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Last season's rookie class really failed to live up to what may have been somewhat unrealistic expectations. Billed as one of the best draft classes in a decade, the group largely underwhelmed Fantasy owners, with only a small handful of players emerging as reliable Fantasy starters for more than a few months at a time.

Last season, only two rookie guards finished in the top-48 in Fantasy scoring, while two more made it into the top-100. Only one center even made it into the top-50, and only three ranked in the top-100 at forward.

Of course, it didn't help that the Jabari Parker (No. 2 pick), Joel Embiid (No. 3), Aaron Gordon (No. 4), Marcus Smart (No. 6), Julius Randle (No. 7), Noah Vonleh (No. 9), and Doug McDermott (No. 11) all missed time with some pretty serious injuries. With all but Embiid, you really couldn't see that coming, and it won't happen again.

Rookies are inherently risky, but last season was kind of nuts in that regard. Rookies probably have a higher chance of injury than the general NBA population, due to their age and lack of experience playing an 82-game season, but you can't expect a plague like last season every year. The 2014 lottery class played just 530 of 1,066 possible games last season, even when you take out the 76ers' European stash prospect Dario Saric. That's an outlier.

So, we should expect this class to be better for Fantasy purposes. Just how much better obviously remains to be seen, but it isn't a high hurdle to clear. Every single player drafted last night's first round has the ability to make an impact in the NBA; draft history also tells us any of them could be the next Darko Milicic. Figuring out who will hit and who will miss is an impossible task, but we can say some players are more risky than others.

I'm not here to tell you who is going to be a star next season. Here, instead, is each of the 14 lottery picks rated by their risk level on Draft Day this fall, along with some non-lottery players who might be worth a look.

Green Light

Go ahead and draft him, he's a starter for you

D'Angelo Russell, G, Lakers

It's a guard's league, and Russell is very much a modern NBA guard. In both size and approach, Russell straddles that line between point and shooting guard, but he is by no means a man with no position. It's just that, like James Harden, you want the ball in his hands, no matter what position you actually call him. He can shoot the 3-pointer either off the dribble or as a set shooter, and racked up 19.3 points, 5.7 rebounds and 5.0 assists per game for the Buckeyes last season. The Lakers still have Kobe Bryant and Jordan Clarkson around, but neither player is going to stand in Russell's way if he proves himself ready at this point in their careers. Whether the Lakers need him to pass or score, Russell is going to make an impact right away, and has a great chance to be the top rookie in this class.

Jahlil Okafor, C, 76ers

I wanted Russell to go the 76ers, who desperately need someone with some honest-to-goodness off-dribble skills, but this is probably the next best thing. The recently drafted Joel Embiid and Nerlens Noel complicate things a bit, but there's not that much reason to think Okafor won't be able to play from Day 1. In fact, between questions about Noel's offensive game and Embiid's health, it wouldn't surprise me if Okafor was playing 30 minutes per game right away. There is no reason to think the 76ers can't make Noel and Okafor work together, as they should both patch up the other's limitations, and Okafor should stand alone at the top of the heap when it comes time to divvy out touches for the 76ers. This was a historically bad offensive team last season, and now they have a centerpiece to build every possession around. A DeMarcus Cousins-esque rookie season isn't out of the question -- Cousins averaged 14.1 points, 8.6 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 1.8 combined blocks and steals per game.

Yellow Light

Worth drafting, could be a starter, but you don't want to pin your hopes on it

Karl-Anthony Towns, C/F, Timberwolves

Towns should be the best player in this draft, but it's hard to see him making the most impact right away for Fantasy. I toyed with the idea of putting him in the "green light" category anyways, but this feels like the right spot. The Timberwolves have a logjam in the frontcourt, with Gorgui Dieng, Nikola Pekovic, Adreian Payne and Anthony Bennett all looking for playing time. Towns should be better than all of them, perhaps as soon as this season, and coach Flip Saunders showed last season with Andrew Wiggins he is willing to pile up minutes on a young players odometer if he proves worthy. The problem for Towns is that he is probably going to foul a ton as a rookie, as he gets used to the NBA. He averaged 5.5 personal fouls per-40 minutes as a freshman at Kentucky, the seventh-highest mark among all freshmen who have played at least 750 minutes since 2009. In his lone season at Kentucky, Cousins averaged 5.5 PF per-40, an issue that followed him to the NBA. Towns could have a Noel-esque rookie season, but you probably won't want to draft him with the expectation of starting him right away.

