The Dalembert Dilemma

• By: The Professor
• On: 1/11/2010 9:12:00 AM

Related: The Professor Philadelphia 76ers NBA 



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In one of my leagues, someone just traded O.J. Mayo for Samuel Dalembert.  He was desperate for center help, but at first glance my first thought was still “huh?” because the last time I looked Dalembert wasn’t playing much.  Then I looked at his last week and saw that he’s been going ballistic again.  It made me think about a bullet-point I had in my Hoops Lab almost a month ago, pointing out that at the time in the 12 games when Samuel Dalembert played at least 29 minutes he had averaged 11.1 boards and 3.2 blocks, and in his other 12 games he had averaged 5.8 boards with 0.9 blocks.

In the almost-month since at update, Dalembert has played 12 more games.  In nine of them he played less than 29 minutes, averaging 7.3 boards and 2.3 blocks per game in 18 minutes per game.  In his last three games he has played more than 29 minutes in every game, averaging 14.3 boards and 2.7 blocks (along with 15.3 points) in 36 minutes.

So…how does one value that?  Sixers coach Eddie Jordan changes the line-up on almost a weekly basis, and there are at least three other players (Elton Brand, Marreese Seights and Thaddeus Young) that have gotten regular minutes at power forward or center for the Sixers this season.  Will it ever be safe to plug Dalembert into your center slot permanently and just play him every game?  Probably not.  On the other hand, can you afford to just ignore the upside of a player that has a 20/20 game, a double-double with five blocks, and a near triple-double (9 boards, eight points, seven blocks) in only 23 minutes all within the last two weeks?

Ultimately, I think you have to play the value game with Dalembert.  If you already have him, try your best to trade him for a good starter like Mayo during one of Dalembert’s hot streaks (like now).  If you don’t have Dalembert, wait until the next time he averages less than 15 minutes of game time for a full week and then try to get him added as the “throw-in player” in a multi-player deal.  He’s too much value not to be in play in most leagues, but you just want to make sure that you maximize that value and don’t end up the one stuck relying upon him when he’s sitting on the Philly bench.