The power forward position has evolved in the NBA over the years. The most talented big men in the association need to be able to do more than just rebound and finish at the rim. With the new season right around the corner, we decided to take a look at the best power forwards in the game right now based on skill set, production and opportunity heading in to the year. Here is a look at the top five fantasy power forwards heading in to the 2017-18 season.
Kevin Durant, Golden State Warriors
Durant’s ability to move all over the floor is a major asset, especially when he sees time at the four spot. Durant averaged 25.1 points, 8.3 rebounds, 4.8 assists, 1.1 steals and 1.6 blocks for the Warriors last season while playing a number of different positions. His eligibility at the power forward spot makes him that much more valuable as a fantasy basketball league asset. No ceiling is higher at the position than Durant’s heading in to the season.
Anthony Davis, New Orleans Pelicans
Davis averaged 28.0 points, 11.8 rebounds, 2.2 blocks, 2.1 assists and 1.3 steals per game for the Pelicans last year while shooting above 50-percent from the floor. That type of efficiency is hard to find regardless of position and there is no reason to expect him to slow down this season if he can stay healthy. The Pelicans have the best big man tandem in the NBA with Davis and DeMarcus Cousins so it will be interesting to see what they can accomplish in their second season together in 2017-18.
Draymond Green, Golden State Warriors
The second Warriors big man to make this list will spend some time at power forward and at center depending on his team’s lineup at any given point in a game. Green has proven to be one of the most versatile assets in the NBA while putting up some impressive numbers. While his scoring totals will never be elite, Green still managed to average 10.2 points, 7.9 rebounds, 7.0 assists and 2.0 steals per game for Golden State last year. There is a clear drop off in production after the top two names on this list but Green is still a top-five fantasy center.
Blake Griffin, Los Angeles Clippers
Griffin has the potential to be higher on this list if he can stay healthy for Los Angeles this season. Griffin averaged 21.6 points, 8.1 rebounds, 4.9 assists and shot 49.3-percent from the field a year ago but he couldn’t stay healthy once again and that negated some of his fantasy value.
The key for Griffin is staying healthy. He’s played 80 games or more three times in his career but the challenge is that he’s now been in the NBA for seven seasons. He’s played 67 games or less in each of the other season. Last year, he played 61, in 2015-16, he played 35 and in 2014-15 he played 67. When healthy, he’s legit. The challenge is how much fantasy value will be lost as he’s sidelined?
Also, Chris Paul left for the Houston Rockets in the offseason, so it will be interesting to see if his departure has a negative impact on Griffin’s production this coming year. There is one school of thinking that says his numbers will go down without that facilitator around. The flip side suggests that he could be the alpha dog in Los Angeles now that Paul is out of the way. Who knows what that means for the team in reality but in terms of fantasy basketball, Griffin could be asked to do more, which means better numbers.
Paul Millsap, Denver Nuggets
Millsap might not get as much credit as he deserves with some rankings but the reality is that he deserves to be considered a top-five fantasy power forward. Millsap averaged 18.1 points, 7.7 rebounds and 3.7 assists last year while shooting just above 40-percent from the field. The veteran big man will have every opportunity to showcase his skill set in Denver this season with an improved supporting cast. If he falls far enough in your fantasy basketball league draft then he could very well end up being a tremendous steal worth taking a flier on for the 2017-18 season.
The 2017 NBA futures are out. It’s been a wild offseason already, but keep an eye on the betting lines as they move around at Diamond Sportsbook! Get the latest NBA betting lines right here.
