Fantasy Spin: Chris Paul Needs Surgery

I really don't know how to express my feelings toward Chris Paul's imminent surgery and absence from the game for the next two months without using an emoticon. Upside-down smiley face, anyone? But that's not my style. I'm more of an "ugh" kind of guy. So ... UGH!

Word broke that Chris Paul will reportedly miss the next 6-8 weeks after tearing cartilage in his left knee on Friday night against the Bulls. It looks like he will have surgery on Monday and an optimistic return is no sooner than one month from now. Paul missed eight games in late-November, though he's still in the Top 5 due to his tremendous skills on both sides of the ball. There really is no way to replace Paul unless you can convince another owner to trade you Deron Williams, Steve Nash or Rajon Rondo. Even then, you're not going to get back fair value. So once again you are forced to weather the storm and hope for the best.

More: Will Billups Replace Paul in ASG?

The first place to look for a point guard is in Paul's backyard with his backup Darren Collison. When CP3 was out in late-November Collison actually did a fine job filling in at point, but it was this past Saturday's game against Memphis that opened up some eyes -- 17 points on 4-of-11 shooting, 9-of-10 from the line, 18 assists, six rebounds and a block in 47 minutes. You certainly won't get 18 assists nightly, but Collison is a nice lead-guard and he can also drive the lane and pick up 13-15 points in extended minutes. I would quickly jump on Collison now while you still can. He's going to get scooped up quickly, so make the move and slot him out there until Paul returns. And by no means should you drop Paul. He's expected back, and even if it's for just the final month you should hold on to him. Later down the line if you're getting desperate you can reassess the situation.

I worry a little about David West. Yes, he went for 22 and four against the Grizzlies, but when Collison was running the point in November, West really struggled. In three of those eight games he scored fewer than 10 points, and in two others he scored 13 and 12 points respectively. I wonder if we're going to see the 22-point West, or the 8-point one on the occasion. As an owner, keep an eye on how he responds.

The other player that interests me is Marcus Thornton. I know he's not much of a play-maker, but his scoring could take a nice tick up since extra touches will be there. Worth a look as far as I'm concerned.

Good luck with trying to ride this injury out. Feel free to post available players in the comments or bring them to the chat if you're interested in my thoughts.