RADIO
We went over the basic round-by-round results early in the week for our RotoBaller Fantasy Basketball Writer's League. Now we'll go team by team and give our writers (and two of our guests) an opportunity to explain some of their thinking during the draft, and call out where they saw picks that were steals or reaches.
Just to recap, here are the managers featured in the draft:
Just Having Fun - a Yahoo! user
Team Pop Socks - a Yahoo! user
Pierre Camus (@pfunk00) - RotoBaller
Trevor Crippen (@TeachTrevor) - RotoBaller
Gurminder Singh (@Gindy101) - RotoBaller
Vladimir De Wet (@vladewet) - RotoBaller
Brad Leibfried (@Leibfried6) - RotoBaller
Adam Ginsburg (@aginz3) - RotoBaller
Jake Finnen - RotoBaller
Kawhi so Kawaii - a Reddit user
Flu Game 97 - a Yahoo! user
Arkeno Greenaway (@FantasyKeno) - RotoBaller
Our eight RotoBaller writers provide insight on the draft below, plus commentary from our anonymous friends a Redditor from r/fantasybball, the manager of Kawhi so Kawaii, and an anonymous Yahoo! user and manager of the team Flu Game 97.
All position eligibility based on Yahoo! fantasy leagues. League scoring is based on standard 9 categories (points, rebounds, assists, threes, steals, blocks, FG%, FT%, turnovers). Draft order was random, and it just so happened two of our guests (anonymous Yahoo! users who live drafted) ended up with the first two picks. Their drafts are presented first without commentary.
RotoBaller Fantasy Basketball Expert Draft Recap, Steals, and Reaches
1st Overall Pick: Just Having Fun - anonymous Yahoo! user
| 1. | (1) | Kevin Durant (GS - SF,PF) |
| 2. | (24) | LaMarcus Aldridge (SA - PF,C) |
| 3. | (25) | Draymond Green (GS - SF,PF) |
| 4. | (48) | Mike Conley (Mem - PG) |
| 5. | (49) | Jeff Teague (Ind - PG) |
| 6. | (72) | Dwyane Wade (Chi - PG,SG) |
| 7. | (73) | Jrue Holiday (NO - PG) |
| 8. | (96) | Zach Randolph (Mem - PF,C) |
| 9. | (97) | George Hill (Uta - PG,SG) |
| 10. | (120) | Enes Kanter (OKC - C) |
| 11. | (121) | Jared Sullinger (Tor - PF,C) |
| 12. | (144) | Josh Richardson (Mia - SG,SF) |
| 13. | (145) | Tyreke Evans (NO - PG,SG) |
2nd Overall Pick: Team Pop Socks - anonymous Yahoo! user
| 1. | (2) | Russell Westbrook (OKC - PG) |
| 2. | (23) | Klay Thompson (GS - SG,SF) |
| 3. | (26) | Brook Lopez (Bkn - C) |
| 4. | (47) | Tobias Harris (Det - SF,PF) |
| 5. | (50) | Gordon Hayward (Uta - SG,SF) |
| 6. | (71) | Nikola Mirotic (Chi - SF,PF) |
| 7. | (74) | Myles Turner (Ind - PF,C) |
| 8. | (95) | Jordan Clarkson (LAL - PG,SG) |
| 9. | (98) | Steven Adams (OKC - C) |
| 10. | (119) | Thon Maker (Mil - PF) |
| 11. | (122) | Kentavious Caldwell-Pope (Det - SG) |
| 12. | (143) | Timofey Mozgov (LAL - C) |
| 13. | (146) | Patty Mills (SA - PG) |
3rd Overall Pick: Pierre Camus (@pfunk00) - RotoBaller
| 1. | (3) | Stephen Curry (GS - PG,SG) |
| 2. | (22) | Al Horford (Bos - PF,C) |
| 3. | (27) | Kristaps Porzingis (NY - PF,C) |
| 4. | (46) | Marcin Gortat (Was - C) |
| 5. | (51) | Trevor Ariza (Hou - SG,SF) |
| 6. | (70) | Brandon Knight (Pho - PG,SG) |
| 7. | (75) | Thaddeus Young (Ind - SF,PF) |
| 8. | (94) | Kyle Korver (Atl - SG,SF) |
| 9. | (99) | DeMarre Carroll (Tor - SF,PF) |
| 10. | (118) | Ersan Ilyasova (OKC - SF,PF) |
| 11. | (123) | Monta Ellis (Ind - PG,SG) |
| 12. | (142) | Dion Waiters (Mia - SG,SF) |
| 13. | (147) | Chris Bosh (Mia - PF,C) |
Pierre: Generally speaking, I try to emphasize category leaders that give me an advantage in counting stats that are harder to come by on the waiver wire, particularly blocks and steals. As tempted as I was to take Anthony Davis #3 overall, I couldn't pass up on the reigning MVP and his elite percentages, so I went Steph Curry instead. Between Curry and then later on Trevor Ariza and DeMarre Carroll, I feel good about steals. My next two picks of Al Horford and Kristaps Porzingis should fill the blocks category adequately while helping across the board in points/rebounds without sacrificing FT%.
