Impact of big names on new teams

There has been a lot of movement in this year’s offseason and a lot of key players leaving teams they have been on their entire careers.

Some of the best performers from last season are currently on a different roster – or still unsigned — in 2023.

That includes:

• 5 of the Top 20 leaders in PPG last season.

• 7 of the Top 20 leaders in APG last season.

• 7 of the Top 20 leads in RPG last season.

The list of high-profile players who have changed teams includes Breanna Stewart, Candace Parker, Jonquel Jones and Courtney Vandersloot. But with so many big-name fantasy players switching teams how could this impact their production this season?

New York is loaded

The Liberty have added the top scorer from last season (Stewart), the 2nd-leader in assists last year (Vandersloot) and a Top 5 rebounder (Jones) from 2022. All of this on top of having Sabrina Ionescu who led New York herself in scoring and assists.

Breanna Stewart, F (39.1 projected fantasy PPG)

When it comes to Stewart, joining a team with other super stars shouldn’t impact her numbers too much, if at all. She was the leading scorer in all six career seasons with the Storm averaging 18+ PPG in each year. She’s versatile and can play with just about anyone.

A great example is when the Storm added Tina Charles (2021 leading scorer) to the roster midseason last year. It barely impacted Stewart’s production. She still averaged 21.6 PPG, 7.5 APG, 2.5 APG, and 1.9 3-pt FG per game after the addition of Charles (22.0 PPG, 7.6 RPG, 3.3 APG, 2.0 3-pt FG per game).

If you are looking for someone to draft with your first pick, I wouldn’t worry about Stewart’s numbers being affected; she will still be one of the highest scoring fantasy players in the league.

Courtney Vandersloot, G (26.6 projected fantasy PPG)

The four-time All-Star, Vandersloot is joining a new roster for the first time in her career and she’s joining a team who already had an All-Star point guard in Ionescu.

The good news for Vandersloot is that Ionescu played well off ball as a catch and shoot player last season. Ionescu averaged 1.09 points per play on catch and shoot plays compared to just 0.86 off the dribble, according to Synergy.

This means the Vandersloot can assume the point guard position and focus on facilitating, similar to her roll when she was with the Sky. This also means that Ionescu could still be an elite fantasy player and focus more on rebounding and scoring instead of being the primary facilitator.

Jonquel Jones, F (31.3 projected fantasy PPG)

The 2021 MVP’s numbers were down last season and a lot of that was due to playing on a team with a lot of talent surrounding her. She was on a team with four other career All-Stars, which meant the Sun had to use a more balanced scoring attack, reducing Jones’ productivity. This year’s Liberty team has a lot of talent as well, and this could cause her productivity to be similar to last season.

Other notables in new places

Candace Parker, F, Las Vegas Aces (32.0 projected fantasy PPG)

The two-time MVP will most likely take the spot of Dearica Hamby in the Aces’ starting lineup. This is great news for A’ja Wilson because Parker is a better 3-point shooter than Hamby and will force the defense to stretch out to give Wilson more one-on-one matchups in the post and mid-range. Parker is also a better facilitator, which could help getting Wilson more touches in her spots. I see Wilson having another monster year.

The Aces roster from last season not only had three players averaging 15+ PPG, but also three players averaging 3+ APG. Because of depth in scoring and facilitating on this squad among the starting lineup, Parker’s numbers could be negatively impacted. It could take some time for her to figure out her role since the Aces already have so many stars who are familiar with their roles from last season.

Natasha Howard, F, Dallas Wings (31.9 projected fantasy PPG)

Howard was the 2nd-leading scorer on the Liberty last season and was traded to the Wings this offseason. She is joining a roster with one of the best shooting guards in the league in Arike Ogunbowale and a true center in Teaira McCowan. This could impact her scoring numbers negatively. But she could make up for that with her rebounding since four of the six top rebounders from last year are no longer on the Wings roster. I would expect her fantasy numbers to take a slight dip with this team.

Marina Mabrey, G, Chicago Sky (29.3 projected fantasy PPG)

Mabrey was traded to the Sky in the offseason and this could be one of the best moves the Sky made. It also could be a perfect role for Mabrey, who is a great 3-point shooter. Chicago needed a 3-point threat since they lost 71% of their 3-point production from last season. I expect Mabrey to put up career numbers this year and be one of the league leaders in 3-pointers made.

Allisha Gray, G, Atlanta Dream (27.6 projected fantasy PPG)

Gray is joining a very young Atlanta team and she brings some experience to this roster. She will help replace Tiffany Hayes, the 2nd-leading scorer from their team last season. The Dream’s offense struggled in 2022, averaging 78.5 PPG (11th in league), and Gray’s experience and offensive prowess could be utilized a lot more on this roster.

Tiffany Hayes, G, Connecticut Sun (26.6 projected fantasy PPG)

Hayes could be a great addition to the Sun, who had no one scoring more than 15+ PPG last season. Connecticut also lost guard Courtney Williams in free agency, but this could be a perfect fit for Hayes since she is an elite scoring guard who can fill in that spot. She also is a three-point threat which the Sun needed considering they averaged just 6.4 threes per game in 2022 (11th in the league). She could be a player that has a breakout season with this Connecticut squad.

Courtney Williams, G, Chicago Sky (24.2 projected fantasy PPG)

Williams signed with a depleted Sky team in the offseason. Chicago needs offense considering four of their five leading scorers from last season did not return for 2023. This means that Williams could have a great opportunity to be a primary scorer for this team which she didn’t have last year with the stacked Sun.

Dearica Hamby, F, Los Angeles Sparks

Hamby was traded by the Aces to the Sparks this offseason and she will be coming back from giving birth to her son in March. There is no timetable for Hamby’s return to play this season, but she is expected to return. You could possibly add her to your roster later in the season and she could be a great role player to have. She will be playing alongside an elite forward in Nneka Ogwumike. Hamby is used to playing with great forwards since she’s played with A’ja Wilson over the last five seasons and she’s averaged 10.2 PPG, 6.4 RPG, 1.7 APG, and 1.1 SPG over that span.