So many podcasts and articles are focused on the first few rounds of fantasy drafts, and it makes sense. It’s where the stars live, and it’s where we see the players who had big years the previous season go off the board.
Yes, the early rounds are important, but Fantasy basketball drafts are won and lost in the middle rounds, and that’s what we are going to focus on here.
Assuming a standard 12-team, 13-round draft, we’ll look at some players I really like in rounds 7-10 – using FantasyPros ADP from picks 73 to 120 – and why you should look to target them.
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The Spurs are going to be in the Victor Wembanyama sweepstakes, meaning they are going to be really, really bad. But there’s always value to be found on bad teams, and San Antonio is no different. We all love Devin Vassell, but don’t overlook Johnson, either. I like him as a middle-round help, especially in points and rebounds. The rest of his counting stats should jump up too with the increased minutes and usage ahead.
Center dries up fast, and honestly, Capela isn’t even the best center on his own team. That belongs to Onyeka Okongwu. We saw the minutes for Okongwu creep up last year, but it’s Capela who is going to get the bulk of the time at the five still – barring a trade. Capela is a double-double threat every night and will give you much-needed blocks. He’s a dying breed in the NBA, but that breed will be alive for at least another year for fantasy.
The Marvin Bagley injury looked brutal, and we’re all hoping he avoids missing serious time. But as it stands now, with Bagley out of the picture, Bey should be the player to see the most uptick in usage and minutes. We know that Dwane Casey doesn’t trust young players, so Jalen Duren is going to be a rollercoaster this season with his minutes. Bey should play around 28 minutes per game and help you in points, rebounds, and threes especially, but beware of the brutal FG% drain.
Should the Kings have taken Jaden Ivey? I still say yes, but I’ve come around big time on Murray, and he may be the favorite behind Paolo Banchero to take home Rookie of the Year honors. The fit with Murray and Domantas Sabonis seems natural, and we’ve seen the Summer League and preseason highlights from him so far. His game is made for fantasy hoops. I like to tread carefully with rookies, but Murray is so polished that finishing outside the top 75 would be a surprise.
The Jazz have so many of the same types of players. The Collin Sexton and Jordan Clarkson-type, if you will. No defense, look for the shot, shoot. They are going to be really, really bad. But, as we mentioned with Johnson above, that’s not a bad thing for fantasy. Markkanen (along with Sexton) are good mid-round picks because of the expected usage in Utah and roles as the No. 1 and No. 2 options in the offense. Markkanen had a career revival in Cleveland last year, and if he carries over those gains to Utah, he should return value on his No. 90 ADP.
He’s old, yes. He’s boring, yes. He also doesn’t stand out in any real way. But with Robert Williams missing a chunk of time with his knee surgery, Horford is in for some big usage in the first half of the season. What’s more, Horford said that he’s going to play in back-to-backs this year, which is a big boost for his value. People will fade him because he’s boring, but he’s the perfect high-floor player to grab.
The Wizards have needed staying power at point guard since prime John Wall. They finally have it with Morris. Look, Morris isn’t a top-10 guard in the league or anything, but he’s more than capable, which we’ve seen during his career as a backup in Denver. The old saying is that a backup goalie in hockey is a backup for a reason, and Morris’ numbers as a starter in Denver weren’t exactly great. But, he’s an upgrade over Ish Smith and Raul Neto, and in the preseason, the Wizards’ offense looks more fluid with Morris at the point than it has in the past.
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Michael Waterloo is a featured writer at FantasyPros. For more from Michael, check out his archive and follow him @MichaelWaterloo.
