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NBA offseason trade analysis of the Christian Wood trade from the Rockets to the Mavericks. Is he a fantasy basketball riser for the 2022-23 NBA season?
Ah, the NBA offseason. There is truly nothing like it. While the Golden State Warriors and Boston Celtics are currently battling for the league's crown, ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski was hard at work, delivering yet another Woj-bomb that would send shockwaves throughout the NBA community.
On Wednesday evening, it was announced that the Dallas Mavericks were acquiring promising sixth-year big-man Christian Wood from the Houston Rockets in exchange for Boban Marjanovic, Sterling Brown, Trey Burke, Marquese Chriss and the 26th pick in next week's draft.
While 'hot takes' and 'trade grades' seem to be running rampant on NBA Twitter at the moment, one thing is clear: this move could have a major impact on the fantasy basketball landscape heading into the 2022-2023 season. But how exactly? Our team of experts breaks it down for you here.
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Christian Wood Trade Reaction From The RotoBaller Team
Below, you'll find instant reaction from our team of writers about the trade that sent Christian Wood to the Dallas Mavericks.
Brad Leibfied (@Leibfried6) Reaction
Christian Wood to the Mavs feels like a trade that will mean more to the actual teams than it will to fantasy owners. Wood is likely to see a drop in his counting stats as he goes from a Rockets team that had no one over a 24% usage rate (Wood was second on the team with a 23.3% rate) to a Mavs team that is paced by Luka Doncic and his massive 37.4% usage rate. On the flip side, Wood’s 50.1% field goal percentage and 39% rate from the three-point range should both see a slight uptick. Overall, I would say this does not do much to Wood’s overall value, maybe drop him a half a round in value.
On the Houston side, Alperen Sengun owners should be smiling from ear to ear. Per 36 minutes last year, Sengun averaged 16.7 points, 9.5 rebounds, 1.6 blocks, and 1.4 steals. Sengun should fly up draft boards assuming the Rockets do not add anyone of significance to their front court the rest of this offseason.
Dan Palyo (@ThunderDanDFS) Reaction
I love everything about this trade and while most of the focus is going to be on Wood’s increased value in Dallas, I think that Houston was smart to get some assets for him as he clearly was frustrated with the culture there and had clashed with Kevin Porter Jr. and the coaching staff.
Wood’s fantasy value is what most people are interested in and I think it has to go up playing in Dallas with an elite ball-handler like Luka Doncic. Wood should be great in the pick and roll or pick and pop with Luka and gives Dallas a badly-needed scorer and rebounder.
Wood was already a solid fantasy option when healthy with his scoring, rebounding, and excellent percentages, but I think he should only increase his efficiency in Dallas. Being in more competitive games and fewer blowouts should also lead to more consistency in his game log. The Mavericks appear ready to make another run next season and were able to land a young, versatile big man without giving up any of their core assets.
Justin Carter (@juscarts) Reaction
As a Rockets fan, this Christian Wood trade is weird. It seems he should be worth more than a late first and a bunch of players who won’t play for the Rockets, right?
From a fantasy perspective, Wood averaged 17.9 points and 10.1 rebounds per game last season. I think getting back to a double-double this year could be tough, considering a) it was his first season ever averaging one and b) Dallas will continue to see Luka Doncic pull down boards. Wood should see easier looks offensively though, allowing his scoring numbers to stay relatively close to where they’ve been at.
On the Houston side, none of the players that the team acquired are really going to move the needle for me. I’m not even sure how many will make it to the start of the season as Rockets. But I do know that move is going to open up more minutes for Alperen Sengun, who averaged 11.6 points and 7.0 rebounds in 25.1 minutes per game after the All-Star break. In his 13 games as a starter, he was at 12.1 points, 8.2 rebounds, and 3.6 assists per game.
