ESPN Senior Writer Zach Lowe published his annual NBA League Pass Rankings a week ago (here's part 1 and part 2), evaluating the watchability levels of teams in the association, taking into account style, strategy, highlight reel plays and more.
Fantasy basketball managers, of course, care about all NBA teams statistically, even the bad and unwatchable ones, and I found this topic compelling as I continue investing in... Washington Wizards.
You see, Lowe ranked the Wizards 30th out of 30 teams in his rankings. While I find it tough to argue in the big picture, I will be paying rather close attention for fantasy purposes! Name a modestly relevant Wizard and chances are I have already invested for deeper leagues.
One would think I am related to their new PG Tyus Jones, or have his rookie basketball card, for all the fantasy teams I have him on. Perhaps because other fantasy managers ignore the boring, unwatchable, lottery bound Wizards is how I was able to invest so responsibly.
After all, Jones was on several of my deep-league fantasy teams last season because, in his 22 games starting for controversial Memphis Grizzlies PG Ja Morant, he averaged 16.4 PPG, 8.1 APG and 1.8 SPG over 33.1 MPG. Once a real-life first-round pick from Duke and now in his ninth NBA season, Jones has started 94 of 535 career games, never more than 23 in a season. That changes this season! Jones may or may not average 16 and 8 regularly, but if he does, it will make me quite pleased.
There's more and no, I do not think about watchability when I invest in fantasy options. This is about their statistics.
SG/PG Jordan Poole, the former Golden State Warriors sixth man, is the lone Wizard going in the first five rounds of ESPN standard live drafts. Poole is going to score a ton of traditional and fantasy points this season, perhaps as many as he desires.
He seems intent to prove a point. He probably will!
However, Poole is going in the third round of drafts, and while I mix in some points formats with my long-time roto leagues -- dinosaur! -- I do pay attention to all-around statistical prowess. Poole may average 30 PPG here, but he may not provide much else, so I haven't invested at his lofty cost. It's mainly because of the other options I prefer in the early rounds a bit more.
PF/SF Kyle Kuzma and Jones go in the sixth round, on average, but that is it for the top 100. That's where C/PF Daniel Gafford comes in. Gafford likely gets passed over in fantasy leagues because potential investors are hardly wowed by his averaging 9 PPG and 5.6 RPG last season. Then again, Gafford, to some degree similar to Jones, was better as a starter, averaging 10.8 PPG, 6.4 RPG and 1.4 BPG, while shooting 73% from the field and 71.9% from the line, over his 47 starts. Look at those numbers, not the overall ones skewed by then-teammate, now-Celtic Kristaps Porzingis having his career year.
There's a bit more. SF/PF Deni Avdija, recipient of a four-year contract extension this week, should finally break out in his fourth season. Avdija had a nice stretch in late-March in which he saw more than 30 minutes per night, and he responded with 15 or more traditional points in each game (averaging 18.4 PPG, 9.6 RPG and 5.4 APG in that span), while shooting 63% from the field, even with myriad 3-pointers.
There is upside here, though the Wizards may start teenage lottery pick Bilal Coulibaly, a teammate of Victor Wembanyama in France. Coulibaly is raw, but he should impact defensively right away.
Finally, I like to protect shooting percentages in my leagues, roto and head-to-head, and SF/SG Corey Kispert, the Gonzaga product in his third season, shoots well. He hit 49% of field goals and 85% of free throws last season. Only 34 players hit more 3-pointers, and Utah Jazz PF Lauri Markkanen was the only one of them to shoot better from the field. That matters to me, regardless of format.
Are the Wizards going to qualify for the playoffs? It seems rather unlikely. Are they the least watchable team in the league? I suppose if I say no that I would have to justify a replacement squad there, right?
The Detroit Pistons do not interest me much but, then again, I haven't invested in PG/SG Cade Cunningham and C Jalen Duren. Brooklyn seems quite boring other than Mikal Bridges, but then again, I have a problem with their diva PG/PF du jour, the former 76er (I won't type his name). What about the Orlando Magic and Charlotte Hornets? How many of their players can you name?
OK, so the Wizards may not be so watchable this season, for whatever reason. As a fantasy basketball manager, however, I will watch. I'll watch 'em all. Have a great fantasy basketball season!
Other fantasy hoops thoughts
Apologies for giving away the ending, but Lowe went with the Bucks as his most watchable team. Adding Damian Lillard to a team with Giannis Antetokounmpo does tend to make things quite appealing. I still think C Brook Lopez can mostly replicate his fantastic season from last year, though, giving him supreme fantasy value based on expectations. It happened because he blocked shots and hit 3-pointers. He'll do that again! The player to watch that nobody is talking about may be PG Cameron Payne. It may be similar to Tyus Jones last season because when Lillard sits, Payne will get assists.
PG/SG James Harden -- whoops, I should not have typed his name! -- is figuratively holding the Philadelphia 76ers hostage, and I do not know when he is going to play for the team, if ever again. I believe there will be no trade to the LA Clippers or anywhere else anytime soon, certainly not in the calendar year 2023. The 76ers just need to make the playoffs. They can do that sans Harden. Where would I draft Harden this week in fantasy? I don't think I want to invest at all. I kept him in one league, but I had little choice. He's still valuable -- when he plays -- but this is like assuming someone injured for the next two months returns by Christmas. What if it lasts until February?
I added Chicago Bulls PG/SG Coby White to a fantasy roster for insurance after seeing that San Antonio Spurs PG Tre Jones (the younger brother of Tyus!) will come off the bench, and obviously it should affect his numbers. Do I really want White on a team? I am not too worried about his field goal shooting, but he has averaged fewer than 3 APG in three of his four seasons. In 2020-21, he averaged 4.8 APG. He's not really a point guard, doesn't get steals and rarely gets to the free throw line, but let's keep an eye on him this week.
The Rockets open with the Magic and Spurs, and I want to see how second-year PF/C Jabari Smith Jr. emerges as a bigger piece of the offense. Smith was too passive for most of his rookie season, but by March he was averaging more than 15 PPG on 12 field goal attempts. This is a candidate for the Most Improved Player Award and he remains available in 25% of ESPN standard leagues.