Welcome to NBA Start 'em Sit 'em for this week.  I'm TommyD sitting for Aaron McGee; who has a Computer and ISP that are simultaneously being stupid.  I join in your calls to Aaron's Computer and ISP, "Stop Being Stupid!"  So, as a result, you'll have to grin and bear yet another column from me.  If nothing else, I hope you find it useful.  Ok then, let's ride.

Uhhh, Start.

Gerald Wallace - SF/PF - (Charlotte Bobcats) - Wallace has really turned it up a notch, contributing across the board in impressive fashion.  With Emeka Okafor's continued struggles in the scoring department; it has led to more PT for Wallace, and he's come up huge.  Over the past 12 games, Wallace has averaged 26.2 pts, 8.7 rbs, 4.7 assts against 3.6 turn/game; 2.5 stls, and 1.2 blks, to go along with 45.1% FG and 74.6% FT.  He's even contributed from long-range, averaging 1.8 3-pointers/game at an average of 32.4%.  Wallace has come on huge, becoming the 2nd ranked Fantasy Player overall over the past month.  Looking ahead, Wallace has games at Chicago, home of the Postmaster General Ben Wallace; Home against the 76ers, and Dalembert can't handle Okafor AND Wallace, expect a good performance here, and finally on the road at the Clippers.  Kaman is a decent player in the post, but expect Wallace to step out a bit.  The rest of the Clippers truly believe in the "Ole'" Defensive Philosophy; I'd expect a big night here as well.  Wallace really has been coming on, and just playing great.  You're in good shape rolling to the All-Star Game if you have him.

Andrew Bogut - C - (Milwaukee Bucks) - Bogut appears to have turned a corner, and his fantasy impact has taken a sharp turn for the better. Over the past eight games, the big man from Utah has averaged 20.4 pts, 10 reb, 3 assts against 2.3 turn/game, 0.9 stl, 1.4 blks and is shooting 64% from the field.  He's also shooting a pedestrian 60% from the line and registers nothing from three, but his next 2 matchups look fantastic for our purposes.  First is Home vs. Indiana; and that will be without Jermaine O'Neal; should be huge.  Next up, at Toronto with a struggling Andrea Bargnani (more on him later).  Wednesday draws a home game against Brendan Haywood, who has been fantastic of late himself, so Bogut may be a bust in this spot.  However, Bogut should be in your regular rotation at this point.  It appears he's really finally gotten it together.

Jamal Crawford - SG - (New York Knicks) - Crawford's fantasy prospects got at least a bit better when Team Postmaster General Stephon Marbury decided to use some vacation time, and get some surgery done.  While Nate Robinson is expected to (and has to this point) be the beneficiary of Marbury's mid-season holiday.  However, let's not forget Crawford because, for all intents and purposes, the Knicks don't use a true Point Guard; it's essentially a bunch of 2-guards running around.  And, history tells us that Crawford has shined in Marbury's (repeated) absences.  In the 15 games in which Marbury has not played this season, Crawford has averaged 24.3 pts, 3.1 reb, and 5.0 assts against 2.7 turn/game and is shooting 46.3% from the field, 92.7% from the line, contributing 2.5 3-pointers/game, at a rate of 34.7%.  Looking ahead, Home with Philly and Road games against Golden State and the Lakers on a West Coast Swing should at least provide plenty of opportunity for Fantasy Scoring.

If you like winning, don't start these guys.

Ricky Davis - SG/SF - (Miami Heat) - Ah, Ricky being Ricky.  Leading Stamp-Gatherer of the 9-win Heat; Ricky Davis has injected his version of "optimism" into the team; which of course means "Not Optimism" otherwise known as "Poisonous Venom".  The last few games for Davis have been a perfect example.  Over the past six games, Davis has averaged just 7.3 points on 33% shooting from the field and 3.2 turnovers in 31 minutes per game. His fantasy impact took a hit with the trade to Miami in the first place, and his recent struggles are just a microcosm of how poorly the Heat have been on offense of late.  However, knowing Davis' prior history; it won't be long until the Heat completely implode, and Davis will be back to shooting at his own basket, trying to get triple-doubles. (Confused by that statement?  Here's the evidence of Ricky Davis shooting at his own basket up 34, attempting to get a triple double.  He's lucky he didn't get killed.  The next three Heat Beat-Downs will take place at home against San Antonio, Indiana (Dunleavy) and Boston.  

Andrea Bargnani - SF/PF/C - (Toronto Raptors) - Maybe he's having trouble adjusting to the American game.  Maybe he's feeling the pressure of being the top pick in the 2006 draft, but one thing's for certain.  You can't whitewash Bargnani's recent struggles. He hasn't scored more than seven points in a game since going for 25 points on January 4th, and he's averaging 4.1 pts at 26% FG in 17 minutes per game over the past eight games. Over his past 20 games, he's averaged 5.9 pts at 34% FG.  He was projected to be the 66th ranked overall Fantasy Player, and currently checks in at 243rd for the season.  Not only shouldn't he be started, but I fear it might be bait-cuttin' time with Bargnani; especially since the ball is being split between Bosh, Calderon and Moon.  Next 3 games are Home for Milwaukee (the aforementioned Bogut) and a Home and Home with Washington.  The Raptors are a good team, but Bargnani is not a part of it.

Tayshaun Prince - SF - (Detroit Pistons) - I, like you, had Prince pegged for this year as having his "big leap year".  No one on that team is getting any younger; and Prince has always had a good jumper, and has always been a sick defender.  I was under the assumption that Billups, Rasheed and Rip would rest more, giving Prince more opportunities at the offensive end.  Unfortunately, that hasn't exactly been the case.  Prince's numbers are down across the board this season. He's averaged just 11 pts at 38% FG, 0.4 steals, and 0.4 blocks over the past 24 games, and even his numbers for our Fantasy needs have tumbled; he's 50 spots below his projected production rank.  Tough matchups with Orlando, at Indiana and home for the Lakers aren't going to help matters here.  I'll be curious to see if this trend keeps up after the All-Star Break.  It's possible you may see Tayshaun in the top half of this column in the near future.

That's it for this week, feel free to comment below.