RADIO
If you're looking to gain some value in the long term, and give yourself a better chance of winning the title come fantasy playoffs, and you've been known to pull off a trade or two, you're in the right place.
We will be looking at an overperformer and an underperformer, whose prices are unrealistic at the moment. If you're able to use that to your advantage when they're back to their usual selves.
Here are our Sell High and Buy Low candidates for Week 6 of the NBA season, right here at RotoBaller.
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Buy Low, Sell High Advice for Week 6
Are You for Real, Kemba Walker?
Every true NBA fan or fantasy fanatic knows about Kemba's 60-point game against the 76ers on Nov 17. But that's not all, as he followed up that performance with a 43-point effort in the win against Boston just two days later.
Now, when one player scores over 100 points in two games that screams RED HOT! And that's exactly what Kemba is! In those two games, Kemba hit 35-of-59 from the field and 20 of his 21 free throws for those 103 points along with 13 threes, 11 boards, nine dimes, five steals, no blocks, and 13 turnovers.
This, of course, has him nailed as the #1 in Yahoo per game rankings in the last seven days. Furthermore, Kemba is now at the top of the points per game category, surpassing Stephen Curry, who was in insane form prior to his injury, for the lead.
So, will Kemba be good for the rest of the season? Most probably.
Will he be 103 points in two games good? Definitely not.
We can expect Kemba to keep himself in the top-15 (he is currently ranked at #12 on the season) but that's about it. It will be quite difficult for him to crack the top-10, and with Charlotte hoisting an 8-8 record despite Walker beasting to start the year, it's not out of the question that they might fall out of playoff contention later on in the season. That could prove as another threat to Kemba's value, as it would most probably impact his playing time, and even subject him to being a possible trade target. Kemba would lose some of his value in almost any trade scenario, as he is the focal point in Charlotte, but his role, and therefore value, would depend on his landing spot.
Now, a trade is not very likely, and the Hornets have even been rumored to be interested in Bradley Beal, which should mean that they are serious in making a strong team centered around Kemba, so don't give too much thought about that scenario just yet.
Anyways, I do believe Kemba can keep his top-15 status for the rest of the season, and team fit should also be taken into consideration when deciding whether to keep him or try and swap for another player. If you are able to get a clear top-10 guy like Nikola Jokic or Karl-Anthony Towns, or perhaps settle for a player like Kawhi Leonard, Damian Lillard or Paul George if their game fits your squad better, I would definitely do the switch. If not, keep Kemba and enjoy the ride.
Baller Move: Sell high or hold
Time to Panic on Victor Oladipo?
Oladipo has started the year pretty slow with averages of just 21.4 PTS with 2.4 3PM on 44.0 FG% and 71.2 FT%, 6.6 REB, 4.7 AST, 1.6 STL, 0.5 BLK, and 2.3 TO in 32 minutes per game. That has him ranked at #35 on Yahoo. Furthermore, he's had a slight setback, leaving his next-to-last game after five minutes and missing his previous game because of a knee issue.
Victor reportedly said that it's not serious and that it's just a sore knee, so he should be back soon. However, it still affects his current value, which is at the all-season low right now.
If we remind ourselves of his stats from last season, it will become quite clear of why you should try and pry him away from his current owner at a discount. His last year's averages were 23.1 points with 2.1 treys on 47.7% from the field and 79.9% from the charity stripe, 5.2 rebounds, 4.3 assists, 2.4 steals, 0.8 blocks, and 2.9 turnovers in 34 minutes a game.
We can see that Vic is not really that far off in his counting stats, as he is getting more boards and assists than last year, is hitting more threes and is not losing the ball quite as often. The real difference in value is in his shooting and steals.
Steals do have a certain amount of luck to them, and with Dipo's work rate, I believe he will be able to get up to around two per game. And while this year's 44.0 FG% is more realistic than his 47.7% from last season, his 71.2 FT% is way off pace, with him being a 79.6% career free throw shooter, so that is destined to improve.
Even with Oladipo playing below expectations, Indiana is still the #3 seed in the East, and they will need him to compete for the #1 spot left wide open with LeBron moving West (not that Cleveland ever cared much about having home-court advantage in the playoffs). So if you are able to snag Victor for an offer of a player like Nikola Vucevic, Marc Gasol or Chris Paul, I would definitely advise you to do so.
Baller Move: Hold or buy low
