In my last article I outlined some of the overvalued centers in the league. This time I will be listing centers who you should simply avoid. These players have reasonable rankings according to Yahoo, and have multiple reasons why they will not be productive enough to help your team.
Once again, these players aren't bad - but I believe they should be avoided because, well... you can do better. With that, let's get rolling.
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Leave Them Alone on Draft Day
Andrew Bogut - C, Dallas Mavericks
Bogut was a joy to watch with the Warriors with his between the leg, over the head, no-look, overall unnecessarily flashy passing. BUT, his new role with the Mavericks will try to highlight his defensive presence. Bogut will actually be a great fit for a talented squad looking to make a playoff push, but we can only assume the offensive stats he was putting up will take a dip, thus making him fantasy irrelevant.
In our Yahoo Rotoballer writer's league, Bogut is still available and for good reason. Make sure he gives you a reason to pick him up, don't base your decision of his season last year with the Warriors. Bogut was usually the last of the opposing team's worries when facing the Warriors, thus allowing him to get plenty of touches, leading to his overall points and assist totals.
The Warriors put up crazy points in almost every game and they will continue to do that, with or without Bogut. Bogut is a great defensive player, but his offense won't help your fantasy team as much as he helps the Mavericks as their new shot blocking center.
Cody Zeller - C, Charlotte Hornets
Zeller is a glue guy for the Hornets. He does what he needs to do as a center for a team that happily looks elsewhere for offense. The Hornets are a playoff quality team with the production they get from Zeller. Like Bogut, he is used more for his defense than his offense and with that, it's just not enough. Yes, he'll grab boards, get putbacks but not much more.
I'll give you a little heads up before more fantasy drafts happen. Up to this point, Zeller has only been drafted in 14% of leagues. I don't like the aspect of peer pressure but I think the majority is right on this one. Zeller will remain on the waiver wire all season even though he is remarkably highly ranked at 85.
The addition of Roy Hibbert and a bone bruise putting his early season availability into question doesn't make Zellers situation any more promising. Let Zeller slide.
Tyson Chandler - C, Phoenix Suns
Don't get me wrong, Tyson Chandler is the best. Great guy, a classic defense-oriented center in a league that is shifting towards more versatile big men. That last sentence should be enough to turn you away but with Alex Len in the mix, a center on the rise should be very concerning to anything Chandler has the potential to produce. He's 34 and Len is 23.
The veteran is going to see his minutes take a severe hit now that Len has developed into a much bigger presence in this Suns team that is going to thrive on the youth and overall athleticism of their team. That's one thing the Suns have going for them, their future is bright (get it, Suns... bright?).
With Chandler closer to the end of his career than his start, we can only assume he stats will only decrease from here on out. Chandler is three years removed from his last All-Star appearance and fantasy wise, he should be fantasy irrelevant as an older player on a very, very, young team. He's ranked ahead of Len but is still only drafted in 15% of leagues so far. Chandler can still play but I just don't see his stats becoming anything worthy of fantasy consideration.
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