An incredibly timely Mailbag column comes out a night after Keyonte George started over Talen Horton-Tucker. There are also plenty of Jordan Hawkins questions, it might be time to trade Jerami Grant, and we end with a word about Lu Dort. Please keep those questions coming on Tuesdays and Wednesdays so we have plenty to discuss in this column each Thursday!
Follow me on Twitter at @Docktora in order to submit your questions!
Is Maxey a potential Top 20 guy this year? - cardin r (@rufo4100)
Depending on what rankings system you trust he's already there. He's ranked 12th in nine-cat at RotoWire and he's ranked similarly elsewhere. The trading of James Harden was huge, especially since they didn't get anyone back who will mess with what Maxey does. He will end up being one of the steals of fantasy drafts as long as he can stay healthy this season.
Should I trade Shaedon Sharpe for Onyeka Okongwu and Jordan Hawkins? - John Alves (@jalves_82)
Interesting question. While my gut reaction says 'no,' it is interesting to think about. If the Hawks end up dealing Clint Capela and CJ McCollum misses a couple months with his collapsed lung, you would easily win that trade. And if your team is lacking depth, it might also help. While I don't love how one dimensional Hawkins is and I consider myself a 'Sharpe guy,' I think I might pull the trigger on that one just to see what happens.
But
An incredibly timely Mailbag column comes out a night after Keyonte George started over Talen Horton-Tucker. There are also plenty of Jordan Hawkins questions, it might be time to trade Jerami Grant, and we end with a word about Lu Dort. Please keep those questions coming on Tuesdays and Wednesdays so we have plenty to discuss in this column each Thursday!
Follow me on Twitter at @Docktora in order to submit your questions!
Is Maxey a potential Top 20 guy this year? - cardin r (@rufo4100)
Depending on what rankings system you trust he's already there. He's ranked 12th in nine-cat at RotoWire and he's ranked similarly elsewhere. The trading of James Harden was huge, especially since they didn't get anyone back who will mess with what Maxey does. He will end up being one of the steals of fantasy drafts as long as he can stay healthy this season.
Should I trade Shaedon Sharpe for Onyeka Okongwu and Jordan Hawkins? - John Alves (@jalves_82)
Interesting question. While my gut reaction says 'no,' it is interesting to think about. If the Hawks end up dealing Clint Capela and CJ McCollum misses a couple months with his collapsed lung, you would easily win that trade. And if your team is lacking depth, it might also help. While I don't love how one dimensional Hawkins is and I consider myself a 'Sharpe guy,' I think I might pull the trigger on that one just to see what happens.
But I think the depth part of this is key. If it helps you in that department, that is probably the deciding factor. It's also important to note that Malcolm Brogdon went down with a hamstring injury on Wednesday, so Sharpe's usage rate just took a big jump, especially with Scoot Henderson also out.
Scottie Barnes or Jimmy Butler ROS 8 cat? - Simon James (@nzbradstevens)
That one is easy for me and the answer is Barnes. Barnes has been a Top 10 guy thus far and Butler has been a Top 50 player. Butler is getting older and misses a lot of games and Barnes is 22. If I could trade Butler for Barnes I would do it 100 times out of 100.
Higher upside this season: Dyson Daniels or Keyonte George? - Tony castella (@TonyNdai)
Do you think George will get the starting point guard job for Utah and if so, when? - Tony castella (@TonyNdai)
If Daniels didn't have to deal with the suddenly hot Jordan Hawkins I would probably be leaning that way. But with Talen Horton-Tucker not getting it done on a nightly basis for the Jazz, you have to think they'll turn to George at some point. And given how George looked in Summer League and the opportunities that may be coming his way, I'm going Keyonte. As for when this will happen, it apparently already has. Keyonte started over THT on Wednesday night so it's officially time to move on him.
Will Dyson Daniels be better than Jordan Hawkins? - HarrumffGames (@harrumffGames)
No, I think Hawkins has this thing locked down until McCollum is back from his lung injury.
Who should I trade Jordan Poole or Jerami Grant for? - Kael (@Kakakael)
Long time readers know I don't like these kinds of open-ended questions. Obviously, I'd like to see you trade them for fantasy superstars but the only people who know the answer to this question are the fellow managers you'll be trying to trade with. Aim high and then work your way down. Make offers for hot players and then work your way down to players who may be underperforming but still have time to turn it around.
I think Poole is worth holding, for the most part, and his value is pretty low right now given his slow start. Make some Grant offers, find a deal that helps your team and then hope that he gets traded out of Portland at some point. Grant is scoring, but does nothing else to help fantasy teams. Jerami Grant for Grant Williams sounds good to me at this point, but I'd rather have almost any other player than Jerami Grant at this point.
I'm in a 12-team daily lineup league with no IL. Are Anfernee Simons and Trey Murphy worth holding? - Looselips67 (@Looselips671)
The no IL thing is tough and I'm guessing you're losing ground by holding them, or would start losing ground if you pick them up. I think I'd leave them on waivers until they get closer to a return and keep rolling healthy players out there for now.
I traded my Bam Adebayo and LeBron James for Anthony Davis and De'Aaron Fox. How did I do? - Ced (@cedtanig)
Bam is coming off a near triple-double and Anthony Davis and Fox are both in street clothes on Wednesday, but in the grand scheme of things, it looks like a pretty fair trade. And I'd rather have the two injured guys, so I think you did well.
10 team, 9-cat league: Keep one: Bruce Brown of Onyeka Okongwu? - David A (@dry1ce123)
Brown is a better player in reality than fantasy and Okongwu is nothing but upside. Hang onto Okongwu.
Who do you prefer long term? Mitchell Robinson, Jakob Poeltl or Daniel Gafford. Also, I can add Austin Reaves or Jalen Smith. - Shuntas S (@s_shyntas)
I like all three of those centers and I'd rank them Robinson, Poeltl and Gafford. Reaves is going to get better with time and I don't know that Smith belongs in the same conversation with the other four players. But it also depends on what categories you're looking for.
Are you worried about Cameron Johnson's outlook with the way Cam Thomas has been balling? - Ahhotman I the Athletic Designer (@ThisIsXvR)
A little bit but they play different positions and do different things. And the fact that Thomas went down with a sprained ankle tonight is potentially devastating news for the Nets and fantasy managers, at least in the short term. But Johnson should be a solid fantasy player when he's ready to go, with or without Cam Thomas.
Brandon Miller or Grant Williams ROS? - Sabeer707 (@sabeer707)
Williams has easily been more valuable thus far and while Miller has looked a little better than expected at times, Williams appears to be locked in for Dallas. And it's not close.
Which Grizzlies big man do you prioritize? Xavier Tillman, Bismack Biyombo, Santi Aldama or David Roddy? - Illgobbo (@Illgobbo)
I am leaning Biyombo just because we don't know when Tillman will be back and he wasn't exactly dominant when he was healthy. They're all going to get minutes and the lot of them may end up being a fantasy mess but for now I'm rolling the dice on Biyombo.
Is Lu Dort a good pickup or not? - Jo Da (@Waestdtfyg1)
Dort was iffy for Wednesday but played through his hip injury and had 14 points, four rebounds, three assists, two steals, three blocks and three three-pointers for a great fantasy night. He was already averaging 15.3 points, 4.6 rebounds, 1.0 steals, 0.9 blocks and 2.6 triples on 56% shooting coming into the night and some of those numbers are going up. He should be rostered everywhere.
