RADIO
Trading is one of the most important tools a fantasy owner has at his disposal. They can make your team better in many ways. But a good trade is difficult to obtain, as you can't just offer a worse player for a better one. That type of trade will be shot down by the opposite side in a matter of seconds. But if you factor in the form of the players involved, wait for the right time and use current levels of performance to your advantage, you might just be able to pull off such a trade.
A player on a hot streak can appear better than he really is, and a guy in poor form might seem like a lost cause to his owner, so these are the "little tricks" on how to play these psychological games to your favor.
Welocome to our Sell High and Buy Low candidates for Week 4 of the NBA season, right here at RotoBaller.
Editor's Note: Our incredible team of writers received five total writing awards and 13 award nominations by the Fantasy Sports Writers Association, tops in the industry! Congrats to all the award winners and nominees including NBA Writer of the Year, Best NFL Series, MLB Series, PGA Writer and Player Notes writer of the year. Be sure to follow their analysis, rankings and advice all year long, and win big with RotoBaller! Read More!
Buy Low, Sell High Advice for Week 4
Are You for Real, Domantas Sabonis?
Sabonis has been beasting in his last three games with averages of 17.0 PTS on 44.2 FG% and 81.3 FT%, 15.7 REB, 6.7 AST, 1.0 STL, 1.0 BLK, and 2.3 TO in 35 minutes per outing. This has him ranked in the top-15 for the previous week, and rightfully so!
Moreover, only Clint Capela outrebounded him during this period, which is insane!
Now Sabonis was picked at the #75 pick in the drafts on average so a quality contribution was expected. But I don't think even his father, possibly the best Lithuanian players of all time Arvydas Sabonis, expected him to be THIS good this soon.
So why should you sell high on Sabonis?
Well, while his surge is linked with his improvement as a basketball player, it is not purely based on it alone. Sabonis had an increased opportunity due to the injuries to his frontcourt teammates Myles Turner and Goga Bitadze.
Furthermore, Jeremy Lamb also missed a couple of games with a sprained left ankle, so a part of his 13.6 field goal attempts per game also went to Domantas. And the Pacers star, Victor Oladipo, is set to return in the following month or two. When Indiana is finally at full health, Sabonis is sure to take a step back from his current insane run.
Now, don't completely dismiss him, as he will probably keep his value at around the top-50. But if you can obtain the services of a top-30 player like Tobias Harris, Ben Simmons or Donovan Mitchell, provided that they fit my team I would never say no to such a deal.
Baller Move: Sell high
Time to Panic on Draymond Green?
What to say about Dray? He is a player with a very unique skill set who thrived in the uptempo play of the former Champions Golden State. He was a joker for Steve Kerr as he played almost every position on the team and was usually in charge of stopping the opponents' best players, no matter if it was Damian Lillard, LeBron James or Karl-Anthony Towns. He always had a modest contribution on the offensive end, often recording more dimes than buckets while surrounded with the best shooters in the league.
Tthe situation in Golden State is quite a bit different at the moment, with both Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson injured and Kevin Durant gone. Many expect the veteran to take charge and lead the youngsters that have been given an opportunity with the Warriors. But the question remains, how will Green feel in such a role?
He has been ice-cold to start the year with averages of 8.5 PTS with 0.7 3PM on 40.8 FG% and 70.0 FT%, 7.7 REB, 5.0 AST, 1.2 STL, 0.0 BLK, and 1.3 TO in just under 28 minutes per game. This has him outside of the top-100 in Yahoo rankings.
Furthermore, Green missed five games due to a finger injury and returned just last night with quite a poor line of four points (2-of-7 from the field, 0-of-4 from three-point range), seven boards, four dimes, a turnover and nothing else in 22 minutes. Not very promising at the moment.
But Draymond is a beast. He plays his heart out and can fill the stat sheet like the best of them. Let me remind you that Draymond is the only player in NBA history to record a triple-double without points, and he did it by recording 12 rebounds, 10 assists, 10 steals, and five blocks.
Now, Draymond was picked as the #33 pick on average this season, and I must say I'm having a hard time seeing him beat that. Even if he becomes the leader of the Warriors and starts producing quality stats on a nightly basis, Golden State will still have a hard time to stay in playoff contention. And if they're not in the playoff conversation, I am afraid it might mean occasional rests for Green when we need him the most - during our fantasy playoffs.
With this being said, if you can get Green on the cheap, I will never advise against a bargain. So a player at around the 80-100 range, like Jeremy Lamb, T.J. Warren or Lou Williams, is a price I would be willing to gamble on Dray. However, if I got a deal like that done, I would then wait for him to string a few good games together and try and flip him again for a top-50 player with a safer rest of the season outlook.
Baller Move: Hold or buy very low