In the middle rounds I went for three point shooting and scoring, although it wasn't a huge need since I had Curry. I supplemented my team with combo players that fill multiple positions, such as Carroll, Thaddeus Young, Brandon Knight, Monta Ellis and Ersan Ilyasova to give me flexibility. I decided to go with a lottery ticket on my final pick in Chris Bosh, which could give me an All-Star player by mid-season. That and my Miami homerism got the best of me...
Steal of the Draft: Jabari Parker in the sixth round. With Khris Middleton out for most of the season, Parker will be counted on to increase his scoring output and can contribute in multiple categories. The former #2 overall pick is most definitely worth his draft slot. I also think Willie Cauley-Stein could be a great value in the 10th round as big men with double-digit rebound potential are hard to come by.
Reach of the Draft: Jimmy Butler at #17 overall. While the Bulls may be better as a team this year, Butler's fantasy stats should decrease. Butler won't have the ball in his hands nearly as much with Rajon Rondo around, so his assists will go down. Dwayne Wade and Denzel Valentine will take some shots away as well. He is still an All-Star caliber player, but he won't have to carry as big of a burden offensively, which is bad news for his fantasy outlook.
4th Overall Pick:Trevor Crippen (@TeachTrevor) - RotoBaller
| 1. | (4) | James Harden (Hou - PG,SG,SF) |
| 2. | (21) | Carmelo Anthony (NY - SF,PF) |
| 3. | (28) | Kemba Walker (Cha - PG) |
| 4. | (45) | Ricky Rubio (Min - PG) |
| 5. | (52) | Dirk Nowitzki (Dal - PF,C) |
| 6. | (69) | Ryan Anderson (Hou - PF,C) |
| 7. | (76) | Jeremy Lin (Bkn - PG,SG) |
| 8. | (93) | Aaron Gordon (Orl - SF,PF) |
| 9. | (100) | Robert Covington (Phi - SF,PF) |
| 10. | (117) | Marcus Smart (Bos - PG) |
| 11. | (124) | Markieff Morris (Was - PF,C) |
| 12. | (141) | Evan Turner (Por - SG,SF) |
| 13. | (148) | Stanley Johnson (Det - SG,SF) |
Trevor: As soon as Harden slid to me at 4 (I have him ranked 1st overall on my board in head-to-head leagues), I started to consider punting FG% as I outline in my How to Punt Categories column. I was able to snag Carmelo Anthony and Kemba Walker with my 2nd and 3rd picks to do exactly that, though in retrospect perhaps I should've grabbed Kristaps Porzingis instead of Carmelo. While I like Carmelo better in a vacuum, Porzingis would've helped me compete sometimes in blocks, and I wouldn't have had to reach a small bit over value in both the 5th and 6th round to get two FG%-punt friendly center-eligible players in Dirk Nowitzki and Ryan Anderson to fill Yahoo's two starting C lineup spots. I wonder if I would have been better off if I'd picked Porzingis in the 2nd and then been able to select D'Angelo Russell or Nicolas Batum in the 5th instead of Dirk.
