Now that basketball season is over and the Boston Celtics have been crowned NBA champions, it’s a good time to reflect on the 2007-2008 basketball season as a fantasy basketball owner. The following is a roundup of some emerging openings in fantasy basketball and the NBA.
LeBron James, CLE, SF: In the “duh” category, LeBron led the NBA in points per game last season and has become the player fantasy owners expected him to be coming out of high school. He has averaged more than 27 points per game in each of the past four seasons, and set career highs in rebounds per game and field goal percentage last season. It’s hard to believe that he’ll only be 24 at the start of next season.
Chris Paul, NO, PG: Steve Nash, who? Mainstream America took notice of this former Wake Forest star in the playoffs, but the dynamic point guard for the Hornets dominated throughout the season. He led the league in assists per game at 11.6, steals at 2.71 per game and also had 21.1 points per game. Paul showed what an incredible complete point guard he had become, and he should be one of the top picks in fantasy drafts going into the 2008-2009 season.
Marcus Camby, DEN, PF: If you need blocks, there’s no one better than this UMass veteran. Camby led the league in blocks per game for the third straight season and also finished second in rebounds per game. He’s getting a bit old at 34, but Camby should have a year or two left as a formidable player considering the career lines of other shot-blockers.
Dwight Howard, ORL, C: The NBA Slam Dunk Contest champion has finished in the top three in rebounds per game in each of the past three seasons, but 2007-08 was the first time he’s finished in first place. In fact, he had more than one rebound per game than the next closest competitor, Marcus Camby. The 22-year-old has seen his stats improve almost across the board in every season since his rookie year in 2004-05, and he has yet to miss a game in his NBA career. Howard is the kind of safe, solid pick you can build a fantasy basketball team with.
Kevin Durant, SEA, SF: There was little doubt that Durant would be NBA Rookie of the Year after Greg Oden went down with an injury before the season, if only because of the opportunity. The Sonics were really horrible last season, but Durant beat the next closest rookie in points by nearly 70 percent. Seattle can’t get much worse next season, but fantasy owners may not want them to add much more talent. Durant is absolutely the man in Seattle for points, and that’s unlikely to change as long as the talent level remains at a consistently decrepit level around him.