NBA Offseason Tracker: What the Latest Deals Mean for Fantasy Basketball

It's been a couple days since we discussed the latest NBA transactions, so let's do just that here in this article.

We have a couple trades and a handful of free agent signings to get to, so let's dive right in!

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Ayton Dealt to Wizards

The Lakers decided to trade Deandre Ayton to Washington for Jaden Hardy and two second-round picks (in 2031 and 2032).

The move makes sense after the Lakers traded for Walker Kessler. The Lakers also added Sandro Mamukelashvili, who is maybe slated to come off the bench now after the Ayton trade.

That could move Jake LaRavia into the starting five, but Mamukelashvili could also start if the Lakers eventually add another center to the team. Right now, Mamukelashvili seems better suited to come off the bench after Kessler, while also being a power forward option behind LaRavia. Regardless, all three of those guys should play enough to have fantasy relevance.

Jarred Vanderbilt is another forward option, but buried a bit on the depth chart right now. I'm interested to see what else LA does this offseason to address its frontcourt.

Quentin Grimes, Austin Reaves and Luka Doncic fill out the starting five for LA, with Collin Sexton, rookie Cameron Carr, Dalton Knecht and others as reserve options. Hardy will be in that group as well, but seems buried and not destined for a big role in the coming year. Injuries could change things, but Reaves and Doncic will dominate the backcourt production and minutes, leaving others to reserve roles and likely inconsistent production.

As for Ayton going to Washington, he seems likely to come off the bench, as Alexandre Sarr and Anthony Davis are the big men there. Ayton should still play enough to have a little fantasy appeal, but likely just in deeper leagues unless injuries thrust him into a larger role.

Hardy wasn't likely to play much in Washington, so that move doesn't affect much. Trae Young is the point guard, with Kyshawn George and rookie AJ Dybantsa the projected 2 and 3 starters. It's a sneaky-good lineup, but health will determine if Washington can make some noise and push for a postseason spot.

Ayton adds depth to the front court, and improves the bench group a bit. Bub Carrington, Tre Johnson, Bilal Coulibaly and Justin Champagnie are among the other reserves.

The move probably doesn't improve or hurt Ayton's fantasy outlook. We'll see if any more offseason moves change his outlook for the coming year, but this is bigger news that the Lakers moved on from him than anything.

Knicks Sign Drummond

New York added Andre Drummond to its squad on a one-year deal.

Drummond has been a solid fantasy asset over the years, even though he's mostly come off the bench. He will continue to come off the bench in New York, mostly being the top backup for Karl-Anthony Towns.

KAT will cover most of the minutes every game, but adding Drummond allows the Knicks to rest the big man a bit more, and Drummond can be a solid option when he's out there. If he can even get 15 minutes a game, Drummond has deep-league fantasy appeal.

If KAT is ever out, then Drummond could have standard league streaming appeal. Towns and Drummond could also play on the court at the same time if the Knicks ever want to play bigger.

The starting five of Jalen Brunson, Josh Hart, Mikal Bridges, OG Anunoby and Towns is really strong, and adding in Miles McBride, Landry Shamet, Drummond, Jose Alvarado and more off the bench, the Knicks will be one of the favorites to win it all next season.

Adding Drummond helps the team's chances, and gives Drummond a nice fantasy outlook. We'll see if he can emerge as a solid fantasy option again in 2026-27.

Hornets Acquire Finney-Smith

Charlotte continued to revamp their roster, acquiring Dorian Finney-Smith and three second-round picks from Houston. The Rockets get a $13 million trade exception out of the trade.

Finney-Smith will be forward depth in Charlotte. There's a good bit of depth at those spots already, so he could have a hard time playing enough minutes to be more than a deep-league fantasy asset.

Coby White, Kon Knueppel, Brandon Miller, Naz Reid and rookie Hannes Steinbach are the projected starters. That's a really good starting five, and is only improving. Rookie Christian Anderson, Grayson Allen, Sion James, Royce O'Neale, Moussa Diabate, Ryan Kalkbrenner, Grant Williams, Tre Mann and now Finney-Smith are some reserve options.

It's a balanced roster, and means Charlotte will have a chance to make some noise in the Eastern Conference this coming season. All that depth makes it hard to determine if Finney-Smith will be able to play enough, or consistently, to be a fantasy asset.

It might be a wait-and-see approach with Finney-Smith for his fantasy outlook.