Beyond that I went for where I saw good values, especially where I could grab guys who are good rebounders for their positions and who have upside for assists. I love the assist upside for Jeremy Lin, Marcus Smart, and even Aaron Gordon, while I like the solid rebounding I can get out of Robert Covington to go along with his shooting. Morris was another pick for his boards, and because I needed a third center. I do believe in Stanley Johnson as a late round flyer in FG% punt leagues as a second year breakout, but I have to admit he ended up unceremoniously dropped after the news broke of the broken bone in Ben Simmons's foot, and I saw the chance to add Dario Saric to my team.
Steal of the Draft: Nikola Jokic in the 4th round by Brad. It would've been hard for me to pull the trigger on a solid FG% center over the likes of Anthony and Walker after getting Harden, but I have to say I was still itching to take Jokic. He's definitely a 3rd round pick in my book, and in roto leagues - where his well-rounded contributions play even better - I'll be considering him in the 2nd round.
Reach of the Draft: Marcin Gortat in the 4th by Pierre. Gortat is 32, an injury risk, and now saddled with major competition for minutes at center by the underrated and talented Ian Mahinmi. To take him over incredibly safe, proven fantasy commodities like Gordon Hayward and Rudy Gobert, or over much higher upside gambles like Mike Conley and D'Angelo Russell seems like a no-win play to me.
5th Overall Pick: Gurminder Singh (@Gindy101) - RotoBaller
| 1. | (5) | Karl-Anthony Towns (Min - C) |
| 2. | (20) | Eric Bledsoe (Pho - PG,SG) |
| 3. | (29) | Blake Griffin (LAC - PF,C) |
| 4. | (44) | Rajon Rondo (Chi - PG) |
| 5. | (53) | Gorgui Dieng (Min - PF,C) |
| 6. | (68) | Darren Collison (Sac - PG) |
| 7. | (77) | Harrison Barnes (Dal - SF,PF) |
| 8. | (92) | Gary Harris (Den - SG) |
| 9. | (101) | Tim Frazier (NO - PG) |
| 10. | (116) | Willie Cauley-Stein (Sac - PF,C) |
| 11. | (125) | Justise Winslow (Mia - SF,PF) |
| 12. | (140) | Derrick Williams (Mia - SF,PF) |
| 13. | (149) | Jamal Crawford (LAC - SG,SF) |
Gurminder: Personally, I started off by wanting to take well-rounded players who could contribute in a number of different categories. I took Karl Anthony Towns with the fifth-overall pick and I probably would have taken him third behind Russell Westbrook and James Harden. With Towns in the mix, I wanted to complement him with an all-around type guard and Eric Bledsoe fits the description so I scooped him up in the second round.
After taking Blake Griffin in the third round, I was very happy with my core. I was able to start targeting players that would hold a lot of value in a H2H format. That's why I took Rajon Rondo in the fourth round. He'll hurt me in turnovers and free throws, but his assists could help me win a category in any given week. And from then on, I tried to just find as much value as possible. That's why I targeted players that may not have had prominent roles last season, but are due to see an increase in minutes or touches; like Darren Collison, Harrison Barnes. Justice Winslow, Derrick Williams and Tim Frazier.
Steal of the Draft: Jake took Goran Dragic in the sixth round, and to me that could be a great value pick. With Chris Bosh looking like his days with the Miami Heat and the NBA are likely over and with Dwyane Wade now in Chicago, Dragic will have the ball in his hands a whole lot. Dragic could be poised for a career year, and he could net top 6-8 value at a very loaded point guard position.
Reach of the Draft: I'm a big fan of Giannis Antetokounmpo. So much so that I think he has the skillset to be an MVP-type player in the league (especially if he can hit shots consistently). That said, when Brad took him seventh overall, that seemed like a bit of a reach. With guys like Chris Paul, DeMarcus Cousins, LeBron James and Kawhi Leonard on the board, taking the "Greek Freak" at that time probably wasn't the wisest decision. I guess we'll find out though, right?
