Who can you expect to make a leap and become a bigger factor in fantasy basketball next season? And whose fantasy value could fall?
Here are Andre Snellings, Eric Karabell, Eric Moody, Steve Alexander and Jim McCormick with more on that.
Risers in 2024-25
Vince Williams Jr.: A healthy Grizzlies roster is formidable enough to win the West, so do not discount established stars Ja Morant, Desmond Bane and Jaren Jackson Jr. too much. Don’t forget about Williams, either. Williams, the 47th pick in the 2022 draft, emerged in relative obscurity when everyone else got hurt, and he did everything, from scoring, rebounding and passing to stealing, blocking and hitting 3-pointers. This may be a top-100 fantasy player even when his teammates return. — Karabell
Jonathan Kuminga: Kuminga had, what I would call, a mini-breakout campaign this season with averages of 16.3 points, 4.9 rebounds, 2.1 assists, 0.7 steals, 0.5 blocks and 0.7 3-pointers on 53% shooting and 73 games. The full breakout is coming next season when Steve Kerr finally unleashes him on the league from Day 1. And the Hawks’ Jalen Johnson is right there with him. — Alexander
Ayo Dosunmu: If Zach LaVine‘s time in Chicago comes to an end, I believe Ayo Dosunmu has a real chance to become an impact starter in real and fantasy terms. An awesome finish to the season saw him slash for 17 PPG, 3.3 RPG, 4.9 APG, with 1.5 combined steals and blocks in 19 games since the start of March. With the real potential for LaVine to be moved, there is underrated appeal to Dosunmu making a leap for 2024-25. A second nomination is Trey Murphy III of the Pelicans, a prototype of the 3-and-D identity who finished 23rd in the Player Rater over the past month of the season. — McCormick
Jalen Johnson: Johnson is one player that comes to mind. He’s been one of the Hawks’ most productive starters this season averaging 16.0 PPG, 8.7 RPG and 3.6 APG, 1.0 BPG and 1.2 SPG. We have players who break out every season who weren’t on our radar, and Johnson is one of them. Filling the void left by John Collins, he became a key part of the Hawks’ rotation. I’ll rank Johnson just inside the top-50 in next season’s rankings. — Moody
Brandon Miller: The second pick in the 2023 NBA Draft was overshadowed by the monstrous play of fellow rookie Wembanyama, and Miller’s slow start to the season took him out of the public conversation. But he really picked it up in the second half of the season and, mixed around normal rookie inconsistency, showed flashes of absolute dominance. Like the stretch late in January where he averaged 24.3 PPG, 6.5 RPG and 3.5 3PG for four games, turned in two clunkers then bounced back to post 29.2 PPG, 4.4 RPG and 4.2 3PG in the five games after. With a season under his belt, I look for Miler to be an impact player from jump next season. — Snellings
Fallers in 2024-25
DeMar DeRozan, Nikola Vucevic and Coby White: Something has to give with the Bulls when LaVine presumably returns to health, and it should affect the surprising White, and perhaps DeRozan and Vucevic as well. Give the Bulls credit for making the play-in round, but fantasy managers cannot expect DeRozan and Vucevic to continue at this fantastic statistical level in their mid-30s, while White and LaVine are similar statistical players. — Karabell
Draymond Green: I’m staying away from old guys next year, just like I do almost every season. Although, having said that, having old guys like LeBron James, Kawhi Leonard and Rudy Gobert paid off for a lot of managers this season. Including Stephen Malkmus, who I can never seem to beat in my Rock and Roll Hoops league. Congratulations on another championship, brother. Green probably tops my list of old guys I’m not drafting, followed closely by Kawhi Leonard, Jimmy Butler, Mike Conley and Kristaps Porzingis. — Alexander
Khris Middleton: Bradley Beal is a bit too obvious, so I’ll go with Middleton. There are times we see the prime Middleton flash still, but the erosion of cumulative injuries and merely the age regression bound to influence his production and we find a player in decline who likely still has a strong reputation after years of consistency. Teammate Damian Lillard also qualifies after a down season in scoring efficiency that relied a great deal on a friendly whistle to drive scoring volume. — McCormick
Russell Westbrook: Another obvious one, here. He entered the season as the starting point guard and third impact starter for the Clippers, but with the James Harden trade he accepted a bench role and lost a lot of his fantasy upside. He still averaged 25.6 FP/Game on the season, but those are closer to fantasy streamer than the fantasy star he used to be. — Snellings
Source: www.espn.com