We gathered our fantasy basketball experts and asked each of them which five players they wanted to make sure to draft this season.
The results give an indication of who could be some of the most coveted fantasy players and value picks in your drafts.
Those players you see on numerous lists below? That could be a sign that demand is high and you may have to go up a round (or two) to get them.
The Five Boys by Andre Snellings
Victor Wembanyama, C, San Antonio Spurs: The kid has no ceiling. If you told me he would average 30 points and 15 rebounds per game this season, I might believe it. Five blocks and 2.5 steals per game? Sure. Six assists and three 3-pointers? I can see that. Nikola Jokic has rightfully been the best player in fantasy basketball for the past three seasons, but if I had the first pick in a fantasy basketball draft, I'd be hard-pressed not to take Wembanyama this time around.
Scottie Barnes, Toronto Raptors shooting guard, small forward and small forward: Barnes snapped out of his sophomore slump with a breakout third season and the Raptors rewarded him by remaking the team in his image. With all the veteran producers sent out of town, the Raptors have given Barnes the keys to being one of the NBA's most important offensive engines this season.
LaMelo Ball, point guard, Charlotte Hornets: Two years ago around this time, I had Ball as a top-10 fantasy basketball prospect entering his third season. He's dealt with horrible injury absences over those two seasons, and his star has dipped. But the potential is still there, and if I can get him onto my team a few rounds into the draft, I'm very happy to have that kind of potential.
Cam Thomas, Brooklyn Nets point guard: In his role as the Nets' sixth man, who sometimes starts, Thomas has proven that he has 30 points under his belt on any given night. The question this season is: can he scale up with a more active role and score those 30 points night in and night out? I think there's a legitimate chance he can, and his explosive scoring potential makes him a player with serious fantasy basketball upside and a very entertaining show to watch all season long.
Amen Thompson, small forward and power forward, Houston Rockets: Amen was extremely impressive in his Las Vegas Summer League debut last year, playing for most of one game until he sprained an ankle. He never seemed to fully recover last season and his production was limited. Meanwhile, his twin brother, Ausar, had an impressive rookie season for the Pistons. I expect Amen to bounce back in a big way in his second year and potentially develop into an impact fantasy basketball player.
Eric Moody's Five Boys
Victor Wembanyama, C, San Antonio Spurs: Wemby is just the fourth player in league history to finish a season with 1,500 points, 250 assists and 250 blocks. Even though he's the third player on the roster in ESPN's fantasy leagues right now, I wouldn't hesitate to pick him No. 1 overall. If he falls past No. 3, it's like the holidays have come early.
LaMelo Ball, point guard, Charlotte Hornets: Ball has been limited to just 58 games over the past two seasons due to recurring ankle injuries, but he still averaged 23.9 points per game and 8.0 assists per game last season. Ball has the potential to outperform his ADP and I'm comfortable taking him wherever he goes in the drafts.
Jalen Duren, C, Detroit Pistons: Duren will soon turn 21, but he's just beginning to realize his potential. Last season, he averaged 13.8 points per game, 11.6 rebounds per game and 0.8 blocks per game in 29.1 minutes per game. Duren has major All-Star potential, and the fantasy potential could be huge if he starts playing more than 30 minutes per game.
Golden State Warriors forward Jonathan Kuminga: Kuminga finished last season with a career-high 16.1 points per game and 4.8 rebounds per game. The soon-to-be 22-year-old is primed for a breakout year, especially as the Warriors move forward without Klay Thompson.
Jaime Jaquez Jr., shooting guard and forward, Miami Heat: Jaquez is a solid candidate for the Sixth Man of the Year award, averaging 11.9 points per game, 3.8 rebounds per game and 2.6 assists per game last season. With Caleb Martin gone, the second-year player has a solid foundation to build on and could see more minutes with the Heat.
The Five Boys by Eric Karabell
Jalen Johnson, power forward, Atlanta Hawks: His third NBA season figures to be a breakout season, but Johnson is capable of much more for a team that needs his numbers, like perhaps a 20-point, 10-rebound campaign.