6th Overall Pick: Vladimir De Wet (@vladewet) - RotoBaller
| 1. | (6) | Anthony Davis (NO - PF,C) |
| 2. | (19) | Kyrie Irving (Cle - PG,SG) |
| 3. | (30) | C.J. McCollum (Por - PG,SG) |
| 4. | (43) | DeMar DeRozan (Tor - SG,SF) |
| 5. | (54) | Rudy Gobert (Uta - C) |
| 6. | (67) | Dwight Howard (Atl - PF,C) |
| 7. | (78) | Rudy Gay (Sac - SF,PF) |
| 8. | (91) | Derrick Rose (NY - PG) |
| 9. | (102) | Robin Lopez (Chi - C) |
| 10. | (115) | Bismack Biyombo (Orl - PF,C) |
| 11. | (126) | Joel Embiid (Phi - C) |
| 12. | (139) | Marcus Morris (Det - SF,PF) |
| 13. | (150) | Tristan Thompson (Cle - PF,C) |
Vlad: When approaching the draft this year, my main focus was on scoring points and getting rebounds. Three of my top four picks finished last year top 20 in points per game with only Kyrie Irving not making the cut. It is safe to assume that Irving will take on more of a scoring role this year and solidify my team as a top scoring threat. By taking shoot first oriented guards and wings, (McCollum, DeRozan, and Gay) there is a chance I will lag behind in assists, but the hope is that they all take on the playmaker role enough to make me at least competitive in that category. Also, none of these players are known for their defense but their playing time and opportunistic nature make them competent options in the steal category.
With Anthony Davis, Dwight Howard, and Rudy Gobert I hoped to dominate in rebounds. Obviously by taking two of these guys I decided free throws no longer mattered but their extra high field goal percentages should help balance out some of the volume scorers from above. The real hope is that these three big men can all finish the season top 15 in blocks and top 10 in rebounds like they did last year. Robin Lopez as a ninth round steal only helps to solidify field goal percentage, rebounds, and blocks as he will likely be Chicago’s starting center for most of the year.
The rest of my draft consisted of high-upside young guys with the chance to play a lot of minutes. Bismack Biyombo, Joel Embiid, Marcus Morris, and Dante Exum are all young players to keep an eye on during the season to see how their roles are defined. All of these players have the chance to emerge as one of the top guys on their team or fall into basketball obscurity. As currently constructed my team will struggle with free throw percentage and turnovers, but I’m hoping that with most of my player’s high-upside that this weakness won’t be felt too much. Finally, I have at least seven potential All-Star candidates on the squad and while not the best measurement, it is a fun way to know that your fantasy team will be one worth watching throughout the year.
Steal of the Draft: Blake Griffin in Round 3. Griffin went after Kristaps Porzingis, Draymond Green, LaMarcus Aldridge, and Paul Millsap which is, well, insane. I feel that there is a general bad feeling around the whole Clippers team and Griffin spent a lot of last year injured so maybe people are still scared about that. But he’s still extremely young and the number one option one a very good team. He hasn’t fully grown into the superstar all of his commercials would make you believe he is, but the tide on Griffin seems to have swung the other way where people now underrate the high flyer. He’s younger than Aldridge and Millsap while more of him is expected than Porzingis and Green. He should put up comparable if not better numbers than all of them. There is still a good chance we haven’t seen all of what Blake Griffin has to offer.
Reach of the Draft: Eric Bledsoe in round 2. There is no denying Bledsoe’s talent and athleticism but the guy just can’t stay healthy. As a result, he’s never been able to put together a full convincing season that establishes him as one of the top guards in the NBA. With Klay Thompson, Kemba Walker, Isaiah Thomas, and Reggie Jackson still on the board there were just simply better options available. Bledsoe hasn’t done as much as these other guards to warrant a high second round pick. The biggest concern with Bledsoe, beyond his health, is whether or not the other two guards on the team (Brandon Knight, Devin Booker) begin eating into his minutes and his role.
