RADIO
We are drawing ever closer to the start of the NBA season and the beginning of my favorite fantasy sport - fantasy hoops!
If your league hasn't drafted yet, odds are you are going to be drafting soon! I have been doing some mock drafts with other folks in the industry and digging into my personal projections to try and bring you some of the most unique and useful rankings for your head-to-head and roto category leagues.
I'm never afraid to take some stands on players and be aggressive with my rankings. In addition, I will highlight some players in each tier that I'm either higher or lower on than the current Yahoo ADP. So here they are, my top-150 9-Category draft rankings for the 2024-2025 fantasy basketball season.
Editor's Note: Our incredible team of writers received five total writing awards and 13 award nominations by the Fantasy Sports Writers Association, tops in the industry! Congrats to all the award winners and nominees including NBA Writer of the Year, Best NFL Series, MLB Series, PGA Writer and Player Notes writer of the year. Be sure to follow their analysis, rankings and advice all year long, and win more with RotoBaller! Read More!
Fantasy Basketball 9-Category Head-to-Head Rankings
My Guys - Players I'm Higher On Than The Field
Early Rounds
Paul George, Jalen Williams, Jalen Johnson, Fred VanVleet, Jimmy Butler
I am going to roll through these in a quick-hit fashion with a more detailed analysis to come in future articles.
PG13 is a 9-cat stud who should fit in perfectly alongside Maxey and Embiid. He doesn't need to be the top usage guy to be incredibly valuable in steals, blocks, assists, and threes. Jalen Williams took a big leap last and brings such a unique blend of guard stats with excellent FG% and efficiency - he just fits so well on any team.
Jalen Johnson should pick up some of the usage and assists vacated by Dejounte Murray. He was cruising towards top-40 value last year before the injury and is just dripping with athleticism. He's only to get more efficient and polished as he continues to evolve his game.
FVV is such a beast I find myself taking him ahead of guys like Damian Lillard and Jalen Brunson. What he lacks in scoring, he makes up for with elite assists, threes, and defensive stats. The 0.5 blocks from a point guard is "out of position stat" gold.
Jimmy Butler's issue is always durability, but his upside for this format is massive if he can stay on the court and he's well worth taking ahead of his ADP for that reason alone. Butler does a little of everything and then at least once every few weeks just completely takes over a game and drops a massive line that can win you a week in H2H.
Middle Rounds
Jalen Duren, DeAndre Ayton, Trey Murphy III, Bogdan Bogdanovic
I'm quite enamored with both Duren and Ayton in this range and I try to snag them ahead of others whenever possible. Duren showcased some of the best rebounding rates in the league last year, while also flashing an improved offensive game and some solid passing skills. You won't get many blocks, but you will get some elite rebounding with solid percentages.
Ayton had a massive finish to the season last year, and while a lot of guys were out for Portland, he should be the first or second option on offense again this year - and is as talented offensively as any young center in the NBA. Ayton finished in the top-40 and if you can deal with the injury and shutdown risk, he's primed for another big year.
Murphy is such a solid all-around player with an elite fantasy skill set. He just needs minutes and a defined role. Right now, the rotation and usage in New Orleans could be messy and that's the reason that a lot of folks are down on Dejounte Murray, CJ McCollum, and Brandon Ingram. But Murphy has value even in a sixth-man role and gets a big boost as soon as a starter gets hurt (with Zion and Ingram it's only a matter of time).
Bogdanovic is a guy I have already written about a few times, he's simply way too far down the rankings on every site for a guy who was a top-60 player last year. Whether he starts or comes off the bench, he's going to have a major role in Atlanta and if you watched the Olympics or any Hawks basketball the last few years, you know this guy is an incredibly skilled offensive player.
Late Rounds
Al Horford, Grayson Allen, Dyson Daniels, PJ Washington
Horford is an ageless wonder who always finds a way to be productive even as the last option on offense. Porzingis is out until December at least and is going to be handled carefully after that. Big Al is a great guy for the end of your bench in 9-cat.
