Sep 19, 2024, 08:00 AM ET
We gathered our fantasy basketball experts together and asked each of them which five players they wanted to make sure they drafted this season.
The findings give an indication of who some of the most coveted fantasy players and value picks might be in your drafts.
Those players you see on numerous lists below? That could be a sign that the demand is high and you might need to go a round (or two) higher to land them.
Andre Snellings’ five guys
Scottie Barnes has a tremendous opportunity for even more production this season. Petre Thomas-USA TODAY Sports
Victor Wembanyama, C, San Antonio Spurs: The kid has no ceiling. If you told me he would average 30 PPG and 15 RPG this season, I could believe it. Five blocks and 2.5 steals per game? Sure. Six assists and three 3-pointers? I could see it. Nikola Jokic has rightfully been the top player in fantasy hoops for the past three seasons, but if I had the top pick in a fantasy hoops draft, I’d be hard pressed not to take Wembanyama this time around.
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Scottie Barnes, SG/SF/PF, Toronto Raptors: Barnes broke out of his sophomore slump with a big third season and the Raptors rewarded him by remaking the team in his image. With all of the veteran producers shipped out of town, the Raptors have given Barnes the keys to be one of the biggest offensive engines in the NBA this season.
LaMelo Ball, PG, Charlotte Hornets: Two years ago at this time, I had Ball as a breakout top-10 fantasy hoops prospect going into his third season. He has dealt with horrible injury absences for those two seasons, and his star has fallen. But the potential is still there, and if I can get him on my team a few rounds into the draft, I’m very happy to have that kind of upside.
Cam Thomas, SG, Brooklyn Nets: In his role as a super-sixth-man-sometimes-starter for the Nets, Thomas has shown he has 30 points in him on any given night. The question this season: Can he scale up with a larger usage role and score those 30 on a night-in and night-out basis? I think there’s a legit possibility that he can, and his explosive scoring upside makes for both strong fantasy hoops potential as well as very entertaining season-long viewing.
Amen Thompson, SF/PF, Houston Rockets: Amen was extremely impressive in his Las Vegas Summer League debut last year — for most of a game until he sprained an ankle. He never seemed to fully recover last season, and his production was limited. Meanwhile, his twin brother, Ausar, had an impressive rookie season for the Pistons. I look for Amen to bounce back in a big way as a sophomore, and potentially develop into an impact fantasy hoops performer.
Eric Moody’s five guys
Jalen Duren enters his third NBA season after seeing his minutes and numbers increase in 2023-24. Rick Osentoski-USA TODAY Sports
Victor Wembanyama, C, San Antonio Spurs: Wemby is only the fourth player in league history to finish a season with 1,500 points, 250 assists and 250 blocks. Even though he’s the third player off the board in ESPN Fantasy leagues right now, I wouldn’t hesitate to take him No. 1 overall. If he falls past No. 3, it’s like the holidays came early.
LaMelo Ball, PG, Charlotte Hornets: Ball has been limited to just 58 games over the past two seasons because of recurring ankle injuries, but he still averaged 23.9 PPG and 8.0 APG last season. Ball has the potential to outperform his ADP, and I’m comfortable taking him where he’s going in drafts.
Jalen Duren, C, Detroit Pistons: Duren will turn 21 years old soon but is only scratching the surface of his potential. Last season, he averaged 13.8 PPG, 11.6 RPG and 0.8 BPG in 29.1 MPG. Duren has serious All-Star potential, and the fantasy upside could be huge if he starts getting more than 30 minutes a game.
Jonathan Kuminga, PF, Golden State Warriors: Kuminga wrapped up last season with a career-high 16.1 PPG and 4.8 RPG. The soon-to-be 22-year-old is primed for a breakout year, especially with the Warriors moving forward without Klay Thompson.
Jaime Jaquez Jr., SG/SF, Miami Heat: Jaquez is a solid Sixth Man of the Year contender, averaging 11.9 PPG, 3.8 RPG, and 2.6 APG last season. With Caleb Martin gone, the second-year player has a strong foundation to build on and could see increased minutes for the Heat.