7th Overall Pick: Brad Leibfried (@Leibfried6) - RotoBaller
| 1. | (7) | Giannis Antetokounmpo (Mil - PG,SG,SF) |
| 2. | (18) | Paul Millsap (Atl - PF,C) |
| 3. | (31) | Victor Oladipo (OKC - PG,SG) |
| 4. | (42) | Nikola Jokic (Den - C) |
| 5. | (55) | Dennis Schroder (Atl - PG) |
| 6. | (66) | Pau Gasol (SA - PF,C) |
| 7. | (79) | Nerlens Noel (Phi - PF,C) |
| 8. | (90) | Avery Bradley (Bos - PG,SG) |
| 9. | (103) | Wesley Matthews (Dal - SG,SF) |
| 10. | (114) | Deron Williams (Dal - PG) |
| 11. | (127) | Mason Plumlee (Por - PF,C) |
| 12. | (138) | Kris Dunn (Min - PG) |
| 13. | (151) | Mario Hezonja (Orl - SG) |
Brad: After finding out I had pick seven in the 12 team draft, I knew I was going to miss out on the likes of James Harden, Russell Westbrook, Stephen Curry and Kevin Durant. So my plan going into the draft was trying to take young players with immense upside while filling in with solid veterans. My draft started with a surprise pick of Giannis Antetokounmpo at pick seven. For me a 21 year old player that averaged 17.7 points, 5.4 assists, 8.3 rebounds, 1.4 steals and 1.6 blocks the second half of last season was too good to pass up. After taking veteran Paul Millsap to fill up several categories, I took two players in Victor Oladipo, Nikola Jokic and Dennis Schroder who have top 15 potential if all goes right.
After the first few rounds I wanted to find veterans who could fill roles. Pau Gasol is a solid all-around contributor in a nine category league, while Wes Matthews, Avery Bradley and Deron Williams all provide a known quantity. Although Yahoo is very generous with their position eligibility, with two centers on the active roster I did think it was needed to have five center eligible players to provide depth and a flexible roster depending on my head to head matchup for each week. Overall, I felt a bit light on three pointers made and assists, but felt comfortable not having punted any one category.
Steal of the Draft: James Harden at 4th overall. It is a bit hard to say someone got a steal in round one. However, I think without question the steal of the draft was James Harden at pick four. The newly anointed point guard for the Rockets has everything you would want in a head to head fantasy player. Last season Harden had career highs in points, assists, rebounds, and three pointers made all while bringing a stellar free throw percentage. This was in a system that is significantly slower than what he will run this year with new coach Mike D’Antoni. Outside of his turnovers, Harden should be a virtual lock to go number one in all drafts this season.
Reach of the Draft: Gorgui Dieng in the 5th. When drafting in the first few rounds you are looking for a player that is either a known quantity, or has the ability to produce several rounds above his draft position and Dieng has neither of these. The Timberwolves reserve center / sort-of power forward is certainly a solid player, however last year he only played 27 minutes per game and posted just 10.7 points, 7.1 rebounds, 1.2 blocks and 1.1 steals per game. New coach Tom Thibodeau has many people excited in Minnesota, but with Karl-Anthony Towns, Andrew Wiggins, and Zach LaVine clearly ahead of him in the pecking order, there simply is not a ton of upside for Dieng. It should also be noted the Wolves brought in veterans Cole Aldrich and Jordan Hill to compete for forward/center minutes this season. Although he brings good percentages, players such Marc Gasol, Rudy Gobert and Pau Gasol are better fantasy assets and went after Dieng.
8th Overall Pick: Adam Ginsburg (@aginz3) - RotoBaller
| 1. | (8) | LeBron James (Cle - SF,PF) |
| 2. | (17) | Jimmy Butler (Chi - SG,SF) |
| 3. | (32) | Derrick Favors (Uta - PF,C) |
| 4. | (41) | Andrew Wiggins (Min - SG,SF) |
| 5. | (56) | Marc Gasol (Mem - C) |
| 6. | (65) | Jabari Parker (Mil - SF,PF) |
| 7. | (80) | Danilo Gallinari (Den - SF) |
| 8. | (89) | Jahlil Okafor (Phi - C) |
| 9. | (104) | Elfrid Payton (Orl - PG) |
| 10. | (113) | Brandon Ingram (LAL - SF) |
| 11. | (128) | Patrick Beverley (Hou - PG,SG) |
| 12. | (137) | Jamal Murray (Den - SG) |
| 13. | (152) | Sean Kilpatrick (Bkn - SG) |
Adam: I'm a firm believer, at least in fantasy drafts, of the age-old adage "draft the best player available." There will always be a place in the lineup for a talented producer, and if for some reason there is not, then the trade market is always an option. With this philosophy in mind, I immediately set out (unintentionally, I may add) and drafted a forward/center-heavy lineup. Anchored by Jimmy Butler, Lebron James, Derrick Favors, and Marc Gasol, my team is talent and upside-rich, yet relatively inflexible (I only have 2 players who can play PG).
