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Not Again?!?!
This makes three years in a row that the giant man from the Far East has seen his season end before the 60th game, and once again, Houston will face a crushing hardship without their dominant force inside. The Rockets may be experiencing trouble, but it does not mean all unfortunate fantasy owners who have been reaping the benefits of Yao's all-star season have to be. The following is a series of transactions that are needed to be made in order to salvage a fantasy roster that is now missing a gargantuan center.

Trade a Forward, Get a New Center
May sound like a seasonal deal at K-Mart, but the best position to give away is always a forward. There always is a surplus on any fantasy roster, and they are almost interchangeable because of versatility. Be careful not to play with insanity and trade away a beastly forward who was acquired in the top rounds of your draft, because a blockbuster trade is not recommended. The most effective way to quell the damage would to obtain the primary category that a center contributes to - rebounds. It is a rare quality for a center to be averaging over 20 points per game, so do not slice a roster in order to try to make an exaggerated deal for the likes of Amare Stoudemire, Kevin Garnett, or Carlos Boozer.

Instead, fill the giant void of Yao's 10.8 rebounds per game, and trade a mediocre forward for centers such as Brad Miller, Zydrunas Ilgauskas, or Andrew Bogut. Remember, the primary goal for any center on a fantasy roster is to rebound, and scoring comes secondary. Find that diamond in the rough - the most underrated and underappreciated guys out there because of their lack of scoring, but who will give you near double-digit rebounds. Examine what too many owners look over, and begin to dominate the rebound category once again.

As for the forward who is best to give away without noticing a considerable is someone with a notable name, such as Lamar Odom. The Lakers are being heralded as the team to beat in the West, and many fantasy owners will wrongfully think that this will cause an explosion in Odom's stats. Nevertheless, too many will overlook the fact that Pau Gasol will actually be taking away the already limited touches that Odom has per game caused by sharing the backcourt with Kobe Bryant. Also, with the looming return of Andrew Bynum, it will be extremely difficult for Odom to ever get his stats to rise. Other players who are decent giveaways are Marvin Williams, Tayshaun Prince, and Andres Nocioni. All of those forwards barely average 15 points per game and will never be close to grabbing over 5 boards per game. With the lure of these "fool's gold" forwards, many quality centers can be obtained. Trim the slippery fat that is bogging down you fantasy lineup, and this will make up for Yao's rebounding presence.

The Waiver Wire
After getting back rebounds, creating an extra supplement for points becomes the next necessity... (Read the full article here: Fantasy Impact: Yao Out for the Season)