Emmanuel Mudiay, G, Nuggets

There are some moving pieces here, but Mudiay has the best chance of any player drafted outside the top-five to be a Fantasy difference maker. Mudiay played in just 12 games in the Chinese Basketball Association, but it's not like a season in the NCAA playing 33 games against 19-year-olds would tell us too much. Mudiay is a big, strong point guard who has the ability to get to the rim and score when he gets there. The shooting is a concern, but that isn't the biggest risk with him at this point; it's the Nuggets' other point guard. Ty Lawson is a borderline All-Star, but the organization has apparently soured on him, so don't be surprised if Mudiay is starting from day one in Denver. New coach Mike Malone will probably slow the tempo down a bit, but this is still a roster built for running, and Mudiay fits that. Elfrid Payton isn't a bad comp for Mudiay, though the latter is likely a better shooter. If Lawson is gone by the start of the season, Mudiay could be worth looking at in the first half of your draft.

Willie Cauley-Stein, F/C, Kings

With the drama surrounding DeMarcus Cousins and George Karl apparently subsiding in recent days, this situation is a bit clearer than it might have been 72 hours ago. Of course, it might not matter for Cauley-Stein, whose impact is probably going to be felt more on the defensive side of the ball, where he averaged 5.4 combined blocks and steals per-40 minutes in a three-year career at Kentucky. Remember how much Kenneth Faried use to produce as a high-energy, high-athleticism power forward in George Karl's offense? Cauley-Stein could do that, with maybe less scoring and more defensive production.

Stanley Johnson, F, Pistons

It's a bit of an oversimplification, but if you can shoot, you'll play for Stan Van Gundy. Johnson didn't have a huge volume, but he made 37.1 percent of his 3-pointers at Arizona, which would certainly be enough to get him playing time. I think he's a somewhat safer option than a few of the others in this tier, but the ceiling is probably a lot lower; the Pistons already have to find shots for Brandon Jennings, Reggie Jackson, Caldwell-Pope, Ilyasova and burgeoning superstar Andre Drummond. Expect him to be used mostly as a spot-up shooting and cutter off the ball, with Caldwell-Pope's 204-15 season serving as a possible best-case scenario.

Jerian Grant, G, Knicks

Langston Galloway started 41 games for the Knicks and was Fantasy relevant for most of the second half of the season. Alexey Shved was a downright useful Fantasy option when he got the chance to play big minutes in New York. So yeah, there's an opportunity here. Grant is more talented than either player, and could be the team's starting point guard on opening night. He's not nearly the prospect his future teammate (coming right up) is, but he could be a better Fantasy option right away.

Joel Embiid, C, 76ers

I struggled with whether Embiid even belongs on this list, so consider him a very tentative yellow. Maybe closer to orange. There is absolutely no questioning the potential Embiid has, after he scored nearly two points for every field-goal attempt in his freshman year at Kansas. He could have been the No. 1 pick in last year's draft if not for his injury, and was probably a better prospect at the time than Towns or anyone else in this draft. For that reason alone, I think he almost has to get drafted in every Fantasy league this fall, based on what we know right now. What do we know right now? Not a whole lot, it turns out. He has been diagnosed with an as-of-yet unspecified setback to his surgically repaired foot, and there is no official word on what it means for his NBA future. There are whispers, but nothing concrete as of now. By October, we will hopefully know more about what Embiid's prognosis is for the upcoming season and, if it is good, he is absolutely worth grabbing in the second half of every draft. Let's just cross our singers.

