Dwyane Wade: Believes He Is Ahead Of Schedule. Wade (knee) said he plans to play in his third straight preseason game Thursday and he feels his recovery from knee surgery is ahead of schedule. Wade looks to be on track to be ready for the start of the regular season, but it will be interesting to see how the Heat use him once the regular season does begin. He has dealt with various injuries throughout his career, but usually finds a way to play through most of them. The Heat could be cautious with Wade to start the season as it's more important for him to be healthy for another championship run than it is for him to play 35 to 40 minutes a game in October and November. While he is still a very valuable fantasy option, owners should note his 22.1 points a game last season was his lowest average since his rookie season.

Dirk Nowitzki: Hopes To Avoid Surgery. Nowitzki (knee) has seen the swelling in his right knee return, but he is still hoping to avoid surgery. He is going to limit his workload over the next week and then he will see how he feels and what step needs to be taken next. If he does need surgery, he could be out anywhere from three-to-six weeks. This would obviously deal a blow to his fantasy value, especially if he ends up missing the full six weeks. While Nowitzki is a great offensive player and has been an extremely reliable fantasy option over the years, his 21.6 points a game average last season was his lowest average since the 2003-04 season. He also averaged only 6.7 rebounds a game last season, his lowest average since the 1999-2000 season. Depending on how the next week goes, fantasy owners may need to lower Nowitzki on their draft boards.

Omer Asik: Continues To Impress. Asik grabbed 11 rebounds in Monday's preseason game against Dallas and is averaging 11.0 rebounds a game this preseason. He played extremely well off the bench for the Bulls last season and is now making the most of his opportunity to start with the Rockets. While he is going to be a good source for rebounds and blocks, he should also provide decent assist numbers out of the center position. The Bulls have had some excellent passing centers of late, starting with Brad Miller and then transitioning to Joakim Noah. Asik looks to have learned something from Noah and the Bulls coaching staff and could be a solid second center option for fantasy owners. Don't count on him to score much though as his offensive game is mostly limited to scoring off of offensive rebounds.

Andray Blatche: Opening Eyes In The Preseason. Blatche had an excellent game Tuesday as he started at center and scored 23 points to go along with nine rebounds. He was solid in Monday's preseason game as well as he scored 16 points and grabbed eight rebounds off the bench. He is going to be Brooklyn's backup center and should see solid playing time as starter Brook Lopez often finds himself in foul trouble. Lopez has also been very injury prone, so Blatche could even find himself starting some games this season. He may not be on many owners radar on draft day, but he could provide solid fantasy value as a pick towards the later rounds of many drafts.