Hi! My name is Max Rosenberg and as a new recruit to the Fake Teams writing staff I’ll be teaming up with Michael Gallagher and the rest of the fantasy basketball team to bring you all the fantasy basketball news, trade advice, waiver wire adds and H2H league breakdowns you need. I’ve been writing fantasy basketball for a few years now and following for even longer. You can follow me in the Twitterverse @maxmillien and can e-mail me for some advice anytime at maxmillien.fantasysports@gmail.com.
So let’s get to it.!
Today I’m going to be bringing you my weekly buy low, sell high column. We’ll be targeting some guys it might be worth targeting in a trade and players that might be worth shipping out before they fall back to Earth.
Buy Low:
Russell Westbrook: The buy low window here might have fully closed with his 25 point, (10-for-20 shooting) 6 assist and 4 rebound game against Houston, but there could still be a disgruntled owner that thinks they should move Westbrook after two good games. If that’s the case, send a feeler e-mail to Westbrook’s owner and see if you can grab him for 80 cents on the dollar. He looks ready to heat up with the blown out of proportion Durant fight out of the way.
John Wall: Wall is currently under performing based on his 3rd round draft position in many leagues but this is sure to change. The 0-7 winless Wizards are playing terrible basketball and there is only one way for their play to go… up! Wall is one of the leading candidates to have a breakout NBA season in his second year and once the Wizards start playing like a professional basketball team look for him to improve on his current averages of 15 points and 6.9 assists. I could see those numbers getting closer to 20 points a game with 8 or 9 assists, making Wall one of the premier NBA fantasy point guards. See if an owner thinks that Wall has little room to improve and try and get him on the cheap.
Deron Williams: So it seems that the point guard spot is down across the board as D-Will is also off to a sluggish start. His assists are WAAAAY down to 6.9 from 12.8 (in 12 games with the Nets last season) and he is struggling with his shot, shooting 34.7% this season even though D-Will is a career 46% shooter. With so few pieces around him in New Jersey – especially with the injury to Brook Lopez – the Nets are relying on Williams as a scorer and he is being forced to take more shots than he is used to. This is affecting his assist numbers and though his scoring is up, that is not why you drafted the gifted point guard. D-Will should improve his shooting but with no help on the horizon this buy low has a little more risk than the guards mentioned above as D-Will could continue to play scoring first meaningless basketball in New Jersey.
Serge Ibaka: Ibaka is off to a brutal start to the season and is not living up to his average draft position (ADP) of 51.4 in ESPN.com leagues. He is averaging a brutal 7.2 points and 6.2 boards and mim and Kendrick Perkins are making up one of the worst offensive front courts in the NBA. Though Ibaka is averaging over 2 blocks per game, he is not playing anywhere close to the level people expected on draft day. Look to grab Ibaka if you need help in blocks and can deal with a sub 10 point per game player. When the young Thunder team start playing better as the season goes along Ibaka’s numbers should improve, especially the rebounding.
Danny Granger: Granger’s numbers this season are down across the board and the worst since his sophomore season in 2006-2007. However, with the Pacers playing some solid basketball the play of their All-Star is going unnoticed. I’d look for Granger to find his shot (shooting 30.7% so far this season) and be worth a buy low in a big way. Remember, it was just last year that Granger was a consensus top 10 fantasy player going into the season.
Joakim Noah: If anyone thinks Noah is going to average 7 and 7 for the rest of the season they are nuts. Make a play for Noah if an owner is already fed up. After his last 1 point 4 board game the time to strike is now.
Sell High:
Kyle Lowry: Hey, it’s possible that Lowry continues to play at this incredible clip for the rest of the season (15 points, 10 assists, 6 rebounds) but it is more likely that those numbers drop across the board. I’d move him for any of the guards listed above and it could be a trade worth making if you don’t believe Lowry can keep this up.
Ty Lawson: Lawson is another young point guard off to a hot start. His 16 points, 2 steals and 6 assists on just under .500% shooting are fantasy gold even if the assist numbers could be higher. If you can move Lawson for a more proven PG like the ones listed above, I’d package him with another player on your roster and upgrade your point guard spot.
James Harden: Where it is time to sneak in and grab Westbrook, it is time to sell James Harden. Harden is averaging 17 points, 5 boards and 3.9 assists and is finally playing like the player people though he would be when he came to OKC. With Westbrook sure to improve Hardens numbers should drop. Look for a points and 3’s hungry owner and move Harden, you might be able to get more than you think for him.
Ryan Anderson and Spencer Hawes: I grouped these two guys together because they are similar sell high situations. This is because you might not be able to actually sell high on them, as many will not believe in them. They are best used as add-ons to other deals, as no owner will want to trade for just them in most situations. If you cannot get value for Anderson or Hawes I would just ride out the production.
Jose Calderon: Averaging 12 points and 9 assists, Jose has been a great draft day value for anyone that drafted him. An injury time bomb waiting to go off, try and ship Calderon for a less injury prone player and be happy when Jose pulls that hammy on another teams roster.
The Toss Up:
The final section of the buy low sell high is always going to be a toss up player. Someone you just can’t decide which way to go on. This week that player is Dorell Wright. With pitiful averages of 5.8 points and 4.5 rebounds, Wright is also shooting a team killing 32.7%. His minutes average is also down to 29 minutes per game from 38 per game last season. With Stephen Curry in and out with the ankle injury, it is possible that Wright gets more playing time but on the flip side maybe that opens the door for Brandon Rush and newly acquired Nate Robinson. Wright is an enigma. He won people their leagues last season and now he is sinking your team. I would think that the Warriors have no choice but to give Wright some run at some point this season and he should start to find his shot if that happens. It is possible that Marc Jackson does not like Wright or that Wright is having trouble with a new system. It is a risk to trade for Wright but I would not give up anything close to his draft day value.
What do you think?
Thanks and post any trade questions you may have below!