Now that the NBA trade deadline is over, I'm going to breakdown everything that has changed in fantasy basketball. Now that we have a ton of players on new teams, there's quite a few potential waiver wire adds out there. The first one on my bucket list is the Toronto Raptors. Toronto made two trades in total. On the first deal, the Raptors traded away Kira Lewis, Otto Porter, and a 2024 first-round pick to Jazz for Kelly Olynik and Ochai Agbaji. On the second deal, we saw Toronto trading away Dennis Schröder Thaddeus Young to the Nets for Spencer Dinwiddie. But moments after the deal was done, the Raptors waived Dinwiddie, and that’s a major game-changer for fantasy basketball.
Fantasy Basketball Impact: Waiver Wire and Trade Targets
Immanuel Quickley
Immanuel Quickley in my opinion is the biggest winner after all the trades Raptors made. When Quickley joined Raptors many basketball fans all over the world discussed who is going to be main floor general for Raptors. Quickley or Dennis Schröder? Quickley became the Raptors starter in an instant and he’s currently having his best season of his career after moving to the Raptors. Eventually, Schroder got traded away for Spencer Dinwiddie.
At the deadline, the Raptors shockingly waived Dinwiddie. These deadline moves answer all the questions about Raptors core. The Raptors team is building around Scottie Barnes, RJ Barrett and Quickley. I highly suggest fantasy players to go after Immanuel Quickley if you have a chance. I believe that Quickley stats will see a rise going forward.
Dennis Schroder
Dennis Schroder is going to produce a ton in Brooklyn. My hot take is that Schroder is going to be a starter for the Nets. The departure of Dinwiddie benefits Schroder as well. I personally don’t believe that Ben Simmons will be starting at point guard anymore over Schroder. Even if that happens, we all know how often Simmons sits out games and I expect that Schroder will be producing the same stats from when he was starter earlier in the season.
Gary Trent Jr
Gary Trent Jr is one of the biggest X factors on the new Raptors roster. After all the trades made today I will not be surprised to see Trent playing as a starter in the next Raptors. My own prediction is that Trent will be a solid top 100 player going forward. With starter minutes, Trent can be really productive and help you win matchups. If you need a defensively oriented guard who can record two steals and score, don't hesitate adding Trent from your wavier wire. I just added Trent for my own team and I really believe that I made the right call.
random stat from the pod last night: gary trent jr. is shooting 52 percent from 3 as a starter
Kelly Olynik
Kelly Olynik will be a solid player from the bench for the Raptors. Olynik will surely produce more than he was while being on the Jazz roster. Olynik is worth adding in a deeper league formats, especially in case Jakob Poeltl or Barnes are sitting out some games in the near future.
Why did the (rebuilding) Raptors trade for Kelly Olynyk (who turns 33 in a couple months)? Because he’s an artist, man. That’s why.
(“Artist” is Will Hardy’s description, not mine.) https://t.co/aXM8Wi02NN
Taylor Hendricks
Taylor Hendricks could see a pretty big leap in usage going forward. Hendricks's future with the Jazz roster relies only on his shoulders from now. Now is the time for Hendricks to start proving what he is capable of. With Olynik and Ochai Agbaji out of the way, Hendricks will be one of the main substitutes for the Jazz frontcourt going forward.
Walker Kessler/John Collins
Walker Kessler will receive an increase in value, and the same goes for John Collins. To be honest, I was thinking that Collins would be traded away as well but on the new Jazz roster, Kessler and Collins will receive a minute and production boost with Olynik, Agbaji, and Simone Fontecchio away from the team.
Gradey Dick
For me personally, Gradey Dick is the last name that makes this list after today’s deadline. Dick has proven himself this season already and after the cleaning in the Raptors, I think that it’s worth it to stash him in deeper league formats just in case Toronto goes into full tank mode. At least add Dick because of his funny name.
Of course, there are other players I didn’t mention here but I personally don’t think that something will drastically change for players like Scottie Barnes, Jakob Poeltl, RJ Barrett, Bruce Brown, Ochai Agbaji, or anyone else I didn’t mention. Those player statuses are neutral, with no improvements or decrease in usage.
