Buy: T.J. Warren
While T.J. Warren shouldn’t be taken in any of the high rounds in the draft, he should definitely be a player to have on your watchlist. Really, he has the chance to be that guy you pick up midseason who ends up being kind of awesome.
For that reason, I’m all in on T.J. Warren’s fantasy draft stock.
Warren closed out the year really strong, averaging 9.6 points per game in his last eight contests. That stretch of games included a couple of 17+ point outbursts against OKC and Golden State, and three more games where he reached double figures.
Warren is a really creative scorer and a bit of a throwback player. He loves the midrange jumper and seems to have a nose for the basket, ending up in the right position time and time again. He really showed some improvement at the end of the year and in his second Summer League, as he continued to assert himself, but now the challenge will be carrying that over to the next level.
Now, I will say there is a chance Warren could be enough of a factor to warrant a late-round pick. After all, with Marcus Morris and Gerald Green off the roster, there will be minutes available at the three. And if Markieff Morris is traded, there will be some extra smallball-four minutes available too. However, his real value extends a lot further beyond that.
Warren’s value can be really strong, depending on the rules of your league. It’s not standard, but I play in two keeper leagues where the rules with keepers are a little different. When you select your keepers, you lose the money you spent on them going into the next year’s (auction) draft. So, if you can nab a guy like T.J. Warren for $1 (or in free agency), his value as a keeper could be absolutely phenomenal.
That’s why I’m buying his stock. Right now, it’s dirt cheap and only getting better.
Next: Buy: Markieff Morris