Eric Karabell’s five guys
After a disappointing first season in Milwaukee, Damian Lillard could be a good fantasy value in year two. Kamil Krzaczynski-USA TODAY Sports
Jalen Johnson, PF, Atlanta Hawks: His third NBA season seems like a breakout, but Johnson is capable of far more for a team needing his numbers, like perhaps a 20-point, 10-rebound campaign.
Damian Lillard, PG, Milwaukee Bucks: Year 1 in Milwaukee wasn’t ideal, and we expected a drop in usage, but things should improve. This is a wonderful Round 3 selection.
Editor’s Picks
2 Related
Bam Adebayo, C, Miami Heat: Other centers score, board and block more, but Adebayo has a five-year stretch of security and excellence. Not every pick has to improve on prior seasons.
Brook Lopez, C, Milwaukee Bucks: Lopez is an annual bargain, and a perfect late pick yet again. He finished top-50 in points formats and 28th in roto/categories. What more must he do?
Scoot Henderson, PG, Portland Trail Blazers: Give a kid a break. Scoot made great strides late last season, when he turned 20, and he should score and pass enough to easily be a top-75 fantasy player.
Steve Alexander’s five guys
Luka Doncic’s numbers have improved every season he’s been in the NBA. Brett Davis-USA TODAY Sports
Luka Doncic, PG, Dallas Mavericks: He’s my guy. Dallas got to the Finals and Luka is still piling up points, rebounds, assists and 3-pointers at an alarming rate, and was also solid in free throw shooting, steals and blocks last season. If I can’t get Victor Wemanyama at No. 1, I want Luka at No. 2 or 3.
Jalen Williams, PF, Oklahoma City Thunder: He was good to me last year in OKC and he’s only going to get better. He helped me in a lot of leagues last season and should do even more this time. If SGA wasn’t in his way, the kid would be an absolute monster.
Scottie Barnes, SG/SF/PF, Toronto Raptors: He played in only 60 games last season but averaged almost 20 points, eight rebounds, six assists, 1.7 triples, 1.3 steals and 1.5 blocks. I can’t get enough of Barnes this draft season.
Trae Young, PG, Atlanta Hawks: Dejounte Murray is gone and this should be a bit of a revenge tour for Ice Trae. He should come in ticked off and ready to produce as the alpha in Atlanta, assuming Jalen Johnson doesn’t steal that role from him. He should be a value pick for the first time in his career.
Cam Thomas, SG, Brooklyn Nets: The Nets are terrible and in a hard rebuild, but we know that Thomas is going to get all the minutes and shots he can handle. He’s one of the reasons I won 30 Deep (a 30-team industry league) last season, and I owe it to him to try it again. If nothing else, we know he’s going to score a ton of points.
Jim McCormick’s five guys
New Trail Blazers forward Deni Avdija can score in a variety of ways. Matt Blewett-USA TODAY Sports
Deni Avdija, SF/PF, Portland Trail Blazers: I can see why Portland paid a premium to get Avdija on the roster this past summer; he’s a rising do-it-all combo forward who in his age-23 season just flashed massive growth as a three-level scorer while also proving adept on defense and efficient on the glass. A multi-category star could emerge.
Devin Vassell, SG/SF, San Antonio Spurs: Despite struggling with injuries to open the season, Vassell finished at an elite 68% clip at the rim and posted over five dimes per game after the break. Chris Paul‘s arrival to organize the offense only adds to his potentially special scoring efficiency.
Trey Murphy III, SG/SF, New Orleans Pelicans: Even if Brandon Ingram remains with the team throughout the campaign, Murphy remains an ascendant 3-and-D talent worthy of our attention. The Pelicans will need his volume shooting and versatile defense in lineups with Zion Williamson, while the prospect of starring in a post-Ingram rotation could vault Murphy into an entirely new tier of production.
Brandon Miller, SG/SF, Charlotte Hornets: New coach Charles Lee envisions Miller as the alpha scorer in his offensive scheme. It’s easy to see why; Miller’s brilliant finish to his rookie season included real growth as a slasher and shooter. Could we be looking at the next PG3?
Ausar Thompson, SF/PF, Detroit Pistons: While his twin, Amen, enjoyed a robust role as a rookie in Houston, Ausar Thompson struggled to find steady minutes in Motown. With the potential to provide elite defensive rates and atypically strong rebounding results for his position, Thompson is an easy click later in drafts.
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