What is the fantasy impact of Nikola Mirotic in New Orleans?

The Bulls were finally able to unload Nikola Mirotic. Everyone figured that either he or Portis would be on the move after the preseason fight. The Bulls got more out of Mirotic, and honestly, they didn’t need a backup (Mirotic) who is exactly like the starter (Markkanen). Here is the full deal.

This deal stalled earlier in the week since the Pelicans wouldn’t guarantee the team option on MIrotic for the next year. The Pelicans agreed once they got the Bulls to take on the albatross of Omer Asik. The Bulls will also have the right to trade second round picks with the Pelicans in 2021 as a part of this deal.

The first round pick is top five protected this season, and top eight protected this year. However, barring a complete meltdown by the Pelicans, they wont be in the lottery. This is likely the 2018 first round pick headed to the Bulls. Considering this is a loaded draft, that’s a solid return.

The fantasy implications of this are pretty basic. Mirotic would be a great add right now because there isn’t much talent behind him in New Orleans. If he isn’t available, I would target him in a trade, especially if you need threes or points. We don’t know for sure how this will go in New Orleans, but a preemptive strike is suggested in trying to acquire Mirotic. He could double his value in the first week.

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The Bulls are expected to waive Tony Allen, but will likely hang on to Asik and Jameer Nelson. Kris Dunn will be back soon, but Nelson can also be an asset off the ball if need be. Nelson will have little fantasy value. Asik is likely going to be bought out or benched. Don’t expect him to have value any time soon.

The fantasy value of Bobby Portis gets a big boost here. Markkanen is still the starter, but Portis has shown the ability to put up big numbers in 25 minutes or less. If Portis is out there in your league, stop reading and go grab him! His major contributions will be in rebounds and points.

Markkanen’s value likely wont change much. He is still the starter here. It is possible that Markkanen sees a few more minutes, but not enough to drastically affect his fantasy output.

As far as New Orleans, expect Ian Clark‘s bench role to get stronger with Nelson out of the picture. Asik and Allen weren’t playing enough to change the fantasy landscape one way or the other.

The really intriguing thing about this deal is that the Pelicans opened up a roster slot for another impact add either via free agency or trade. Greg Monroe is the one that they are aggressively pursuing right now.

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Stay tuned to Fantasy CPR for all of your DFS needs, and the breakdowns of the rest of the NBA deadline deals. And we all know that fantasy football never sleeps! We will have plenty of offseason rankings, and a team by team offseason breakdown!

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