I took flyers on Jamal Murray and Sean Kilpatrick because of their immense upside. For Murray, the scoring talent is obvious--he just needs to become more consistent. For Kilpatrick, an insatiable desire and love for the game burns bright, a unique quality for such a skilled scorer. I hope that both of these players will be able to develop into quality fantasy players to fill in in my lineup on nights when he NBA schedule isn't jam-packed.
Steal of the Draft: Alex Len in the 12th by Jake. Frankly, I forgot all about Alex Len, but if I were to redo the draft, I would have taken him much earlier than he was selected (he has an ADP of 140.5). He showed flashes of brilliance last year in Tyson Chandler's absence, and should be expected to increase his production dramatically this year.
Reach of the Draft: Serge Ibaka in the 3rd by Flu Game 97. Ibaka enters a crowded frontcourt in Orlando and will have to compete for touches and rebounds with Aaron Gordon, Nikola Vucevic, and new addition Bismack Biyombo. He has statistically regressed the past 2 seasons, and even a change of scenery likely won't cause a complete resurgence. While a nice fantasy option, he was picked way too high for my liking.
9th Overall Pick: Jake Finnen - RotoBaller
| 1. | (9) | Paul George (Ind - SF,PF) |
| 2. | (16) | John Wall (Was - PG) |
| 3. | (33) | Isaiah Thomas (Bos - PG) |
| 4. | (40) | Nikola Vucevic (Orl - PF,C) |
| 5. | (57) | Greg Monroe (Mil - PF,C) |
| 6. | (64) | Goran Dragic (Mia - PG,SG) |
| 7. | (81) | Emmanuel Mudiay (Den - PG) |
| 8. | (88) | Joakim Noah (NY - PF,C) |
| 9. | (105) | Julius Randle (LAL - PF) |
| 10. | (112) | Bojan Bogdanovic (Bkn - SG,SF) |
| 11. | (129) | Will Barton (Den - SG,SF) |
| 12. | (136) | Alex Len (Pho - PF,C) |
| 13. | (153) | Omri Casspi (Sac - SF,PF) |
Jake: My teams reeks of that post-championship sweat already. Paul George and John Wall? Are you kidding me? Throw in future All-Star Isaiah Thomas, two offensively prolific big men in Nikola Vucevic and Greg Monroe, and a few other all-around studs and you have Cankle Breakers. This is the team you do not want to sleep on. With my picks I managed to pick players that WILL contribute in more categories than just one or two. My bench players that consist of Will Barton, Omri Casspi, and Bojan Bogdanovic have a knack for scoring and have proven themselves multiple times on multiple occasions last year. I don't know about you but I was riding next to the conductor on the Will Barton train and he did not disappoint.
Those are my bottom tier of players but still are well rounded scorers who have the size to easily grab a few rebounds, blocks, steals, etc. to help with their production. I am a little disappointed with my forwards and big men because I only really managed to draft centers or more low post players. Luckily for me, low post players are crows that feast on easy buckets, alley-oops, rebounds, and blocks. Looking at my lineup, I'm optimistic about the season, simply due to versatility of the Cankle Breakers. No player is limited to just one category and my top talent are double-double machines. Now onto how the rest of these jokers picked. I have to say, these guys were stealing my picks left and right which means they couldn't of been ALL bad, but I mean, this is a team Pete Rose would bet on.
