Fan base reactions to the biggest NBA trades of this season!
Every NBA season brings surprises, but few shake the core of fandom like a blockbuster trade. Fans across the globe rush to express joy, confusion, or sometimes, seething rage when their favorite players swap jerseys. To capture this whirlwind of emotions, the team at RotoGrinders took a digital stroll through NBA’s finest hangouts—the team subreddits for Lakers, Warriors, Raptors, Spurs, Kings, Bucks, Wizards, and Hornets.
We analyzed a hefty 28,380 comments where fans spilled the beans on how they feel about specific player trades. By using sentiment analysis on comments containing player names, we aimed to understand whether the trades were embraced with open arms or met with skepticism and eye rolls.
Luka Doncic – The Most Negative Fan Reaction!
Luka Dončić and Jusuf Nurkić might want to re-think their social media strategy because their trade news created a tidal wave of salty fan reactions. Leading the storm, Luka found his name tied to negativity in 53.6% of the comments. No gentle dabbing here; fans seemed to be handing out tissues with razors!
Similarly, Nurkić felt the chill with 53.1% of his mentions tainted with dissatisfaction. It’s as if the great Reddit elders had decided where these players would stand on the emotional thermometer.
| Player | Negative Comments | Positive Comments | Grand Total | Negative % | Positive % |
| Luka Doncic | 4647 | 4024 | 8671 | 53.6 | 46.4 |
| Jusuf Nurkic | 138 | 122 | 260 | 53.1 | 46.9 |
| Zach LaVine | 1935 | 1981 | 3916 | 45.2 | 54.8 |
| Kyle Kuzma | 870 | 929 | 1799 | 46.6 | 53.4 |
| Jimmy Butler | 3428 | 3923 | 7351 | 48.4 | 51.6 |
| De’Aaron Fox | 1870 | 2267 | 4137 | 49.4 | 50.6 |
| Khris Middleton | 129 | 216 | 345 | 37.4 | 62.6 |
| Brandon Ingram | 645 | 1256 | 1901 | 33.9 | 66.1 |
| Grand Total | 13662 | 14718 | 28380 | 48.1 | 51.9 |
Brandon Ingram – The Most Positive Fan Reaction!
On the brighter side, Brandon Ingram basked in the warmth of 66.1% positivity. Khris Middleton wasn’t far behind, receiving a nod of approval from 62.6% of fans. Meanwhile, players like De’Aaron Fox and Jimmy Butler found themselves straddling more balanced shores between love and critique.
Overall, Reddit seemed to walk a fine line with slightly more love than hate—51.9% to 48.1%. It’s a duel for the ages, but positivity (barely) came out ahead.
While Doncic changing teams might impact his performance, DFS players can use the NBA optimizer to see how this former Mavs star now fits into their entries.
Methodology
To better understand the shifting sands of fandom, we employed a sentiment analysis of comments crammed with player names across the following NBA subreddits:
- Lakers
- Warriors
- Raptors
- Spurs
- Kings
- Bucks
- Wizards
- Hornets
This data collection covered 28,380 comments since the trade deadline—we only analyzed comments containing the name of the relevant player, in the according team subreddit.
And regardless of whether their teams were affected by this year’s newsworthy trades, NBA fantasy fans should check out these Prizepicks promo code and Underdog Fantasy promo code pages.
Image Credit: Mariano Garcia / Alamy Stock Photo