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Fantasy basketball draft season is just around the corner, and managers should start identifying their building blocks, targeting sleepers, and avoiding potential busts.
One of the most crucial positions in 9-category fantasy basketball leagues is the point guard. This position can heavily influence key categories like points, assists, steals, and shooting percentages.
Finding players who can dominate these categories is essential when evaluating the point guard pool. In this piece, I'll rank the point guard eligible players and sort them into five tiers. It's usually ideal to grab at least one player from the top two tiers, otherwise you may struggle to compete in assists.
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The Top 20 Point Guards in 9-Category Fantasy Basketball Leagues
These rankings break down the top 20 point guards into five tiers:
- Tier One: Cornerstone Pieces — First-round picks that you can build your roster around.
- Tier Two: Alpha Dogs — Not quite first-rounders, but All-Star caliber players who can fill up the stat sheet.
- Tier Three: Beta Dogs — Less consistent than Alpha Dogs but capable of delivering huge performances that can swing matchups.
- Tier Four: High Upside Players — Players with significant potential who, if they become more reliable, can provide a major edge over the competition.
- Tier Five: High Floor Players — Consistent and reliable, but not likely to deliver explosive performances regularly.
Note that these rankings focus on players whose primary position is point guard, though they may have eligibility for other positions. All players listed have point guard eligibility across all major fantasy league platforms.
Tier 1: Cornerstone Pieces
1. Luka Doncic - Dallas Mavericks (PG)
2. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander - Oklahoma City Thunder (PG)
- Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is a no-brainer first-round pick in fantasy basketball drafts. Over the past two seasons, SGA has been one of the most consistent and reliable players, making him a potential league winner. Last season, he delivered one of the best campaigns we've seen from a point guard, averaging 30.1 points, 5.5 rebounds, and 6.2 assists per game. Despite his high usage—taking 19.8 shots per game—SGA remains highly efficient, shooting 53.5% from the field, 35.3% from three, and 87.4% from the free-throw line.
- While his offensive prowess is elite, it often overshadows his contributions on defense, where he averages 2 steals and 0.9 blocks per game. If managers have the chance to draft SGA, they should jump at the opportunity, as he will likely be one of the best point guards across all nine fantasy categories.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander drops a playoff career-high 34 PTS as the @okcthunder take Game 4 to tie the series 2-2!
34 PTS | 8 REB | 5 AST | 2 STL | 2 BLK
Game 5 is Wednesday night in OKC ⛈️ pic.twitter.com/FS1CbjDlRE
— NBA (@NBA) May 14, 2024
3. Tyrese Haliburton - Indiana Pacers (PG/SG)
4. Stephen Curry - Golden State Warriors (PG)
Tier 2: Alpha Dogs
5. Trae Young - Atlanta Hawks (PG)
6. Devin Booker - Phoenix Suns (PG/SG)
- Phoenix Suns guard Devin Booker may not be your first pick in the draft, but he’s a player to target in the early rounds. As one of the most efficient scorers at the guard position, Booker operates with impressive shooting splits of 49.2% from the field, 36.4% from three, and 88.6% from the free-throw line in the 2023-24 season. Despite sharing the court with Kevin Durant, Booker remains the focal point of the Suns' offense, with much of the ball movement flowing through him.
- Last season, as the team's primary point guard for the first time in his career, Booker set a personal best by averaging 6.9 assists per game. While his defensive stats may not stand out, the value he provides in scoring efficiency and assists makes him well worth a second or third-round pick in fantasy drafts.
Devin Booker WENT OFF for 52 PTS (37 in the 1H) as he led the Suns to a W in New Orleans!
🔥 52 PTS, 9 AST
🔥 19/28 FGM
🔥 8 3PM (career-high) pic.twitter.com/I6NXF3J9Y6— NBA (@NBA) April 2, 2024
7. Damian Lillard - Milwaukee Bucks (PG)
8. James Harden - Los Angeles Clippers (PG, SG)
Tier 3: Beta Dogs
9. LaMelo Ball - Charlotte Hornets (PG)
10. De’Aaron Fox - Sacramento Kings (PG)
11. Jalen Brunson - New York Knicks (PG)
12. Kyrie Irving - Dallas Mavericks (PG/SG)
13. Ja Morant - Memphis Grizzlies (PG)
- While this might seem like a low ranking for a player of Ja Morant's caliber, some managers think twice before selecting him early in the draft based on the fact that Morant is coming off a season in which he played just nine games due to suspension and a labral tear in his shoulder, which required surgery in January.
- Additionally, Morant is less valuable in 9-category leagues because of his lack of defensive stats and relatively lower efficiency. He shot 47.5% from the field, 27.5% from three, and 81.3% from the free-throw line last season. While these splits are respectable, they don't place him among the elite point guards in terms of efficiency.
- Morant is still worth considering, but managers should be cautious and avoid reaching for him too early in their drafts.
14. Tyrese Maxey - Philadelphia 76ers
Tier 4: High Upside
15. Cade Cunningham - Detroit Pistons (PG/SG)
- It feels like we've been talking about Detroit Pistons point guard Cade Cunningham's potential for a few years now, but we have yet to see that true breakout. One bright spot for Cunningham in 2023-24 was that he remained healthy and on the court after playing just 12 games in the 2022-23 season. Last year, Cunningham posted career highs with 22.7 points and 7.5 assists per game, though his rebounding numbers dipped to 4.3 per game.
- This offseason, the Pistons hired J.B. Bickerstaff following his departure from Cleveland. Bickerstaff has a strong track record of developing young point guards, as seen with Darius Garland. If Bickerstaff's coaching can boost Cunningham's efficiency and defensive stats, Cunningham could become a mid-round pick that helps fantasy managers win their leagues.
Cade Cunningham this season
23 PPG
4 RPG
8 APG
55% TSCade put up really good numbers in only his 2nd full season in the league. He also went off for some big games including a 43/5/7 game vs the Hawks, and a 41/5/9 game vs the Nets.
One of the most underappreciated players… pic.twitter.com/T7LGBikAwg
— KJ (@KJ__Hoops) July 5, 2024
16. Jamal Murray - Denver Nuggets (PG)
17. Darius Garland - Cleveland Cavaliers (PG)
Tier 5: High Floor
18. D’Angelo Russell - Los Angeles Lakers (PG/SG)
19. Jrue Holiday - Boston Celtics (PG/SG)
- Boston Boston Celtics guard Jrue Holiday is one of the best late-round guards to target in fantasy basketball. While his production dipped slightly after joining the Celtics, he has a defined role as the team's top on-ball defender, ensuring plenty of minutes on the floor. Holiday has been an ironman, consistently playing over 30 minutes per game and appearing in at least 59 games per season over the past eight years.
- In 9-category leagues, Holiday stands out for his efficiency on offense and contributions on defense. He shot an impressive 48% from the field, 42.9% from three-point range, and 83.3% from the free-throw line last season. Although his defensive stats declined slightly, he still provides solid numbers for his position, averaging 0.9 steals and 0.8 blocks per game with the Celtics. Holiday offers managers a high-floor player who allows them to take risks at other positions on their roster.
20. Fred VanVleet - Houston Rockets (PG)
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