I look to draft Marc Gasol whenever possible. I just picked him again last week in our ESPN expert redraft league. Perennially underrated, Gasol's broad-based diversified box scores are a fantastic foundation upon which to build a winning fantasy team.
I love rostering Gasol because he does a little of everything, but a lot of one thing: He's the best assist-producing center in the NBA (3.8 a game).
That statistic each night out of a center is the big man equivalent of getting 1.5 blocks a night out of a point guard. Except there aren't any point guards who come close to swatting 1.5 blocks a night. What Gasol does in the category is truly special.
My one knock against Gasol has always been his predictable "every other year" pattern of production. He tends to follow an up year with a down year. This year was supposed to be a down year. And, as predicted, Gasol's scoring and field goal percentage dropped to 16.6 points and a 46.4 field goal percentage.
Unfortunately, Gasol's down seasons also tend to be a little injury-marred. In 2011-12, he only played in 65 games. In 2013-14, a bum knee limited him to just 59 games.
Now it's looking like 2015-16 could cap out at just 51 games.
A fractured foot is a serious basketball injury. A fractured foot for a 7-foot, 265-pound big man is very serious. It begs for a cautious approach.
Is there a chance Gasol makes it back in time to impact the NBA season? Sure. As of this writing, Gasol's prognosis remains hazy at best. We probably won't know the full extent of the impact until after the All-Star break.
But it seems safe to say that Gasol's fantasy basketball season is most likely over.
For owners rostering Gasol -- myself included -- Gasol's point guard-suffused production is impossible to replace. The only other centers who get within spitting distance of Marc Gasol's passing proficiency: Al Horford and Pau Gasol. Good luck dealing for either one of them.
Some less-rostered centers capable of contributing in assists: Mason Plumlee (58.8 percent owned), Jared Sullinger (65.6) and Tim Duncan (75.9). It wasn't too long ago that Duncan co-owned the title as fantasy's best passing center. Even with the extra rest his body requires, Duncan is still a threat to dish 3-to-4 assists every time he steps on the court.
But at fifth in the Western Conference, the Grizzlies are still in the thick of the playoff hunt.
It's impossible to envision the Grizzlies looking toward next season and becoming sellers. But they might be buyers.
Short of a trade, Zach Randolph, Jeff Green and Mike Conley should all get a small bump in value. Matt Barnes should be a relevant night-in, night-out play in medium- to-deep leagues.
In terms of the available minutes at center, Ryan Hollins stands to reason as the most immediate beneficiary. It's hard to see a journeyman like Rollins playing himself off of the waiver wire.
One possible wild card: Brandan Wright. Wright has been out since early November, but is said to be looking to return from arthroscopic surgery right after All-Star weekend.
Wright isn't known for his defense -- an anomaly for the Grizzlies -- but he has always delivered high-volume stats in every category save for one: minutes. Wright's 19.3 minutes per game in 2014-15 marked a career high.
For me, Wright's career per-36 minute averages (15.6 points, 8.2 rebounds, 2.2 blocks) have always looked awfully tantalizing. Now Wright might get his first crack at extended minutes. It should take a little time to get back into game shape, but Wright could be in line for 22-to-27 minutes a night. If he gets there, 12 points, 7 rebounds and 1.5 blocks could be within reach.