yahoo - 2/18/2026 5:31:02 PM - GMT (+2 )
We're at the part of the fantasy basketball season where sitting on your hands is a strategy — just a bad one.
The Yahoo standard league trade deadline is March 5, which falls in Week 19. After that, you're not reshaping your roster — you're managing around it. With fantasy basketball playoffs starting in Week 21 for most Yahoo standard leagues, there are only a few weeks left to make changes and lock in for a shot at the fantasy playoffs.
As of early Wednesday, we’re still waiting on injury reports and updates on some key players, so here are four principles for deciding whether to trade or drop a player at this point in the season.
Veterans on tanking teams are a liabilityThis one's always uncomfortable because we're talking about names you recognize. But late in the season, incentives shift fast. Teams outside the playoff race start experimenting — younger guys get more run, veteran's minutes dip or even get DNP'd.
Players I'd drop right now are:
Trae Young, Ja Morant, Jordan Poole, Malik Monk
If you're contending, I'd be shopping these players before March 5.
Kings: DeMar DeRozan, Domantas Sabonis and Russell Westbrook
Pelicans: Zion Williamson and Trey Murphy III
Bucks: Giannis Antetokounmpo and Myles Turner
Nets: Michael Porter Jr. and Nic Claxton
Pacers: Pascal Siakam, Ivica Zubac and Andrew Nembhard
Jazz: Lauri Markkanen and Keyonte George
Wizards: Alex Sarr
Name value has a shelf life and right now is when you can still cash it in for someone with more late-season potential. Once the deadline passes and losing teams go full tank, you're either riding it out or cutting them. Teams like the Jazz have viable replacement-level players, like Isaiah Collier and Kyle Filipowski, ready to go if they want to hold out Markkanen and George.
Just look at the Western Conference standings. The Grizzlies are in 11th place, 5.5 games behind the 10th-place Clippers. Memphis is not catching up for a Play-In appearance; neither will any of the teams beneath the Grizz. It’s a valid concern rostering any high-caliber fantasy assets on those teams down the stretch.
Trade players with unfavorable schedulesAtlanta's looking suspect on the schedule front and not enough managers are paying attention.
The Hawks play eight games across Weeks 18-20. That's the fewest in the league. Week 19 is a two-game week, and several of their games throughout the next three weeks land on nights where your lineup is already full.
If you're on the bubble and rostering high-valued Hawks, now might be a good time to test the trade market to get players who can offer 11 or 12 games during that span. Don't get me wrong — Jalen Johnson and Onyeka Okongwu can generate enough value across categories to hold. But Nickeil Alexander-Walker, Dyson Daniels and CJ McCollum? I'd consider moving them before the March 5 fantasy trade deadline.
Chicago and Phoenix are in a similar bracket, playing just nine games over the next three weeks. It's not the end of the world, but you're still potentially missing out on some volume, especially in points leagues. Josh Giddey, Matas Buzelis, Mark Williams, Jalen Green and Collin Gillespie are all guys worth shopping if you can get something back before the deadline.
Downward trends are a bat signal to dropA 6-8 week decline in usage, shot attempts, defensive stats or minutes isn't a slump — it's a role shift. And once that recalibration becomes visible across multiple categories, the market often won't pay for past production.
Here's how to approach it:
Before March 5: Shop the player if season-long averages still look strong.
If there's no trade interest, that's your signal that the value has already adjusted.
If the trend continues into Weeks 18-19: Dropping becomes the rational move.
A player who fits this criteria is Lakers C Deandre Ayton. His numbers and production have been trending down for three months. The problem is, he's unlikely to get much on the trade market, so you can cut him and grab someone off waivers. A player like Kings big man Max Raynaud could garner 80-90% of Ayton's production. That's not being reckless, that's playing the percentages.
Teams get cautious this time of year. If a guy is sitting back-to-backs, on a minutes restriction or "managing something" — you need an answer before March 5. Can you move them on season-long name value? Great. Someone like Jalen Williams comes to mind as he re-tweaked a hamstring injury that already cost him 10 games before the All-Star Break.
If not, (depending on the player) hitting the wire for four guaranteed games from a decent contributor can be more useful than a couple of shaky appearances from a bigger name — especially when you're still fighting for playoff seeding. Joel Embiid, Jakob Poeltl, Markkanen, Kristaps Porzingis and Darius Garland are several players whose injury history will factor into late-season absences.
Every roster spot needs to justify itselfMy framework for trading or cutting a player is: look at every player and ask the hard questions. Are they trending up? Is the role secure? Are they in a favorable position to help you win the next three weeks? Are their games actually startable? And if you put them on the trade block today, would anyone actually want them?
If the answers aren't convincing, don't wait for clarity that probably isn't coming. Trade while you still can. Drop when the math says to and stream with purpose. This is the final moment to switch up your strategy for a chance at a fantasy championship.
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