Dwight Howard Learns the True Meaning Of a Free Pass

Home Delivery is your morning roundup of last night's action in the NBA from a fantasy perspective.

Who Are Those Masked Men?

Dwight Howard turned in a stunning 14-of-16 performance from the free-throw line against the Raptors. But Howard wasn't the only Orlando player who made stepped outside the box. Starting 'two' guard J.J. Redick scored a career-high 27 points adding six rebounds, five assists and five three-pointers. Jameer Nelson and Ryan Anderson added five three-pointers apiece, with Nelson scoring a team-high 30 points and Anderson chipping in for 20.

I wouldn't get too excited about J.J. Redick, since both Vince Carter (ankle) and Mickael Pietrus (flu) missed Sunday's game. Both are expected back this week, which pushes Redick back into his famed role as a bench player.

Jason Williams played just 11 minutes, scoring two points and adding a mere three assists. Blame it on Jameer Nelson, who decided that Williams' services were no longer necessary. Take a cue from Nelson, Williams is not worth an add in standard leagues.

Also in the Headlines

• Peja Stojakovic smiled his way to 26 points on 6-of-10 shooting from beyond the arc. Maybe it was all this talk about Danilo Gallinari being the best shooter in the league that got him motivated to start draining threes. If it were only that easy. Peja can still be had in 40-percent of Yahoo! leagues. I'd give him a look if you're in need of threes. Nothing much else in his game aside from points and free-throw percentage provides any help, but there's nothing wrong with if you're in need of bolstering those categories.

• LaMarcus Aldridge left Sunday's game against the Thunder with a bruised right knee. No early indication on whether or not he'll miss some time, so keep your eye out for any developments.

• Kevin Durant with a big stinker. Thanks for single-handily destroying my team field-goal percentage with your 3-for-21 showing from the floor, KD. Ah, listen to me, I can't stay mad at you!

• Steve Blake led the Blazers in scoring with 18 points in their victory against the Thunder. He made four treys and added three assists and a steal in 30 minutes. Andre Miller, on the other hand, played just 20 minutes scoring four points and dishing ZERO assists. Uh-oh! It's time to start worrying about Andre Miller's move to Portland.

• Jason Richardson returned to action after his two game suspension, posting 23 points on 8-of-14 shooting and four three-pointers. Definitely get this guy back in your lineup.

• Channing Frye scored 25 points, making six three-pointers giving him 13 treys on the season. He's a center! He's still available in half of Yahoo! leagues and more than half of Fleaflicker leagues. This is unacceptable.

• O.J. Mayo nearly matched Carmelo Anthony's 42 points with a 40-point performance of his own. Unfortunately for Mayo, the return of Allen Iverson looms. This might have been his swan song -- three games into the season.

Lost and Found

• Matt Barnes posted six steals and two blocks on Sunday. Wow. He's never been known for his play on the defensive side of that ball -- 0.7 steals and 0.3 blocks on his career. Can you say "career game"? Of course you can.

• John Salmons picked up four steals against the Heat. He now has seven steals on the season. At least he has one aspect of his game figured out.

• Tyrus Thomas blocked another three shots, for the second time in three games. This is exactly why you drafted Thomas, so you really can't complain.

• Mario Chalmers finished Sunday's game with four steals and a block. Once again I expect him to steal two per game and finish as one of a handful of players to average at least two steals, 1.5 threes, and five assists.He's one of those late-round draft picks who was undervalued heading into the draft.

• Martell Webster picked four steals and blocked one shot against the Thunder. I'm starting to think that he's the guy to add in Portland, and not Rudy Fernandez.

• Chris Paul picked up two steals against the Celtics. Typically it's not worth noting that CP3 recorded two steals in a game, but those were the first steals he picked off this season -- two and a half games without a steal.

• I'm starting to sound like a broken record here, but for the third time in four games Rajon Rondo recorded three steals. But for the third time in four games Rajon Rondo recorded three steals. But for the third time...

• Rookie Wayne Ellington picked up three steals last night. He still won't log enough minutes to warrant an add.

• Hasheem Thabeet with four blocked shots -- and six fouls -- in 11 minutes. Still not worth picking up.

• Kobe Bryant picked up five steals, joining seven other Lakers who stole at least one ball against the Hawks. A little excessive don't you think, Kobe?

Classified Adds

• Udonis Haslem posted a nice double-double against the Bulls, his second straight double-double, with 19 points on 9-of-13 shooting and 11 rebounds. He can still be had in 65-percent of Yahoo! leagues, which is probably a bit high. He's a reliable source of rebounds and could add a nice boost to your field-goal percentage. He's what they call in the industry a "beast".

• Ryan Gomes, available in 70-percent of Yahoo! leagues and 90-percent for Fleaflicker leagues, helped keep the T-Wolves in Sunday's games against the Suns with 23 points on 10-of-13 shooting, two threes, 15 rebounds, four assists and two steals. This guy really is underrated. Again, without Kevin Love, Gomes has an opportunity to put up numbers that should make him owned universally.

Lotto Line

1-8-11-14-39

Lamar Odom nearly posts a triple-double scoring 11 points and picking up 14 rebounds and eight assists in 39 minutes. You have to wonder whether or not his play will be effected once Pau Gasol returns to the lineup. If there's one thing we know for sure, Odom's been much better early on than his good friend Ron Artest -- Queensbridge represent!