Pat Riley is a legend in the league. He’s a winner. He’s a dealmaker. He’s The Godfather. He’s been dedicated to landing a “whale” next to Jimmy Butler/Bam Adebayo for the past few seasons. While he hasn’t exactly done that via superstar name brands (e.g. Damian Lillard), with his latest acquisition of Terry Rozier, I think the Heat have, once again, made themselves a formidable opponent in the East.
Terry Rozier Trade Summary
Miami Heat Get:
Terry Rozier
Charlotte Hornets Get:
Kyle Lowry, 2027 1st Round
Terry Rozier’s Fantasy Stock
Terry Rozier is one of the most underrated players in the entire league. He’s efficient, unselfish, and lethal/streaky. However, you’re reading this article for Rozier’s impact in fantasy basketball, not whether or not he’s going to help the Heat win. Quite frankly, Rozier’s stock takes a big hit in fantasy as a result of this trade.
Rozier is averaging a career high in points, field goal percentage, and assists. But those numbers won’t be able to remain consistent with his new role, on a much better team. A team that already has Jimmy Butler, Tyler Herro, and Bam Adebayo. During the regular season, all three of those players will take priority in the half court. Rozier will be more useful during the playoffs (when Bam tends to fade, and guard play in the half-court is more prominent), which will be after the NBA fantasy season concludes. Jimmy Butler’s 24% usage will remain steady (though he’s most likely to cede that usage to the other three players mentioned). Tyler Herro’s 30% usage will likely come down a bit, as less ball-handling is required, but he’s still a priority scorer. Bam’s role will remain unchanged with his 27% usage rate, consisting of paint points/passing out of double teams. There’s not much room for Scary Terry to keep his career high numbers on this Miami squad, because the odds he keeps a 27% usage rate are nil. The reality is that Rozier just became a drastically worse NBA fantasy asset. You’ll have to adapt to that if you’re an owner.
Kyle Lowry’s Fantasy Stock
Kyle Lowry is only rostered in 11% of leagues at the moment. He’s been a shell of himself. Perhaps it has something to do with the confidential leave of absence he took last year. Perhaps he’s hit the wall in his 37th year of age. The cause is not really my concern…or my business. His output is what matters to me. His 17% usage rate, scoring, assist, and rebounding numbers, are his lowest since his 2008 season. That was 15 years ago. I’m not interested in rolling the dice on a roster spot for him. Who knows if he’ll even stay in Charlotte? He could be traded, bought out, or outright waived. Look for fantasy output elsewhere.
Bottom Line: Rozier stock is down. Lowry stock is bankrupt.