We’re well into the preseason of the 2015-16 NBA season, which means everyone is examining what to do in fantasy. It’s a popular time to start sifting through the rosters and zeroing in on sleepers, which is why we’ve compiled you this short list. The following four guys are players whose stock is on the rise this season.
You can still get them relatively cheap in fantasy drafts this October but expect them to cost you a much higher pick this time next year:
Zach Lavine, Minnesota Timberwolves
Shooting Guard
Minnesota is a young team on the rise in the Western Conference and while they might not be a legitimate playoff contender just yet, they certainly have some intriguing young pieces that are going to be significant assets in fantasy basketball leagues this season.
Reigning Rookie of the Year Andrew Wiggins and rookie first-round pick Karl-Anthony Towns are the obvious talents but one sleeper player that appears to be on the rise is their second-year guard Lavine. The 2014 first-round pick was overlooked a lot last season in big part because of Wiggins but he averaged 10.1 points, 3.6 assists and 2.8 rebounds in 24.7 minutes per game in his rookie season and his numbers improved down the stretch.
When he played 29.7 minutes per game after the All-Star break, he averaged 14.2 points, 4.2 assists and 3.9 rebounds. LaVine is expected to take another step forward in his second season and he is definitely worth targeting in the later rounds of fantasy basketball drafts.
Stanley Johnson, Detroit Pistons
Small Forward
The Pistons were thrilled when Arizona’s Stanley Johnson fell to them at No. 8 in the first round of this year’s NBA Draft. While some expected that they would bring him along slowly, there has been every indication out of camp to expect otherwise. Johnson ripped up the NBA Summer League with 16.2 points, 6.8 rebounds, 2.0 assists, 1.8 blocks and 1.0 blocks while shooting 57.7% from the field.
Head coach Stan Van Gundy has talked about using him immediately at different positions, including primarily on the wing. Johnson could struggle to get consistent minutes early on but he is definitely worth taking a flier on as a sleeper pick in deeper fantasy leagues as a player whose value is definitely on the rise.
Ryan Anderson, New Orleans Pelicans
Power Forward
The regular season hasn’t even started yet and New Orleans has already been forced to deal with injuries to its top two centers. Omer Asik and Alexis Ajinca are both expected to miss at least the first month of action. The Pelicans are expected to use Anthony Davis at the center position but the one player whose fantasy stock rises the most based on those injuries is Anderson.
The veteran forward averaged 13.7 points, 4.8 rebounds and 2.0 three-point shots in 27.5 minutes per game for New Orleans a year ago and his numbers could be even better with a bigger role. The Pelicans most effective offensive lineup will be with Davis and Anderson starting. That makes Anderson a player you want to own.
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Joffrey Lauvergne, Denver Nuggets
Center
Lauvergne is still somewhat of a relative unknown for basketball fans but that is about to change with Jusuf Nurkic sidelined with a knee injury. Even though Nurkic was a big hit last year, Lauvergne, the second-year center from France, is the favorite to step in and play more minutes.
Lauvergne has averaged 15.0 points and 12.5 rebounds while hitting 72% of his shots from the field this preseason and head coach Mike Malone has said that he plans to five him a much bigger role with the team this season. Lauvergne is far from being the most recognizable name but he is a sleeper fantasy pick whose stock is on the rise and it won’t be long before he becomes a household name for the Nuggets. If he plays well, the Nuggets are so talent-deficient that they’ll find a way to play both him and Nurkic together.
