By Rick Morris
April 8, 2008 12:51pm CDT

All stats referenced are over the last 10 games unless otherwise noted.

Atlanta Hawks: He was drafted more for his upside than his ability to contribute immediately, but Al Horford has nonetheless come in and produced at a loftier level as a rookie than the Hawks' recent fellow high draft picks (10.1 PPG and 9.7 RPG this season). His rebounds have dipped by .5 RPG lately, but the Atlanta organization and his fantasy owners will take that given he has also surged by 2.7 PPG lately. Mike Bibby's 7.6 APG lately have something to do with that.

Boston Celtics: Now that's (somewhat) more like it: Kevin Garnett's recent offense is a bit more in line with what his owners expected this year, even considering that he is sharing the ball with the other members of The Big Three (20.3 PPG, up from 18.9 PPG this year). In more surprising news, Leon Powe has been vastly outperforming his season totals lately (12.2 PPG and 6.1 RPG, up from 7.5 PPG and 4.0 RPG this year).

Charlotte Bobcats: On a team not lacking capable young scorers, Jason Richardson's recent production (24.4 PPG, up from 21.3 PPG this year) continues to demonstrate that he is a worthy #1 option. While Earl Boykins is perhaps noted more for his offense than his distribution, the 'Cats surely thought they'd be getting a bit more than 2.7 APG of late.

Chicago Bulls: The additions of scoring options that arrived in the big trade are cutting into Luol Deng's offense a tad (15.4 PPG of late, down from 16.9 PPG on the season) and Ben Gordon's even more (15.8 PPG lately, down from 19.0 PPG this year). Even Larry Hughes' newfound consistency didn't last (11.2 PPG lately, down from 12.7 PPG this year). Who knew? OK, put your hands down, Cavs fans!

Cleveland Cavaliers: The Cavs' season-long lack of continuity, owed to several injuries, mass inconsistency and the upheaval of a massive trade, has finally manifested itself in a horrible slump. In a sign of the squad's overall squalid play, even Lebron James has fallen off of late, with 25.7 PPG, 7.1 RPG and 6.1 APG (down from 30.2 PPG, 7.9 RPG and 7.3 APG this season). One of the few elements that has improved lately has been the offense of Zydrunas Ilgauskas (17.1 PPG, up from 14.0 PPG on the season). His boards are a bit down, though (8.7 RPG, compared to 9.4 RPG this year).

Detroit Pistons: Expect the Pistons to baby Rip Hamilton's hip with the playoffs looming. Tayshaun Prince's offense, such as it is, has been off lately (11.8 PPG, down from 13.6 PPG this year).

Indiana Pacers: They're still not at the level that is needed, but Travis Diener's distribution totals are up a bit of late (4.7 APG, compared to 3.6 APG this season). Troy Murphy has looked a lot better lately (15.7 PPG and 9.0 RPG, up from 12.4 PPG and 7.2 RPG this year).

Miami Heat: From a fantasy perspective, Shawn Marion's move east was a mixed bag, as he went from the extreme of playing with so many talented stars that his opportunities were more limited to the post-Wade reality of sharing the court with a glorified NBDL squad. His point production dipped recently (14.6 PPG, down from 15.4 PPG this year), while his rebounding numbers over the same period of time went up (12.3 RPG, compared to 10.2 RPG this year). Like Wade, he has to be relieved to have this season behind him. For Ricky Davis, however, a known stat-padder, the remaining games offer a sterling opportunity to surpass his recent PPG total of 13.7.

Milwaukee Bucks: Now this is how you want to finish a season: Andrew Bogut has actually resembled a #1 overall pick of late (17.5 PPG and 12.3 RPG, up from 14.2 PPG and 9.8 RPG this year). Mo Williams' offense, conversely, has regressed to the mean over the same stretch (13.9 PPG, down from 17.2 PPG this year).

New Jersey Nets: For anyone wondering about how Vince Carter would fare without Jason Kidd, we have our answer: nobody has been hotter than VC of late, with tallies of 29.5 PPG, 7.7 RPG and 5.4 APG prettying up the stat sheet. The continued success of the Net offense is due to the fact that Devin Harris has filled Kidd's shoes admirably. Compare Harris' recent numbers (16.8 PPG, 3.7 RPG, 7.8 APG) to his total numbers for the season (14.9 PPG, 2.7 RPG, 5.7 APG).

New York Knicks: Is he playing to impress new boss Donnie Walsh or just trying to ensure that his massive contract won't keep him from escaping New York? Either way, his fantasy owners are reaping the benefits as Zach Randolph has upped his production recently (19.5 PPG and 11.3 RPG, up from 17.8 PPG and 10.3 RPG this season). Wilson Chandler is making sure his offense will look much more palatable to the new regime, averaging an even four points over his season numbers lately at 10.5 PPG.

Orlando Magic: Notwithstanding the fact that he is having his breakthrough season, Dwight Howard has had some stretches in which his offense has been down, and this is certainly one of them (15.1 PPG, down from 20.8 PPG this year). In a somewhat counterintuitive note, Rashard Lewis has not benefited and is down exactly one PPG over the same stretch.

Philadelphia 76ers: As the young Sixers have surprisingly geared up for a playoff run, greybeard Andre Miller is getting the job done with his quarterbacking, and his recent assist totals show it (8.5 APG, up from 6.9 APG on the season). Willie Green is cooling off a bit, though (8.6 PPG, down from 12.3 PPG on the year).

Toronto Raptors: In sharp contrast to Andrew Bogut, the other AB, Andrea Bargnani is not looking anything like what you'd hope a former #1 overall pick would resemble, as his recent averages are all down from his modest tallies for the season (7.6 PPG, 2.6 RPG and .8 APG lately, 10.2 PPG, 3.7 RPG and 1.2 APG this year). You could have won a lot of money if you would have bet that he'd be wildly outplayed by Rasho Nesterovic over the same span of time (16.5 PPG, 7.3 RPG).

Washington Wizards: The return of Gilbert Arenas bodes a bit ill for some of the players who produced in his absence: Roger Mason with his out-of-nowhere 8.9 PPG this year, DeShawn Stevenson at 11.2 PPG this season and rookie Nick Young at 7.3 PPG over the season. Antawn Jamison's shoulder injury should not cause him to miss too many remaining games given the team's need to acquire some continuity down the stretch.