---

The Answerman is the first and only Fantasy Basketball and Romance advice columnist on the web. He is here on Insidehoops.com to answer all your questions (or at least the interesting ones).

I am thrilled. This is as happy as the Answerman gets. My InBox is full, my team is drafted, but more important than anything else, the season has started.

Is there a prettier site in the morning than a newspaper page full of box scores? Give me coffee, a danish, some morning sex, and last night’s points, rebounds, assists, blocks, and steals, and I’m good for the day.

I figure if Pete Vecsey can declare the "Magic Back in Orlando" after one game, and Rick Bucher can say exclaim that Kobe is "Proving Critics Wrong" after two, I can certainly give sound fantasy advice after a full week of games. So, here are some quick-knee-jerk overractions about the first week of the season or you:

If you are in a roto league that counts FG%, you must trade Kobe Bryant and trade him now. He is great. He is shooting the ball a ton and shooting it very poorly. You can get Garnett for him. Do it.

If you are in a roto league that counts turnovers, you must trade Steve Francis and trade him now. He is playing great in Orlando and he is throwing the ball away. Trade him for Wade. You won’t regret it.

I love NBA player interviews. I never know what they are talking about - but I love them nonetheless.

Kenyon Martin, Carlos Boozer, and Cuttino Mobley are all playing well in their new homes.

Jason Terry is playing better than Don Nelson thought he would. Perhaps Terry will start again over rookie Devin Harris.

Is there anything better than the League Pass Free Preview?

There is no "The Man" in Charlotte, yet. Wallace, Primo, Emeka, and Hart have all looked good in spurts.

Breakout games from Chris Mihm and Juan Dixon. A center and a point guard. A Fantasy owner’s dream. Please don’t overreact. They have both already come back to Earth.

Bobby Simmons for the LA Clippers. He was great in the pre-season. He played well to start the season. He could be the Flip Murray for this season. Keep a close eye on him.

The jury is still out on Tracy McGrady in Houston, Lamar Odom in LA, and Shaq in Miami.

Rookies Andre Iguodala, Andres Nocicini, Luol Deng have all looked good. Dwight Howard has looked elite.

Antawn Jamison is playing great. He will come back to Earth. Remember, he cannot rebound or play defense. In the past, at least.

I don’t know how many times I have to tell you how good Big Z is, but he is good. Learn it, live it, love it.

Rashard Lewis averaging 23.5 points and 2.5 blocks. Yeah, he’ll keep that up.

The suspension game in Washington has allowed Micheal Ruffin to average 8.0 boards and 4.5 blocks this season. Unless you are expecting a ton of fights in Washington, don’t waste your time.

Break up the Jazz. This is embarrassing for the league.

Kirk Hinrich’s line from his first game: 34 points, 4 rebounds, 8 assists, 3 steals, 1 block. He is great. Roto owners - he has 12 turnovers in two games.

Watch Jamaal Tinsley in Indy. He’s been underrated. They seem committed to him as the full-time point guard. He can pass and steal.

Kurt Thomas averaging 15 boards a game. If you’ve got him - start trying to move him (much like the Knicks every season). You will not have any success (much like the Knicks every season).

Antoine Walker is playing great. I see no reason why he cannot keep it up.

Hill, Camby, Carter, Mourning and, A.Foyle are all healthy. Brevin Knight just went down with his annual injury. I sense dominos.

James Posey hasn’t done anything yet. Stick with him.

Everything I have just written is subject to change based on what happens before posting. Enjoy the rest of the early season. Back to the InBox next week.

If you have any questions, feel free to ask the [email protected]