Red Light

If you're drafting this guy, it's because you like playing the lottery

Kristaps Porzingis, F/C, Knicks

Here's the great unknown, right? He's landing on a team that could definitely use an infusion of talent, and talent is one thing he may have more of than anyone else in the draft. However, he will be just 20 on opening night and is rail-thin, so there are fair questions about his readiness. On the other hand, he just averaged 18.4 points, 7.7 rebounds, 1.5 steals and 1.8 blocks per-36 minutes as a 19-year-old in the second-toughest professional league in the world, so maybe he is more ready than some give him credit for. Either way, this is a team that gave extensive playing time to the likes of Jason Smith and Cole Aldrich, so Porzingis probably has to get drafted in your league just on the off chance the hype is justified. He is probably a top-five keeper or Dynasty league prospect, however.

Mario Hezonja, G/F, Magic

If you ask Hezonja, he's likely to tell you he is the best player in this draft. He spent last season mostly as a role player for the best team in the ACB, so the transition to the NBA may be even tougher for him than for Porzingis. He also isn't in nearly as good a situation for Fantasy production, on an Orlando team that already has a bevy of young talent. He should be worked in slowly, but there is plenty of potential down the road as the Magic's best small forward option.

Frank Kaminsky, F/C, Hornets

Kaminsky could be the best shooter on the Hornets' roster now, so for that reason alone he is likely to get playing time right away. Down the road, he might even turn into the next Josh McRoberts for them. However, with Kemba Walker and Al Jefferson, there are already two huge usage scorers in Charlotte, and the addition of Nicolas Batum doesn't exactly clear things up. If Cody Zeller gets traded, Kaminsky's outlook is a bit better, but it's hard to see him being a Fantasy starter this season.

Justise Winslow, G/F, Heat

Winslow lands in a great spot, whether the Heat are able to make nice with Dwyane Wade or not. He will back up both wings spots, but won't be asked to do much scoring or playmaking right away, which suits him just fine. Down the road, he could be Miami's long-term small forward, but the presence of high-usage players like Goran Dragic, Wade, Chris Bosh and Hassan Whiteside limit his appeal. He might have some deeper Roto value, but not this season.

Myles Turner, C, Pacers

With David West opting out and Roy Hibbert on the trade block, Turner has a real chance to play right now. He fits the Pacers' mandate to play smaller and faster, but might need time to further develop his outside shot. The potential combination of 3-point shooting and rim protection makes him valuable in the abstract sense for Fantasy, but it probably isn't going to happen in 2015-16.

Trey Lyles, F, Kentucky

Lyles found himself playing the 3 more than was probably optimal in Kentucky, but it's not like the Jazz have an abundance of minutes to go around at power forward either; that Derrick Favors guy is pretty good. The Jazz do have a need for a stretch-4, but he is going to be a backup by definition on this roster. The Jazz's reported interest in Paul Millsap doesn't make it look any better. Given the presence of better long-term options, it's hard to even see Lyles as a keeper option.

Devin Booker, G, Suns

With Gerald Green's contract up and Archie Goodwin mostly failing to impress, there is room for a shooting guard to step into the rotation for the Suns right away. However, the Suns are fully expected to bring Brandon Knight back as a restricted free agent, so starter's minutes aren't likely on the way in the near or far term.

Cameron Payne, G, Thunder

Russell Westbrook isn't the guy you want to back up if you want to see much of the floor right away. On the other hand, Westbrook has lost significant time in each of the last two seasons to injuries, which pushed Reggie Jackson into Fantasy relevance. Whereas Jackson is kind of a poor man's Westbrook in terms of skill set, Payne provides a different look, excelling more as a passer and shooter than someone who attacks the basket. That could give the Thunder a different look both with Westbrook and if Westbrook ever needs time off. However, the presence of D.J. Augustin means Payne is likely the third point guard on the depth chart for 2015-16, and it's hard to invest too much in Payne even in a keeper league with Westbrook around. He is, perhaps, someone to keep on your radar in the event of injuries, but probably nothing more.