Every Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday, we pose a question to a panel of ESPN fantasy basketball experts to gauge their thoughts on a hot topic.
Today's contributors are ESPN Fantasy's Joe Kaiser, Jim McCormick and Kyle Soppe.
With the trade deadline having passed in standard leagues, what is the top piece of advice you have for fantasy managers as we enter the stretch run of the season?
Kyle Soppe: The importance of staying active on the waiver wire cannot be overstated, though not in the same crucial way as in the first part of the season. Up until the All-Star Break, your primary mission is to build the best roster possible. While not easy, it's a reasonably simple concept. However, as we approach the finish line, you are no longer aiming to build the most talented roster but, rather, the one that will perform the best over a short period of time.
While that may sound like splitting hairs, unwise loyalty to a slightly "better" player can doom you. For example, if and when the Rockets lock up a top-two seed in the West, might they curtail the minutes of a player like Eric Gordon? After all, last season was the first time since his rookie campaign that he appeared in at least 65 regular season games. Conversely, should the Pelicans continue to battle for a playoff spot while Darius Miller's playing time increases, doesn't it stand to reason that his best production could come when you need it most?
No, I'm not suggesting you blindly drop Gordon for Miller today, but I am open to reacting to situations like that the closer we get to the fantasy postseason. Remember, there are no trophies for the team that looks the best on paper -- not in the NBA and certainly not in our fantasy world.
Jim McCormick: Since we can't trade for the blocks, 3-pointers or assists our teams might need over the next six weeks, it's time to grind it out by working the wire. One savvy way to profit in free agency is to adopt a DFS mentality, approaching each night as its own unique market for minutes.
Even if you don't play in daily fantasy competitions, you can leverage daily fantasy content to identify short-term sleepers, as the DFS market often immediately recognizes interim surges in opportunity and value around the league. For example, ESPN's Best Buys article that runs throughout the week, often identifies cheap players with upside. With some intel from the daily market, you can efficiently and effectively acquire that edge needed during the pivotal playoff weeks.
Joe Kaiser: Now is the time to be as sharp as you can with every move you make. It's crunch time. You need to put a little bit more thought into every move you make, every player you stream, every person you decide to move on from and cut.
Spend a little extra time to figure out how to "outgame" your opponent by adding players from the teams that play the most times during a given week or those that play on days where there are only a few games. This is far from a secret strategy in fantasy hoops, but it's surprising how few managers really take full advantage of it. Yet, this is exactly the sort of thing to do in order to give yourself the best chance of advancing through the playoffs on the way to a championship.