It was a frenzied weekend of NBA news as two blockbuster trades went down. The most prominent was a three-team deal which sent Luka Doncic to the Los Angeles Lakers and Anthony Davis back to the Mavericks. The Lakers also received Maxi Kleber and Markeiff Morris, while the Mavericks acquired Max Christie and the Lakers’ 2029 first round pick. We’re all still in shock.
The magnitude of the Doncic deal was such that the manifestation of a De’Aaron Fox relocation was overshadowed. This second major blockbuster seemed unimportant, yet consequential all the same. The Spurs received Fox and Jordan McLaughlin; the Kings received Zach Lavine, Sidy Cissoko, and a litany of picks; the Bulls received Zach Collins, Tre Jones, Kevin Huerter, and their own 2015 first round pick.
What does all of this mean for fantasy? There’s a lot to unpack here.
We’re shooting the Three Lists of Threes today for your weekly dose of fantasy tips: Buy-lows, sell-highs, and streams.
Here are some sell-highs we can consider.
Sell ’em
Daniel Gafford, PF/C, Dallas Mavericks
Gafford is the fifth ranked player in 9-cat leagues in the last two weeks, averaging a jaw-dropping 18.9 PPG, 11 RPG, and 4 BPG on 70.3% shooting from the field in his last seven games. He’s been utterly spectacular, and you have to feel for managers who have him rostered, as they have to now accept that this gem of a potential league-winner probably won’t shine as bright with Anthony Davis now in the mix.
Davis does prefer to play power forward, and thus Gafford will still have a sizable role, but you have to assume that this will diminish both his offensive and defensive duties greatly. Davis is twice the offensive threat that Gafford is and is more dangerous in every way: he can stretch the floor, run the pick and roll with Dallas’ ball handlers, and defend the rim even more effectively than Gafford can.
Nikola Vucevic, C, Chicago Bulls
If I’m being honest, you should’ve sold Vuc months ago. Over the past two weeks, he’s been crushing his ADP averaging 16 PPG, 10 RPG, 4.7 APG, 1.6 SPG, and 1.1 BPG. His shooting splits are immaculate, and he’s averaging a double-double in the last seven games. Vuc is a prime trade candidate that the Bulls are trying to offload before the deadline, and you should too. I don’t see many situations in which Vucevic will have the same role as he does in Chicago. He’s not a particularly strong defender, and his rim protection leaves lots to be desired.
Malik Monk, PG/SG, Sacramento Kings
Monk is having a fantastic season for the Kings, but he will presumably slide over to PG now that Fox isn’t in the mix and LaVine is. LaVine and DeMar DeRozan on the same team paints a picture we’ve seen before on the Bulls; how are there enough shots to go around to keep other players relevant? Monk is averaging 20 PPG alongside 6.4 APG, which is excellent but likely to drop. If you need Monk’s assists, then I’d keep him. Otherwise, it’s tough to see Monk sustaining the same type of usage as he did before LaVine.
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