X
Lost password?

Don't have an account?
Gain Access Now

X

Receive free daily analysis

NFL
NBA
NHL
NASCAR
CFB
MLB
MMA
PGA
ESPORTS
BETTING

Already have an account? Log In

X

Forgot Password


POPULAR FANTASY TOOLS

Expert Advice
Import Your Leagues
Weekly Rankings
Compare Any Players
Projections
Articles & Tools
Weekly Planner
24x7 News and Alerts

Fantasy Basketball Breakouts, Busts, And Locks - Philadelphia 76ers 2022 Outlook

Welcome to a new series that we are debuting here at RotoBaller in order to start getting you ready for the 2022-2023 fantasy basketball season!

If you play fantasy football, you'll probably recognize the format here as we had a series of preseason NFL articles that followed the same outline. The idea here is to hone in several players from each team that we see as values for the upcoming season or that are possibly being drafted too high this preseason.

In this piece, you'll find a fantasy basketball breakout candidate, a fantasy basketball bust candidate, and a fantasy basketball lock (think steady production and being drafted correctly) for the Philadelphia 76ers based on early ADP for fantasy basketball drafts for the 2022-2023 season. For full transparency; I am a Sixers fan, but you have my word that this is all objective. Be sure to follow me on Twitter (@Maxadelphia) for more fantasy basketball insight (amongst other things).

Be sure to check all of our fantasy football rankings for 2025:

 

Fantasy Basketball Breakout: Tyrese Maxey

Maxey has shown to be one of the most exciting young players in the NBA after taking huge strides last season. A perfect compliment to James Harden (more on him soon), Maxey is one of the quickest players in the NBA and has developed his 3-point shot MASSIVELY from year 1 to year 2 (30.1% in 2021  to 42.7% in 2022) making him a multilevel offensive threat. He's currently going in the 6th round on average, but I think he provides major upside that puts him firmly in the top 50.

I do believe you should plan for a minor regression because shooting 42.7% from 3 is really hard, especially when you're not a spot-up shooter whose only offensive responsibility is to space the floor. However, Maxey has earned himself a reputation as a gym rat, so much so that he needs to be physically removed from the gym by team staff members, so maybe regression is less likely than we would think.

Maxey finished the season averaging 35 minutes per game, averaging 17.5 PPG on 48.5% from the field, the aforementioned 42.7% from 3 on 4.1 attempts per game, 3.2 rebounds, and 4.1 assists per game, and he shot 86.8% from the FT line to round out his offensive outlook. Encouragingly, his productivity increased when the Sixers made the move for Harden. Maxey is a willing defender, but he isn't much of an impact player stats-wise defensively. Maxey should also likely provide huge spike games when one (or both) of Embiid/Harden misses time. I think Maxey is one of the most balanced fantasy options at guard should you miss out on one of the elite PGs early on.

 

Fantasy Basketball Bust: James Harden

So let's establish something right off the bat; James Harden is an exceptional player. He's going to contribute in big ways to this Sixers team that has legitimate title aspirations. *Stephen A. Smith voice* HOWEVER! He is, by definition, a second option to Joel Embiid (more on him shortly), and at his current top 10 - top 15 ADP, I'm not sure I want to be the guy taking Harden.

Harden saw nearly all of his offensive categories take some sort of minor hit, and his overall fantasy points-per-game average dropped a full 2 points after being traded to the Sixers for Ben Simmons, Seth Curry, Andre Drummond, and some picks. These things are to be expected when your usage drops from 28.4% with the Nets to 24.7% for the Sixers. Combine that with the fact the Sixers are a deeper team than they were last year, and the Sixers will undoubtedly try and keep Harden as fresh as possible for the playoffs, and it feels like the stars are aligning for Harden to leave anyone taking him in the top 15 wanting just a little bit more.

I want to be clear in saying that I do still believe in Harden as a player, AND as a fantasy asset, it's just that your first two picks are especially crucial to your team's success. I think there are better options for the 10-15 range, but if Harden is still there towards the back-end of the second, or even the early 3rd somehow, he's absolutely worth it. Harden did say that "if my conditioning can be level with my skill set, my IQ, and the work I put in, it's MVP", on media day, and it certainly looks like he's in better shape than this time last year.

