he says about Gilbert Arenas. Now that’s useful information.