Fantasy Implications after the NBA Trade Deadline

Whew. The action was hot and heavy at this year’s NBA trade deadline. But, as my wife often says while we’re wrestling in bed, certain parties were left unsatisfied. Damn, wifey. Why you gotta be airing our business to the world? Fear not, though, Son always takes care of business. Like recap the trades that went down and offer fantasy implications for relevant players.

3-team trade between WAS, LAC, and NY

WAS – Jerome Robinson

LAC – Marcus Morris and Isaiah Thomas

NY – Moe Harkless and 2020 first-round pick

Fantasy implications: Morris is the headliner, as he will slide into the power forward spot for the Clippers. With the Knicks, he was a top 75 player, garnering a usage rate in the low-20s, and jacking up close to 18 shots per game. That’s not happening in Los Angeles, as Kawhi Leonard and Paul George will soak up most of the usage and shot attempts. He should still get double-digit attempts and the efficiency could actually improve, as there should be plenty of open looks. The free throw shooting is excellent and he will grab some boards, but won’t contribute much in any other category. On the days when Kawhi or PG sit, it was usually an automatic usage spike for whichever one was playing. Now, some of that usage will filter over to Morris in those situations. With his departures, plenty of shots will be distributed among many: Julius Randle, Eldrid Payton, R. J. Barrett, and dare I say, Kevin Knox?

Robinson sucks and IT was cut.

Harkless could be interesting if you need tres, blocks, and steals because there’s a chance he starts and plays a ton of minutes.

Trade between PHI and ORL

PHI – second-round pick

ORL – James Ennis

Fantasy implications: Ennis is a career 35% shooter from downtown and gives the Magic another option to space the floor. He should see an uptick in playing time, as he was essentially buried on the depth chart in Philadelphia. With Jonathan Isaac and Al-Farouq Aminu out, Aaron Gordon plays power forward with Wesley Iwundu often starting at small forward. There’s a small chance Ennis could leap Iwundu and enter the starting lineup, as Iwundu is out there for defense, but more than likely, he will provide another shooter on the second unit.

Trade between WAS and DEN

WAS – Shabazz Napier

DEN – Jordan McRae

Fantasy implications: With IT out of DC, Napier should see his value rise after getting nuked by going to Denver. Ish Smith will likely be the starting point guard for the Wizards, but Napier should back him up and get around 20 minutes per game.

As for McRae, it’s a great get for the Nuggets, as he’s a professional getter of buckets. Unfortunately, the Nuggets are so stacked, so McRae’s fantasy viability is reserved for when injuries strike. With McRae leaving Washington, Troy Brown Jr. should see an uptick in usage as the primary scorer on the second unit now.

Trade between CLE and DET

CLE – Andre Drummond and a second-round pick

DET – Brandon Knight, John Henson, and second-round pick

Fantasy implications: Dre will do what Dre does. It’s all about the rising of Wood! Per Mike Gallagher of Rotoworld, Wood’s per-36 stats without Dre: 22.9 points, 12 boards, 1.4 dimes, 1.1 steals, 1.9 blocks, and 1.1 tres on 60/35/75 shooting. For Cleveland, the front court gets real crowded now. Tristan Thompson is F’d, and the Cavs said that they will not buy him out. Larry Nance Jr. now returns to the depths of hell.

Trade between POR and ATL

POR – Salary relief

ATL – Skal Labissiere and $2 million.

Fantasy implications: None

Trade between HOU and MEM

HOU – Bruno Caboclo and second-round pick

MEM – Jordan Bell and second-round pick

Fantasy implications: None. Houston: maybe his shit isn’t as bad as my shit. Memphis: maybe his shit isn’t as bad as my shit. I’m kind of kidding. Bell is shit but Caboclo is actually kind of good. He’s injured, though, and the Rockets are going small.

Trade between GS and MIN

GS – Andrew Wiggins, protected first-round pick, and second-round pick

MIN – D’Angelo Russell, Jacob Evans, and Omari Spellman

Fantasy implications: Russell was putting up top 60 numbers with the Warriors and not much should change in Minnesota, as the offense will flow through he and Karl-Anthony Towns. In addition, Minnesota plays at a top 10 pace and are turrable at defense and will only get more turrable. Coach, what offense are we running tonight? Chasing points offense. Ready? Go. Finally, if you want to saunter on down narrative street, he and KAT are boys, so maybe that brings some more energy. Who knows?