I think the Sixers players all have pretty fair ADPs, but I have to pick a bust, and I think the reduction in usage, and subsequently, production, raises enough red flags to qualify Harden.

 

Fantasy Basketball Lock: Joel Embiid

I know it's brave of me to take a consensus top 5 player as a fantasy lock, but someone's got to do it. Embiid has repeated as MVP runner-up to Nikola Jokic, each of the past two seasons, but this year could be very different.

Embiid and Giannis Antetokoumpo are the only two players in the league who are the focal point of both offense and defense for their respective teams, and anyone who watched the Sixers in the last few years has seen Embiid gassed at the end of games, and at the end of the season itself.  The Sixers made major off-season moves, acquiring De'Anthony Melton and PJ Tucker, to sure up the perimeter defense, which was a major issue for the Sixers last year. Allowing Embiid to focus more on protecting the paint should not only yield higher block numbers but should also increase offensive efficiency as well since he should be able to conserve more energy on defense.

If you follow basketball enough to play fantasy basketball and read fantasy basketball preview articles, then you don't need me to tell you Joel Embiid is one of the best players in the NBA currently. He finally has legit help in both his starting and bench units, and in the 35-40 games where he played with a real PG (Harden), he looked unstoppable in the pick-and-roll. So I'll leave you with this - Joel Embiid will win the NBA MVP this year, do you want to miss out?

 

Conclusion

The Sixers should be viewed as one of the favorites to come out of the East this year, along with Milwaukee and Miami. Embiid/Harden/Maxey has major potential as a Big 3, and if you add Tobias Harris in the mix, the Sixers may have the best top-4 in the NBA.

As for fantasy purposes, there aren't many secrets about this roster. It's easy to clearly envision every player on the team's role (except who will round out the starting unit), and no one really sticks out as a major value based on their current ADP. On paper, the Sixers look to have a healthy rotation of players, which dampers nearly everyone's projections for the year.

 

Thanks for reading and good luck in your leagues this year!



Download Our Free News & Alerts Mobile App

Like what you see? Download our updated fantasy basketball mobile app for iPhone and Android with 24x7 player news, injury alerts, lineup notifications & DFS articles. All free!

More Fantasy Basketball Analysis




POPULAR FANTASY TOOLS

Expert Advice
Import Your Leagues
Weekly Rankings
Compare Any Players
Projections
Articles & Tools
Weekly Planner
24x7 News and Alerts

REAL-TIME FANTASY NEWS

Junior Caminero

Day-to-Day With Back Tightness
Will Smith

Won't Return When First Eligible
Tyler Soderstrom

Returns to A's Lineup
Tyler Warren

Sidelined on Wednesday with Toe Injury
Jaylen Waddle

Questionable for Week 3 Against Buffalo
Joe Burrow

Bengals Not Closing the Door on Joe Burrow Returning This Year
CFB

LaNorris Sellers to Play Against Missouri?
Kyle Tucker

Progress has "Plateaued"
Isaac Paredes

has "Outside Chance" to Return This Weekend
CFB

Kaidon Salter Expected To Start for Colorado on Saturday
Willson Contreras

Goes on 10-Day Injured List, Done for Season
Justin Fields

Ruled Out for Week 3 Due to Concussion
Jayden Reed

Out Indefinitely After Foot and Shoulder Surgery
Washington Commanders

Preston Smith Signs With Commanders
Trey Jemison III

Joins Knicks on Two-Way Contract
Kevin McCullar Jr.

Signs New Two-Way Deal With Knicks
Matt Ryan

Returns to Knicks on Exhibit 10 Contract
New York Knicks

Alex Len Signs Exhibit 9 Deal With Knicks
Nickeil Alexander-Walker

Expected to Take on Larger Offensive Role With Hawks
Thomas Sorber

Undergoes Surgery
Dominic Canzone

Has Five-Hit, Three-Homer Game Tuesday
Cal Raleigh

Sets Single-Season Home Run Record for a Switch-Hitter
Jayden Reed

Undergoes Clavicle and Foot Surgeries, Out for Foreseeable Future
Bo Bichette

to Miss Rest of Regular Season
Zach Neto

Placed on 10-Day Injured List With Hand Injury
Yordan Alvarez

Out on Tuesday, Dealing With "Significant" Ankle Sprain
Aaron Jones Sr.

