The waiver wire is starting to get thin in some leagues with so many players being out with injuries. Another way to try to help bolster your fantasy squad is via a trade. Let's discuss some players to buy low on, sell high on or hold based on their current production.
Buy
Dejounte Murray, New Orleans Pelicans
Murray injured his hand in the Pelicans' first game of the season. He missed more than a month, making his return November 27 against the Raptors. While he only played 25 minutes in that game, some of that can be attributed to the lopsided score. He has logged at least 30 minutes in all three games since then. He has looked rusty, shooting 27.3% from the field and 24.0% from behind the arc since making his return.
Murray has shot at least 45.3% from the field in each of the last five seasons. He has shot at least 34.4% from behind the arc in both of the last two seasons. He's not going to stay in this type of shooting slump for too long. The point guard is still averaging 6.2 rebounds, 6.6 assists and 2.4 steals per game, so try to acquire him now before his shooting numbers start to normalize.
Malik Monk, Sacramento Kings
An ankle injury forced Monk to miss seven straight games in November. He logged 26 minutes in his first game back, which is right on par with his normal workload since he averaged 26 minutes per game last
The waiver wire is starting to get thin in some leagues with so many players being out with injuries. Another way to try to help bolster your fantasy squad is via a trade. Let's discuss some players to buy low on, sell high on or hold based on their current production.
Buy
Dejounte Murray, New Orleans Pelicans
Murray injured his hand in the Pelicans' first game of the season. He missed more than a month, making his return November 27 against the Raptors. While he only played 25 minutes in that game, some of that can be attributed to the lopsided score. He has logged at least 30 minutes in all three games since then. He has looked rusty, shooting 27.3% from the field and 24.0% from behind the arc since making his return.
Murray has shot at least 45.3% from the field in each of the last five seasons. He has shot at least 34.4% from behind the arc in both of the last two seasons. He's not going to stay in this type of shooting slump for too long. The point guard is still averaging 6.2 rebounds, 6.6 assists and 2.4 steals per game, so try to acquire him now before his shooting numbers start to normalize.
Malik Monk, Sacramento Kings
An ankle injury forced Monk to miss seven straight games in November. He logged 26 minutes in his first game back, which is right on par with his normal workload since he averaged 26 minutes per game last season. However, he has played at least 35 minutes in all four games since. He has started both of the last two games, and head coach Mike Brown has said that Monk will remain in the starting lineup moving forward.
Since taking on larger role, Monk has averaged 23.0 points, 5.0 rebounds, 9.0 assists and 5.0 three-pointers over the last four games. At 10-12, the Kings are looking for a spark. Monk playing more might be just what they need, so he's someone to strongly consider trading for. He is even still available in 45% of Yahoo leagues, so some fantasy managers might be lucky enough to just be able to add him off waivers.
Sell
Paul George, Philadelphia 76ers
Injuries have resulted in George playing in just 10 games this season. After recently missing three games with a knee injury, George has played in both of the last two games for the 76ers. He played 26 minutes against the Pistons on Saturday and logged 37 minutes against the Hornets on Tuesday.
Not only has George been injured, but he hasn't performed well when he has been on the floor. He is averaging just 15.9 points and 2.2 three-pointers per game. He is shooting 40.7% from the field, which is rare for him since he has shot at least 45.7% in three of the last four seasons. A plus is that he has provided 5.3 rebounds, 5.1 assists and 2.1 steals per game. A negative is that George has a lengthy injury history and the 76ers are just 5-14. If they don't make their way back into the playoff hunt, George might not be playing much over the final month of the season. There is a lot of risk that comes with rostering George right now, so it might not be a bad idea to float him out in trade offers to see if another fantasy manager will pay up for his past performance.
Devin Vassell, San Antonio Spurs
The Spurs have dealt with plenty of injuries this season, including Vassell being limited to just seven games. When he has been able to play, the Spurs have taken a cautious approach and given him limited minutes off the bench. He hasn't played more than 28 minutes in a game this season, leaving him with averages of 17.9 points, 1.4 rebounds and 2.7 assists.
When Vassell has been healthy, he has at least been efficient, shooting 52.9% from the field and 48.8% from behind the arc. The concern is that the Spurs have added depth at guard this season with Chris Paul and Stephon Castle in the fold. Julian Champagnie has also emerged as a valuable scorer and Jeremy Sochan just returned from a thumb injury. There is no need to rush Vassell into playing a ton, so he could see his minutes limited for a while. Even when he is healthy, he might be hard-pressed to average 33 minutes per game again like he did last season.
Hold
Isaiah Hartenstein, Oklahoma City Thunder
The injury to Chet Holmgren (hip) has created a massive role for Hartenstein. He has played six games since returning from injury, averaging 32 minutes along the way. He hasn't let his opportunity go to waste, averaging 13.3 points, 12.3 rebounds, 4.2 assists and 1.5 blocks per game. The center is also shooting 57.4% from the field.
Hartenstein has never averaged more than 25 minutes per game in a season. Last season, he averaged 7.8 points and 8.3 rebounds per game for the Knicks, so his jump in production this season has been massive. While Hartenstein might seem like a sell-high candidate, don't make that move just yet. Holmgren could be out for at least another month, so there are plenty more juicy stat lines on the horizon for Hartenstein.
John Collins, Utah Jazz
It seemed like Collins was destined to see his fantasy value take a significant hit with him beginning this season by logging limited minutes off the bench. Taylor Hendricks was named a starter to begin the season, and the Jazz had high hopes for their young forward. However, he suffered a serious leg injury in just their third game that will sideline him for the remainder of the season.
With Hendricks out, Collins has a clear path to playing plenty of minutes again. He has cashed in by averaging 17.8 points, 8.7 rebounds, 2.5 assists, 1.2 steals and 1.2 three-pointers per game. He has also been an asset with his percentages, shooting 53.4% from the field and 91.2% from the charity stripe. Collins should at least approach 30 minutes a game on a nightly basis, so there's no reason to try and trade him. He should remain productive moving forward. The Jazz are 4-17, so it's not as if his strong play is hurting their chances of getting a high pick in next year's draft, anyway.
