Fansided

Fantasy Basketball: Goran Dragic Wins Trade Deadline Lottery

By Mike Marteny

facebooktwitterreddit

The trade that left the most ripples in the NBA waters was the trade of Goran Dragic to Miami. The full trade looks like this:

This trade automatically makes the Heat a force in the Eastern Conference. They likely are stuck in either the 7th or 8th playoff spot since they are 7.5 games behind the sixth place Bucks, but they will be a tough out in the first round for the second seed. Dragic gives them the playmaker that they lacked during the LeBron James regime. He is easily the best PG that Dwyane Wade has had the pleasure of playing with, and if the aging Heat can stay healthy, they may still be a player in the Eastern Conference race.

Another thing to take away from this is how the Suns handled the Dragic situation. Instead of engaging in a pissing match with their star guard, they honored his wish to be moved. Not only that, but they moved him to a contender. With his brother, no less. This could go a long way towards landing the Suns some free agents. Everyone wants to play for a team that treats their players right. They went above and beyond for Dragic, and that could pay dividends for them down the road.

The Heat mortgaged their future for a chance at the present. The 2017 pick is top seven protected, but could still wind up as a lottery pick. There is no protection on the 2019 pick, meaning the Suns will be hoping the Heat are lousy in 2018. The Suns have to wait a while for their return on this deal, but adding Danny Granger is something that shouldn’t go unnoticed.

The Suns now have two true SG’s in Marcus Thornton and Danny Granger. Granger can even play SF if the Suns get tired of the inconsistency of Gerald Green and P.J. Tucker. The key with Granger is his health.

More from Fantasy Basketball

Fantasy-wise, Dragic owners should be thrilled. The Heat match his style more, and they have two dominant forces in the middle in Chris Bosh and Hassan Whiteside. You should see an increase in assists for Dragic, and possibly points as well for running pick and rolls. Dragic is likely owned in all of your leagues, but I would send some offers out to try and acquire his services. Do it before he plays much in Miami. He could have a big impact for the Heat and your fantasy team alike.

This could also help the value of Wade, Bosh, and Whiteside. They finally have a pure passer to distribute the ball to them. It might serve you well to try and get some of those guys as well.

Keep a close eye on how the Suns use Granger. He could be worth adding in all leagues if he sees 30-35 minutes a game in that offense. He didn’t show much with the Heat, but he didn’t look washed up either. Maybe a change of scenery will do him well.

Eric Bledsoe could also see an increase in value. There is a good chance that he takes over as the starting SG if their new toys, Thornton and Granger, struggle to adapt.

The second part of this deal is the one that could hurt the Heat down the stretch. It looks like this:

The Heat kick in three bench pieces to send veteran John Salmons to the Suns. This may look like an insignificant footnote, and for fantasy it is, but this takes a big chunk out of the bench depth for Miami. Should they get hit with injuries again, they won’t have as many pieces to patch the holes with.

None of those four have fantasy value outside of deeper leagues. Cole and Williams could see some good court time for New Orleans in the absence of Jrue Holiday. Look for Williams to get some decent minutes behind Dante Cunningham, though he is unlikely to take Cunningham’s job because of his defense. Cole and Williams should be owned in all leagues with 14 or more teams.

Stay tuned here to Fantasy CPR throughout the day as we examine the fantasy aspect of all the deadline deals!

Next: Is Michael Carter-Williams in a better situation?

More from FanSided

Home/Fantasy Basketball