Post from: Expert Fantasy

While the move will definitely be an upgrade for Cassell in the NBA, how is the move going to affect his value in fantasy basketball?

Surprisingly enough, it’d likely be bad news for Cassell owners. With the Clippers, Cassell gets to shoot and handle the ball as much as he wants. The Clips don’t have many scorers so Cassell has free rein to do whatever he pleases.

With the Celtics, he’ll have three superstars next to him. He’ll still be looked at to score now and then but he’ll at best be the fourth option on the team. On top of that, Rajon Rondo will likely continue starting. Cassell should still see around 20 minutes off the bench but that won’t be enough to keep up his current production.

If you can trade Cassell, do so now. Some fantasy owners may be excited about the fact that he’s going to end up in Boston. Don’t make that mistake.

Sam Cassell Flagrant 2 Foul on Rajon Rondo

Post from: Expert Fantasy

In the fantasy basketball world, this trade will make a big splash. All four of the players the Cavs received should see at least a short-term raise in their value. Wallace should start at power forward. Szczerbiak has a good chance at starting at a guard position. West has a chance to start at point guard. Smith likely won’t start but he’ll play a lot.

The biggest winner of those four players is likely Szczerbiak who seems to be the perfect piece next to LeBron James. He’ll get tons of open shots in that system. West could also be a big winner if he becomes the full-time starting point guard. Wallace could possibly start producing more now that he’s on a winner. Smith’s production should close to his previous levels.

Of the new Bulls, Larry Hughes is the player to watch. He could never play well next to LeBron, however he was a fantasy stud back before he went to Cleveland. Now that he’s on a new team, there’s a chance he could flourish. Gooden’s production should be about the same, while Simmons and Brown likely won’t make a dent.

In Seattle, none of those three players will be fantasy relevant. Marshall might intrigue some with his three-point shooting, but he’d need to play big minutes to become worthwhile in the fantasy world.

Post from: Expert Fantasy

And now that he’s going to the Spurs, his fantasy value will drop even further. He was starting and playing relatively big minutes for the Seattle Supersonics. With the Spurs, he likely won’t start right away. In fact, Fabricio Oberto may remain the starter for the rest of the season.

In the short-term, expect Thomas’ numbers to plummet to about half of what he did in Seattle. Eventually, as he earns more and more playing time, his peak production will likely be approximately 75% of what he did while with the Sonics. The end result will be a fantasy player who isn’t rosterable in most leagues.

In Seattle, neither Brent Barry nor Francisco Elson will make too much noise. Elson will likely be a backup center who gets limited minutes. Barry likely won’t even suit up for the Sonics and will instead be bought out. Expect Barry to either re-sign with the Spurs or sign with a contender such as the Phoenix Suns, Los Angeles Lakers or the Dallas Mavericks.

Post from: Expert Fantasy

Well, All-Star Weekend has come and gone, however, the debate on the “Superman” dunk (was it a dunk or not?) still rages on. As fantasy basketball players, we have bigger concerns on our mind. For one, what are the fantasy effects of all of the blockbuster deals this season? Also, are there any second-half sleepers out there to help you in your league’s stretch run? Here is a look at those questions and more.

Trade Fallout – The Winners:

Kurt Thomas – Power Forward/Center – Spurs – Thomas moves to a team that needs his services in the post. He should get the majority of minutes over Fabricio Oberto and may contribute a double-double statistical line with strong percentages and decent defensive numbers. He has very limited upside. But, you could do worse for a short-term filler at center.

Beno Udrih – Point Guard – Kings – Udrih resumes his role as the Kings starting point guard with Mike Bibby going east to the Hawks. Just in case you forgot, he is averaging 14 points and 5 assists as a starter this season.

Marcus Williams – Point Guard – Nets – The good news, Jason Kidd has left town. The bad news, Devin Harris has arrived in town. Harris will be out a couple of weeks recovering from injury. That will give Williams ample time to audition for the starting point guard job.

Antoine Wright – Shooting Guard/Small Forward – Mavericks – Wright has two things to be grateful for. One, he no longer has to compete with the uninspired duo of Vince Carter and Richard Jefferson for minutes. Two, he is out of New Jersey. Wright could contribute in steals, assists, and rebounds if given 28 to 30 minutes a night. That is not as far fetched as it sounds as the Maverick may start to save the aging legs of Eddie Jones and Jerry Stackhouse for the playoffs.

Trade Fallout – The Losers:

Andris Biedrins – Center – Warriors – Biedrins’ stock is not affected by a trade, but the signing of Chris Webber. Biedrins has not only lost his starting gig to Webber, but some playing time as well. He is really foul-prone, so the drop in his value can not all be attributed to the Webber signing. He is also very young and is a nice buy low candidate for keeper leagues.

