In News That I'm Certain You Don't Care About...

Here are the results from today's auction keeper draft, roto, for fantasy basketball.

PG Derrick Rose CHI 21
SG Dwayne Wade MIA 45
G Stephen Jackson CHA 14
SF Danny Granger IND 45
PF Al Jefferson UTA 27
F Chris Bosh MIA 30
C Nene Hilario DEN 4
U Marcus Camby POR 7
U Manu Ginobili SAN 3
B1 Amir Johnson TOR 1
B2 Vince Carter ORL 2
B3 Marcus Thornton NO 1

It looks like a strong club, because there were only nine teams in the league. I wound up getting outbid for Chris Paul in the first -- I didn't want to commit $82 for him and tie up 41% of the payroll, especially when the bidding was so aggressive at the start of things. When Deron Williams goes for $75, and Dwight Howard goes for $66, on a $200 cap, that's a league with good values coming soon. Which is where getting two mid to late first rounders (Granger and Wade) came into play.

I could have a problem with threes -- I normally do, as I just can't commit big dollars to specialists that pop for 2+ threes a game -- and I'm dependent on more than a few injury risks to make my nut. It would also be really nice if potential multi-cat contributors Ginobili and Carter stay healthy and/or have bounce-back years; a full year of full-power Manu would do wonders, especially. It's also going to be a bit challenging to be rooting for two of the big three in Miami, now that the voodoo priests are out for blood.

But all in all, I think I've got a decent club, and that I didn't do the only thing you can do on draft day - lose. We wrapped in just 3.5 hours with breaks, had no jerks in the room, and I might even have found another poker player or two in the bargain. Basketball is actually my favorite sport to play fantasy in, because there's just no set way to have a winning club, and to couple it with the tight dynamics of position and false nomination strategy (i.e., picking your time and place to throw out a guy you don't want, or bid up the price of someone else you'd rather not have, because taking money out of the market is the only way to make sure that the guys you do want won't come too expensive)... well, it's all full grade Bolivian to me, really. I can't recommend it enough, assuming you've got the sickness in the first place.