Basketball Free For All

Wondering what will be the effects of all the major deals prior to today’s deadline?  Well, worry no more as Justin and I are here to help clear up any confusion.  I’ll handle the relevant fantasy perspective while Justin will tackle the realistic implications in a subsequent article.  If we happen to miss anything or you simply have a question, as always, feel free to leave a comment below.

Trade 1: (WAS) Josh Howard + Drew Gooden + James Singleton + Quinton Ross / (DAL) Caron Butler + Brendan Haywood + DeShawn Stevenson

Fantasy Perspective:  Although, it may not be quite apparent from his first two games with the Mavericks, Caron Butler, figures to see his value slightly increase.  Whether it’s trying to impress his new teammates or just getting acclimated to his new surroundings, his efficiency has been well below par.  However, the thing to take away from the small sample size is his usage.  Initially, I feared his touches would go down while his efficiency would go up from Washington numbers.  It appears the Mavericks want or are willing for him to be one of the main cogs.  Once he participates in a few more practices and some time to settle down, I expect the %’s and TO’s to be more than acceptable.  Call:  Slight Upgrade

Brendan Haywood will also probably see a slight uptick in his numbers.  First, Erick Dampier is slated to miss some significant time due to a finger injury so expect plenty of minutes.  Second, he now plays for a playoff contender.  Usually on winning ballclubs, teams are more apt to share the ball so he’ll probably get a few more easy touches around the basket.  In addition, the additional motivation should help Brendan score a few more rebounds and blocks.  Third, he’s playing with Jason Kidd.  Enough said.  Call:  Slight Upgrade

Josh Howard is only worthy of mention on the Washington side as Gooden will be discussed in his move to the Clippers.  Howard is a definite wildcard.  We are all well versed by now on his propensity for injury.  However, it’ll be interesting to see how he accepts this new challenge in playing for one of the worst teams in the NBA.  Personally, I’m a little fearful.  I think the counting stats will be solid as he’ll look to assert himself on a starless team.  In addition, he knows he needs to impress NBA teams to earn a nice new contract.  However, it’s the efficiency that worries me.  Josh has always played for Dallas and played with coaches/teammates who had a positive influence on him.  Now being on a lottery team that was just recently gutted it will probably be every man for himself.  Call:  Sticky Upgrade

Trade 2: (POR) Marcus Camby / (LAC) Travis Outlaw + Steve Blake

Fantasy Perspective:  Marcus Camby was already a rebounding/defensive numbers machine playing alongside Chris Kaman.  Now he’ll be playing alongside anti-paint lover LaMarcus Aldridge.  Oh, and Juwan Howard + two rookie bigs behind the both of them?  Definitely no downside here!  If anything, Camby being the consummate professional will seize this opportunity to play himself into a new contract.  Although he’s never had motivational problems, it should inspire him to put up some fantastic lines with Portland fans cheering him on in the Rose Garden.  Call:  Slight Upgrade

Steve Blake and Travis Outlaw will likely at best be fringe material in standard sized leagues.  Both of them need to hope for at least an injury or two to guys at their positions before they should be rostered by fantasy managers.  Call:  Even

Trade 3:  (BOS) Nate Robinson + Marcus Landry / (NYK) Eddie House + JR Giddens + Bill Walker

Fantasy Perspective:  Say goodbye to Nate Robinson’s value in standard sized leagues.  He’s going to be used only as a booster shot to the offense since most of the minutes at guard, including crunch time, will remain with Rajon Rondo and Ray Allen.  Deep league hopefuls need to hope he’s really on fire making it hard for Doc to take him out or the Celtics have a lot of blowouts.  Call:  Significant Downgrade

Eddie House might have his moments where he makes enough 3’s to win you the category by himself, but it won’t come with any consistency.  He’s not apt to get too many minutes at PG with Sergio Rodriguez coming on board while D’Antoni still wants to give Toney Douglas a deeper look.  Meanwhile, he’ll have difficultly scoring time at SG with Tracy McGrady likely getting the bulk of the run.  Call:  Even

Trade 4:  (CLE) Antawn Jamison + Sebastian Telfair / (LAC) Drew Gooden / (WAS) Zydrunas Ilgauskas + Al Thornton + Emir Preldzic + Cavs’ 2010 first-round pick

