Fantasy Basketball: 12-Team, 9-Cat Salary Mock Draft

It’s officially “draft season” for fantasy basketball, with most managers going through mock exercises before doing the “real thing.” Rotoworld’s Raphielle Johnson and Noah Rubin recently participated in a 12-manager salary mock draft hosted by Fantasy Basketball International’s Adam King, filling out rosters for a 9-cat, head-to-head league. Salary mocks are interesting because most take one of two approaches to fill out their rosters.

For some, it’s the “stars and scrubs” method, allocating most of their cap space to two or three players and then paying the minimum (or a little more) to fill out the team. Others prefer a more balanced approach. While this may mean missing out on a Victor Wembanyama, Nikola Jokic, or Luka Doncic, the overall roster may have better balance. Below are the results of this mock draft in order of winning bid and some early takeaways.

Player Winning Bid

Victor Wembanyama 92

Nikola Jokic 83

It didn’t take long for things to get crazy, as Wembanyama was the first player nominated. $92 is an extraordinary amount for a player, even one with Wemby’s perceived upside (and floor). His price should average out in the seventies by the time mid-October rolls around. That bidding also impacted Jokic’s final price, with the three-time MVP being the fourth player nominated. Like Wembanyama, the Joker’s price should be in the seventies (likely a few dollars less) the closer we get to the regular season.

Luka Doncic 65

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander 65

Anthony Davis 60

Three other players went off the board with price tags of $60 or more, and they’re among the top six in our preseason 9-cat (per-game) rankings. Doncic and SGA going for $65 isn’t a major surprise; the gap between them and Wembanyama/Jokic was too significant, but that happens in mid-September. As for Davis, $60 may be a bit much for some, given the injury history, but he did play 76 regular-season games in 2023-24. With the state of the Lakers’ roster, they need AD to play as often as possible to have any chance of being a factor in the West.

Giannis Antetokounmpo 49

Tyrese Haliburton 42

Joel Embiid 41

Jayson Tatum 41

Donovan Mitchell 41

Was Embiid’s…

Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/fantasy-basketball-12-team-9-220000721.html

Author : NBC Sports

Publish date : 2024-09-17 22:00:00

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