Undervalued Guards - 2021-22 Fantasy Basketball Draft Values

If you are a long-time fantasy player, you know how does it feel to getting sniped in a fantasy draft. You know how it goes: you enter the lobby with a few players to draft in mind, have everything planned for you to build the perfect roster, and just a couple of picks before the one where you expect to target your next great asset, some other GM snatches it from you.

Those "undervalued" players you are targeting late, then, might be worth drafting earlier instead of waiting a little too much for them and ending losing them. At the end of the day, not every GM is undervaluing great plays, so you have to be aware and stay a step ahead!

Today, let's talk about some undervalued players at the guard position. For whatever reason most fantasy GMs are making them sit at lower-than-they-should ADPs, offering you a great chance to draft some gems late. Don't sleep on your laurels, though, if you don't want to miss on them to another savvy GM!

Malcolm Brogdon, Indiana Pacers

I'm not saying it will happen, but it could happen. The news out there talks about Indiana getting into the Ben Simmons drama, with Brogdon being a potential sweetener of that deal. Obviously, Brogdon pairing with Embiid would probably boost the point numbers, but let's not get ahead of ourselves and take Brogdon for what he is these days: a Pacer. And there is nothing to hate about that, if you ask me. Brogdon is coming off a top-25 season among guards in 2021 and his 1.14 FP/min ranked as high as the 14th-best among players at the position (min. 800 MP). Brogdon played an insane 34.5 MPG for Indy last season in his 56 games, but the team suffered tons of injuries and it is not that Brog could do a lot in such a bad environment. We'll see how things go in terms of health for the Pacers this season, but there is nothing scaring me off drafting Brogdon at his "low" 56+ ADP.  Brogdon contributes all across the board (21-5-6-1 with very a very low 2.1 TOV per game) and is a lock to rack up playing time all year long--whether that is in Indy, Philly, or anywhere else.

Kevin Porter Jr., Houston Rockets

The latest "consensus" information I've gathered about KPJ's role for the Rockets entering the 2022 season is that of the starting PG. Not bad. Not crazy. At all. Houston took advantage of a silly feud between player and team last year in Cleveland and traded peanuts in exchange for KPJ, who couldn't have looked better donning Rockets threads. KPJ is getting completely forgotten by most fantasy GMs to the point he's getting drafted outside of the top-150 picks in Yahoo drafts--if drafted at all. Porter played 26 games last season (23 starts) averaging 32.1 MPG and some above-average 1.01 FP/min translating from a neat 16-4-6 per-game line to which he added 1.0 stocks a pop. The turnovers were high at 3.5 per game, but they call it "growing pains" for a reason. KPJ also proved his worth at leading the ball-handling duties with the 11th-highest AST% of G-eligible players last season (31.2%) beating the likes of Shai, Conley, Kyrie, and Donovan Mitchell among others.

Dennis Schroder, Boston Celtics

Schroder reportedly passed on filling his BAG, but ultimately got to fill his bag after signing with the Celtics. We'll see what happens with Schroder's role this season, as there is no clear or obvious decision there for new HC Ime Udoka to make. Even on a "bad" season last year with the Lakers starting all 61 games he was part of, Schroder was able to finish as the 68th-best fantasy player overall and 32nd-best guard. He's getting drafted with a 117+ ADP these days and he is currently the 51st guard off draft boards. Talk about a steal. Schroder could get back to off-the-pine duties backing up starting PG Marcus Smart in Boston. Not a problem considering his best days in OKC came precisely while taking on such a role. Schroder was one of only 11 guards to close the 2021 campaign with an average baseline of 15-3-5-1 per game, yet he's getting drafted only above John Wall (sitting out until he's waived or gets traded) among those in that group.

RJ Barrett, New York Knicks

Year three for Barrett after growing his game non-stop for seasons years already. I just don't get the hate Barrett gets some days... but I guess his ADP proves there are tons of fantasy GMs still not believing in RJ's upside. While Barrett wasn't incredible on a per-minute/efficiency basis posting up a league-average 0.90 FP/min for the Knicks last year, the truth is that he got played a ridiculously high 34.9 MPG, and that was always going to make it hard for him to stay productive for such long stretches of play. Barrett was a top-45 player as a sophomore already, and he finished 2021 as the 20th-best guard. His current ADP? 91+ overall and G44. RJ righted his three-point shooting ranking 8th in 3P% (.401) among guards attempting at least 4 3PA per game. The combination of 5.8 RPG + 3.0 APG put Barrett in a select group of guards logging 14+ PPG, 5+ RPG, and 3+ APG made of Jaylen Brown, Ben Simmons, LeBron, Harden, and Westbrook along with RJ.

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