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André Snellings
Multiple Authors
The NBA trade deadline was chock full of movement, with trades involving everything from superstars to role players. In the aftermath of all that action, the league is in a different place.
The trades opened opportunities for the new players and left holes on the old teams that need to be filled. So, today, let’s look at some of the players whose fantasy value improved most in the wake of all this movement.
Cooper Flagg, PG/SF/PF, Dallas Mavericks
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Cooper Flagg somehow gets the and-1 to fall
Cooper Flagg with the and-1 bucket
Flagg wasn’t traded from the Mavericks, but Anthony Davis was. And that deal signaled the official end of one era and the start of the future. And that future, in Dallas, is built entirely around Flagg. In the last two weeks, Flagg has exploded as the no-question featured player with averages of 32.0 PPG, 7.7 RPG and 4.0 APG in his last six outings. Flagg was already the frontrunner for NBA Rookie of the Year and a solid top-50 fantasy prospect, but if he continues to play as he has since the trade, he could be a top-10 fantasy player coming out of the All-Star Break.
Evan Mobley, PF/C, and Jarrett Allen, C, Cleveland Cavaliers
The Cavaliers traded injured point guard Darius Garland for future Hall of Famer James Harden. While there are questions about how Harden and his high-usage style might fit in the same backcourt with Donovan Mitchell and about how Harden might perform in the playoffs, there is no question that he has excellent point-guard skills. He is good at breaking down opposing defenses and setting up teammates to attack the resulting imbalance, and he is excellent at running the pick-and-roll/pop with the big men on his team.
Enter Mobley and Allen.
Mobley is a strong scorer from inside and out, and with Harden setting him up he has legitimate 20-plus point scoring average moving forward with a field-goal percentage up near his career-best 58.0% of two seasons ago.
Mobley is still out injured, though, and has yet to play with Harden. In his absence, Allen has fully embraced being the roll-man with his new point guard. After averaging 14.5 PPG on 61.5% shooting all season, in his first two games with Harden, Allen averaged 25.5 PPG on 75.0% from the field. That volume is unsustainable, especially once Mobley returns, but I look for both Allen and Mobley to increase their scoring and efficiency while playing with their new point guard.
Anfernee Simons, PG/SG, Chicago Bulls
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Anfernee Simons hits the trey vs. Toronto Raptors
Anfernee Simons hits the trey vs. Toronto Raptors
Simons was a featured scorer for Portland before moving to the Boston last offseason. In his last three seasons with the Trail Blazers, Simons averaged 21.0 PPG and 3.3 3PG, but with the Celtics he mainly came off the bench. Now, with his trade to Chicago, Simons has another chance to start as a primary scoring option on a rebuilding team. In his first three games with the Bulls, all starts, Simons has averaged 20.0 PPG and 3.7 3PG. He has yet to play with Josh Giddey, who has been out injured, but even once Giddey returns, the Bulls have a dearth of offensive options and Simons should have a green light.
Bennedict Mathurin, SG/SF, LA Clippers
Mathurin went back and forth between starting and being a sixth man while with Indiana, and he has proven himself to be a consistent mid-upper teens scorer. He also came off the bench in his first game with his new Clippers team, but it isn’t clear whether that will be his role moving forward. What is clear, however, is that he has opportunity for more with the Clippers. The Clippers have had two poles to their offense for years, first with Kawhi Leonard and Paul George and most recently with Leonard and Harden. Last season, with George gone and Leonard in and out of the lineup, Norman Powell stepped out of his previous sixth-man role to average more than 20 PPG. Mathurin has the talent to follow a similar path, particularly with Garland still injured and Leonard’s availability always in some degree of uncertainty.
Ty Jerome, PG, Memphis Grizzlies
Jerome was brought to the Grizzlies this offseason fresh off his role as a spark scorer for the Cavaliers last season. He was injured for most of the season and just returned a couple weeks ago, but he returns to a Grizzlies team still without Ja Morant that has signaled a full rebuild by trading both Desmond Bane and Jaren Jackson Jr. in the past six months. The Jackson trade at the deadline opened up the squad for new offensive leadership, and Jerome is poised to step into the gap. He’s still on a minutes limit after his injury, playing only 20 minutes per game, but he’s averaging a point per minute and about an assist every three. Once the restrictions lift, Jerome could sport truly impressive numbers if he can stay within shouting distance of his per-36-minute pace of 35.6 PPG36 and 10.4 AP36.