Vikings Place Aaron Jones Sr. on Injured Reserve With Hamstring Injury
CFB

Diego Pavia Refutes Report of Seeking Seventh Collegiate Season
Christian Kirk

Expected to Return in Week 3
CFB

Diego Pavia Seeking Another Year of Eligibility
Tarik Skubal

on Track to Start Thursday
CFB

Kevorian Barnes Questionable Against SMU
Bo Bichette

has Short-Term Knee Injury, Could Return for Postseason
Tosan Evbuomwan

Joins Knicks
NBA

Kai Jones Links Up With EuroLeague Team
Bismack Biyombo

Returns to Spurs
Bones Hyland

Rejoins Timberwolves
Kobe Bufkin

Moves to Brooklyn
Trey Yesavage

Sets Franchise Strikeout Record On Monday
Yordan Alvarez

To Receive MRI For Sprained Left Ankle On Tuesday
Willson Contreras

Exits Early Monday With Right-Biceps Tightness
Yordan Alvarez

Exits With Ankle Sprain
Brock Bowers

Officially Active on Monday Night
Jauan Jennings

Day-to-Day With Ankle Injury
Logan O'Hoppe

Activated Off Seven-Day Injured List
CBJ

Denton Mateychuk Dealing With Groin Issue
Bo Horvat

Fine for Training Camp
Kirby Dach

on Track to Be Ready for Opening Night
Jose Altuve

Returns Against Rangers
J.J. McCarthy

Expected to Miss 2-4 Weeks With High-Ankle Sprain
J.J. McCarthy

Likely Out for Week 3 With High-Ankle Sprain
Jean Silva

Gets Finished For The First Time In His Career
Aaron Jones Sr.

Unlikely to Play in Week 3 Due to Hamstring Injury
Diego Lopes

Returns To The Win Column
Jayden Daniels

' Week 3 Status in Doubt
Rob Font

Outclassed In The Noche UFC 3 Co-Main Event
David Martinez

Wins His Second UFC Fight
Jared Gordon

Suffers Brutal TKO Loss At Noche UFC 3
Rafa Garcia

Wins Back-To-Back Fights
Brian Thomas Jr.

Dealing with Wrist Injury
Dustin Stoltzfus

Drops A Decision At Noche UFC 3
Kelvin Gastelum

Gets Back In The Win Column
Diego Ferreira

Suffers Second-Round TKO
Alexander Hernandez

Extends His Win Streak With A Brutal TKO
Quang Le

Suffers First-Round Knockout
Santiago Luna

Shines In His UFC Debut
Christopher Bell

Earns his First Bristol Cup Series Victory
Alex Bowman

Falls Short of Advancing Through Cup Series Playoffs
Chase Briscoe

Collects his Third Top-10 Finish at Bristol
Ryan Blaney

Strong Top-Five Bristol Performance Advances him to the Playoffs
Corey Heim

Earns his First Career Cup Series Top-10 Finish at Bristol
Giannis Antetokounmpo

Leads Greece to Bronze Medal
Alperen Sengün

Alperen Sengun Drops 28 Points in EuroBasket Finals
CFB

Indiana's Lee Beebe Jr. Out for Season with Knee Injury
Dennis Schröder

Dennis Schroder Named EuroBasket MVP
Bryce Eldridge

Giants to Promote Bryce Eldridge
Jaren Jackson Jr.

