I've noticed that some of the better teams in my league spend very little on Advanced Scouting but always seem to do very well in making trades. What gives with this? Is there a strategy here?

Some owners are very good at reading a player's progression over a couple of seasons and extrapolating what their final ratings are likely to be. There are other clues that you can use to tip you off on a prospect's quality as well (like draft position or IFA bonus, though these are far from perfect). I still like to use some advanced scouting because I think it prevents me from making a crucial misjudgement, and it allows me to scan for worthwhile prospects more easily. But it's up to an owner's personal preference.

It's all about comfort level.

For me, I'm not interested in a lot of rebuilding. So I'm not going to do a lot of trading for prospects. So I don't need ADV to judge YOUR prospects. I know how much I spend on prospect scouting. I know how I develop players. So I don't need ADV to evaluate MY prospects. So why would I need ADV?

For others, they're always trading for young players. So, if you're doing that, you have to know how much your trade partner spends on prospects scouting AND know he uses it well. If he's willing to deal a HOT PROSPECT, did he screw one up? And, if you're trading for 3rd year players, you need to know how your trade partner develops players. This person needs ADV(in my opinion).

Thanks. Those posts were helpful.