Charlotte traded Nick Richards and a second round draft pick to Phoenix on Wednesday for Josh Okogie and three second round draft picks, and while the trade may seem minor at first glance, it carries intriguing fantasy basketball implications for both teams.
The Suns have needed interior help every since they went to the Big Three of Kevin Durant, Devin Booker and Bradley Beal. All three are perimeter, offense-first players, and Durant has started at the power forward slot meaning the big man dirty work falls almost entirely to the starting center.
Jusuf Nurkic, the starting center during this era, fell out of the starting lineup recently — even before illness took him out of the lineup entirely. Phoenix’s need in the middle shows up in their team rebounding rate of 43.2 rebounds per 100 possessions (RP100), tied for 23rd in the NBA.
That’s where Richards comes in. He gives them exactly the kind of big man they need; defensive-oriented and aggressive on the glass. He has averaged 17.6 RP100 this season, which has helped lead the Hornets to the second-best rebound rate in the league (47.0 RP100). In nine starts this season, Richards has averaged a double-double with 11.3 PPG and 10.2 RPG in 27.2 MPG.
He has also blocked 1.7 shots per game as a starter, and shoots 61.7% from the field. On offense he’s a finisher and garbageman around the rim, and on defense he’s a shotblocker and rebounder. The skillset fits perfectly next to the perimeter-offense-oriented Suns, and if he starts he should maintain similar numbers in Phoenix. This trade could also spell the end of Nurkic in the Suns’ starting lineup, and perhaps could push Nurkic to the trade block.
For the Hornets, the Richards trade clears the way for Mark Williams to thrive. Williams has started his last 11 games after missing the first month-plus of the season due to injury. He has steadily improved since rejoining the rotation, and in his last nine games has averaged 15.3 PPG and 10.1 RPG.
Both Richard and Williams project as startable, flex-worthy fantasy hoops centers for as long as they hold the starting jobs. Meanwhile, Nurkic could fall out of fantasy hoops lineups entirely if he moves to a full-time bench role, pending a resolution on whether he remains with the Suns moving forward.
Source: espn.com