When the NBA action kicks back in after the All-Star break, we will want to be fully acquainted with the new landscape post-trade-deadline and how it will affect our DFS decisions. Here we’ll look at some more of the more critical deals during the deadline and how they impact DFS.
Montrezl Harrell To Charlotte – Ish Smith & Vernon Carey Jr. To Washington
This move has a lot more DFS relevance on the Charlotte side, as Harrell has always been a good fantasy producer when on the court. His role appears to be a bit different on Charlotte so far than with previous teams.
Hornets Impact
We’ve already seen a bit of Montrezl on the court for Charlotte, and it has been pretty impactful. They are currently running a short rotation due to some critical injuries, including Gordon Hayward being out indefinitely. Harrell is being used not just as a backup center to Mason Plumlee; they frequently share the court. It remains to be seen if this continues. Still, Harrell offers a lot of energy and another option for size outside of PJ Washington and Mason Plumlee for the Hornets. He’s been priced a bit too cheap for his current role on Charlotte, which has been more significant than the pure backup center role he played on Washington.
Wizards Impact
Vernon Carey Jr. may or may not play much if any, role this year. Ish Smith is essentially an ancillary piece. Still, with Washington severely depleted after their trade deadline moves, he serves as their backup point guard behind Raul Neto. Smith is still cheap throughout the industry and, at any time, could see starts or a spike in minutes off the bench. He’s a valuable piece for DFS right now despite not moving the needle that much in real-life basketball.
Marvin Bagley To Detroit – Serge Ibaka To Milwaukee (Four-Team Deal)
Here is a breakdown of the trade:
- The Pistons receive Marvin Bagley III.
- The Clippers receive Rodney Hood and Semi Ojeleye.
- The Bucks receive Serge Ibaka and two second-round picks.
- The Kings receive Donte DiVincenzo, Josh Jackson, and Trey Lyles.
The deal has some impact on the Clippers from a DFS perspective, making Isaiah Hartenstein the backup center and a nice source of value. The Kings get a little depth, and if DiVincenzo has already gotten a bit of run off the bench, serving as a decent value piece in fantasy lineups. Let’s look at the impact for the Pistons and the Bucks.
Pistons Impact
The implications are not super huge for Detroit. Bagley has and should serve a broadly similar role to what he did in Sacramento, coming off the bench and playing 20 – 25 minutes at the power forward position. He is still cheap throughout the industry, and it is worth monitoring if he starts to get more run for Detroit.
Bucks Impact
With Brook Lopez still on the shelf, the Bucks benefit from the addition of a solid big man off the bench to back up starting center Bobby Portis.
He’s already gotten some run, and it will be interesting to see how substantial his role winds up being for Milwaukee. As it stands, he is a decent source of savings in DFS lineups.
Caris LeVert To Cleveland – Ricky Rubio To Indiana
Rubio is out indefinitely due to injury. Cleveland receives a 2022 second-round pick, while the Pacers receive three picks.
Cavaliers Impact
This one would seem to have pretty substantial applications for Cleveland with another mouth to feed in Caris LeVert. Yet, it hasn’t really impacted them all that much from a DFS perspective. They’ve actually opted to bring him off the bench, meaning he’s not eating into the guard usage for Darius Garland. An indirect consequence of his place on the team could be fewer minutes to go around for bench guys like Cedi Osman, Kevin Love, and Rajon Rondo. Levert himself may become a relevant fantasy piece if his price comes down to earth based on his current role with his new team.
Indiana Impact
While Rubio is injured and not playing, the loss of LeVert and other moves they have made at the deadline has had a substantial impact. It has made them one of the best teams to target for DFS at their current price points. I’d expect prices to rise post-All-Star break. Still, for the moment, there is a lot of value on the new-look Pacers with guys like Lance Stephenson, Chris Duarte, and the newly acquired Buddy Hield and Tyrese Haliburton. Of course, this will all change when Malcolm Brogdon returns from injury.
CJ McCollum To New Orleans – Josh Hart To Portland
This trade did involve other pieces as well. The Pelicans received Larry Nance Jr. and Tony Snell. At the same time, the Blazers got Nickeil Alexander-Walker, Tomas Satoransky, Didi Louzada, and some picks. Portland has already moved Alexander-Walker and Satoransky, and it appeared had no intention of keeping them on board. The only really relevant impact here for DFS involves CJ McCollum and Josh Hart.
Pelicans Impact
The addition of CJ McCollum is pretty huge, creating a solid Batman and Robin duo between him and Brandon Ingram. McCollum has already settled right in and excelled in his first action for the Pelicans. He does eat into the usage of Ingram, making the latter a less valuable fantasy asset until we see his price go down a bit. Devonte’ Graham also loses viability; in fact, Graham didn’t even start in the Pelicans’ last game. McCollum is a big mouth to feed and affects everyone around him. At the same time, he appears to be an excellent fantasy asset in his own right in his role for New Orleans.
Trail Blazers Impact
Josh Hart takes on a sizable role as a significant offensive playmaker with McCollum gone and Damian Lillard still on the shelf. Until we see his price rise a bit, he will be an excellent fantasy asset in his potentially different role for the Blazers.
Domantas Sabonis To Sacramento – Tyrese Haliburton To Indiana
This one is huge, with Haliburton, Buddy Hield, and Tristan Thompson going to the Pacers. At the same time, the Kings get Sabonis, Justin Holiday, Jeremy Lamb, and a 2023 second-round pick.
Sacramento Impact
After moving one of their key offensive cogs in Haliburton, Sacramento is a bit of a new team. This may open up more guard usage for DeAaron Fox, and he may be a guy we want to target until his price goes up. Harrison Barnes may also see a shift in his usage. Sabonis severely reduces the fantasy value of big-man Richaun Holmes, even with Marvin Bagley now out of town. We will have to see if Sabonis continues to play the vast minutes he did in Indiana and how usage shakes out between him and Fox.
Indiana Impact
The Pacers are a whole new team with LeVert and Sabonis out of town. When Malcolm Brogdon comes back from injury, it will change things, but for the moment, we get a lot of value for DFS. Haliburton becomes a true alpha in the current iteration of the team. Lance Stephenson, Buddy Hield (also acquired in the trade), Chris Duarte, Jalen Smith (brought on at the deadline from Phoenix), and others gain new utility.
Conclusion
One of the most significant advantages we can gain in NBA DFS is quickly assessing new situations. This lets us adjust before pricing gets up to speed and our opponents catch on. We’ll want to keep a very close eye on how teams are operating post-trade-deadline and react accordingly to win in DFS coming out of the All-Star break. We’ve already seen some post-deadline action to give us some hints, but there is still time to gain some edge in the new-look teams.
I'm a DFS player (JackG1111), DFS content provider, and musician.
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