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Trading is an integral part of both NBA and fantasy basketball. As the whole sports world mourns the death of the great Kobe Bryant, it is hard to imagine him in any other outfit except purple and gold. But if the Lakers hadn't had such great vision and traded Vlade Divac for him back in the day, the history of the game of basketball could have been very different.
This is also true for our fantasy leagues, albeit on a much smaller and less meaningful scale. But still, a move like the Lakers made for Kobe could help you win your league. And while the Lakers had their scouting as their secret weapon, you can use your own combined with current players' forms to try and get a good deal.
Here are our Sell High and Buy Low candidates for Week 15 of the NBA season, right here at RotoBaller.
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Buy Low, Sell High Advice for Week 15
Are You for Real, Khris Middleton?
Who dropped 50!? Khris Middleton!? Are you for real!?
Oh, yes! It's very real! In the absence of Milwaukee's star player Giannis Antetokounmpo, Khris stepped up big with a stat line of 51 points with seven three-pointers, going 16-of-26 from the field and 12-of-12 from the line, grabbing 10 boards, dishing out six assists with two turnovers in just under 36 minutes in a 151-131 victory against the Wizards. If he had some stocks to boot it would be a near-perfect line.
Furthermore, Khris has been playing quite well for the past two weeks as well as his averages of 26.5 PTS with 3.6 3PM on 60.5 FG% and 91.7 FT%, 7.0 REB, 4.8 AST, 1.0 STL, no BLK, and 1.8 TO in 32 minutes a game have him ranked at the #7 spot in Yahoo rankings. Not too shabby, huh?
It is unclear whether Giannis will miss more time at this moment, so this makes Khris sound very sexy in the short term. His owners could try to use this to their advantage and give selling him high a shot, as it is highly unlikely that Middleton can keep this level up for too long. A top-25 player should be your target for parting with Middleton as he is a top-35 player on the season himself. Guys like Nikola Vucevic, Trae Young and Kemba Walker would all hit the spot for me if I could get them back for Khris.
Baller Move: Sell high
Time to Panic on Karl-Anthony Towns?
Towns is undoubtedly a top-5 fantasy player. He is ranked at #3 on the season as well. But since returning from his injury he just hasn't been the same. In the seven games since he's been back, KAT is averaging 28.1 PTS with 2.7 3PM on 50.4 FG% and 86.4 FT%, 7.6 REB, 3.7 AST, 0.6 STL, 1.0 BLK, and 3.3 TO in 32 minutes per outing. This has him outside the top-30 for the period!
All his stats are a little down from his season averages (apart from PTS and FT%). This is especially true for rebounds as Towns is down more than three a game. This is pretty weird. Furthermore, he only double-doubled once in this seven-game stretch. For comparison, before getting hurt KAT failed to double-double in just five of his 23 games. Huge difference!
But this is KAT, a serious contender for the #1 fantasy asset in most formats and usually a very durable player, so I expect him to bounce back to former glory sooner rather than later. I would definitely be willing to give up anyone in the top 5 to 10 range like Damian Lillard, LeBron James or Kawhi Leonard for a chance to own Towns, or offer a package of two top-30 players (for example Ben Simmons and Jimmy Butler) if KAT fits your team better.
Baller Move: Hold or buy low
