Post-NBA Trade Deadline Risers and Fallers

February 11, 2022

Justin Carter looks at the fantasy basketball risers and fallers following the 2022 NBA trade deadline.

Ben Simmons has been traded!

That was among the many, many things that went down on Thursday during the NBA trade deadline. From blockbuster deals to weird, random deals, this was a wild and active day in the NBA.

Now that the dust has settled, let's look at how Thursday impacted things in fantasy basketball.

Fantasy Basketball Risers Post-Trade Deadline

Ben Simmons (G, Brooklyn Nets)

Let's knock the obvious one out of the way first.

Ben Simmons will probably be playing basketball now, which is a big improvement from the first part of this season, when he did not play basketball. Fantasy managers were getting absolutely zero things from Simmons. Presumably at some point in the next couple of weeks, fantasy managers will begin to get something from Simmons.

Last season, Simmons averaged 14.3 points, 7.2 rebounds, 6.9 assists and 1.6 steals per game. He could, if he gets back into shape, put up numbers similar to that, with even more upside in home games, since those don't currently feature Kyrie Irving.

James Harden (G, Philadelphia 76ers)

Two thoughts on this.

First, there's the line of thinking where James Harden goes from the second banana to Kevin Durant to the second banana to Joel Embiid, which will lead to there not really being a change in his value.

The other line of thinking is that Harden might not be "hurt" as much in Philly, making him available more and allowing him to put his strong numbers up more often, which boosts his value. I'm not sure I believe in fake injury conspiracy theories, but I'll let you decide what you believe. Either way, this move isn't bad for Harden.

Ish Smith (G, Washington Wizards)

He's back!

Smith spent the last two seasons in Washington before heading to Charlotte, where he averaged 13.8 minutes per game. Looking at the cute current depth chart in Washington, Smith...might be the starter? Bradley Beal is out. Spencer Dinwiddie was traded. Smith will compete with Raul Neto for the starting PG job going forward and...I think Smith wins that? Two years ago in that role, he averaged 10.9 points and 4.9 assists per game for the Wizards.

Montrezl Harrell (C, Charlotte Hornets)

The 28-28 Hornets might have a new starting center. Mason Plumlee isn't doing a lot in that role, while Harrell averaged 14.1 points and 6.7 rebounds on 64.5% shooting for the Wizards.

Now he's on a better team, which should make it even easier for Harrell to put up solid numbers, as defenses have more players to account for, which could open up some nice space in the paint for Harrell to make some cuts and hit the boards.

Paul Millsap (PF, Philadelphia 76ers)

Millsap didn't have fantasy value in Brooklyn. In Philly, he might, occasionally, as he's a candidate to fill in when Joel Embiid occasionally sits, especially with Andre Drummond now in Brooklyn too. Probably more of a "situational DFS play" than an actual "season-long streaming play," though.

Kristaps Porzingis (PF, Washington Wizards)

If healthy — and that's always a big if with Porzingis — then Porzingis is by far the best healthy player on this Wizards team. With Bradley Beal out, Porzingis will get a ton of chances to do what he didn't get to do in Dallas: be the focal point of a team.

Jalen Smith (PF, Indiana Pacers)

Smith had some flashes, but was only averaging 13.2 minutes per game in Phoenix.

Now he's on a rebuilding Pacers team and should see more minutes in a weird frontcourt rotation that features Goga Bitadze, Oshae Brissett, Terry Taylor and Isaiah Jackson. Indiana has to give Smith some minutes and see what the former No. 10 pick can do. It might not be much, but it will increase his fantasy value some.

Marvin Bagley III (F, Detroit Pistons)

Bagley started 17 games this season, but wasn't playing more than 20-24 minutes per night for a lot of the last couple of months. He should be able to get some nice minutes in Detroit, a team that needs to see if they can get Bagley to play up to the upside that made him a top draft pick a few years ago.

Fantasy Basketball Fallers Post-Trade Deadline

Dennis Schroder (G, Houston Rockets)

Schroder averaged 29.2 minutes per game in Boston, but Houston really has no use for Schroder, as this is a rebuilding team that isn't going to take minutes away from Kevin Porter Jr. and Jalen Green. Fantasy managers who roster Schroder might need to send him to the bench — or even the wire, depending on how this situation develops.

Spencer Dinwiddie (G, Dallas Mavericks)

The Mavs already have Luka Doncic and Jalen Brunson as ball handlers. Dinwiddie will take some away from Brunson, but mostly he feels like insurance. The 30.2 minutes per game he averaged in Washington this year is definitely going to drop.

Nicolas Claxton (C, Brooklyn Nets)

Nets fans already thought Claxton was the weak link in the Nets starting five. Now the team has acquired Andre Drummond. Once things get sorted out, I think Drummond grabs the starting role and Claxton is back on the bench after starting 18 games this year.

Josh Richardson (G, San Antonio Spurs)

It's hard for me to see much upside for Richardson on a team with Lonnie Walker IV, Joshua Primo and Devin Vassell also needing minutes at the two/three. Maybe I'm wrong, but Richardson is now on his fifth team in four years. He was only averaging 9.7 points per game in Boston, and now I'd guess that drops a little bit.

Derrick White (G, Boston Celtics)

I love the idea of White in Boston, but in real life. In fantasy, the fact that he'll likely platoon things at the point with Marcus Smart will cause a hit to his fantasy value.

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