NBA In and Out List -- Week 5 by Chad Ford Monday, December 3 Updated 11:43 AM EST A question for all of you Tar Heel maniacs out there. Has Michael Jordan become Jerry Stackhouse? Discuss among yourselves. IN Antoine Walker, F, Celtics -- The numbers do lie. He'll never have great shot selection, but Walker does just about everything else well. He's averaging 24.4 ppg, 11.3 rpg, 4.3 apg and leads the league in three pointers made. Against the Heat this week Walker poured in 33 points, 11 rebounds and 6 threes. Then against the Magic he followed up with 25 points, 17 boards and 6 threes. Sure, he only sinks 38 percent of his shots no matter where he is on the floor, but is there any player that is a more lethal inside-outside threat at the moment? Stephon Marbury, G, Suns -- Want to give credit to someone for the Suns latest hot run, why not Marbury? He's used to having fingers pointed his way, but for all of the wrong reasons. Marbury has been sublime in the Suns' latest four-game win streak, averaging 21.5 ppg, 8 apg and shooting 50 percent from the field. Despite the bad rap, he is sharing with Penny and Shawn Marion and suddenly the Suns are one of the funnest teams in the NBA to watch. Jason Williams, G, Grizzlies -- Has Williams changed his stripes? He got off to a very slow start, but White Chocolate is slowly turning the Grizzlies around. Memphis won three of their last four this week and in those wins, Williams averaged 22 ppg, 11.3 apg and ONLY 2 turnovers per game. That's a far cry from the out-of-control player who couldn't see the light of day in the fourth quarter in Sacramento. Chucky Atkins, G, Pistons -- After getting benched in favor of Damon Jones and Dana Barros Atkins was demanding a trade. The Pistons may want to hold onto him a little longer. With Barros out with an injury, Atkins has responded with 23 ppg, 6.7 apg and 1 turnover per game on 60 percent shooting over his last three starts. One game is fluke, two games is lucky. Three games and we think he's nailed down the starting job again. Oscar Torres, G, Rockets -- With Steve Francis and Cuttino Mobley both out with injuries, rookie Torres has responded with 17 ppg in the Rockets' last three losses. On a team that boasts lottery pick Eddie Griffin and former All-American Terence Morris, it has been Torres who has the Rockets quietly talking franchise. He wowed the Rockets this summer with his sharp shooting, athleticism and strong defense. Expect him to see decent minutes even when Mobley and Francis return.
Great article. Oscar has been playing awesome. I picked him up on my fantasy team, cause he should produce big time until Steve comes back.
