This article is part of our NBA Draft Kit series.
With the abbreviated preseason now behind us, we're only two sleeps from Opening Night. Let's answer One Big Question for each team in the Pacific Division.
Golden State Warriors
Expectations are high. Frankly, too much seems to be riding on a healthy Klay Thompson and another MVP-caliber season from Stephen Curry. The Warriors relied too much on just Steph last year and missed the playoffs. But for fantasy purposes:
Will Stephen Curry be a top-3 Fantasy Player in 2021-22?
Curry ranked as the second-best player in eight-cat leagues last season, despite appearing in only 63 games. He also finished #2 in 9-category per game value. At age 32 last season, it seems fortunate that Curry missed only nine games. A broken hand forced Curry to miss almost all of 2019-20. Curry's shooting is a sharp as ever. Ultimately, health is what will determine Curry's effectiveness.
RotoWire projects Curry to play 74 games and end the 2021-22 season ranked at #3 for 8-category leagues. That's just behind Nikola Jokic and just ahead of Damian Lillard. For my money, give me the steady health and production of Lillard. Both guards are vital to their team's success, but with the healthy return of Klay Thompson around Christmas, it's possible that down the stretch (fantasy playoff time), the Warriors won't be as dependent on Curry as the Trail Blazers will certainly be with Lillard. I'm splitting hairs here, but I'd rank Lillard third and Curry fourth.
Los Angeles Clippers
Will Paul George have a top-8 fantasy season?
In 9-category leagues last year, Paul George ranked 22nd in per game fantasy production. But that was with Kawhi Leonard by his side. With Leonard out, George could explode. In George's last 14 regular season games, most of which were without Kawhi, he posted 24.9 points, 7.8 rebounds, 4.8 assists, 1.1 steals, 0.4 blocks, 2.8 threes per contest and shot 44.3 percent from the field and 82.4 from the charity stripe.
Many have already caught on to George's rising stock. But his ADP average is at 16.1 over Yahoo, CBS and ESPN. CBS drafters are taking him at an average of 20.6 overall. Don't let him drop that far in your league.
Los Angeles Lakers
Are LeBron James and Anthony Davis still first-round fantasy selections?
No. Simply put, I don't expect either of them to play enough games to crack the Top 12 in total production.
LeBron turns 37 in December. He has nothing to prove in the regular season. I suspect he'll enjoy deferring to Russell Westbrook during the grind in February and March. James is coming off a 45-game season. The Lakers will let him sit every time he wakes up on the wrong side of the bed. Westbrook is an energetic freak -- let him carry the load.
As for Davis, he only played in 36 games last year. Yes, he's only 28, but he's a constant injury risk. RotoWire is projecting 68 games for Davis this year and I think that's generous. The injuries are also taking a toll on his per-game stats. Davis' 21.8 points per game were a seven-year low and his 7.9 boards per game were a career worst. This Lakers team is at its best when Davis is at the five, but does he have the appetite for it? I'm not so sure.
Finally, this Lakers team has considerable depth. In addition to new starter Russell Westbrook, they have Dwight Howard, Kendrick Nunn, Rajon Rondo, Malik Monk, Talen Horton-Tucker and Carmelo Anthony coming off the bench. They don't need James and Davis to dominate every night. Davis can still be an elite fantasy big man, but I don't see him returning to borderline-top-five value this season.
Phoenix Suns
The Suns have a great seven-man rotation with pieces that fit really well together. On DraftKings, Phoenix is listed at +650 pick to win the West. I'll take those odds. And I'll confess, I've got a bit of a man-crush on their versatile wing:
Is Mikal Bridges ready to break out?
Yes, he is. Bridges averaged 2.0 "stocks" per game last year. Plus, all of his key stats have improved during his first three season in the league. Last season, Bridges shot 42.5 percent from behind the arc, good for 15th in the NBA; he hit 64.7 percent of his two-point field goals, good for third in the league. Every team in the NBA would love to have a 3-and-D plus player like Bridges. And perhaps best of all for his fantasy managers, in three seasons, he hasn't missed a game yet.
Of course, one could argue that Bridges has already broken out. In 9-category leagues last year, Bridges ranked 12th in total value -- 12th overall! His 72 games played certainly helped.
For 8-category leagues, RotoWire projected Bridges to rank 55th, yet he's averaging an ADP of 83.5 across ESPN, CBS, Yahoo and Underdog. That's crazy. Snag him in the sixth round of your draft and laugh all the way to bank.
Sacramento Kings
Will Tyrese Haliburton crack Top 30 value this year?
This time last year, I asked Will Tyrese Haliburton crack Top 100 value as a rookie? My answer was "no," and I was categorically wrong. The rookie finished with a rank of 68th for 8-category season totals. Remarkably, he shot 47.2% from the field, which is fantastic for a rookie guard. He also drained 85.7% of his free throws.
RotoWire has the sophomore projected at 44th overall for 8-category leagues. That's with an almost-three-minutes-per-game increase and a notable bump in three-point volume. But with Buddy Hield likely moving to the Kings' bench, I think Haliburton can top the 12.9 field goal attempts per game RotoWire projects.
Haliburton won't crack the Top 30, but he'll certainly exceed his average ADP of 72.1.
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