Fred VanVleet, Amen Thompson, Kevin Durant, Jabari Smith Jr. and Alperen Sengun are the projected starters in Houston. That's a good starting five, but not on par with the top teams in the West. 

Marcus Smart, Reed Sheppard, Tari Eason, Steven Adams, Bogdan Bogdanovic and others are reserve options. It's a good reserve group, and is why the Rockets decided to part with Finney-Smith. It opens more playing time for these guys, so that's a slight fantasy boost, especially the forwards (Bogdanovic, Eason).

Houston will be a playoff team if they are pretty healthy the coming season, but I don't think this roster is good enough to come out of the West, unless several other teams are injured in big ways.

Okogie Headed to Utah

The Jazz picked up Josh Okogie on a two-year deal worth $12 million.

Okie has been a reserve option for most of his eight-year NBA career. He'll come off the bench in Utah, and maybe play enough to have some deep-league fantasy appeal.

The guard is behind the likes of Keyonte George, rookie Darryn Peterson, Isaiah Collier and Ace Bailey, at least, so Okogie might have a tough time playing enough, or consistently enough, to have fantasy relevance in too many leagues.

The team spent a bit of money on him though, so maybe Okogie will play a bigger role than expected, so he's a name to track, especially early in the season.

Lauri Markkanen, Jaren Jackson Jr. and Jusuf Nurkic are the other starters in Utah after the Kessler trade. It's a decent starting five, and throwing in some reserves (Brice Sensabaugh, Kyle Filipowski, Jaxson Hayes and others), I think Utah could surprise in 2026-27, especially if Peterson excels as a rookie.

They could push for a postseason spot if everything comes together. We'll see if Okogie can work himself into a notable role. He's more likely to be a hit-and-miss deep-league fantasy asset.

Green Lands with Detroit

The Pistons signed Javonte Green to a one-year deal worth $3.9 million.

Green is forward depth for the Pistons, like he was last season. He was a deep-league fantasy option, but not owned in too many leagues.

I don't see that changing too much in 2026-27. He's behind Ausar Thompson and Duncan Robinson, along with Cade Cunningham and others possibly. Throw in Isaiah Joe, Daniss Jenkins, Caris LeVert and Kevin Huerter and Green's outlook gets a bit more murky.

John Collins and Jalen Duren are the other starters for now, with Ron Holland II and Paul Reed as more options.

Green will likely top out as a deep-league fantasy asset, unless injuries ravage the Pistons in the coming year. 

Miller Back with Clippers

Jordan Miller is returning to Los Angeles on a three-year deal worth $15.3 million.

Miller emerged as a decent option, both in the real world and fantasy basketball, last year. He averaged 10 points, 3 rebounds, 2.3 assists, 0.8 steals and 0.2 blocks over 60 games (one start) in 22.1 minutes a night.

Miller will be a guard/forward reserve option again for 2026-27. He could play enough again though to have some deep-league fantasy appeal.

Darius Garland and Keaton Wagler are the projected starting guards, with Kris Dunn, Bennedict Mathurin and Gradey Dick as other options. Brandon Ingram is the small forward, with Kobe Sanders and Derrick Jones Jr. as additional options there. I still see Miller playing enough to have deep-league fantasy relevance, at least. Injuries, or a bigger role than expected, could push Miller into standard leagues maybe.

Jones and Brook Lopez are the final two projected starters. Baba Miller, Isaiah Jackson and others are options in the front court, which is where LA is the weakest. The team should still compete for a postseason spot, but I don't see the Clippers making a deep postseason run with this current roster.

Wolves Add Lyles

Minnesota signed Trey Lyles to a one-year deal.

Lyles played with Real Madrid last season, and averaged 6.5 points and 4.6 rebounds in his last NBA season in 2024-25. He will be forward depth for Minnesota.

Minnesota has Jaden McDaniels and Ayo Dosunmu as the projected starters at the forward spots, with Terrence Shannon Jr. and others as options there. There's a path to playing time and production for Lyles, but we might have to wait to see exactly what kind of role he's playing to determine if he has any fantasy appeal for the coming year.

LaMelo Ball, Anthony Edwards and Rudy Gobert are the other projected starters for Minnesota. Bones Hyland, Joan Beringer and Shannon are among the notable reserves, and now Lyles joins that group.

I like the starting five, but the bench is lacking, and is probably going to be what holds the team back in 2026-27. We'll see if the Timberwolves can make any more moves to help their cause going into next year.