Get ready for your fantasy basketball drafts with Dan Titus’ divisional previews for the 2024-25 NBA season. On today’s slate: the Central.
Cleveland Cavaliers
Evan Mobley’s usage and production has been consistent over his first three seasons in the league – nothing crazy, but just enough to see the potential. Well, the 23-year-old is about to leave away.
Atkinson says he will present Mobley more as a game makerand he worked to extend its range all off-seasons. A breakout is coming, and Mobley’s services will be well worth the price of admission as an early fourth-round pick.
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The most significant question mark here is Darius Garland. Injuries limited Garland to just 57 games last season and his production was diminished in almost every category. Assuming last year was an outlier, his sixth-round ADP reached a low enough point where I’d buy back.
Milwaukee Bucks
Giannis Antetokounmpo comes with warts in category formats, but he’s best for spot leagues. Damian Lillard just finished outside the top 24 for the first time in a decade, so expect him to bounce back after an entire offseason to train, rest and recover without outside distractions.
Brook Lopez’s age is catching up to him, so he’s easy for me at his current ADP. One player to watch in the later rounds is the usage of Bobby Portis Jr. Portis outscored 25% under Doc Rivers and he ranked 79th in per-game value over the final three months of the season.
Indiana Pacers
As one of basketball’s fastest and most efficient units last season, the Pacers turned heads as a solid hub for fantasy production. Tyrese Haliburton played in 69 games despite battling injuries and averaged at least 20 points with 10 assists for the second straight year. He’s an easy top pick in fantasy drafts.
Myles Turner continues to be an effective shot-blocker to grab in the fourth round, while Pascal Siakam has a safe 20-7-4 floor. I prefer Turner over Siakam in divisional leagues because Siakam’s defensive numbers are trending down, along with his free throw percentage. In points leagues, go for Siakam.
Two late guys I like are Aaron Nesmith and Andrew Nembhard. Both are effective from the field, scrappy defensively and their services come at a reasonable cost. Bennedict Mathurin is a microwave bucket, but he has yet to prove to be a viable fantasy asset outside of scoring.
Chicago Bulls
Zach LaVine talked about his approach to the season and I remained convinced that he would restore his basketball value in real life and fantasy. You have to feel that the Bulls will feature him more in hopes of shedding his contract. That said, 23-5-4 is a safe floor for LaVine after DeRozan’s departure. Nikola Vučević is declining, but he remains an asset for points, boards and helps from the central location.
Josh Giddey is stepping into a bigger role for the Bulls and can produce in a variety of ways in fantasy. Career year coming up.
My guess is that Coby White will play more off the ball when he’s sharing the court with Giddey and Lonzo Ball, so his usage might drop. Still, catching a scorer of his caliber in the eighth round is worth it. You can remove Patrick Williams from your draft list, while Matas Buzelis and Jalen Smith are players to watch.
And shout out to Lonzo, man. If he can stay healthy and keep doing this in limited minutes, he might find his way back onto some fantasy basketball rosters this season.
Detroit Pistons
Cade Cunningham is one of my favorite picks in the third round this season. If his preseason is any indication of what to expect, fantasy managers are in for a productive season from the fourth-year guard. Cunningham is averaging 14.8 points, 5.2 rebounds and 7.5 assists with just two turnovers in 24 minutes this preseason. The stock and 3’s will come, but it’s time to get on the motorCade.
Jalen Duren is a big man to target in the fifth round of drafts. Duren is one of four players in NBA history to average at least 13 points and 11 rebounds per game before turning 21. He’ll finish among the leaders in double-doubles and an increase in stock will push him into the top 50 in fantasy this one. a year
Harris continues to be a boring pick but remains consistent in fantasy. He finished in the top 65 in 10 consecutive seasons, yet his ADP is 67 – underrated as usual.
Ausar Thompson (illness) has yet to be cleared for contact, while Jaden Ivey has put together one of the best preseasons in the league. That efficiency will not holdbut he’s certainly worth a late-round flier with a modest 133 ADP.