Josh Boone – Power Forward/Center – Nets – The Nets have been in search of good big men since the days of Derrick Coleman. While the lot of “bigs” they have now do not have the talent – or nearly the waistline – of Coleman, there are a lot of them. Adding DeSagana Diop to Boone, a recovering Nenad Krstic, the recently acquired Stromile Swift, and rookie Sean Williams makes the front line rotation pretty crowded. There is a large possibility that there will be an open audition at the four and five spot in New Jersey for the rest of the season. If that is the case, then all involved will have diminished fantasy value.

Boris Diaw– Power Forward/Center – Suns – If Shaquille O’Nealcan stay healthy and if he can play 30 minutes a night, then Diaw role and minutes will be minimized for the Suns. But those are some pretty big “ifs”. Diaw’s steals and assists from the center spot can be value. However, his production is too volatile to rely on.

Jarrett Jack – Guard – Blazers – Why is Jack on this list? He has not been traded, has he? The Blazers have not made a trade, right? Well, there is the problem. Jack would have benefited greatly by a move out of Portland. He has moved into the starting lineup recently, at the two-guard spot, at least on a part-time basis. His shooting is too inconsistent to play big minutes at the off guard spot and there are too many options on the bench for Jack to be worthy of a roster spot right now.

Acie Law – Guard – Hawks – Using simple math, you can deduce that Law has a chance of more playing time. Two point guards leave (Tyronn Lue and Anthony Johnson) and one came back in a trade (Mike Bibby). However, beating out Lue and Johnson for minutes is different than beating out Bibby. Law may see some gain in value, but loses a chance to become a truly viable fantasy option.

Second-Half Sleepers

Randy Foye – Guard – Wolves – I have been tooting this guy’s horn for a while. Foye is good. How good? Well, that has yet to be determined, but Minnesota has nothing better to do this season but find out what exactly what they have in Foye. His shooting has been awful this season – currently sitting at 36%. Considering that he shot 43% from the field and 37% from three point range last season, he should raise his field goal percentage considerably the rest of the way.

Luis Scola – Power Forward/Center – Rockets – Scola got off to a slow start this season as he got acclimated to the league. His February numbers: 11 points and 6 rebounds – not eye popping, until you see that he is shooting 63% from the field. He should continue to put up better numbers as he gets more comfortable with the NBA style of play. Averages of 13 points and 7 rebounds is very possible.

Rodney Stuckey – Guard – Pistons – In case you have not noticed, Stuckey has February averages of 11.4 points, 2.4 rebounds, and 3.7 assists in just 22 minutes. Logic tells us that he should see his minutes continue to rise as they ready him – a rest the aging starters – for the post-season. Put Stuckey on the Timberwolves or the Clippers, he would be a top candidate for the Rookie of the Year award.

Louis Williams – Guard – Sixers – Like Randy Foye, Williams should have plenty of opportunity the rest of the way to prove his wares. Williams has a multitude of skills and appears that he will be a fantasy star someday. The question that you should be asking is: will he turn those skills into production this season. He is, at least, worthy of a spot on your watch-list, if not your reserve team. However, I have a little more optimistic outlook for Williams. He could be good for 12.5 points, 3.5 assists, and 1.5 steals the rest of the way on 45% shooting, up from his current 41% shooting.

FantasyFanatics.com is a premier fantasy sports community. Need help deciding who to sit and who to start? What about help with a big trade? Chat with the fantasy basketball experts on FantasyFanatics.com.

Post from: Expert Fantasy

With Kidd in Dallas, expect an increase in efficiency from all the players on the Mavericks. Kidd is still a great point guard who is arguably the best in the game at making players around him better. Dirk Nowitzki, Josh Howard and Jason Terry will now find themselves open more than ever before.

Kidd himself could be in line for a rebirth. He was hating life in New Jersey and will no doubt play with fire now that he’s back in Dallas. There’s no reason why he can’t continue putting up triple-doubles for the Mavs like he was doing for the Nets. You can also expect his shooting to get better now that the teammates around him are better.

The Nets basically received only two players with fantasy potential – Devin Harris and DeSagana Diop. Harris will take over for Kidd as the Nets’ point guard. If Harris is given free reign to play as he sees fit, he may have a lot more success than he did in Dallas in their structured offense. Diop is a shotblocker and rebounder who could possibly put up stats if given extended playing time at center.

To put it bluntly, in fantasy basketball this helps everyone associated with the Mavs. On the other hand, it’s difficult to predict how this will affect the Nets. Chances are they’ll be a massive transitional period before we figure out how all the pieces will fit with Kidd gone.

Jason Kidd Mix …

Post from: Expert Fantasy

In Bibby’s first game with the Hawks on Tuesday, he injured an ankle. The extent of the injury isn’t immediately known. When healthy, Bibby will be a good addition for the Hawks. He’ll make life easier for the scorers around him including Joe Johnson and Josh Smith. He should also feed Al Horford for easy baskets around the rim.

