For both sides, this deal would make a lot of sense. For the Cavs, they desperately need to give LeBron James a running mate. Considering that Shaq is coming off of a very good season, he could still get the job done in the middle. At the worst, he’ll give the opponent another player to think about outside of LeBron.

For the Suns, Shaq doesn’t have much use to them. They need to rebuild and trading away Shaq can save money and open up playing time. The Suns owners don’t have endless pockets so if they can save millions of dollars, don’t look for them to pass up the opportunity.

In terms of fantasy basketball, Shaq probably would see his stats go down. He’ll be a year older and he will likely be getting fewer touches. Plus, like usual, his low free throw percentage and high turnover rate limit his fantasy value.

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Thrown into the deal were Marcus Banks going to the Heat to the Raptors and Jamario Moon going from the Raptors to the Heat. Banks could get time at point guard for the Raptors, especially considering that Jose Calderon has been injury prone as of late. Moon, likewise, could find some minutes off the bench for the Heat.

However, Marion and O’Neal are the two big names in this trade. In terms of fantasy basketball, this trade increases the value of both players. Marion will start at small forward for the Raptors and should get plenty of looks at the basket. The Raptors can also use his rebounding help and considering that they play at a fast pace, Marion’s overall statistics should be on the rise.

On the other hand, O’Neal should definitely start at center for the Heat. Playing for a team that is starving for a center will increase O’Neal’s value. As long as he stays healthy, O’Neal will play as many minutes as possible. Due to minutes alone, expect O’Neal to be worth more in fantasy basketball.

The other players this should help are Andrea Bargnani and Michael Beasley. Bargnani now has a spot in the starting lineup next to Bosh and Marion for the rest of the season. Beasley should now take Marion’s starting small forward spot and form a frontline next to O’Neal and Udonis Haslem.

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First of all for the Nuggets, they finally have a star point guard to build around. Every since trading away Andre Miller, Denver has struggled to find a floor general. Although Billups isn’t as good as he was a couple seasons ago, he’s still an elite point guard. Expect his fantasy basketball numbers to remain relatively the same in Denver.

The biggest winner on the Nuggets roster is Carmelo Anthony. He’ll get a lot more shots now that he doesn’t have to share with Iverson. Anthony should once again challenge for the league lead in points per game. His percentages should also improve now that he has a player to set him up. The other big winner on the Nuggets is JR Smith. He should see way more time at shooting guard and could blossom into a big time scorer who could lead the league in three-pointers made. The big loser on the Nuggets is obviously Anthony Carter, who will go from starter to limited bench player.

For the Pistons, things aren’t nearly as cut and dry. Iverson likely will first begin as the team’s point guard. But throughout his career, Iverson has struggled running the show. With so many different pieces to feed, it’s questionable whether he’ll be able to be a full-time point guard. If he can’t survive at point guard, that opens the door for Rodney Stuckey to play even more. There’s even a chance that the Pistons could opt to start Stuckey and Iverson in the backcourt and then bring Richard Hamilton off the bench. Another option is for Tayshaun Prince to become a pseudo point guard and let Iverson play off the ball.

Amir Johnson and Jason Maxiell should also see the fantasy stocks rise due to taking up more of McDyess’ minutes. However, rumor has it that McDyess may return to Detroit after a buyout – a la Brent Barry and the San Antonio Spurs last season.

Photo credit: Newscom

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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.

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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.

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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 …

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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.

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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.

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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 …

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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.

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