Fantasy Basketball Sleeper: PG Shane Larkin

By Timothy Downs @Tidow1212 on November 1, 2014

The new-look New York Knicks were undoubtedly disappointed to learn that point guard Jose Calderon will miss the first few weeks of the 2014-15 season, his first with the organization. However, Phil Jackson and company must be taking solace in the fact that Shane Larkin has stepped up in his absence with two solid games, and Larkin now becomes an interesting option in fantasy basketball as he is currently the Knicks’ starting point guard.

Larkin played a huge role in spoiling LeBron James‘ return to the Cleveland Cavaliers as the Knicks pulled off an unlikely road upset. In that game, he had nine points, five assists, five steals and two rebounds. Against the Chicago Bulls, he posted six points, three assists, one steal and two rebounds.

While these statistics are far from overwhelming, they’re adequate and the Knicks will certainly keep Larkin in the starting lineup as opposed to the veteran Pablo Prigioni as head coach Derek Fisher continues to get a better look at Larkin. Clearly, this job will be Calderon’s once he returns, but injuries are often unpredictable in sports, and Calderon could easily be out for a month before we know it.

Larkin is currently available in most leagues on ESPN and Yahoo! If you’re someone who might be getting hurt by all the injuries the Oklahoma City Thunder have been riddled with lately, including the newest to Russell Westbrook, Larkin warrants a spot on your roster at least until both the Knicks and the Thunder’s situations are cleared up.

Larkin becomes a much more interesting option on daily fantasy basketball sites like FanDuel and Draft Kings as he is an incredibly low-percentage owned player who is mainly flying under the radar. It’s a no-brainer anytime you can insert a player into your lineup who is currently starting for his team but priced near or at the minimum, particularly in GPP lineups where taking risks on cheap sleepers to load up on stars is a widely-used strategy.

For those who like to use the “stars and scrubs” game plan in GPP like I do, Larkin is essentially the epitome of what you’re looking for as a value play. Nine times out of 10 Larkin will hit or exceed value at his price and make you look smart. Don’t miss out.

Timothy Downs is a fantasy sports writer for www.RantSports.com. You can ‘like him’ on Facebook add him on Google or follow him on Twitter @Tidow1212.