The center position is always a tricky one to fill in basketball fantasy as you’re looking for blocks, rebounds and field goal percentage. If you can get points too in the double-figure range, then that’s even better.
The following four centers on this list are guys who had good seasons this year but will continue to rise. If you invested last year, you got great value based on their average draft position and while you won’t get that this year, you’ll probably see even more growth from the four centers on this list as they have yet to hit their ceiling:
Hassan Whiteside, Miami Heat
Whiteside provided one of the most memorable fantasy sleeper breakthrough seasons in recent history when he averaged 11.8 points, 10.0 rebounds, 2.6 blocks and shot over 62% from the field in a banner fantasy season for Miami. You have to love the trajectory as he finished the year strong, averaging 16.8 points, 12.5 rebounds, 3.2 blocks and 67.7% shooting from the field in April.
He won’t be available on waivers next year through, so it’s important to know what to expect of him and what kind of numbers he will put up. The return of both Goran Dragic and Chris Bosh will be important as both players help stretch the floor and put Whiteside in a better position to succeed. At 25 years old, he is only now reaching his physical prime. It would be difficult for Whiteside to improve his numbers to the point where they are much better than what he did last season but he should average a double-double with close to 3.0 blocks and better than 62% shooting, so he is definitely worth taking a flier on after the truly elite fantasy centers are off the board next season.
Rudy Gobert, Utah Jazz
Gobert absolutely thrived in 37 games as Utah’s starting center as he averaged 10.6 points, 12.4 rebounds, 2.8 blocks and 1.0 steals while hitting nearly 60% of his field goals. Those numbers look even more impressive when you consider that Gobert is still only 22 years old and ready for bigger minutes after spending his first two NBA seasons developing his game. At 7’1’’, 245 pounds, Gobert really took off after the team tradeded away Enes Kanter. Gobert finished the season with 12.3 points per games with 12.0 rebounds, 2.3 blocks, 2.0 assists and 1.0 steals in the month of April. He has the potential to be an absolute beast at both ends of the floor and he will get an even bigger opportunity to showcase his talents next season.
Derrick Favors, Utah Jazz
Favors has been teasing Jazz fans for years with his potential and he finally delivered this past year with some strong fantasy numbers as he averaged 16.0 points, 8.2 rebounds and 1.7 blocks while shooting over 50% from the field. Similar to Gobert, Favors also played better once Kanter was out of the way.
Favors has all of the tools to thrive on a young Utah team and will get every opportunity to build on those numbers next year. It might seem strange that two Jazz centers appear on this list but Favors’ dual eligibility as a PF/C makes him that much more valuable in fantasy leagues, so keep a close eye on Favors as a center on the rise looking forward to next year.
Gorgui Dieng, Minnesota Timberwolves
The fact that Minnesota will select Karl-Anthony Towns or Jahlil Okafor with the first-overall pick in the 2015 NBA Draft will give Dieng some added sleeper value as a center on the rise that could be overlooked. The Timberwolves continue to stockpile talent and while whoever they draft has the potential to eventually be a star, the reality is that Dieng averaged 9.7 points, 8.3 rebounds, 1.7 blocks and 1.0 steals this past year and is potentially more ready to perform at the NBA level than either one of them. Don’t allow whomever Minnesota selects with their top pick from scaring you away from Dieng as a center on the rise looking forward to next season.