Damian Lillard, point guard, Milwaukee Bucks: The first year in Milwaukee wasn't ideal and we expected a drop in usage, but things should improve. This is an excellent third-round pick.
Bam Adebayo, C, Miami Heat: Other centers score, block and block more, but Adebayo has a five-year streak of confidence and excellence. Not every team has to improve from previous seasons.
Brook Lopez, C, Milwaukee Bucks: Lopez is an annual bargain and a perfect choice for the season finale once again. He finished in the top 50 in points formats and 28th in roto/categories. What else does he need to do?
Scoot Henderson, point guard, Portland Trail Blazers: Let's give a kid a break. Scoot made huge strides late last season as he turned 20, and he should score and pass enough to easily be a top-75 fantasy player.
The Five Boys by Steve Alexander
Luka Doncic, point guard, Dallas Mavericks: He's my guy. Dallas made the Finals and Luka is still racking up points, rebounds, assists and threes at an alarming rate, and he was also solid on free throws, steals and blocks last season. If I can't get Victor Wemanyama at No. 1, I want Luka at No. 2 or 3.
Jalen Williams, power forward, Oklahoma City Thunder: He was good to me last year in OKC and he'll just keep getting better. He helped me in a lot of leagues last season and should do even more this time around. If SGA wasn't a hindrance, the kid would be an absolute monster.
Scottie Barnes, Toronto Raptors shooting guard, small forward and small forward: He played in just 60 games last season, but averaged nearly 20 points, eight rebounds, six assists, 1.7 three-pointers, 1.3 steals and 1.5 blocks. I can't get enough of Barnes this draft season.
Trae Young, point guard, Atlanta Hawks: Dejounte Murray is gone and this should be a revenge tour of sorts for Ice Trae. He should come in angry and ready to perform as the alpha in Atlanta, assuming Jalen Johnson doesn't steal that role from him. He should be a valuable pick for the first time in his career.
Cam Thomas, Brooklyn Nets point guard: The Nets are terrible and in a tough rebuild, but we know Thomas is going to get all the minutes and shots he can get. He's one of the reasons I won 30 Deep (a 30-team industry league) last season, and I owe it to him to try again. At the very least, we know he's going to score a ton of points.
Jim McCormick's Five Boys
Deni Avdija, small forward/power forward, Portland Trail Blazers: I can understand why Portland paid a premium to add Avdija to its roster last summer; he's a rising all-around forward who, in his age-23 season, has shown tremendous growth as a three-level scorer while also demonstrating his defensive prowess and rebounding efficiency. A star in multiple categories could emerge.
Devin Vassell, SG/SF, San Antonio Spurs: Despite battling injuries early in the season, Vassell finished with an elite 68% shooting percentage at the rim and recorded over five assists per game after the break. The arrival of Chris Paul to orchestrate the offense only adds to his potentially special scoring efficiency.
Trey Murphy III, shooting guard/forward, New Orleans Pelicans: Even if Brandon Ingram remains with the team for the entire campaign, Murphy remains an ascending 3-and-D talent who deserves our attention. The Pelicans will need his shooting volume and versatile defense in lineups with Zion Williamson, while the prospect of starring in a post-Ingram rotation could catapult Murphy to a whole new level of production.
Brandon Miller, point guard/forward, Charlotte Hornets: New coach Charles Lee envisions Miller as the primary scorer in his offensive scheme. It's easy to see why: Miller's brilliant finish to his rookie season included real growth as a forward and shooter. Could we be looking at the next PG3?
Ausar Thompson, small forward and power forward, Detroit Pistons: While his twin, Amen, enjoyed a solid role as a rookie in Houston, Ausar Thompson struggled to find consistent minutes in Motown. With the potential to provide elite defensive ratings and atypically strong rebounding results for his position, Thompson is an easy player to select in later stages of the draft.
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