Dynasty basketball provides an outlet to put on your general manager cap and make some real decisions. Decisions meant to bolster your squad and win you, not one, not two, not three, not four, not five…you get the point. Everyone has their lists, their research on who they value and who they don’t value. What we have today is a list of five players under the age of 28 you should trade for in dynasty basketball leagues.
These individuals have boosted their value. Picking out players like this can be just as important as drafting the right rookies for future gain.
5 Low-Cost Dynasty Players You Should Trade For
Forward: Aaron Gordon
Gordon is routinely listed lower on fantasy basketball lists than other players of his general position and talent level. In a vacuum, Gordon had arguably the best season of his career in 2022-23, and it was not a flash in the pan.
In Denver’s offense, the power forward averaged 16.3 PPG, 6.6 RPG, and 3.3 APG on 56%/34.7%/60.8%, which would make him above average within the arc and nearly average around it. Although Murray is back in action full-time, expect Gordon to continue to contribute to the production of the champions’ follow-up run with an incredibly high offensive rebounding percentage.
Gordon may not see the 21% usage rate he saw last year but expect a 15/6/3 season, which is great for the cost Gordon is going to command in a dynasty leagues at age 28. He will likely provide another 3-5 years of similar value barring injury.
Guard 1: D’Angelo Russell
Oh God, not D’Angelo Russell. Everyone loves the idea of Russell. However, no one has the stomach, nor the gall, to trade for D’Angelo Russell. Which is why you should.
Russell came into his own last year as a tertiary playmaker, despite his lack of end-of-year contributions. In his age-26 season, Russell had his best shooting year, with major contributions in assists and rebounds at the guard position. Although he won’t score 20 points per night, expect him to be a valuable piece as defenses are focused on other aspects of Los Angeles’ offense. He will get assists in Los Angeles, and shoot the rock at an above-average level. Everyone forgets about D’Angelo Russell (or for some reason, would like to forget about him).
Guard(s) 2: The Orlando Magic Guard Room
This season, there is a case to be made for three Orlando Magic guards: Markelle Fultz, Cole Anthony, and Jalen Suggs.
Orlando has some decisions to make this season. Fultz and Anthony are two of five expiring deals, with Gary Harris being one of the others.
First, all of these guards had over a 55% true shooting percentage last season. Second, they all had total rebounding, total assists, steals, blocks, and usage percentages all accumulating to a certain range. Third, they all had over 16 PER, over 1.0 Value over replacement player, and all took on more of a load than their previous season.
Fultz and Anthony are good point guards, and both are on expiring deals. Although that sounds terrible at face value, taking them at their lowest value as competing options will pay dividends. The Magic will have to make a decision. One of these players will sign an extension and be the Magic’s starting point guard after taking a leap. Subsequently, the other will get traded to a competitive team with a need to fill. (Looking at you Bulls, Heat, Raptors, Clippers, Sixers possibly).
The other shoe to fill would be the void of trading Gary Harris. Unless the Magic intend on extending him, it would be nearly pointless to keep him on this young roster. Harris would have to be contributing heavily to a seeded playoff appearance. Jalen Suggs improved his shooting marks by nearly 10% except for free throws. Although Suggs accumulated fewer starts than the other two guards listed above, he is the best defender of the three and still has a good knack for racking up assists. I would highly recommend spending a flier on him for long-term building purposes.
Wing: Malik Monk
An undersized wing that doesn’t start is a player you should trade for. If you consider wings that shoot that well, score that many points, distribute assists, and get rebounds at his rate, he has a career sixth man ahead of him. As a 25-year-old with scoring ability in spades, the price is worth it.
Let me make a greater case: 16 players who qualified as shooting guards or small forwards had higher player efficiency ratings than Malik Monk. 19 had a higher value over replacement player ratings. 17 had better true shooting percentages. Essentially, this is the kind of player you take a gamble on with minimal assets and see where it goes. He’s an expiring contract on the Kings with an aspiring future, a team will give him a chance to handle serious minutes.
Big: Zach Collins
Last but not least, the big man. Big men, especially starting centers, are hard to come across at a cheap cost. Collins experienced the first taste of the starting lineup this last season, where he started 26 of 63 games played. He put together an 11.6 PPG/6.4 RPG/2.9 APG season on 51.8%/37.4%/76.1% shooting split season. These are great marks for a player unable to catch his break in the NBA. Given his position as Center 1 on the Spurs depth chart, it is safe to assume with more than 25 minutes a night he will continue to improve his overall fantasy value line. Collins certainly won’t hurt anyone from a shooting perspective, or any perspective moving forward.
Overall
Surely, there are more than seven players that can contribute to fleshing out a real dynasty roster. Finding these players takes time and effort. I encourage anyone to pour through statistical analysis and depth charts. Even base-level analysis is better than nothing. Find what works for you!
Got a beef with our consensus shooting guard rankings? Let the guys hear about it in the comments below! In the meantime check out all the great analysis in our 2023 Fantasy Basketball Draft Kit!