Teams that added stars gain efficiency but create usage questions. Teams that lost stars create opportunity. Draft the opportunity, be careful with Philadelphia's crowded rotation, and use preseason to confirm roles.
The Offseason in One Paragraph
This was one of the busiest NBA summers in memory. Giannis Antetokounmpo left Milwaukee for Miami. Jaylen Brown left Boston for Philadelphia. LeBron James followed him there. LaMelo Ball went to Minnesota, Ja Morant went to Portland, and the Wizards drafted AJ Dybantsa first overall. Then, on September 14, the last big domino finally fell: Kawhi Leonard is a Toronto Raptor again.
Opening night is Tuesday, October 20, and fantasy drafts are already starting. Here's what the biggest moves mean for usage, roles and your draft board.
Kawhi Back in Toronto
The Raptors and Clippers agreed to the deal in late June, but Toronto paused it on July 9. On September 2, the NBA announced the findings of its investigation into the Clippers, and the penalties were heavy: the Clippers forfeit five first-round picks (2029 through 2033), pay a $30 million fine, and owner Steve Ballmer is suspended for a year. Leonard himself has to pay $700,000. On September 14 the trade went through with the terms unchanged.
The terms: Toronto gets Leonard. The Clippers get Brandon Ingram, Gradey Dick, Toronto's 2031 and 2033 first-round picks, two second-round picks and a 2027 pick swap. Leonard is on an expiring $50.3 million contract, waived his 15% trade kicker and is expected to sign an extension.
Fantasy fallout in Toronto
The Raptors were already a top-five defense last season (112.1 points allowed per 100 possessions) but had the league's second-worst effective field goal percentage late in the shot clock, ahead of only Indiana. That's exactly the problem a shot-creating star like Leonard is built to solve. NBA.com's own breakdown pictures him in a frontcourt with Scottie Barnes and Collin Murray-Boyles.
- Leonard: the per-minute production is elite. The draft question is games played, and that's always been the question with Kawhi. In season-long and best ball, price in some missed time. In DFS, he's a nightly decision you make once the injury report drops.
- Scottie Barnes: the biggest beneficiary of having a closer is usually efficiency, not volume. Expect his usage to dip slightly with a second star, but don't panic-drop him in drafts. Do-everything forwards hold value through usage shifts.
- The rest of the rotation: with Ingram gone, there are shots to redistribute. Leonard absorbs most of them, but the ones he doesn't take when he sits are where cheap DFS value will come from.
Fantasy fallout in Los Angeles
The Clippers are starting over. Only 42% of their minutes from 2025-26 are still on the roster, and NBA.com describes the rebuild as centered on Darius Garland and rookie Keaton Wagler.
- Brandon Ingram walks into a team that needs a primary scorer. Rebuilding teams often give veterans huge usage. That's a fantasy positive for counting stats, even if wins are scarce.
- Gradey Dick averaged 14.4 points in 2024-25 before a tougher 2025-26. A fresh role on a team with available minutes makes him a reasonable late-round dart.
LeBron, Jaylen and a Crowded Philadelphia
On July 24, LeBron James announced he's signing a two-year, $8 million deal with the 76ers, his fourth NBA team, as he heads into his 24th season. He joins Joel Embiid, Tyrese Maxey and Jaylen Brown, who arrived from Boston on July 1 in the trade that sent Paul George to the Celtics.
Philadelphia went 45-37 last season and was swept in the second round. They're clearly built to change that. For fantasy, the question is simple: how many shots are there to go around?
- Usage crunch: four players who are used to being first or second options can't all keep their old volume. Someone's counting stats come down. Expect efficiency to rise and raw volume to dip across the board.
- Maxey: as the primary ball handler, he's the most likely to keep his role intact — but his scoring volume is the most likely to take a haircut with Brown and LeBron arriving.
- LeBron: in his 24th season, minutes management is the variable. A contender has every reason to keep him fresh for April. That makes him a better DFS play on nights he's confirmed in than a season-long cornerstone.
- Embiid: when he plays, he's still a fantasy monster. With more talent around him, the team can afford to rest him — which helps his health but hurts your games-played total.
The schedule makers noticed, too. Philadelphia opens at New York on opening night, the night the Knicks celebrate their 2025-26 title, and LeBron faces the Lakers on Christmas Day.