Fantasy Perspective:  Antawn Jamison is back on a contending team!  Always good to see the good guys end up in a promising position, but I can’t say the same for his fantasy prospects.  Coming into tonight’s game against Denver, the Cavalier’s have won 13 straight so I could easily envision Mike Brown not wanting to change things.  Consequently, I’m expecting something more along the lines of Jamison’s role in Dallas in 2003-04 where he averaged 14.8 points and 6.3 rebounds in about 29 minutes.  Most likely, ‘twan sees a tick more time on the court as he’ll probably play both forward positions depending upon the matchup as well as being on the court during crunch time.  Call:  Downgrade

Al Thornton’s career could potentially get back on track with the Wizards as he could benefit from the change of scenery.  At least he knows he’s been coveted by the Wizards before:  during the 2007 NBA Draft, the team was actually hoping to draft him, but the Clippers nabbed him a few picks earlier.  I expect he’ll get solid run at both forward slots depending upon the matchup, but it’s a scary proposition (much like Howard) as to how these band of misfits come together.  As a side note, many are speculating that Zydrunas Ilgauskus will be bought out and he’ll either end up with Cleveland again or perhaps a team needing paint depth like Dallas/Atlanta.  Call:  Sticky Upgrade

The real winners in Washington are actually their two young big men:  Andray Blatche and JaVale McGee.  7 day Dray has only needed an opportunity for significant minutes as his 5 starts this year have resulted in averages of 15.2 points (50 FG%), 8.6 rebounds, 2.6 assists, 1.6 blocks and .8 steals.  On the other hand, McGee will be more inconsistent as he’s still not ready to contribute in this league on a nightly basis.  On good nights, he’ll put up excellent blocks and boards with good points and FG%.  On off nights, probably just a lot of PF’s.  Call:  Significant Upgrade

Drew Gooden is probably wondering where the love is.  He is now on his 9th team in his 8 year career and has to be tired of never being able to unpack his luggage.  Chris Mannix of Sports Illustrated seems to think Gooden won’t get much run in Clipper land, but I can’t say I agree.  Drew is only two years older than Craig Smith and they are both on expiring deals.  Nothing like healthy competition between the two so if I’m GM Dunleavy I tell them both to have at it.  Lastly, Drew makes a better starting option as Craig is both undersized and not as versatile.  Expect a platoon situation with Gooden eventually getting the majority of time between the two.  Call:  Even

Trade 5:  (MIL) John Salmons / (CHI) Hakim Warrick + Joe Alexander

Fantasy Perspective:  The Bucks just picked up a new starting shooting guard for the team, John Salmons.  On the surface, most fantasy owners are probably happy as he gets a new lease on life for the final 30 games of his season.  However, just have to voice a word of caution, Scott Skiles is his new coach.  This means that John will get yanked like any other Buck if he’s not showing consistency on both ends of the floor.  In the end, I do expect John to get back to numbers more akin to what we saw the last two seasons as he’ll steal some shots from most of the rest of the offense but none more so than Carlos Delfino.  Call:  Upgrade

Trade 6:  (SAC) Carl Landry + Joey Dorsey + Larry Hughes / (NY) Tracy McGrady + Sergio Rodriguez / (HOU) Kevin Martin + Jordan Hill + Jared Jeffries + Hilton Armstrong + Knicks’ 2012 first-round pick

Fantasy Perspective:  There are just some teams in the NBA that get it and Houston is definitely one of them.  Morey struck again and this time he landed the best chip out there, Kevin Martin.  Much to the delight of fantasy owners, Martin will bring instant offense to a team needing a consistent scorer on the wing.  He’s going to get his shots so expect most of his teammates to lose some attempts.  For both Aaron Brooks and Trevor Ariza, this may be a blessing as both of their efficiencies should technically improve despite a likely drop in points per game.  On the other hand, Shane Battier’s fantasy appeal takes a hit as he is likely going to the bench.  Lastly, David Andersen and Jared Jeffries are at least worth a mention for deep leagues as the Rockets will have to replace Carl Landry’s usage.  Call:  Slight Upgrade

