Rookie sensations Bradman Best and Matt Burton have caught the attention of NRL Fantasy coaches after both producing back-to-back bumper scores, but are they the real deal or have you missed the boat?
My answers on those players plus Blayke Bailey, Zac Lomax, Isaah Yeo, dual-position updates and more below.
This week's big questions
Is it too late to bring in Bradman Best?
From Alessandro Tilocca
The short answer is no. I wasn't confident last week that the Knights teenager would be able to back up his round 3 score of 65 against a red-hot Raiders team, but he exceeded expectations with a massive 87-point bonanza featuring two tries, two try assists, 24 tackles, six tackle busts and 166 metres.
His price may have ballooned up to $474k already but if he scores a couple of 30s in the next two rounds he's projected to jump another $100k; if he hits three scores of 40 he'll climb to $620k in three weeks.
Short term he's very likely to make money, long term he's a decent chance of being a keeper or at least an 18th man covering CTR and WFB.
Is it worth trading Lomax to Best given the uncertainty at the Dragons and Best’s money making and point scoring potential?
From Anthony Hall
Zac Lomax has been surprisingly consistent as a scorer despite playing at fullback, wing and centre, and his two games at centre have produced scores of 41 and 39 without any tries or assists. Any player who can average 40 or better is a keeper in the centres. I'll be holding Lomax personally (like Best, he also covers WFB and CTR) so see if there's another way you can bring Best in.
Is Yeo still the best pick up for under $800k even though he only played 59 mins last week and there are players like Twal, Arrow, Munster and both Trbojevic brothers?
From Sebastian Chase
Yeah I think so. I grabbed Yeo last week and had no concerns about his score of 56 in 59 minutes against the Warriors. That game was a short five-day turnaround after Penrith's marathon draw with Newcastle, in which Yeo played the full 90 minutes, so it was no surprise to see Ivan Cleary give Yeo a rest when the Panthers established an early lead against the Warriors. Expect to see him play big minutes on a regular basis.
I've got Williame but I'm low on spare cash and no backup centres. Thinking of trading out Blayke Brailey for either Best or Stephen Crichton. Is this a good idea and if so which centre should I go for? I've already got Capewell as my other centre.
From Bryce Liam Callanan
Good trade. Brailey still has some money to make but Best and Crichton should have more, and they also cover the trickier CTR/WFB positions. A week ago I'd have said save the money and get Crichton but I'd be going Best at this stage.
When is the next round of position updates? My boy Aloiai needs that dual FRF
From Shane Stobie
The next batch of dual position player updates will kick in after round 6, with the final updates to arrive after round 12.
It’s not too late to have the Best
Is Lindsay Collins worth a look?
From Tea Manuel
I don't think so. Collins is a promising bench forward for the Roosters and his minutes have increased this season, but his 85-point haul against the Broncos looks very much a one-off.
The Tricolours lapped Brisbane in that game and could afford to rest their experienced forwards more than usual, giving Collins 55 minutes – the only time he's played more than 45 minutes in his career. He also scored a rare try and notched career highs for run metres (272, previous best 143) and tackle breaks (7, previous best 3).
At $437k he's getting close to Bradman Best's price tag but unlike Best I can't see Collins busting out monster scores too often this year. But I have been wrong before…
Obviously Burton isn't going to be a keeper with Cleary back and him being bumped to the bench. However I need cash to get Haas and am not too worried about trades. How much do think he could make from here on if he scores 10 to 20 each week off the bench?
From Rhys Morrison
After scores of 69 and 86, Matt Burton's break even is a ridiculous -39 this week, but even so you ideally want him playing the full 80 minutes if you're going to spend $421k on a half.
If he scores 20 points off the bench he's projected to climb $90k to $511k in a couple of weeks, before quickly losing value. In an ideal world you'd want to earn about $150k or more from each cash cow.
Of course if he ends up outplaying Jarome Luai enough to earn the No.6 jersey full-time, Burton could earn significantly more than that – but I wouldn't be expecting too many massive scores alongside a dominant playmaker like Nathan Cleary.