The Other Moves That Matter
Giannis to Miami, Herro to Milwaukee
On June 22, the Bucks sent Giannis Antetokounmpo and Bobby Portis to Miami for Tyler Herro, Kel'el Ware, Jaime Jaquez Jr., Kasparas Jakučionis and a stack of picks. Giannis's role doesn't change much — he'll be the hub anywhere he goes. The fantasy action is in Milwaukee, where Herro looks like the lead scorer and Ware should get a real shot at a starting big's minutes.
Boston after Jaylen
Paul George moves into Brown's spot in Boston. The Celtics open the season at Detroit on opening night. For fantasy, Brown's departed shots are the opportunity — watch the preseason to see who's taking them.
LaMelo in Minnesota, Morant in Portland
LaMelo Ball and Josh Green went to the Timberwolves on June 25, with Naz Reid heading to Charlotte. Ja Morant was traded to Portland on June 29. Both are high-usage guards landing on new teams — the kind of situation that produces both early-season value and early-season frustration while rotations settle.
Dybantsa in Washington
The Wizards took AJ Dybantsa first overall. The 6-foot-9 wing led the country with 25.5 points per game at BYU. He joins Trae Young on a team that went 17-65 last season. Bad team, big role, top pick: that's the classic rookie fantasy setup. Draft him as a volume play, not an efficiency play.
| Move | Fantasy Winner | Fantasy Watch |
|---|---|---|
| Kawhi to Toronto | Brandon Ingram (LAC usage) | Kawhi games played; Barnes volume |
| LeBron to Philadelphia | Sixers' efficiency | Maxey, Brown volume; LeBron minutes |
| Giannis to Miami | Tyler Herro (MIL usage) | Kel'el Ware role |
| Jaylen Brown to Philadelphia | Celtics' remaining scorers | Paul George fit |
| Dybantsa to Washington | Dybantsa (volume) | Rookie efficiency |
How to Draft Around All This
In a summer with this much movement, the edge isn't predicting every role perfectly. It's knowing which situations are stable and which aren't.
- Pay for stable roles early. Players whose teams barely changed — or who are the unquestioned top option — carry less draft risk than stars sharing the ball for the first time.
- Take volume shots late. Rebuilding teams like the Clippers and Wizards will hand out minutes. Late-round players with clear paths to 30 minutes are worth more than talented players stuck behind stars.
- Discount the superteam. Philadelphia may be the most talented team in the East. That doesn't make every Sixer a great fantasy pick. Shared usage is a real cost.
- Use the preseason. Opening night is still a month away. Starting lineups and closing lineups in preseason games are the best free information you'll get.
Dates to Circle
The 2026-27 schedule gives fantasy players a few early checkpoints worth planning around:
- Tuesday, October 20 — opening night. Boston visits Detroit, Philadelphia visits New York and Oklahoma City visits San Antonio. That's a first look at the Celtics without Jaylen Brown and the Sixers with him and LeBron together.
- October 30 through December 11 — the NBA Cup. The in-season tournament adds a run of high-stakes games early in the year, so expect contenders to lean on their stars more than a normal November would suggest.
- Christmas Day. LeBron faces the Lakers. By then, you'll know how Philadelphia is splitting the ball — and so will DFS pricing.
The first two weeks are when roles get set and prices are softest. Pay the most attention then, and adjust fast.
Pick'em vs. DFS This Season
Seasons like this one reward flexibility. You don't have to settle every question in a September draft — you can play the NBA night by night.
On Underdog, Pick'em lets you take a side on individual player projections. That's a clean way to act on a usage read. If you think Ingram becomes the Clippers' go-to scorer, or that a Sixer's volume drops with LeBron and Brown around, a points projection is the most direct way to express it. And if you're already on Underdog for football, adding NBA picks is a low-friction step.
On DraftKings, salary-cap DFS lets you play around the uncertainty entirely. You don't need to know how often LeBron rests — you only need to know whether he's playing tonight. Early in the season, prices are set before roles settle, and that's where value shows up. Our best NBA DFS site breakdown and late-swap guide cover how to handle nightly lineup news.
Either way, keep the stakes small in the first few weeks. Opening-week lines and prices are built on last season and a summer of guesses — see our 1% bankroll rule.
The Bottom Line
Kawhi's return to Toronto closes the book on a wild summer, and the fantasy picture is clearer than the headlines suggest. Teams that added stars — Toronto, Philadelphia, Miami — gain efficiency but create usage questions. Teams that lost stars — the Clippers, Milwaukee, Boston — create opportunity.
Draft the opportunity. Be careful with the superteams. And remember that a month of preseason is still to come before anything counts on October 20.