By Max Work, Special to SI.com

THE OPENING TIP

More minutes means more fantasy value for Shareef Abdur-Rahim. Sam Forencich/Getty Images

The Trail Blazers fired coach Maurice Cheeks last Wednesday. While this won't help Portland make the playoffs, Cheeks' dismissal -- as well as some injuries -- have brought some fantasy changes. Let's take a look at who the winners and losers are from a fantasy perspective after this tumultuous week.

WINNERS

Shareef Abdur-Rahim: In the two games since Cheeks' firing, Abdur-Rahim has averaged 26 points and nine rebounds. More importantly, he's been starting and playing close to 40 minutes per game. Abdur-Rahim's increased time has more to do with Zach Randolph's injury than a new coach, but who cares? Anyone who has been holding onto Abdur-Rahim might finally get a return on their investment.

Darius Miles: Under Cheeks, Miles was coming off the bench. He would occasionally have solid games, but his minutes were too inconsistent for owners to count on him. But Miles has a long term contract with the Blazers, and those are the guys Portland wants to look at. So Miles is starting and getting lots of minutes (72 total in his last two games), and he averaged 21 points while shooting well better than .500 from the field. He also puts up the kind of steals and blocks totals that could make him a very valuable commodity the rest of the way.

Sebastian Telfair: Like Abdur-Rahim, Telfair is benefiting as much from injuries (Nick Van Exel) as he is from the firing of Cheeks. In a start against Phoenix last Saturday night, Telfair played 37 minutes, had 18 points, 7 assists and 3 steals. Because Van Exel and Damon Stoudamire are not in the team's plans for next year, Telfair should continue to get a lot of minutes and put up decent numbers. Telfair's real value, however, lies with those in retention leagues. He will be cheap to keep, and will almost certainly be the starting point guard for Portland next year.

LOSERS

Zach Randolph: Because the Blazers are looking at guys with long term contracts, Randolph should have been a winner. He had recently been coming off the bench under Cheeks, and almost certainly would have gotten his starting job back after Cheeks was fired. The problem is that Randolph has an injured knee. He has said that he will not return until it's completely healed, and no one knows when that will happen. Randolph is out at least the next two games, but he could ultimately be gone for most of the season, since Portland has nothing to play for. Tough break for teams counting on his scoring and rebounding.

Nick Van Exel: Van Exel had an inconsistent January after lighting it up in December, but he was at least a marginal fantasy player. Now he's not even that. He is suffering from a knee injury, but even if Van Exel's health wasn't a problem, he doesn't fit into the Blazers' plans for next year. With Telfair stealing most of his minutes, Van Exel will find himself with too few minutes and too few numbers to be worthy of a fantasy spot.

Joel Pryzbilla/Theo Ratliff: Hard to say these guys will get any worse, considering their performances over the past couple of weeks. Ratliff, because of his long term contract, should be starting and playing more than 30 minutes a game. But Ratliff has been dealing with a tear-duct problem (I know -- bizarre), so Pryzbilla has been starting. Ratliff has said he won't need surgery, and could rejoin the starting lineup within a couple of weeks. If he does, put Ratliff in the "Winners" category. Until he does, he (and Pryzbilla) have no fantasy value.

EIGHT SECONDS

1. Guys who may be available in your league:

a. Shane Battier, G/F, Grizzlies: Dropped in many leagues after a bad February, Battier has really come on in the last week because of injuries to James Posey (who is playing, but hobbled) and Bonzi Wells (who is on the IR). In his last five, Battier has averaged 18.8 pts (including games of 25 and 33 in his last two), 7.8 reb 2.0 stl and 1.6 3PM.

b. Brian Cardinal, F, Grizzlies: Cardinal has been starting because of injuries to Pau Gasol and Stromile Swift. He's made the most of his opportunities, averaging 17.8 pts, 5.8 reb, 2.0 stl and 2.6 3PM. With talk that Gasol might have to be shut down the rest of the season, Cardinal's value could be more than just short term.

c. Brendan Haywood, C, Wizards: A solid center who seems to be available in a lot of leagues. Has 14.0 pts, 8.4 reb, 1.2 stl and 1.6 blk in his last five. Also shooting .560 percent for the entire season.

d. Mike James, G, Rockets: Mentioned him in last week's columns about traded players who could have value with their new teams. After averaging 19.7 pts, 5.5 ast, and 2.8 3PM in his four games with Houston, it just seemed like a good idea to mention James again.

e. Fred Jones, G, Pacers: After playing well off the bench, the Pacers have inserted Jones into the starting lineup as their point guard while Jamaal Tinsley is out. In his two games as a starting point guard, Jones is averaging 20.5 pts, 6.5 ast, and 2.0 3PM. Tinsley will out at least another week ... probably longer.

2. And a guy you might want to avoid:

a. Jerry Stackhouse, G/F, Mavericks: Last week, I recommended staying away from Marquis Daniels because Stackhouse was coming back. Avoid Stackhouse for the same reason -- too many players for too few minutes. Dirk Nowitzki is day-to-day and Michael Finley is a little banged up. But Nowitzki and Finley should play sometime this week, and Daniels and Josh Howard are still around to cipher away a lot of Stackhouse's playing time.

3. One more Blazer note: Stoudamire should have seen a decreased role after Cheeks got fired. But the Blazers' backcourt has been ravaged with injuries, so Stoudamire continues to start next to Telfair. Expect Stoudamire to keep putting up the numbers he's been putting up so far this season.

4. Tim Duncan sprained in ankle in Sunday's game, and did not return. Right now, he's day-to-day. Hard to sit a guy like Duncan, but it's also hard to chalk up a week's worth of zeroes. Why can't these guys just get injured on a Saturday? Anyway, owners of Manu Ginobili should rejoice, since he will be the No. 1 option on offense for as long as Duncan is out.

5. After a settled rotation thrust the Bulls into the playoff picture, that rotation now seems to be somewhat in flux. Guys will get 35 minutes one night, 20 the next. When Chris Duhon has a 41-minute game, you know things are unpredictable. This is tough to swallow for fantasy owners, who were coming to know what they could expect from guys like Kirk Hinrich, Eddy Curry and Ben Gordon.

6. Paul Pierce has seen a dip in his numbers since Antoine Walker rejoined the team. Since the trade, Pierce is averaging, 18.6 pts, (about three points less than his season average)... probably because he's only taking about 12 shots a game. His rebounding and assists are down as well.

7. Doug Christie was placed on IL this week. The official reason given was that he had bone spurs in his ankle. The real reason is that he's apparently so upset that he was traded from the Kings and isn't getting any playing time with the Magic, that he's been seen in tears on more than one occasion. Then he started missing practices and games. And I thought Orlando was supposed to be the happiest place on earth.

8. A few teams have a two-game week: Cleveland, New York, Washington, and New Orleans. Other than LeBron James and maybe Larry Hughes, nobody from any of those teams should be in your starting lineup. That includes Gilbert Arenas, who is struggling through a knee injury right now.

Max Work is a fantasy basketball expert for talentedmrroto.com, a FREE fantasy site specializing in analysis, stats and advice. Please include name and location when sending e-mails to happyfunball@talentedmrroto.com.