Fantasy basketball managers have endured a rough early season. John Collins became the second young talented big suspended for 25 games. The injury bug has hit fantasy studs like Stephen Curry, Myles Turner, Blake Griffin, and many others who have missed time. Every manager should not panic. Each team is dealing with something. Finding a way to navigate positive weeks during this rough stretch is key to making the playoffs in head-to-head or being near the top in roto entering the home stretch.
One way to accomplish that is by making trades. Acquiring a player at a discount and selling high on another can win your league. That is our goal today as we examine five players to trade in fantasy basketball.
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Buy
A look at three players that fantasy managers should go out and trade for the remainder of the year.
Nikola Vucevic (C – ORL)
Vucevic is coming off the best season of his career. He finished 10th on the FantasyPros Player Rater. So far this year, he sits at 69th.
The 29-year-old has suffered through a cold shooting stretch to begin the season. Vucevic is shooting just 43.0 percent from the field (he is a 50.1 percent for his career). Buying Vuc is two-fold. He went 21st in ADP, but many may be quick to write last season off as a fluke. They might say the ADP was inflated because of it, too.
If you can acquire him for a player outside the top 30, that is a steal. He proved he can be a first-round talent last season and should easily provide second-round value in standard 12-team leagues.
Jimmy Butler (SG/SF – MIA)
Butler signed a massive four-year deal to join the Heat this offseason. He missed the team’s first three games for personal reasons. Butler has played in three but is still fitting in with his new squad. Really his shot is just not falling. Jimmy Buckets is shooting 38.9 percent from the field and just 65.0 percent on his free throws.
The 30-year-old is the lead ball-handler for the Heat, though. He also provides elite steals. Fans should expect Butler to finish in the 18-20 points per game range by season’s end.
He is currently 132nd on the FantasyPros Player Rater. Butler was drafted inside the top 25 in almost every league. It could be another opportunity to acquire a stud at a slight discount. He should produce top-15 per-game numbers the rest of the way, so try to acquire him on the cheap now.
Dwight Powell (PF/C – DAL)
Powell may be available on the waiver wire in your league. He is only owned in 53 percent of Yahoo leagues at this writing. The Mavs’ big man missed the entire preseason and the team’s first three games with a hamstring injury, but he is back and in the starting lineup already.
Powell will shoot good percentages. He is the Mavs’ primary rim roller and lob target. The 6’11” center will also grab rebounds and could produce the coveted triple-one. Averaging over one steal, block, and three-pointer made per game is the key to his fantasy breakout. Powell has the ability and should play north of 30 minutes per game for the first time in his career. Grab Powell now before he settles fully into his role and enjoy a top-80 player for the rest of the season.
Sell
Here are two players’ fantasy managers should move off their roster while their value is at its peak.
Kelly Oubre Jr. (SF – PHO)
Oubre Jr. is playing out of his mind right now. The 24-year-old is averaging 17.4 points, 6.0 rebounds, 1.1 steals, 0.9 blocks, and 1.4 three-pointers made through seven games. Those numbers are on par with his production since being traded to Phoenix last season.
The issue is he is shooting 48.4 percent from the field. Oubre Jr. is a career 42.6 percent shooter. The Suns will also add back in Deandre Ayton in mid-December. Ayton will take over as the second-leading scorer and steal rebounds away from Oubre Jr.
Some will believe in the 24-year-old’s breakout. He is currently 27th on the player rater. If I could trade him for any top-50 talent, that is a move I would make in a second.
Kevin Love (PF/C – CLE)
Love ranks 14th on the player rater after five games. He is off to an unsustainable hot shooting start, but also averaging a massive 15.3 rebounds with 4.3 assists and 19.2 points. The minutes are up too.
Love always produces, but his problem has been staying healthy. He has been limited to 60, 59, and 22 games each of the last three seasons. That does not mean Love will get injured this season, but it would continue a trend.
Kevin Love had an ADP of 47 in part because of those injuries. Perhaps the owner that lost John Collins or Deandre Ayton is searching for rebounds, though. Getting them to overpay for Love out of desperation is certainly a possibility. If your team needs a guard, then try capitalizing on the slow starts of Jrue Holiday, Mike Conley, De’Aaron Fox, or Eric Bledsoe in a deal for Love.
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Tyler Watts is a featured writer at FantasyPros. For more from Tyler, follow him @tylerpwatts.
