Russell Westbrook Traded To Jazz - Fantasy Basketball Impact

Dale Johnson examines the fantasy basketball ramifications surrounding the trade that sent Russell Westbrook to the Utah Jazz.

The Russell Westbrook experiment in Los Angeles has been less than ideal over the past two years and has officially come to an end. With the West stocking up everywhere, the Lakers knew they had to make a splash in order to make a push to the playoffs.

The Lakers executed a three-team trade with the Utah Jazz and Minnesota Timberwolves, involving a total of eight players and multiple draft picks Wednesday night. The Lakers sent Russell Westbrook, Juan Tuscano-Anderson, and Damian Jones to the Utah Jazz in exchange for Malik Beasley and Jarred Vanderbilt while also acquiring D’Angelo Russell from the Minnesota Timberwolves. The Jazz also sent Mike Conley and Nickeil Alexander-Walker to the Timberwolves while accumulating even more draft capital. 

So just what is the fantasy basketball fallout of this blockbuster trade? Let's examine how each of the teams and players in the deal may be affected going forward.

Fantasy Basketball Fallout: Russell Westbrook

Westbrook is expected to be bought out from Utah and enter free agency. There are already rumors of teams interested in the veteran point guard, including the Los Angeles Clippers, Miami Heat, and Chicago Bulls.

If Westbrook were to be claimed, he would likely be given a prominent role immediately given these three teams are all lacking in the point guard position. Westbrook’s caveat has always been his personality fit so it remains to be seen how well he can mesh with his new team if he is claimed.

Fantasy Basketball Fallout: Lakers

The Lakers get some much-needed spacing and size with the additions of Russell, Beasley, and Vanderbilt. Russell is shooting a career-high 39.1 percent from three while averaging 17.9 points, 6.2 assists, and 1.1 steals per game this season. Russell should absorb Westbrook’s minutes and will likely start at point guard over Dennis Schroder, who should take a hit in fantasy value. Russell should have plenty of opportunities to score as long as he can play off the ball of LeBron James and defer to him when needed.

Beasley is an intriguing name to watch with Patrick Beverley shipped out to the Orlando Magic and likely hitting the buyout market. Beasley is currently seventh in the NBA in total three-pointers made this season and should be an immediate help to the Lakers, who are 28th in total made threes. Beasley is averaging 13.4 points and 3.1 threes in 26.4 minutes per game this season and should see ample opportunity in his new role.

Vanderbilt’s role with the Lakers should not change much as he is likely to come off the bench behind Rui Hachimura and Anthony Davis. However, Vanderbilt does not need many minutes to be fantasy relevant. Vanderbilt is averaging 7.9 rebounds per game this year thanks to his 16.4 Rebounding Percentage, which ranks top 25 in the NBA for players who have played more than 20 games this season. Given the uncertainty of the role, Vanderbilt can be viewed as more of a 14-team fantasy player with fringe 12-team value depending on your league’s settings.

Fantasy Basketball Fallout: Timberwolves

With Russell gone, Conley figures to slide right into the starting point guard position with his new team. It is hard to see Conley improving much in his new role as he is already averaging a career-high 7.7 assists per game. There is some opportunity for this to improve even further as Conley gets to play with Anthony Edwards and Rudy Gobert, but it may be marginal.

Overall, the trade should not affect Conley’s fantasy value too much and may open up some scoring opportunities for Gobert when healthy. On the flip side, Nickeil Alexander-Walker, who was the other player sent to Minnesota, should not see enough of a role to be fantasy relevant given the number of guards on the roster.

Fantasy Basketball Fallout: Jazz

With Conley gone, Jordan Clarkson and Collin Sexton should see the majority of the ball-handling duties. Both may already be rostered in your leagues, but Sexton has not lived up to expectations this year and might be floating on the wire somewhere. 

Vanderbilt’s departure opens up the door for a Walker Kessler and Kelly Olynyk frontcourt for the remainder of the season. Kessler has had a stellar rookie season so far and should continue to be a great source of rebounds and blocks as a starter. Olynyk has also been great this season before going down with an ankle injury.

Olynyk has slowly made his way back to the starting lineup and seems to still be getting his legs under him, but should be on fantasy radars everywhere. In a similar situation with the Houston Rockets in 2020, Olynyk started 24 of 27 games with Houston and averaged 19.0 points, 8.4 rebounds, 4.1 assists, 1.8 threes, and 1.4 steals. These were league-winning numbers for most fantasy managers. I am not saying Olynyk will post these numbers again, but it is a good way to show his upside with very limited competition in his position.

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