Towers' Tiers 1.0: Guard | Forward | Center
You really see the impact of the position-less revolution in the NBA when you look at the ranks of forwards for Fantasy.
Guards are more valuable than ever thanks to the emphasis on shooting and playmaking, and big men will always have a place as long as they can protect the rim.
But the middle of the positional spectrum tends to get squeezed in this new NBA. So many small forwards are relegated to specialist roles, while the ranks of the 20-and-10 guys have thinned dramatically at power forward.
Small forward in particular has been hit hard lately, which is why it is the toughest position for Fantasy owners to try to fill. It is an extremely top-heavy position, with as many as five players worth targeting in the first 15 picks or so, however it gets barren from that point on.
Take this into account when you want to build your team. The small forwards likely to go in the middle rounds on Draft Day aren't going to bring you nearly as much production as the guards and centers available in that spot, so focus on filling that position early if you can.
Small Forward
| Elite | Excellent |
| Round 1 | Rounds 2-3 |
| Kevin Durant | Paul George |
| LeBron James | Giannis Antetokounmpo |
| Kawhi Leonard | Carmelo Anthony |
| Gordon Hayward |
Compounding the issues for the small forward position is the fact that James and Durant seem likely to be less productive this season than in year's past. The issues for Durant are more obvious -- joining a stacked team tends to depress your numbers -- whereas James' are more speculative. Given his age and mileage, it seems logical that he might look to take on a smaller role at some point, and coming off a championship seems like as good a time as any. They are still arguably the top two players at the position and should be off the board in all leagues in the first half-dozen picks, but they're both just a little bit less valuable than they have been in other years.
George both bounced back and took a huge step forward in his return from injury last season, but there is still room to grow, I think. He has the talent to challenge for a scoring title, but has been forced to create too many of his own shots in years' past, a skill he doesn't necessarily excel at. George might be better used as the tip of the spear on offense, sort of like how Anthony has been used in his career. He is good enough to be a primary playmaker for himself and others, but he has a shaky-ish handle and struggles to get to the rim consistently, so he could take a big step forward with the addition of Jeff Teague.
| Very Good | High-risk, High-reward |
| Rounds 4-6 | Rounds 7-9 |
| Khris Middleton | Nikola Mirotic |
| Nicolas Batum | Jabari Parker |
| Andrew Wiggins | Otto Porter |
| Ben Simmons | Jae Crowder |
| Trevor Ariza | Brandon Ingram |
| Chandler Parsons | Aaron Gordon |
| Rudy Gay | Evan Turner |
| Tobias Harris | Kent Bazemore |
| Evan Fournir |
Wiggins is like a more raw version of George, in that he has figured out a way to be productive in spite of his limitations as a ball-handler. He obviously isn't asked to do nearly as much as George, but it's not hard to see Wiggins taking another step forward, either through further development of his handle and jumper, or with a bit more help getting to better spots on the floor. You would bet on the former over the latter, but the development of Karl-Anthony Towns as well as the continued presence of ace jump shooter Zach LaVine should give him more room to operate next season. Wiggins' has been fairly limited so far, but the fact that he has been as productive as he has been bodes well for his future.
The fourth tier is dominated by players with a lot left to prove, but if you're looking for potential values, this is where you look. Maybe you miss out on the elite small forward crop and don't want to choose from relatively boring options like Gay, Harris or Ariza. This is where you should aim your sights. Mirotic, Parker, Ingram or Gordon all have plenty of room to grow into their games, and could all exceed their draft position when it's all said and done.
Solid
It's so tough to figure out exactly where Barnes should end up falling in drafts this season. It doesn't seem like there is much hype around him after four underwhelming seasons in Golden State. He didn't show much more than flashes of the kind of skills we hoped he might develop, and it often seemed like he was totally anonymous with the Warriors. However, he is certainly someone with some breakout potential left, and if he really is going to be lasting this late in draft, it makes a lot of sense to take a chance and see if his role in Golden State was just holding him back.
Power Forward
| Elite | Excellent |
| Round 1 | Rounds 2-3 |
| DeMarcus Cousins | Draymond Green |
| Paul George | Paul Millsap |
| Anthony Davis | Blake Griffin |
| Derrick Favors | |
| Serge Ibaka | |
| Kristaps Porzingis |
If you are drafting Cousins or George in the first round, it isn't to use them as a power forward, which really means Davis is in a tier all of his own. Injuries have been a consistent issue for him throughout his career, and he is now coming back from knee surgery as well as a major shoulder injury, so Davis might have more injury risk than any other first rounder on the board. He also may end up the best player in Fantasy by the end of next season if everything breaks right. There are maybe six players who really have the ability to end up as the No. 1 Fantasy option by the end of the season, and Davis is one of them, risk be damned.
I would probably be more excited about drafting Green if he wasn't likely to go in the top-15 yet again this season. There is no doubting he was worth that last season, but the addition of Durant changes everything for the Warriors. When Kyrie Irving and Kevin Love joined forced with LeBron James in Cleveland, we didn't really factor in a discount for any of them, and players who drafted Love in his first Cleveland season were mightily disappointed; I think the same will happen for the Warriors' stars this season. Green might see less of a hit to his Fantasy value than others because so much of his value comes from skills beyond scoring, however we are likely to see Durant take his place in at least some of those pick-and-rolls with Curry, and that was where so many of his assists came from. If he takes a hit in assist rate and starts to play fewer minutes, we might be looking at more of a third-round value for Green. Don't say you weren't warned.
| Very Good | High-risk, High-reward |
| Rounds 4-6 | Rounds 7-9 |
| LaMarcus Aldridge | Nikola Mirotic |
| Kevin Love | Thaddeus Young |
| Tobias Harris | Markieff Morris |
| Nerlens Noel | Julius Randle |
| Gorgui Dieng | Zach Randolph |
| Jabari Parker | Ryan Anderson |
| Myles Turner | Aaron Gordon |
| Marvin Williams |
Turner is going to be one of the more popular breakout candidates in the league, which could lead to him being slightly overdrafted coming into the season. On the other hand, he looks like what the future of the league is supposed to look like, with a soft touch near the basket, a smooth jumper that can extend out to 3-point range, and the ability to protect the rim. It's easy to get excited about Turner, especially given how far ahead of schedule he already was as a rookie.
Anderson certainly isn't going to fix any of the Rockets' defensive issues, but he might just be the key to them outscoring everyone. Anderson is arguably the best shooting big man in the league, and now he gets to play with a pick-and-roll monster in Harden, in Mike D'Antoni's offense, which might have been developed with Anderson in mind after all. He should be one of the best high-volume 3-point shooters in the league, a skill set that really makes him stand out at this position.
| Solid backups | Late-round fliers |
| Rounds 10-13 | Last Round |
| Al-Farouq Aminu | Chris Bosh |
| Ersan Ilyasova | Jared Dudley |
| Marcus Morris | Domantas Sabonis |
| Kenneth Faried | Maurice Harkless |
| Taj Gibson | Terrence Jones |
| Alex Len | Michael Beasley |
| Bobby Portis | Cristiano Felicio |
| Marquese Chriss | |
| Thon Maker | |
| Dragan Bender |
Bosh might not be worth drafting at all, as sad as that is, but we have to include him somewhere. As of now, it just doesn't seem likely that he will even be cleared to play this season, but if you were drafting right now and want someone with your last pick who might actually return real value, Bosh has second or third-round upside if he can get healthy. It's a long shot, but so is Maker or Chriss or any other late-rounder. There is no such thing as a bad last-round pick.
