Chris Duhon

With Gilbert Arenas gone, Duhon will be asked to serve as the second point guard. Duhon has been a serviceable player at times with a high basketball IQ. He has more experience at point guard than any other Magic guard besides Nelson, but will provide little in the box score.

Jameer Nelson’s injury issues necessitated an upgrade at the backup point guard position, so the Magic decided to sign the former Knicks starter to a four-year deal. Duhon is not much of a scorer, but he is a good passer and rarely turns the ball over, two strong qualities for a backup. The Magic went after Duhon in 2008, so it’s clear he is a guy they like. Duhon will see a decent amount of playing time even when Nelson is healthy, but he could potentially turn into a nice addition to your fantasy team if/when Nelson suffers his inevitable injury. There probably won’t be room for Duhon on your opening night roster, but keep an eye on him and don’t hesitate to pick him up if/when Nelson gets hurt.

In the first half of last season, Duhon put up very impressive numbers - as you might expect from a point guard running Mike D'Antoni's offense. But his play really tailed off during the second half due to a variety of nagging injuries and plain old over-use - Duhon averaged over 38 minutes per game in January, after the trade of Jamal Crawford, injury to Nate Robinson and the sudden retirement of Cuttino Mobley left the team short-handed. Improving at point guard was a major priority for the team this summer, but they weren't able to draft Stephen Curry, trade for Ricky Rubio or work out a deal with Jason Kidd or Andre Miller, so Duhon returns as the starter mostly by default. Look for D'Antoni to try and reduce his workload this season.

With Stephon Marbury seemingly out of the picture, New York’s point guard spot is wide open. Nate Robinson has never taken the role despite numerous opportunities under Isiah Thomas, so Duhon was brought in to compete for the job. Even though new coach Mike D’Antoni was the mastermind behind the up-tempo Suns team, he won’t have the personnel to pull that off in New York. Point guards are important to D’Antoni’s system, and that should serve whoever wins the job well. Despite never landing the job outright in Chicago, Duhon knows how to run a team and is a good passer. In his career, he averages 5.1 assists per game in 29.1 minutes as a starter. He’ll have some inside (Zach Randolph, Eddy Curry) and outside (Jamal Crawford, Danilo Gallinari) scoring threats, so we could see a nice spike in Duhon’s production this season. With Nate Robinson the only serious competitor for the job, Duhon is in a position to post career-highs in 2008-09.

Duhon, who had surgery to repair a herniated disk in his back last offseason, was nicked up much of the year, and other than a solid February, struggled much of the season. In the past, he has filled in at both guard spots or used in a three-guard offense, but his role is being diminished as Thabo Sefolosha's increases. Duhon's contract expires after this season, which should be his last in Chicago.

Duhon has been a solid but unspectacular contributor for the Bulls for the last two years, offering good defense, taking care of the ball and getting it to Ben Gordon and company. This season, though, it appears he’s the victim of a numbers game. Kirk Hinrich is emerging as one of the top points in the game. Ben Gordon is an electric, though streaky scorer. And in this year’s draft, Chicago brought in Thabo Sefolosha, a big guard with a polished offensive and defensive game and a solid complement to Gordon. Sefolosha’s presence reduces the odds that Scott Skiles will shift Hinrich to the two spot to play in tandem with Duhon, which more or less relegates Duhon to backup duty. Unless Duhon is shipped elsewhere, as was rumored at various times this offseason, it’s hard to see how he’ll get enough run to be a factor in fantasy.

Duhon began the 2004-05 on the bench but moved into the starting lineup midway through the first month of the season and never relinquished the job. He is one of those players whose value to the team is greater than his fantasy value, as he is not a great shooter, doesn’t dish out a ton of assists, or supply value in many other offensive categories, but he is a winner, which is why Chicago drafted him out of Duke. Duhon has spent time trying to improve his shooting percentage, especially from long range and made some strides in that regard during the year. He signed a three-year, $9.07 million deal with the Raptors that was matched by the Bulls, so he should continue to start at point guard in the Windy City for the next few seasons. When Chicago needs scoring, they bench Duhon, move Kirk Hinrich to point guard, and bring Ben Gordon off the bench, so don’t look for big numbers from Duhon, but a line of eight points, three rebounds, five assists, and a bunch of three-pointers in around 30 minutes of action nightly seem to be what he will provide for your fantasy team.

Duhon is one of those players who peaked his freshman year of college, then spent the next two years sliding backwards, before rebounding in his senior year. He is a pure point guard who is not a tremendous shooter or penetrator, but has above-average defensive ability, which will enable him to carve out a niche in the NBA. The problem is that the Bulls are loaded at point guard, which is why they want him to play a year overseas to gain some professional experience. Duhon does not seem keen to this idea, so there is a strong possibility that he will be dealt before the season starts.

Pure point guard with great fundamentals and court vision. Great defender. Well conditioned with great stamina. His offense is a big question mark. Doesn't have NBA 3-point range. Mediocre free throw shooter who at times doesnt get to the line for an entire game.