SuperCoach NBL trade guide: Who to buy, hold, sell for round 2

Round 1 of SuperCoach NBL is in the books, now it’s time to shake up your team to go even bigger in round 2. Who should you buy, hold and sell this week?

Strong start to SuperCoach NBL, or things didn’t go as planned?

It doesn’t matter if your team is charging or flopping, Benny, Banksy and Boydie – the Basketball Blokes – are here to assist with tips to help you rebound.

These are the players you should consider buying, holding and selling in your SuperCoach NBL side for round 2.

SELL

Sell of the week: Bryce Cotton (PER) $466,300 GRD

It is always difficult to advise coaches to sell the player most likely to lead the league in SuperCoach scoring; but we believe it is the right thing to do this week. For some coaches out there, this will be part of a predetermined strategy to take advantage of the fact that Cotton will not drop in price after round 1 (price changes take effect after three games).

If you can, it would be a great outcome to use his value to downgrade Bryce to a high-level player who plays two games in round 2, and with the remainder of your funds, upgrade a cheaper bench player to someone you can use on your starting court. At his price, Cotton is someone who you would not want to have on your bench and have only 50 per cent of his score contribute to your team’s points for the round.

Bryce needs 50 SuperCoach points from his game at home against the 36ers this round to avoid dropping in price. If we would predict anyone to score 50 SuperCoach points it would be Bryce, but we think the smarter play this week is to look for a cheaper player who plays twice this week and can score in excess of 25 points per game.

Bryce Cotton is the most expensive player in SuperCoach NBL. Picture: Will Russell/Getty Images

Others to consider selling:

Tai Webster (PER) $174,000 GRD

Zero SuperCoach points in game one and a lower leg injury saw him miss game two against the Phoenix. Unfortunately, Tai has to go.

Trentyn Flowers (ADL) $115,000 GRD

From a change of role in the pre-season, to a role off the bench in round 1. A total of 15 and 13 minutes in his two games and a 7.5 SuperCoach average isn’t enough to hold his price, let alone be the money maker we were hoping for.

Taran Armstrong (CNS) $69,000 GRD

Twenty-two per cent of coaches held the flashy point guard despite missing game one with a foot injury. Cash cow aspirations have been put on hold with just two games for the Taipans over the next three weeks. Monitor his injury status closely.

Isaac White (BRI) $88,500 GRD

After performing very well in pre-season, White found himself parked in the corner without the ball too often in this game. His 0-3 shooting from long range and his two turnovers will have owners thinking about selling to someone who will rise in price this week.

BENNY’S BREAK EVENS

Each week Benny will list some of the notable Break Evens for the week ahead – players with low Break Evens are set to rise in price while high Break Evens indicates a looming price drop. Sign up to SuperCoach Plus for the full list of break evens plus more stats and tools to help your team.

• Ariel Hukporti (-23, one game)

• Alex Sarr (-8, one game)

• Sam Mennenga (-6, two games)

• Mitch Creek (85, two games)

• Jaylen Adams (60, two games)

• Isaac White (20, two games)

HOLD

Hold of the Week: Mitch Creek (SEM) $418,900 FWD

Those who selected Creek to start their SuperCoach NBL season will be disappointed with his scores of 18 and 32. Both games were blowouts, seeing Creek play reduced minutes in each game, including sitting the entire fourth quarter against Perth. Creek needed one additional rebound in that fourth quarter to boost his score up to 38.

In fact, he is looking to be a genuine double-double threat without Alan Williams, having collected nine rebounds in each of his round 1 matches. The difference between our sell of the week (Cotton) and Creek is that Mitch plays two games again this round; and would more appropriately be traded the week following.

In the upcoming games, Creek faces a potentially undermanned Cairns side who like to play at a fast pace; and an Illawarra Hawks team that conceded the most SuperCoach points for the round. While Creek may not be the set and forget captain option that we thought he could be this round, we think he remains a strong hold for this week.

Mitch Creek has a great upcoming schedule. Picture: Russell Freeman/Getty Images for NBL

Other players to hold:

Lachlan Olbrich (ILL) $69,000 CTR/FWD

Eighteen minutes and eight rebounds off the bench against a tough Sydney squad first up was a positive for Olbrich owners. If he can add the offence to his game that we saw him produce during the pre-season, Lachie still stands to be a viable cash cow.

