Angle Fantasy Basketball

Now that trading is an option for all recently signed free agents we are really starting to see the trade rumor mill swirl. LaVine and DeRozan seem quite likely to be moved from Chicago. My favorite rumor is the one of the Jazz sending Lauri Markkanen to OKC. We will of course cover all of the fantasy fallout of trades as they happen. 

DOWN GOES BEAL

Bradley Beal suffered an ankle injury that is going to cost him multiple weeks worth of games on the sidelines. For those of you in the FBI x Locked On World Cup, drop Beal. In standard fantasy leagues you won’t be blamed for dropping Beal. The performance was simply not convincing enough for him to be worth the trouble, especially if you already have a full injury reserve. At this point he is merely a luxury stash. After only 2 games of the Suns’ Big 3 on court together it is going to be another wait to see them together again. 

CLIPPERS KOBE

Time to talk about a deep dynasty league stash. Kobe Brown of the LA Clippers is beginning to see playing time to help fill the void of the wings traded away for James Harden. PJ Tucker not cracking coach Lue’s rotation has created an even bigger need for wing help. In our final Angle Rookie rankings posted after summer league we had Brown at 30th. Brown displayed a great 9 category stat set in college and summer league. Right now, Brown is only playing around 10 minutes per night, which is not bad for the 30th overall pick in the draft on a win now team. I liked what I saw from Brown against Sacramento last week when he put up 7 points and 6 rebounds with 1 block and 1 three pointer in 24 minutes in a win for the Clippers. 

RECYCLING IS GOOD

It is interesting how the Lakers attempt to revive the careers of former 1st round busts with consistency recently. Malik Monk, Lonnie Walker, and now Cam Reddish all arrived at Los Angeles after not receiving an extension beyond their rookie deal from their former team that drafted them in the first round. This should be expected of a team that has managed to hit on 2nd round picks and undrafted players. A team that is always expecting to be top heavy with a star laden roster should absolutely be good at finding cheap talent to contribute. Minimum free agent deals, 2nd round picks and undrafted players are key places to find cheap talent. Walker wasn’t a huge success in LA but is finding good success in Brooklyn. Monk after a strong effort in LA is now one of the favorites for 6th man of the year in Sacramento. I love how Reddish is now being used as a point of attack defender in the starting lineup, which is different from the scoring spark off the bench that was provided by Monk and then Walker in previous seasons. Reddish was a high pedigree prospect with great athletic tools coming out of Duke. His gifts are now being applied to make him a high level role player alongside LeBron and AD as well as a good steals streamer in fantasy.