Fantasy Basketball Risers & Fallers: Players Changing Teams

Every year, the NBA offseason is full of player movement that results in significant roster upheaval. In this article, we'll examine how different offseason moves around the league affect the fantasy value of certain players.

Risers

Josh Giddey, Chicago Bulls

Giddey was traded from the Thunder to the Bulls this offseason in exchange for Alex Caruso. Last season in Oklahoma City, Giddey averaged 12.3 points, 6.4 rebounds, and 4.8 assists. While his numbers took a hit from the previous two seasons, Giddey should have the ball in his hands more in Chicago now that he doesn't have to share the backcourt with Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. 

Tobias Harris, Detroit Pistons

Perhaps one of the more under-the-radar moves, Harris signed a two-year, $52 million contract with Detroit. After being a distant third option on offense behind Joel Embiid and Tyrese Maxey in Philadelphia, Harris will likely only be behind Cade Cunningham in his new team's pecking order. It wouldn't be surprising for the 32-year-old forward to average 20 points per contest next season for the first time since 2018-19. 

Chris Paul, San Antonio Spurs

Long gone are the days of Paul being a dynamic scoring threat, but he is still more than capable of playmaking at a high level. After being the backup point guard in Golden State, the 39-year-old is set to start for a young San Antonio team that was in desperate need of a lead ball-handler. With Victor Wembanyama already being one of the greatest lob threats in NBA history, I expect Paul to average more than his 6.8 assists per game from 2023-24. 

Fallers

Paul George, Philadelphia 76ers

After spending the last five years with the Clippers, George signed a 4-year, $212 million contract with the 76ers this offseason. While George was a close-second scoring option behind Kawhi Leonard and ahead of James Harden, I expect his role to be slightly reduced in Philadelphia. Joel Embiid has established himself as arguably the greatest scorer in the NBA when healthy, and Tyrese Maxey just enjoyed a breakout season where he averaged 25.9 points per contest. George could take a slight step back statistically, but he should still hover around 20 points per contest and could replicate or even improve upon his 41.3 percent shooting from 2023-24 due to all the attention Embiid and Maxey will draw. 

DeMar DeRozan, Sacramento Kings

DeRozan is one of the most underrated scorers ever, entering next season with the 31st most points in NBA history. However, his move to Sacramento will likely result in a decrease in volume due to having to share the court with De'Aaron Fox and Domantas Sabonis. While the 35-year-old forward will likely slow down his scoring pace from 24.0 points per contest last year in Chicago, DeRozan will still find plenty of opportunities offensively and has shot over 50 percent from the field in three of his last five seasons. 

Mikal Bridges, New York Knicks

Bridges has gone from a rebuilding Nets team to a Knicks team with championship aspirations this offseason. After having Cam Thomas as the only other go-to scorer on the team in Brooklyn, Bridges will have to carve out his shot attempts alongside Jalen Brunson, Karl-Anthony Towns and OG Anunoby. Bridges will also likely be asked to exert more of his energy on defense under Tom Thibodeau than he had with the Nets. However, the 6-foot-6 forward will have much less defensive focus from other teams, hopefully allowing him to improve upon his 43.6 percent shooting from the field last year. 

Dejounte Murray, New Orleans Pelicans

While Murray's backcourt pairing with Trae Young in Atlanta may not have led to much postseason success, it did allow him to post impressive counting stats. In 2023-24, Murray averaged 22.5 points, 6.4 assists, 5.3 rebounds and 1.3 steals. Now that he has joined New Orleans, the 28-year-old guard will have to share the ball with CJ McCollum, Brandon Ingram and Zion Williamson. This extra talent around Murray could allow him to return to form as one of the NBA's best perimeter defenders like he was early in his career. However, it will also likely result in his fantasy value slightly decreasing. 

Similar Value

Karl-Anthony Towns, New York Knicks

In a recent blockbuster move, Towns was dealt from Minnesota, where he had spent the first nine years of his career, to New York. Both teams are serious playoff contenders but are also likely just behind the top dogs in their respective conferences in terms of title expectations. Towns had a fantastic season in 2023-24, averaging 21.8 points, 8.3 rebounds and 3.0 assists on 50.4/41.6/87.3 shooting splits. While the 7-foot center has gone from playing alongside just one primary scorer in Anthony Edwards to two in Jalen Brunson and Mikal Bridges, his prolific outside shooting allows him to work great off the ball. Also, not playing alongside Rudy Gobert should allow him to return to averaging closer to 10 rebounds per game like he did earlier in his career. 

Julius Randle, Minnesota Timberwolves

In the same deal that moved Towns to New York, Randle was shipped to Minnesota. Randle's averages of 24.0 points, 9.0 rebounds and 5.0 assists from last year were always going to dip going into next year as he barely played alongside OG Anunoby due to injuries and the addition of Mikal Bridges added another high-end scoring option. However, Randle's fantasy outlook in Minnesota isn't all that different than it would've been in New York. Rudy Gobert's presence will likely cause a slight dip in his rebounding, but he should be the second offensive option behind Anthony Edwards. 

Donte DiVincenzo, Minnesota Timberwolves

DiVincenzo was the last major piece in the deal that sent Towns to New York. Like Randle, the addition of Mikal Bridges to the Knicks was already likely going to result in a decreased role for DiVincenzo. In DiVincenzo's case, he probably would have been coming off the bench with either the Knicks or Timberwolves. In Minnesota, the 27-year-old guard should be one of the preseason favorites for Sixth Man of the Year and will continue to provide a scoring punch after shooting 40.1 percent on 8.7 three-point attempts per contest last year. 

Russell Westbrook, Denver Nuggets

Now that he's in the twilight of his career, Westbrook seems to have finally accepted a backup point guard role. Going from a very talented Clippers team to an arguably even more talented Nuggets squad, the 35-year-old should have a very similar role next season. Now backing up Jamal Murray, I would expect Westbrook to average somewhere around 11.1 points, 5.0 rebounds, 4.5 assists and 1.1 steals in Denver like he did last season. 

Klay Thompson, Dallas Mavericks

Lastly, another aging star moved teams this offseason, as Thompson joined the Mavericks after spending the last 11 seasons with the Warriors. Thompson averaged just 17.9 points per game in 2023-24, his lowest output since 2012-13. The 34-year-old forward will likely be behind Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving in Dallas' pecking order, but this should also allow one of the greatest spot-up shooters of all time to find plenty of open looks. With Steph Curry, Andrew Wiggins and Jonathan Kuminga all vying for shot attempts in Golden State, I don't expect Thompson's shot volume to change very much now that he's in Dallas.

Fantasy Basketball Draft Strategy

Check out RotoWire's How to Play Fantasy Basketball guide for a complete walkthrough, but here is some basic advice:

• Check out custom NBA Fantasy Projections
• Look into Fantasy Basketball Mock Drafts
• Listen to a Fantasy Basketball Podcast
• Check in on Fantasy Basketball Player News
• Read Fantasy Basketball Articles
• Dive into RotoWire's Fantasy Basketball Draft Kit
• Study NBA Depth Charts
• See RotoWire's Fantasy Basketball Dynasty Rankings