BANKSY’S BARGAINS

Each week Banksy will rank his favourite bargain players regardless of schedule.

1. Ariel Hukporti (MEL) $172,100 CTR

He was locked into my squad all pre-season and he showed why in week one. Huk demonstrated his ability to double-double in the second game, and added some fantasy gold with eight blocks across the round. He was the second-highest scoring player for the round with 64 SuperCoach points, outscoring premium-priced players in Cotton ($466k) and Creek ($419k). This will be your last chance to grab Hukporti at his $172,100 price tag, with a predicted price increase of $43k.

2. Jaylin Galloway (SYD) $123,600 FWD

With DJ Hogg on the sidelines for an extended period, Jaylin saw the starting role and almost 30 minutes of play. His 32 SuperCoach point game included a fantasy-friendly five steals. With two games slated in round 2, he won’t be $123k for long.

3. Alexandre Sarr (PER) $115,000 FWD/CTR

Owned by 50 per cent of the competition, he started as expected with an impressive 24 SuperCoach-point showing. He followed it up with a foul and blowout-affected 12, but has all the makings of a must-own at his 115k price tag.

4. Matthew Dellavedova (MEL) $255,300 GRD

The pre-season hype was real as the hot hand lives on. Revenge Delly is here as he backed up his blitz performance with 63 points, the third-highest score for the round. With a predicted price increase of $29k post round 2, his 15 per cent ownership will skyrocket while he is priced cheaper than an import, with three doubles across the next four rounds.

5. Ben Ayre (SEM) $107,900 GRD

One I was borderline on during the pre-season, but somehow found his way into my round 1 squad with additional opportunity. He will be a streaky fantasy performer as a lockdown defender, but while he continues to contain elite scorers like Cotton to seven points, he should demand minutes after 25 minutes a game across round 1. Another two games for the Phoenix this week and projected for the second-highest increase in price, an incoming $30k addition to his price tag.

BUY

Buy of the Week: Denzel Valentine (SYD) $277,000 GRD/FWD

While any player being on triple-double watch in their first game in the NBL gets our attention, when that player is Denzel Valentine, it does not come as a surprise. Valentine averaged over 14 points, eight rebounds and five assists in the G-League, which included numerous double-doubles with points and rebounds and one triple-double (worth 10 bonus SuperCoach points).

Playing in the Sydney Kings’ high-paced system, Denzel finished with 36 SuperCoach points in round 1. This included a box score-stuffing eight points, seven rebounds, 10 assists, two steals and a block. Historically, Valentine has shown himself to be a proven scorer, so we should expect more field goal attempts than the five that he had against the Hawks.

Valentine will have played three matches after this round, meaning he is due for a price change. If he maintains his form from round 1, his value is going up. The Kings play four games over the next two weeks, which is why we love making Valentine our buy of the round.

Denzel Valentine is a great buy this week. Picture: Mike Owen/Getty Images

BOYDIE’S BEST BUYS

Each week Boydie will rank the other best buys for the week ahead.

1. Milton Doyle (TAS) $344,600 GRD

Thirty-seven SuperCoach points (away to Perth no less) with 18 points, six rebounds, eight assists and a steal. The JackJumpers play four games over the next two weeks.

2. Aron Baynes (BRI) $240,300 CTR

Big Banger is looking fit and in 22 minutes he had a SuperCoach score of 34 at 1.5 PPM (points per minute). Brisbane has a great upcoming schedule with nine games in next five rounds.

3. Luke Travers (MELB) $276,300 GRD/FWD

How can there still be more than 50 per cent of SuperCoach teams out there without LT in their line-up? Despite Melbourne United having a single for round 2, I am still going to say LT is a MASSIVE buy. He had 36 and 32 SuperCoach points; and after this round Melbourne United has a run of three doubles in a row. Buy Buy Buy!

4. Sam McDaniel (BRI) $112,500 GRD/FWD

5. Jack McVeigh (TAS) $262,300 GRD/FWD

6. Jordon Crawford (TAS) $277,000 GRD

7. Jaylin Galloway (SYD) $123,600 FWD

8. Ariel Hukporti (MEL) $172,100 CTR

9. Matthew Dellavedova (MEL) $255,300 GRD

10. Kyrin Galloway (ADL) $69,000 FWD

Originally published as SuperCoach NBL trade guide: Who to buy, hold, sell for round 2