Staff Fantasy Basketball Draft Recap: Analysis of Our 12-Team Head-to-Head League
Round 5
| Pick | Overall | Player | Position | Writer |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 49 | Mike Conley | PG | Sam Hauss |
| 2 | 50 | Dwight Howard | PF/C | Derek Lynch |
| 3 | 51 | Tyreke Evans | PG/SG | Jacob Kent |
| 4 | 52 | Chandler Parsons | SF/PF | Jay Kim |
| 5 | 53 | Goran Dragic | PG/SG | Mike Comerford |
| 6 | 54 | Kenneth Faried | PF/C | Shae Cronin |
| 7 | 55 | Ty Lawson | PG | Brett Weisband |
| 8 | 56 | Danny Green | SG/SF | Brandon Gdula |
| 9 | 57 | Jonas Valanciunas | C | Russell Peddle |
| 10 | 58 | Brandon Knight | PG/SG | Dale Redman |
| 11 | 59 | Tobias Harris | SF/PF | Brett Oswalt |
| 12 | 60 | Kemba Walker | PG | Bryan Mears |
Where Dwight Howard gets picked is always an interesting thing to watch for in drafts, as his free throw percentage can almost single-handedly force a punt. Derek grabbing him at 50 is actually pretty great, considering he already has Stephen Curry and LaMarcus Aldridge on his team that shoot free throws at a high rate and great percentage. When you grab guys like Andre Drummond, DeAndre Jordan, or Dwight Howard, you have to seriously consider either punting free throw percentage or aggressively balancing out the deficiency with lots of good shooters from the line to stay competitive.
Jacob Kent's pick of Tyreke Evans at 51 came before news of his recent knee surgery came out, so we have to cut him a bit of slack here. This used to be a reasonable spot for 'Reke, but now he might just be a late-round flier with a growing history of knee issues and a timetable of six to eight weeks before his return.
Danny Green is being ridiculously undervalued in fantasy hoops drafts this year after finishing last season as the 23rd-ranked player in nine-category leagues, so Brandon got fantastic value here at pick 56. His lack of points causes people to sleep on him, but he's an elite source of threes, steals, blocks, and free throw percentage and joins fantasy darling Draymond Green (always taken 20-30 spots higher) as one of only two players to average at least one three, one steal, and one block per game last season.
Brandon Knight will have a good opportunity in his first full season in Phoenix to prove that his rise to being a mid-round fantasy talent last year in Milwaukee was not an aberration. Still somehow only 23 years old after four NBA seasons, Knight should fit in nicely next to Eric Bledsoe and his tantalizing upside was a good get for Dale Redman at 58.
My pick: Jonas Valanciunas, C - We've been waiting for the Jonas Valanciunas breakout for a few years now, but this might finally be his time. He just signed a lucrative contract extension with the Raptors this summer, the team now has a frontcourt rotation with fewer reliable centers than years before, and coach Dwane Casey has indicated that he might finally be ready to give Valanciunas some fourth quarter minutes. JV managed to be the 61st-ranked player in nine-category leagues last year in only 26.2 minutes per game, because of his solid rebounds, blocks, high percentages, and low turnovers. Just imagine what he'll be able to do if he starts getting somewhere between 30 and 32 minutes per contest.
