The Washington Wizards made a big move trying to keep Bradley Beal happy in D.C. by acquiring all-star Russell Westbrook in exchange for fellow all-star John Wall and a 1st round pick. First thoughts, it’s a pretty solid trade for both teams as both players wanted fresh starts. John Wall and Bradley Beal didn’t seem to get along, Westbrook requested a trade and yada, yada, yada, we’re all very tired. On to the important stuff, what does it mean for fantasy!?
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Huge Russell Westbrook and John Wall Trade
Russell Westbrook – Winner
Westbrook definitely receives a bit of a boost here. I was pretty down on Westbrook this season, but I think this deal helps rejuvenate him quite a bit. He goes from playing with one of the more ball dominant players in the NBA in James Harden to Beal, who still dominates in usage rate but he’s more of an off the ball scorer which still acts a bonus. Westbrook reunites with old coach Scott Brooks, will have the opportunity to flirt with triple-double numbers once again as there’s not a whole lot of excitement on that Wizards roster besides Beal. The poor turnover rate and average FT% always concerns me with Westbrook but hopefully he can get back to his plus 80% years and he should be looking at a top-25 fantasy season.
John Wall – Winner
I don’t have a ton of faith in players coming back from major injuries like Wall has gone through so I’ll probably leave him off my draft boards but this is still a big win for him. The most important thing for Wall was getting a fresh start. He’s apparently looking tremendous in off-season workouts so there’s definitely upside to have. I think most importantly for Wall will be getting impressive counting stats which is why the Rockets is a great fit for him. He should be able to produce solid assist totals feeding Harden and still rack up a decent amount of points due to lack of scoring options.
Other winners
James Harden remains locked into the number one pick. Westbrook’s 27 PPG are gone and that’s not something Wall will be able to duplicate. The James Harden show will be front and center in 2020 once again. The only risk is a potential future trade but as of now Houston is saying they do not want to trade Harden.
Christian Wood
Westbrook’s 6th highest usage rate last season will be out the door meaning there’s going to be some opportunity for key contributors in Houston. A big riser who’s flying up my rankings is now the 25-year old PF/C Christian Wood. Wood finally received minutes last season in Detroit and put-up 21.9 PPG, 9.4 RPG, 2.3 APG and 0.8 BPG in 12 starts which are all-star caliber numbers. Need more? Last season Wood finished with 3.5 real plus-minus. Only LeBron, Giannis, Kawhi, Tatum and Middleton topped that in 2019. The Rockets made a statement in their recent sign and trade with Detroit giving Wood a 3-yr, $41 million dollar deal. New Rockets Head Coach Stephen Silas envisions heavy minutes in the front court for Wood and went on to add he views him as a playmaker and a secondary ball handler. Make Christian Wood a priority in the 5th rounds of your fantasy drafts this season. How much wood would a woodchuck double? The answer is a whole a lot of double doubles baby!
Looking for more fantasy basketball analysis from Mike? Then you’ll definitely want to check out his 2020-21 Fantasy Basketball Rankings!
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