CP3 vs. D-Will

Much has been made over picks number 3 and 4 in the 2005 NBA draft, particularly recently at the worldwide leader in sports. While there has been no consensus as to who is the better real-life player, fantasy-wise the pg of the Hornets has a commanding lead. In the Yahoo game Paul is the top-ranked player while Williams sits at number 38 (avg. stats). At first glance the stats between the two aren’t really all that different. However, across all categories, it’s clearly enough to give one team the edge over another in a head-to-head matchup. While Paul shoots slightly worse, he has a commanding lead in ft%. He’s ahead of D-Will a whole rebound, assist, and most importantly, 2 steals. Assuming both play 3 times in a week, that turns out to be 6 extra steals, enough to dominate that category. Moreover, Paul turns the ball over one time fewer per game.

The two played each other in November, but the game was a blowout for the Jazz and neither player got the opportunity to make any significant fantasy impact. Last night, both had big fantasy showings in separate games. Consistent with his numbers so far, Paul outscored Williams while racking up more dimes, steals, and boards but lost the shooting percentage battle (including the ugly 1-7 from 3). This difference will continue to get magnified as the Jazz are struggling and dealing with injuries. However, for D-Will owners, there is hope while the Jazz try to turn it around. Try to see if starting shooting guard Ronnie Brewer has been dropped in your league or trade for him on the cheap. After the recent Kyle Korver trade, Brewer’s minutes have decreased, but yet he’s still averaging 1.5 steals and 11 points in the last two games. Between the two of them, Williams and Brewer will surpass Paul on most nights. Of course this is no substitute for actually owning CP3, but then again it’s hard convincing an owner to trade away the top-ranked player.