Steal of the Draft: FLU GAME 97 taking Jabari Parker with the 65th pick. I don't see the Bucks have a much more successful year and Parker was impressive last year. With his first year behind him and the Bucks looking to him as one of their main contributors, he is going to be lights out and I predict him to show why he should have been taken earlier. As for my team goes, Julius Randle is an athletic forward and the Lakers will need him to mature quickly with a young Lakers squad. The Lakers should win more games and that means better stats for Julius. After watching him last year, there's no reason he shouldn't be a reliable fantasy asset all year.
Reach of the Draft: Also by FLU GAME 97, by taking Serge Ibaka with the 35th pick in the third round. Nothing against Serge, but he is getting older and although the Magic looks like a great place for him to rebound, I don't see his stats improving in Orlando. His defense is always top notch so he will be a big time contributor defensively but the offensive spacing he had in OKC just isn't simply there. His mid range is lethal but he has no one to relieve the offensive pressure like KD and RW.
10th Overall Pick: Kawhi so Kawaii - anonymous Reddit user
| 1. | (10) | Kawhi Leonard (SA - SG,SF) |
| 2. | (15) | Hassan Whiteside (Mia - C) |
| 3. | (34) | Andre Drummond (Det - PF,C) |
| 4. | (39) | Jonas Valanciunas (Tor - C) |
| 5. | (58) | D'Angelo Russell (LAL - PG) |
| 6. | (63) | Zach LaVine (Min - PG,SG) |
| 7. | (82) | Evan Fournier (Orl - SG,SF) |
| 8. | (87) | Jae Crowder (Bos - SF,PF) |
| 9. | (106) | Kent Bazemore (Atl - SG,SF) |
| 10. | (111) | Rondae Hollis-Jefferson (Bkn - SG,SF) |
| 11. | (130) | Marvin Williams (Cha - SF,PF) |
| 12. | (135) | Eric Gordon (Hou - SG) |
| 13. | (154) | Mirza Teletovic (Mil - SF,PF) |
Kawhi so Kawaii: Getting the 10th pick in the draft, I had my eyes set on 3 players; Hassan Whiteside, Paul George and CP3. After Giannis was picked at 7 (which I believe was a great pick), I expected picks 8 and 9 to go to Kawhi and CP3 and to my delightful surprise, neither of them were drafted. I had the pleasure of taking Kawhi at 10 with the hopes that I was able to take Whiteside at the turn which I was once again, delightfully surprised.
With the core of Kawhi and Whiteside, I decided to punt FT% and assists. I took pleasure in exploiting Yahoo's unfinished rankings and nabbed Drummond with pick 34. I then took Valanciunas to help secure my strong FG%, rebounding and blocks. This was a tough pick for me as Jokic was still on the board but I have a gut feeling he won't live up to expectations.
3 of my next 4 picks were once again exploiting Yahoo's rankings as I took D'Angelo Russell, Evan Fournier and Jae Crowder. I drafted Zach LaVine in the 6th as my boom or bust pick. I envision him either breaking out as we saw a glimpse of that post all-star break last season or getting put in the dog house early by Coach Thibs as his defense is quite questionable. I continued to load up on SG/SF as I took Kent Bazemore and Rondae Hollis-Jefferson (who I'm extremely high on). I ended up rounding my draft with Marvin Williams, Eric Gordon and Mirza Teletovic as I was weak in 3's and needed guys that can light it up and win you that category any given night.
Overall, I was extremely pleased with how my draft went. Hopefully everyone stays healthy!
Steal of the Draft: In the early rounds, CP3 at 11 is criminal. In the middle rounds, I believe at Myles Turner at 74 and Aaron Gordon at 93. Capela at 109 is also a steal considering arkeno's Bold Team is punting FT%.
Reach of the Draft: Klay at 23. Not a fan of Klay this year. Rondo at 44. Beal at 62.
