Following a wild 2018 NBA trade deadline, fantasy basketball owners must recalibrate their rest-of-season expectations for their roster moving forward.
As is tradition, the NBA trade deadline wreaked havoc upon fantasy basketball owners. In the days leading up to the deadline, Blake Griffin, Tobias Harris, Avery Bradley and Nikola Mirotic all switched teams, which drastically altered the fantasy outlooks for players on the Los Angeles Clippers, Detroit Pistons, Chicago Bulls and New Orleans Pelicans.
In retrospect, those moves only teased at the chaos to come.
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Between the Cleveland Cavaliers taking a stick of dynamite to their roster and the Orlando Magic selling low on point guard Elfrid Payton, the fantasy landscape looks far different now than it did a week or two ago. Kristaps Porzingis’ season-ending ACL tear didn’t help matters, either. As a result, you’ll see more changes in this week’s rest-of-season rankings than you will throughout the rest of the season.
Here’s a look at how fantasy owners in nine-category leagues should view players moving forward. Below, read about some of the notable risers and fallers from the past week.
2017 Fantasy Basketball Rankings powered by FantasyProsECR ™ – Expert Consensus Rankings
Isaiah Thomas, PG, Los Angeles Lakers: If Thomas’ Lakers debut is any indication, he’ll have a new lease on his fantasy life in L.A. Against the Dallas Mavericks on Saturday night, Thomas finished with 22 points on 7-of-12 shooting, six assists, four triples, one rebound and one steal in 31 minutes off the bench. Afterward, he told reporters that he felt like “I got my powers back playing on this team.” While Lonzo Ball’s eventual return from an ACL sprain will cut into Thomas’ playing time, the diminutive floor general looks like a fringe top-50 option for now. This wouldn’t be a bad time to explore sell-high offers, though.
Darren Collison, PG, Indiana Pacers: On Monday, the Pacers announced Collison would undergo arthroscopic surgery on his left knee that will sideline him for the next two to three weeks. As a result, his ownership plunged by nearly 20 percentage points in ESPN.com leagues. While Collison’s short-term value takes an undeniable hit—he fell roughly 25 spots in the rest-of-season rankings since he’ll be unavailable until after the All-Star break—he’s the 38th-ranked player on a per-game basis in nine-category leagues on the year. If a desperate owner dropped Collison and you’re cruising toward a playoff spot, his difference-making potential makes him a no-brainer stash.
Ricky Rubio, PG, Utah Jazz: Prior to suffering a hip injury Friday night against the Charlotte Hornets, Rubio had been on a tear as of late. Over the seven games leading up to Utah’s tilt against Charlotte, the Spanish floor general averaged 20.7 points on 53.8 percent shooting, 7.7 assists, 5.9 rebounds, 1.9 triples and 1.3 steals in 32.4 minutes, good for top-20 value on a per-game basis in nine-category leagues. With the Jazz having traded Rodney Hood to Cleveland for Jae Crowder, Rubio now has one fewer high-usage player with whom to share touches, sending his rest-of-season outlook soaring upward. He jumped back into the top 100 this week, and he soon could move into the top 75 if his hip injury isn’t serious.
Tim Hardaway Jr., SG/SF, New York Knicks: Hardaway Jr. started off hot in his return from his stress injury, but he’s slowed down as of late. Over his past five games, he averaged only 7.2 points on a dismal 21.7 percent shooting, 4.4 rebounds, 2.0 assists, 0.8 steals and 0.4 triples in 30.3 minutes, putting him far outside of the top 175 on a per-game basis in nine-category leagues. With Kristaps Porzingis done for the year, opposing team can now devote more of their defensive focus to Hardaway, which doesn’t bode well for his shooting efficiency moving forward. He slipped outside of the top 75 this week, and he could drop further if the Knicks begin prioritizing their young players in the weeks to come.
Danilo Gallinari, SF/PF, Los Angeles Clippers: If you took our advice from two weeks ago and plucked Danilo Gallinari off your waiver wire, congratulations! The Rooster hasn’t missed a beat since his return from a lingering glute injury, as evidenced by his per-game averages of 21.0 points on 52.2 percent shooting, 5.6 rebounds, 2.6 triples and 1.6 assists in 31.5 minutes over his past five outings. Gallinari played a season-high 40 minutes against the Philadelphia 76ers on Saturday and emerged unscathed, which bodes well for his rest-of-season outlook so long as he can remain healthy. Fantasy owners may want to shop the oft-injured forward in case he does suffer another setback, but until that happens, he’s a rock-solid top-75 rest-of-season option.
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Jamal Murray, PG, Denver Nuggets: The Nuggets’ decision to ship Emmanuel Mudiay to the New York Knicks in a three-team trade that netted them Devin Harris was great news for their playoff chances, but the same can’t be said for Murray’s rest-of-season fantasy outlook. Whereas Denver head coach Mike Malone was reluctant to hand Mudiay significant playing time, Harris played 22 minutes in his Nuggets debut against the Phoenix Suns on Saturday night. Murray, meanwhile, played only 27 minutes, finishing with 12 points on 4-of-9 shooting, two assists, one rebound and one 3-pointer. His spot in the starting lineup should remain safe, but Harris is a far bigger threat to his fantasy upside than Mudiay ever was.
All ownership percentages via ESPN.com. All average draft position info via FantasyPros. All rankings via Basketball Monster are based on nine-category leagues and are current heading into Sunday, Feb. 11.