We are at the midway point of the NBA season and I’m sure team strengths and standings are beginning to solidify in your league. It’s a great time, especially in roto leagues, to check if you are way ahead or behind in a category and plan your trades accordingly. And for God’s sake, don’t invite the guy that traded Jimmy Butler when he was slumping for Darren Collison or the other inactive guy that hasn’t changed his lineup since Carlos Boozer’s hairline looked like this:
If you look closely you can see the reflection of the ceiling scoreboard…Talk about a bad hair day…or should I say a bad hair dye…
Ok, enough with the Boozer bullying, let’s look at last week’s suggestions from the past week. Tyus Jones has been kind of a disappointment, as he never got it going as a scorer and facilitator during Jeff Teague’s absence. On the other hand, Trey Lyles continued his excellent form with four great games and looks like the real deal. Marquese Chriss and Caris Levert suffered minor injuries so they didn’t play enough and Nicolas Batum had only one game this past week. I still believe in him, as you will read in a bit for this week’s new suggestions…
Want the best tools and projections to help dominate your league? Check out the Stocktonator, the byproduct of Rudy and machine making love. Click HERE for a FREE 3-day trial.
Buy
Myles Turner: After starting the year as one of the most hyped fantasy draft picks out there, Turner has had a mildly disappointing season so far. The expected increase in shot attempts and points never materialized and both his percentages are worse than last year. Victor Oladipo’s absence affected him more than anyone, as he had his worst two week stretch as a pro in terms of fantasy value. Still, he is the league leader in blocks and with Oladipo back I expect him to improve across the board. Now is the perfect time to buy low and bet on his undeniable upside for the rest of the season. As I was writing these lines, and in an attempt to back my words with actions, I promptly traded my Gary Harris+Rodney Hood for Myles Turner+Nicolas Batum. Send your positive vibes guys….
Delon Wright: Delon Wright has been playing really well for the last month and is ranked 53rd in per game value with averages of 10.6/0.9/3.7/2.3/1.5/0.8/1.0 on 50.5%/87% shooting during this span. These are excellent stats, especially for roto, but what makes him a must own player is this fall that Kyle Lowry took against the Nets…
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K5GrxlfizpU
Ouch…I would require three weeks in an exotic spa resort to recover from a fall like that. Still, he tried to continue but couldn’t stand so he was carried to the locker room. Although he is only considered day-to-day I think this increases Wright’s minutes to reduce Lowry’s workload. He is a great add off your wire (27% owned at Yahoo).
Markieff Morris: Markieff Morris started the year really slow, averaging a career-low 24.8 minutes per game. This was the reason many owners decided to flat out cut him. However, he seems ready to return to last year’s production (74th in per game value) as his minutes are gradually trending up to 31 and his attempted shots to 10. If he is available in your league, you can do worse than take a flier and see if he is ready to start providing steady mid-round value for your team.
Bobby Portis: He is more of an investment for the stretch run rather than an immediate add, but Portis can and will score when given enough minutes. The reason why he is a great stash is the fact that the Bulls will eventually trade Nikola Mirotic, as mentioned amongst other trade rumors by Adrian Wojnarowski here. The majority of his minutes will go straight to Bobby. They may even unload Robin Lopez, freeing even more playing time for him and Cristiano Felicio. He is worth an add if you are sitting comfortably atop your league.
Sell
Anthony Davis: We know Anthony Davis can play, as he is one the best centers in the league and the number three player in per game value for fantasy. But he always had and always will have the label of an injury-prone player. Last year, he played a career-high 75 games, but this year has already missed five games and is currently nursing a right ankle sprain. As I’ve mentioned before, I prefer to limit risk, so I think it’s a great time to try and trade AD for a less risky player. Granted it’s difficult to match his per game production, but when the infamous twitter account “Anthony Davis Hurt” will keep on posting “Yes” you will be glad you traded him and your hair didn’t follow Boozer’s example due to your despair…
As always let me know in the comments your thoughts and your suggestions about players I have not included and of course all your fantasy related questions!