Most, if not all, NBA fans will finally see if Tracy McGrady still possesses enough game and ability to be a difference maker.  Obviously, there is nowhere to go but up in regards to his fantasy value, but what can you really expect?  I’m highly skeptical he’ll be able to jump right in and give them 35 minutes a game of great production.  However, given the Knicks dire need for a playmaker + Tracy’s own desire to prove to any and all naysayers he still belongs in the NBA, he’ll likely be relevant enough to consider owning even in standard leagues.  If Tracy avoids injury, I expect his NYK season averages to be somewhere in the neighborhood of 16 points, 3.5 rebounds and 4 assists.  Call:  Upgrade

The Knicks other addition, Sergio Rodriguez, could also be a relevant factor most fantasy owners should consider.  Mike D’Antoni has wanted to sit Chris Duhon on the bench 20 million times this season, but up until now, he really hasn’t had the opportunity.  It might take a few games, but I expect Sergio to be inserted into the starting lineup really soon.  Did you know D’Antoni has had a hankering for this kid for a few years now?  You betcha!  Although he’s not the greatest shooter, anything short of a corpse is better than DuDu.  Expect solid points, assists and steals albeit likely with moderately high TO’s and a below average FG%.  Call:  Upgrade

Carl Landry is an interesting fit in Sacramento.  Paul Westphal has played russian roulette between Jason Thompson’s fouls and Spencer Hawes‘ inconsistency a countless number of times.  He’ll happily make use of Carl, but the question is whether he keeps him coming off the bench.  Initially I say yes but that doesn’t really matter as Westy is apt to make a dozen changes in the blink of an eye.  What is important is that Carl is a proven aggressive scorer and he’ll likely see at least the same amount of time on the floor as he did in Houston.  Call:  Even

Another guy worthy of mention here is Francisco Garcia.  He has just recently returned back to the court, but his fantasy prospects appeared dim as the Kings had an overabundance of wing players.  With the departure of Kevin Martin, that has all changed.  Some will argue that Beno Udrih is looking like a good pickup as Westy rotates Tyreke Evans to SG.  I say wrong.  Coach likes to create mismatches on the floor with size.  There was a point in the season he liked pairing Donte Greene alongside Evans when both Garcia and Martin were out with injury.  Well, he’s got his opportunity again – this time with a solid veteran who can shoot, handle the ball and play excellent defense.  Call:  Significant Upgrade

Trade 7: (CHA) Tyrus Thomas / (CHI) Acie Law + Flip Murray + future Bobcats’ first-round pick

Fantasy Perspective:  Tyrus Thomas has finally broken free of Chicago’s suffocating grasp!  Although his statistics were trending upwards since his latest Vinnie Del Negro run-in, one has to believe it was to showcase him to potential suitors.  Consequently, it’s a good thing he landed elsewhere although a destination like New York would have even been more favorable for fantasy owners.  In Charlotte, it’s expected he’ll remain a reserve behind Boris Diaw, but don’t expect limited minutes.  First, Boris is having a rough year, but Larry Brown has had no choice but to stick with him the whole time.  Second, ever-injured Tyson Chandler and usually-inept Nazr Mohammed man the middle.  They’re about as reliable as Chuck Hayes from the free throw line.  Expect the Bobcats to go small quite a few times with Diaw sliding over to center while Tyrus and Gerald Wallace form the most athletic forward tandem we’ve seen in years.  Call:  Upgrade

Trade 8: (MEM) Ronnie Brewer / (UTA) Grizzlies’ protected 2011 first-round draft pick

Fantasy Perspective:  Ronnie Brewer’s dismal season just got a little bleaker for fantasy owners.  He goes from a reduced starter’s role to a reserve picking up the extra minutes remaining from OJ Mayo and Mike Conley.  Needless to say, not much else needs to be said except that standard sized leagues definitely need to find themselves a replacement.  Call:  Downgrade

On the other hand, Brewer’s departure opens the door for someone at SG.  We’ve got 3 candidates in Kyle Korver, C.J. Miles and Wesley Matthews.  I’m not entirely sold that any of them emerge quickly enough to be viable options in standard leagues, but definitely keep an eye on CJ.  Of late, it appeared he was the favorite to play between he and Wesley (Korver is being excluded because he just makes sense to come off the bench).  Also, Jerry Sloan has spoken highly of Miles in the past while we know his tendencies towards rookies.  However, naturally it will come down to production.  If Miles continues to struggle and Matthews decides to grab the bull by the horns, he will be Utah’s starting SG.  Call:  Watch Closely