and Rockets coach Mike DAntoni scheming to get the ball in Hardens hands

HARTFORD, Conn. -- A former Wesleyan University football player has been sentenced to six months of home confinement on federal charges that he supplied recreational hallucinogenic drugs to his teammates.Ryan Welch, of Salem, Massachusetts, was sentenced Tuesday in federal court in Bridgeport. He must also serve three years of probation and perform 200 hours of community service.The 22-year-old Welch pleaded guilty in March to possession with intent to distribute and distribution of a controlled substance.Welch played defensive back for Wesleyan, a Division III program.He was going into his junior season a year ago when he began dealing a hallucinogenic concoction that became known as Welchies Special, according to the U.S. Attorneys Office. It included the psychedelic drugs known as 2C-B and 2C-E, which authorities say he acquired over the internet.He first provided the drug in a liquid form, which was often mixed into a sports drink. He later sold the drug in powders and capsules, according to court documents.Prosecutors said he provided the drug to about 20 freshmen, sophomores and juniors on both the offense and the defense. The first dose was free and players paid $10 for subsequent doses, prosecutors said.Some of these distributions occurred off-campus, when the football team traveled to away games, and other of these distributions occurred on campus, including in the locker room used by the football team, according to the prosecutors pre-sentencing report.None of the coaches knew about Welchs operation, according to prosecutors.Welchs lawyers said he did not sell the drugs to make a profit, but wrote in their pre-sentencing report that he naively (with knowledge that they were illegal) obtained the substances to use for himself and share with his friends.The federal investigation began last October, when emergency crews treated a tennis player inside a dormitory who went into convulsions and had to be hospitalized after taking the drugs.Welch could have faced up to a year in prison under federal sentencing guidelines, according to the U.S. Attorneys Office, which had recommended a year of home confinement.The school confirmed Tuesday that Welch has been expelled. But spokesman Bill Holder declined to say whether players who purchased the drugs face any discipline from Wesleyan or the football program. Tyrone Swoopes Jersey . -- Matt Rupert scored once in regulation and again in the shootout as the London Knights extended their win streak to nine games by defeating the Owen Sound Attack 4-3 on Friday in Ontario Hockey League action. Cheap Seahawks Jerseys Authentic .Y. -- Leading 3-0 with only 11:25 left, the Colorado Avalanche committed a seemingly meaningless penalty to give the New York Islanders a power play. http://www.cheapseahawksjerseysauthentic.com/?tag=authentic-jacob-hollister-jersey . With the first unit struggling of late and Amir Johnson - one of the teams iron men - hobbling on an injured right ankle, Patterson knew he could get the nod in a challenging matchup against one of the leagues up and coming players at his position. Bobby Wagner Jersey . Andrew Luck lost his favourite target and the Indianapolis locker room lost one of its most revered leaders when Reggie Wayne was diagnosed Monday with a torn anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee that will cost him the rest of the season. Seahawks Jerseys China Cheap .Y. -- Buffalo Bills coach Doug Marrone has drawn on his Syracuse connections once again by hiring Rob Moore to take over as receivers coach. The ink on Giannis Antetokounmpos new four-year, $100 million contract extension with Milwaukee hadnt even dried yet when the news came out on Sept. 21 that his teammate, Khris Middleton, had torn his left hamstring and would likely be out for six months.What a crushing blow to the Bucks, losing one of the games most underrated players for the majority of the 2016-17 NBA season.To me, all this did is drive home how much every players fantasy value is directly tied in with those around him. Losing Middleton, who quietly averaged 18.2 points and 1.8 3-pointers per game last season while shooting 88.8 percent from the free throw line, dishing out 4.2 assists and swiping 1.7 steals, means teammates like Antetokounmpo must step up to fill his void.For a player like Antetokounmpo, who already set career highs in just about every statistical category last season, the expectations suddenly rise to a whole new level. Hell likely play more than the 35.3 minutes he averaged last season, and theres a good chance his 21.8 usage rate will also rise. Thats why we have bumped the Greek Freak up two spots from No. 14 to No. 12 on our rankings. Keep in mind, too, that if Antetokounmpo adds a 3-point shot to his already impressive repertoire this season, hes a top 5 fantasy player for years to come.The ripple effects from Middletons injury dont stop there, however, as players like Michael Beasley -- acquired from Houston after Middleton went down -- and Mirza Teletovic, acquired as a free agent over the summer, now have a chance to see expanded roles with the Bucks. Beasley jumped from No. 173 to No. 141 and Teletovic from No. 134 to No. 118 in the rankings.Losing Middleton in fantasy this season also thins out the two positions he qualifies at, shooting guard and small forward, making players like Carmelo Anthony, Nicolas Batum, DeMar DeRozan, Evan Fournier and Trevor Ariza more valuable in that 30-50 range of the draft.As we move ahead, with the NBAs regular season set to tip off on Oct. 25, here are some of the other big changes to the ESPN fantasy basketball rankings since our last update on Sept. 1.Uncertainty with Chris Bosh: We already ranked Bosh fairly low in our previous rankings, putting him at No. 120, but he drops to No. 160 following the news of his failed physical with Miami. Heat president Pat Riley already came out and said that the team views Boshs career with Miami as over. Whether Bosh ever playss again for another team remains to be seen, but at this point theres a very real chance that his recurring blood clot issues in recent years could keep the 32-year-old off the court for good.ddddddddddddJrue Holidays situation: Shortly after our last rankings came out, which pegged Holiday No. 53 overall, the New Orleans point guard announced that he would miss the start of the season to be with his wife, Lauren, who faces brain surgery. My family comes before basketball, Holiday told The Times-Picayune. Im obviously blessed to play this game and be in the position I am in, but my wife is the most important thing in the world to me. She comes before anything else. Lauren has since given birth to a healthy baby girl, which is wonderful news, but now must prepare for surgery to remove a tumor. We wish her and the whole Holiday family well throughout this difficult time.The rise of Myles Turner and DAngelo Russell: In the dozens of mock drafts I took part in throughout September, no two players were consistently drafted well above their listed ranking than Turner and Russell. Its clear that both were listed too low in our earlier rankings, and therefore an adjustment is order for each of the talented second-year players. Turner moves up from No. 101 to No. 72, while Russell goes from No. 81 to No. 66.Biggest fallers: Aside from Middleton, Bosh and Holiday, who each slid in the rankings for very separate reasons, several others moved down because they were simply ranked too high. Notables from that list include Klay Thompson (27 to 32), Andre Iguodala (93 to 122), Dwyane Wade (57 to 64) and Bradley Beal (59 to 75). These adjustments are more in line with where these players are being drafted in most ESPN drafts.Hardens new position: You will find many players now qualify at multiple positions, but there is no bigger one to take note of than James Harden, who has moved to point guard. Ive mentioned over the past few weeks how important it is to draft a point guard in the top 30 picks of the draft, and with Harden now qualifying at both point guard and shooting guard -- and Rockets coach Mike DAntoni scheming to get the ball in Hardens hands more than ever before -- an argument can certainly be made for drafting Harden first overall ahead of Oklahoma Citys Russell Westbrook.