Fantasy Impact of Brooklyn trading Kyrie Irving to Dallas
Yahoo Sports' Dan Titus recaps Brooklyn trading Kyrie Irving to the Mavericks, including the fantasy impact for all players involved in the deal.
Video Transcript
[MUSIC PLAYING]
DAN TITUS: For this week's stock watch, I'm going to share my thoughts on the fantasy impact of the recent Kyrie Irving trade. So Kyrie Irving was traded to the Dallas Mavericks on Sunday. The Mavs traded a package of Spencer Dinwiddie, Dorian Finney-Smith, a 2029 unprotected first-round pick, and a couple of future second-round picks in exchange for Kyrie Irving and Markieff Morris.
Sorry, Lakers fans, but I got to appreciate Jose Tsai and Bobby Marks's pettiness in not granting Ky's wish to get to LA. But ultimately, I think this is a good deal for both sides. For the Nets, they were able to grab Dorian Finney-Smith, the Mavs' best defender, as part of the deal that included Spencer Dinwiddie, a score-first guard who can backfill the void left by Kyrie Irving. He's also improved from 3 since his last stint in Brooklyn, shooting over 40% from distance, and he's another weapon on the perimeter that can also create his own shot.
Per shot quality, he ranks in the 88th percentile in frequency of creating his own shot, as well as 80th percentile in scoring off-ball. So the Nets did a good job addressing their depth at the deadline but also acquiring serviceable assets that they can maybe want to flip in a future deal. From a fantasy perspective, Dorian Finney-Smith is still just rostered in 36% of Yahoo leagues, and I'd add him while Seth Curry and Ben Simmons are out.
However, Finney-Smith and Dinwiddie may not be able to get back for the Nets Monday and Tuesday back-to-back, so take your time in adding DFS in fantasy. But I do think he will stay in this rotation going forward. On the flip side, Luka Doncic used that magic to net himself a costar in Kyrie Irving, an efficient guard who I think raises the floor for Dallas offensively, especially when they get Christian Wood back. But defense is going to remain a concern for this roster.
But I don't think that this move really opens up much fantasy opportunities for Dallas just yet. Tim Hardaway Jr. and Christian Wood are reportedly on the trade block, with Christian Wood having an expiring contract, looking very nice, and drawing interest from the Clippers, according to Marc Stein, as well as other teams. So with so much in flux in Dallas, not much value there from a fantasy perspective, but in terms of Luka and Kyrie, they'll be able to coexist, with Luka likely seeing an uptick in assists, being able to be a screener for Kyrie Irving.
But I'd also see Kyrie Irving continuing his prolific scoring on this Dallas Mavericks roster. So hopefully, more things go down, but in the meantime, I think Dorian Finney-Smith and, ultimately, Cam Thomas are probably the best winners of this trade.
[MUSIC PLAYING]