Grayson Allen was simply one of the most efficient three-point shooters in the NBA last year, making 2.7 treys while still shooting 50% overall from the floor. He's going to get minutes off the bench with the Suns and can slide into the starting lineup if/when Beal and others need a night off.
Daniels is starting to become a trendy pick among the industry pros, mainly because we've seen what he can do on a per-minute basis in steals, boards, and assists and he's now in a position to either start or have a defined role in Atlanta.
Washington was really good in Dallas last year as playing the four consistently with Gafford and Lively at the five allowed him to be at his natural position. He averaged 11.7 points, 6.2 boards, 1.8 threes, 1.2 steals, and 0.9 blocks in his 29 games with the Mavs and those numbers will certainly play at this ADP if he can replicate them this season.
Stay Away - Players I'm Avoiding at ADP
Early Rounds
Giannis Antetokounmpo, Stephen Curry, Devin Booker, Dejounte Murray
Unless you want to embrace a punt FT% build, I'd avoid Giannis in the first round. If he slips too far into the second round, he becomes a value and I'd go for it. But he's not worth the hassle around picks six through 9 whether you are playing H2H or Roto.
Curry could be coming off an Olympics hangover and is the lone splash brother left in Golden State. He's another year older and I'd rather go after scoring and assists from other players with higher ceilings.
Devin Booker is no longer the point guard on this team, as Tyus Jones—a true pass-first point guard—is in the lineup. Between fewer assists and having to share usage with a healthy Bradley Beal, I could see his overall numbers taking a dip.
Murray is a guy I would still draft if everyone agrees that he's overrated and slips too far, but the move to New Orleans means he now shares the court with a bunch of high-usage players and it's unlikely he sees the type of shot volume or usage with the Pelicans.
Middle Rounds
Ja Morant, Kawhi Leonard, Paolo Banchero, Mikal Bridges
Morant has always been an overrated player for 9-cat as his only two big contributions are points and assists with average free throw shooting on solid volume. He's not changing the way he plays and his defense is non-existent.
Kawhi's injury situation is troubling and while Paul George is now gone, this feels like it could be a rough season in Clipper land. If Kawhi is going to miss a chunk of time or sit on back-to-backs and be an early shutdown risk, then he's going to be a wasted pick, even if he's dropping into the fourth round.
Banchero is a much better pick in points leagues, his stat line reminds me of Julius Randle's. You get plenty of counting stats, but not many peripheral stats.
Bridges move to New York should be great for the Knicks in real life, but for fantasy, he should take a big hit in usage and he will have to be as uber-efficient as he was his final season and a half in Phoenix to hit value where he's being drafted, which is at his ceiling.
Late Rounds
Cam Thomas, Mark Williams, Kristaps Porzingis, Jerami Grant
I really don't care if Cam Thomas scores 28 points a game, he does literally nothing else and is about the most hollow fantasy scorer in the game. People always overvalue points in fantasy and I'd much rather fade him as he can be a big drag in too many other categories.
Williams's injury scares me. I know Charlotte is saying it's not serious, but he sat out a lot of games last season and they have no reason to push him to play this year in what should be another rebuilding season for the Hornets. I like his game, but I don't draft players who have constant nagging injuries if I can avoid it.
Speaking of injuries, Porzingis is out until at least Christmas and you know that Boston will ease him back into things with his minutes and probably give him rest days, too. His ADP reflects that, but I am still probably not drafting him unless he falls into the final few rounds. There are just too many other healthy players here with upside.
Jerami Grant has devolved into a pretty mediocre fantasy player after once showing some promise of being a 1-1-1 guy (threes, steals, and blocks). Portland paid him but is probably looking to unload him to any kind of contender that wants him the first chance they get as they have other younger players they want to develop. He will be hurt and miss games and if he's not moved, probably get shelved down the stretch.
Color-Coded Draft Rankings
These rankings are the same as the ones above, but a different view with some color-coding:
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!