11th Overall Pick: Flu Game 97 - anonymous Yahoo! user
| 1. | (11) | Chris Paul (LAC - PG) |
| 2. | (14) | DeMarcus Cousins (Sac - PF,C) |
| 3. | (35) | Serge Ibaka (Orl - PF,C) |
| 4. | (38) | Kevin Love (Cle - PF,C) |
| 5. | (59) | Nicolas Batum (Cha - SG,SF) |
| 6. | (62) | Bradley Beal (Was - SG) |
| 7. | (83) | Kenneth Faried (Den - PF,C) |
| 8. | (86) | Devin Booker (Pho - SG) |
| 9. | (107) | Otto Porter (Was - SF) |
| 10. | (110) | Buddy Hield (NO - SG) |
| 11. | (131) | Danny Green (SA - SG,SF) |
| 12. | (134) | Luol Deng (LAL - SF,PF) |
| 13. | (155) | Iman Shumpert (Cle - SG,SF) |
Flu Game 97: Whenever I do a draft I never go in with a strategy or anything. I just go best player I think is available or whatever stats I feel I need. I like my team. I can't say I'm too excited about it because I didn't finish strong. And I really missed a lot of the players I wanted, but I do think I have a nice team. I was pretty happy with getting Cousins at 14 to start. By the time we got to the 5th and 6th round I totally missed Goran Dragic being available. I would have took him over Batum or Beal. The pick I was probably happiest with was Devin Booker in the 8th round. He was one of the last breakout candidates I had in my que. I was happy getting Otto Porter in the 9th round too. I didn't have a starting SF yet and that's the last one I would've felt comfortable grabbing.
Steal of the Draft: Pau Gasol looks pretty good in the 6th round. I was definitely looking at him right there, but I already had too many bigs. Rudy Gay and Danilo Gallinari look good where they went in the 7th round also.
Reach of the Draft: I could be totally wrong, but I think Jonas Valanciunas at the beginning of the 4th round looks kind of high to me. I just see a lot players I would have took before him.
12th Overall Pick: Arkeno Greenaway (@FantasyKeno) - RotoBaller
| 1. | (12) | Damian Lillard (Por - PG) |
| 2. | (13) | Kyle Lowry (Tor - PG) |
| 3. | (36) | DeAndre Jordan (LAC - C) |
| 4. | (37) | Reggie Jackson (Det - PG,SG) |
| 5. | (60) | Ben Simmons (Phi - SF,PF) |
| 6. | (61) | Chandler Parsons (Mem - SF,PF) |
| 7. | (84) | J.J. Redick (LAC - SG) |
| 8. | (85) | Rodney Hood (Uta - SG,SF) |
| 9. | (108) | Jusuf Nurkic (Den - C) |
| 10. | (109) | Clint Capela (Hou - PF,C) |
| 11. | (132) | Matthew Dellavedova (Mil - PG,SG) |
| 12. | (133) | Al-Farouq Aminu (Por - SF,PF) |
| 13. | (156) | Jaylen Brown (Bos - SF) |
Arkeno: Coming into the draft I didn't know what pick I had, so I knew that I would most likely have to pick up a PG in the first two rounds. PG may be the only position in the NBA with nearly a serviceable fantasy option on every team, but a clear drop off from tier to tier. With that in mind that was my initial goal, two PG's that will lead my assist and steals push as well as two PG that have SG eligibility. As a rule for the most part I try to draft players who can play multiple positions. I do that because they also tend to be players who play more minutes.
I figured while everyone else is trying to fill up the lack of PG on their rosters int the third and forth round, I can make a push for a big man that I want. This worked because I was also planning to punt FT% so I could take bigs that give you really good counting stats like Clint Capella and DeAndre Jordan.
Once those positions were filled then I started looking for players who gives you really good out of position stats or were specialist. That was mainly my point of emphasis for the rest of the draft and it filled out the rest of the counting stats pretty well. Lastly I would like to say that if I had the chance I would undo picking up Kyle Lowry, and take Wall instead. For the build of the team he just makes more sense.
Steal of the Draft: Gorgui Dieng. I think he will be amazing this year on a team that is going to be looking to take a step forward as a group and not too much of a battle for minutes at his position. If he finished top 30 in fantasy I wouldn't be shocked at all, and just to put things in perspective he was picked 53rd overall.
Reach of the Draft: Eric Bledsoe at pick 24. His inability to make it through an entire season takes him out of the top 25 for me.
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