Progressing in Recovery
Jonathan Kuminga

Receives New Offer From Warriors
Kenneth Walker III

Bounces Back with Big Week 2 Performance
Bijan Robinson

Rushes for 143 Yards in Week 2
Justin Fields

Currently in Concussion Protocol
Cincinnati Bengals

Bengals Calling Around to Available Free-Agent Quarterbacks
Joe Burrow

to Undergo Surgery, Out at Least Three Months
Emil Heineman

Aiming to Take the "Next Step" This Season
Braeden Cootes

Good to Go for Camp
Ivan Fedotov

Blue Jackets Acquire Ivan Fedotov From Flyers
Garrett Crochet

Punches Out 12 in Win
Quentin Grimes

Still Not Close to a New Contract Agreement
Joel Embiid

"Looking Slender, Spry and in Positive Spirits"
Ty Gibbs

Has Arguably his Best Career Drive, but Only Finishes 10th
Chase Elliott

Despite Crashing Out at Bristol, Chase Elliott Advances to Round of 12
Austin Dillon

Misses Round of 12 After Extremely Mediocre Bristol Run
Shane Van Gisbergen

Shane van Gisbergen Fails to Advance to Round of 12
Josh Berry

Finishes Last in All Three Round of 16 Races to Fail to Advance
CFB

Ryan Williams Explodes In Return To Field
CFB

Drew Allar Plays Mediocre Game In Blowout Win
CFB

LaNorris Sellers Exits Game In Blowout Loss
CFB

DJ Lagway Tosses Five Interceptions In Loss
CFB

Garrett Nussmeier Plays Game Manager in Saturday's Win
CFB

CJ Carr Remains Poised In Narrow Loss
CFB

John Mateer Leads Oklahoma In Rout
CFB

Arch Manning Struggles Against UTEP
CFB

Jeremiah Smith Impresses In Win
CFB

Sam Leavitt Shines As Arizona State Rebounds From Week 2 Loss
Ivan Demidov

Turning Heads in Rookie Camp
NHL

Calvin de Haan Signs With Swedish Team
Samuel Girard

Skates With Non-Contact Jersey
Mackenzie Blackwood

Dealing With Injury Ahead of Training Camp
Spencer Knight

Signs Three-Year Extension With Blackhawks
Chris Buescher

May have Another Solid Run at Bristol
Corey Perry

Out 6-8 Weeks Following Surgery
Kyle Busch

Should DFS Managers Roster Kyle Busch at Bristol?
Ricky Stenhouse Jr

Is Ricky Stenhouse Jr. Too Risky to Consider Rostering at Bristol?
Michael McDowell

Could be A Solid Value Option For Bristol DFS Lineups
Chase Elliott

Probably Won't Factor in for Bristol Win
NASCAR

Bubba Wallace Not as Strong at Bristol as Other Short Tracks
Alex Bowman

Needs to Win to Make Round of 12
Ross Chastain

has Never Led at Bristol but Has Been Pretty Consistent
Austin Dillon

Richmond Speed Unlikely to Carry Over to Bristol
Josh Berry

Might Run Well at Bristol, but Almost Certainly Won't Win to Advance
Justin Haley

Bristol One of Justin Haley's Few Recent Bright Spots
CFB

Austin Simmons Listed As Game-Time Decision Against Arkansas
CFB

Nico Iamaleava Struggles In Fourth Straight Loss
Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen

Dealing With a "Tweak"
BUF

Alexandar Georgiev Joins Sabres on One-Year Deal
Corey Perry

Injured During Pre-Camp Skate
CFB

Antonio Williams Out Against Georgia Tech
CFB

CJ Bailey Flashes Again in Win Over Wake Forest
CFB

Jaxson Moi a Game-Time Decision for Tennessee on Saturday
Jean Silva

A Favorite At Noche UFC 3
Diego Lopes

Set For Noche UFC 3 Main Event
Rob Font

Looks For His Third Consecutive Win
David Martinez

Set For Noche UFC 3 Co-Main Event
Rafa Garcia

An Underdog At Noche UFC 3
Jared Gordon

Looks To Win Back-To-Back Fights
Dustin Stoltzfus

Looks To Return To The Win Column
Kelvin Gastelum

In Dire Need Of Victory
Diego Ferreira

Looks To Get Back In The Win Column
Malcolm Brogdon

Heading to Knicks on One-Year Deal
Landry Shamet

Staying with the Knicks

RANKINGS

QB
RB
WR
TE
K
DEF
RANKINGS
C
1B
2B
3B
SS
OF
SP
RP