Art of the Trade
Your sure-fire way to get the most out of any trade this fantasy season
Trading is one of the most intricate and enjoyable aspects of fantasy football. A single deal could change your season from bottom of the barrel; to running the show, but the opposite is also quite possible. In this guide you will learn how to dominate every trade you try to make, and understand how to get the most out of every opportunity.
The Pre-Deal
- Before even starting the trade process you have to pinpoint the right manager to trade with, thinking about the actual person you are trading with can be just as important to making a deal as the players you are sending and receiving. How does this person think about fantasy football, are they a homer for their own team? Do they panic after a few bad games from a player? Maybe they are too stubborn about a player they liked in the offseason…any bit of info you can get about your leaguemates makes all the difference in finding the right partner to trade with.
Approaching the Deal
Once you’ve figured out which manager is the best fit, you move on to the actual trade. There are a few ways you can contact a person to discuss a trade, each has varying degrees of effectiveness…
1. Texting/Email: this is by far the worst way to try and get a trade done with a person, by allowing your opponent to take as much time as they may need to consider the trade, you decrease your chances of successfully completing the trade. Recommended for newer managers as it allows you to mull over your options as well as dive into the stats of players on the trade block.
2. Calling: While better than texting this method still isn’t the best, it has the perk of being one on one and doesn’t give the other person a lot of time to overthink… but it does always allow the person to back away from the deal with the click of a button. This is a good middle ground for veteran managers as well as newer ones, in these kinds of situations you need to have information about the players involved easily accessible to you
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3. In-person/Zoom: Preferable alone, this is by far the best way to try and get a trade done, having it in-person allows for maximum persuasion, almost like a cornered animal this method gives you instant leverage if used with the rest of the trade guide. Recommended for veteran managers, this method is best used when a deal is on the fringe of happening, a true way to seal the deal.
The Deal
After learning the best methods for contacting your trade partner, learn the perfect ways to convince them that the deal is worth making. A trade is meant to benefit both teams, so considering how this can help your trade partner is the most effective way to get a deal done, discuss what they’re needs are and how the players they are receiving will truly benefit their team, doing so helps them forget what they might be giving up or at least soften the blow. Some good methods of doing this include:
1. Looking at players upcoming schedule- playoff team more likely to trade for an RB with better schedule then/Last place team cares more about schedule for the upcoming weeks
2. Discussing holes in their team- and how your trade will remedy those issues
3. Using phrases like “I’m only willing to trading (insert player) because i’m stack at (insert position)
Some more Tips & Tricks
-When actively going out to trade for a specific player, don’t say “I want to trade for (insert player)”, rephrase it as “I want to trade for (insert position)”, asking for a specific player is a mistake that i’ve seen often, the instant leverage gained by knowing a person is targeting a player allows me to jack up the price, but by just mentioning the position your trade partner can’t use the info against you, allowing for a much more reasonable deal to be made.
-Letting your opponent make the first move allows you to understand their range. Offering the first deal forces you to gauge what’s fair for both sides, you don’t know if you are offering more than market price, or if it’s so low that the partner decides to back out of the deal.
-Most managers’ first offer is about 40% of what they are willing to give, the majority of managers can be pushed to about 70%…don’t get too greedy if you’ve reached 60-70% and ask for more.
-One of the biggest mistakes i’ve seen is having “off limit” players, ever player should have an asking price, from Cooper Kupp to Cole Kmet there is a price that any player should be traded for, allowing all players to be on the trading block isn’t even a strategy in my opinion, it’s just the right thing to do.
-Be patient, pouncing on the first deal you see or going out to make a deal for no reason can seriously hurt your team.
So what’s the outcome…
Success
You’ve done it! You’re about to trade for the player(s) that will win you the championship, now in the homestretch the one thing that can’t happen is for the trade to fall through at the last minute, so what’s the solution? To solve the issue of cold feet you keep contact with others minimal until the deal is already accepted. This allows for as little interference from leaguemates as possible.
Failure
The trade couldn’t be made…sadly this happens a good portion of the time but it’s important to stay cool, keeping a level head and being civil about a trade falling through can be difficult at times. Being able to keep all options available is a valuable asset to have, this partner may be able to make a trade two-three weeks after the previous trade fell through, but that can’t happen if you burnt that bridge by getting upset.
Finally
Trading can completely turn a season upside down, a team that hasn’t won a game all season could suddenly become a playoff contender or a last place candidate can save their season with a last minute trade…so being able to outclass your peers in the matter is a big help towards league supremacy. While all of that is true don’t be hasty, do your research and stay on top of the latest news around the league.