For Bibby himself, this shouldn’t help him or hurt him in the fantasy world. Expect his stats to be similar to what they were when he was with the Kings. He’s a good shooter and an average playmaker. Bibby can get hot and score with just about any point guard in the league.

With regards to the Kings, the only player they received who could have long-term fantasy appeal is Shelden Williams. The other three players they received are all expiring contracts. Williams, even though there’s a chance that he’s just a draft bust, could find a defense and rebounding role with the Kings off the bench.

With Bibby gone, expect Beno Udrih to resume his job as the team’s starting point guard. Udrih as a starter played well for the Kings. The Slovenian struggled when coming off the bench behind Bibby, which dropped him off the fantasy radar. If you need a point guard, go pickup Udrih.

If something were to happen to Udrih, Anthony Johnson is likely the next in line to start in Sacramento at point guard.

Read another perspective on the Bibby trade.

Post from: Expert Fantasy

If this trade goes down, Jason Kidd owners would have to be happy. Kidd would be motivated and happy once again. In the NBA, never underestimate the power of happiness. While Kidd’s stats are pretty good right now, expect his stats to be much better on the Mavs.

Also for the Mavs, you can expect improved play from Dirk Nowitzki, Josh Howard and Jason Terry. Kidd is a great point guard and would automatically become the leader of the team. He’ll get the stars around him easy shots, like he always does.

In New Jersey, the outlook isn’t as pretty. Harris at best would put up the same stats he’s averaging now. Although, it’s likely that his stats would go down. Richard Jefferson and Vince Carter also won’t be helped by losing Kidd. DeSagana Diop would likely not be a major part of this trade, however he might get a look at center for the Nets.

Overall, this trade is good news in the fantasy world for Kidd and everyone on the Mavs. For the Nets, this is bad fantasy news. As a fantasy basketball owner, look to buy players on the Mavs and sell players on the Nets. If you do it now before others see how it will play out, you might be able to get good value.

At this point, the trade has hit a snag thanks to Devean George but we’ll see how this plays out in the next day or so.

Post from: Expert Fantasy

The Suns, who got the pick from the Hawks in the Joe Johnson trade a few years ago, would look at Artest as a quality Shawn Marion replacement. While Artest is a highly volatile and erratic person on and off the court, he’s a quality basketball player when he’s not acting crazy.

In the fantasy basketball world, this trade would arguably be bigger than the Shaquille O’Neal trade. First of all, Ron Artest would find himself in the run and gun Suns system. Playing next to Steve Nash and Shaq, Artest would likely become an all-around force. His scoring would likely decline but everything else would likely go up.

For the Kings, that’d open up space for a player like John Salmons or Francisco Garcia. Both Salmons and Garcia played well at the beginning of the season but have been relegated to the bench since the team got healthy. If Salmons or Garcia became a starter again, they’re fantasy value would skyrocket.

While this rumor remains simply a rumor, you should be prepared for the fallout. If you see that the trade has gone through, you should go and pickup either Salmons or Garcia if they are available and hope to strike gold on the waiver wire.

Artest Dunking on Joakim Noah …

Post from: Expert Fantasy

Looking at it from an NBA perspective, the Suns are doing this trade to try to win a championship this season. They’re small ball formula simply wasn’t going to get them past teams like the San Antonio Spurs and the Los Angeles Lakers with Pau Gasol. Now, with O’Neal on their side, the Suns suddenly have a chance to win a championship. It was a risky trade by general manager Steve Kerr because of Shaq’s age and health, but it was a trade that improves the Suns’ chances of winning a championship this season.

In the fantasy world, the most important player being moved is Shawn Marion. On the run and gun Suns, Marion was one of the best fantasy players in all the land. Will he still be great on the Miami Heat? He should still be very good but there’s a chance that his fantasy numbers come tumbling down. The good news is he should get more touches in Miami. The bad news is he doesn’t have Steve Nash to spoon feed him easy baskets and he’ll join a team that is going nowhere fast.

Overall, you simply have to take a wait and see approach with Marion. He’s played well without Nash in the past so all hope isn’t lost. But this is a bad situation in Miami. If you can trade him and get good value for him, go ahead and trade Marion now because he’s not going to become a better fantasy player. At best, he’ll remain at the same level.

In fantasy basketball, O’Neal has become a bit of an outcast in recent years due to his horrible free throw percentage and high turnovers. However, you might take a look at him now that he’s in Phoenix. His field goal percentage should go through the roof playing with Nash and he should be motivated to finish the season of strongly. If you want to take a risk, betting on vintage Shaq performances from here on out is a decent bet to make. Injuries would probably be your biggest enemy.

The sleeper of this trade is Marcus Banks. Pick him up immediately if you have the roster room. He should start in Miami before long and could produce pretty well. He was a bad fit in Phoenix but he has the ability to beat out Jason Williams for the starting job and is a player who could put up 14 points and five assists a night.

Post from: Expert Fantasy