I’m not sure what to make of Wiggins. He’s athletically gifted and did show improvements in his game this season. Can the Warriors get him to buy into defense? Maybe Draymond can instill that fire. Or maybe Wiggins tries to punch Draymond in the face. If he does buy in, he’s got the tools to be a maven in the defensive cats. As for the offensive side, he’s developed a three-point shot and should get plenty of opportunities. Russell was jacking up 19 shots per game for the Warriors. The spacing could be better for Wiggins to allow his slashing abilities to shine. Maybe the dimes increase due to the offensive system. Who am I kidding? Wiggins is going to jack up a ton of inefficient long twos and call it a night.

Trade between LAC and ATL

LAC – $$$

ATL – Derrick Walton Jr.

Fantasy implications: None

Three team trade between MEM, MIA, and MIN

MEM – Justise Winslow, Dion Waiters, and Gorgui Dieng

MIA – Andre Iguodala, Jae Crowder, and Solomon Hill

MIN – James Johnson

Fantasy implications: Winslow enters into a great situation, as the Grizzlies play fast. He’s not a good shooter (38% on the year), so is he a good fit alongside Ja Morant? I think Winslow’s fantasy value is heightened if he comes off the bench and runs the second unit. With that said, he is young and can provide points, boards, and dimes, but has been inside the top 200 for fantasy just once in his career.

Is Waiters Island back open for business? He could provide scoring punch off the bench, but probably won’t get enough minutes to be fantasy viable outside of the deepest of leagues. From where he was coming from though in Miami, his value skyrockets. UPDATE: Memphis said that they will not be keeping him, so it looks like Waiters Island will not be reopening to the public after all. That makes me sad.

I’m not sure how useful Iguodala will be for fantasy. Last season with the Warriors, he averaged 23 minutes, 5.7 points, 0.3 tres, 3.7 boards, 3.2 dimes, 0.9 steals, and 0.8 blocks. That was on a team that played at a fast pace. MIA is 27th in pace.

Crowder could start and play a ton of minutes. His value probably won’t change much if he does. What his presence does, though, is affect Duncan Robinson, Tyler Herro, Derrick Jones Jr., and possibly Goran Dragic. He’s taking minutes from someone.

James Johnson could find himself in an interesting situation because the power forward minutes are all there for the taking. Back in 2016, when Johnson was averaging 27 minutes per game, he was a top 75 player because he would contribute across the board. Now, he’s 33 years old, so times are different, and we don’t know how the Timberwolves will deploy him, but there’s a chance.

Four-team trade between HOU, MIN, ATL, and DEN

HOU – Robert Covington

MIN – Malik Beasley and Juan Hernangomez

ATL – Clint Capela

DEN – Two first-round picks

Fantasy implications: Covington slides into a great situation, as the pace is fast in Houston and he should get plenty of open looks playing alongside Harden and Westbrook. With that said, his fantasy value should remain similar to what he’s been doing for most of his career.

Capela went from a great situation to a stupendous one. The Hawks play at the third-fastest pace and the pick-and-roll action with Trae should be deadly. He should continue being a fantasy monster, heath permitting. The player most affected by his presence is John Collins, as the board numbers should take a hit and he won’t be able to feast on centers. Don’t worry, though. He’s still going to get his.

Beasley should get consistent minutes in Minnesota, with an outside chance of starting at shooting guard.

I was intrigued with Hernangomez before the James Johnson signing, but his value obviously increases after leaving Denver.

Trade between GS and PHI

GS – Picks

PHI – Glenn Robinson III and Alec Burks

Fantasy implications: The values of both Robinson and Burks plummet. The minutes and usage just won’t be there anymore. Shake Milton, Matisse Thybulle, and Furkan Korkmaz should all see fewer minutes as well.

Trade between SAC and ATL

SAC – Jabari Parker and Alex Len

ATL – Dewayne Dedmon

Fantasy implications: Meh, as all three will be backups.