Staff Fantasy Basketball Draft Recap: How Far Did Kevin Durant and Stephen Curry Fall?
Round 2
| Pick | Overall | Player | Team | Position | Writer |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 13 | Hassan Whiteside | MIA | C | Dale Redman |
| 2 | 14 | Draymond Green | GSW | SF/PF | Jay Kim |
| 3 | 15 | Damian Lillard | POR | PG | Russell Peddle |
| 4 | 16 | Kyle Lowry | TOR | PG | Brandon Gdula |
| 5 | 17 | Paul Millsap | ATL | PF/C | Brad Leibfried |
| 6 | 18 | Jimmy Butler | CHI | SG/SF | Sam Hauss |
| 7 | 19 | Kyrie Irving | CLE | PG/SG | Brett Oswalt |
| 8 | 20 | Kemba Walker | CHA | PG | Jordan Sharp |
| 9 | 21 | John Wall | WAS | PG | Derek Lynch |
| 10 | 22 | Kristaps Porzingis | NYK | PF/C | Shae Cronin |
| 11 | 23 | Al Horford | BOS | PF/C | R.J. Walsh |
| 12 | 24 | Gordon Hayward | UTA | SG/SF | Mike Comerford |
The Miami Heat are a gutted team, so it'll be interesting to see what Hassan Whiteside looks like as a top dog this season. Last year, he finished 7th in nine-category leagues and we have him projected 13th this season with averages of 17.5 points, 13.1 rebounds, 0.7 assists, 0.5 steals, 3.4 blocks, and 1.9 turnovers per game, with a shooting split of 60.7% from the field and 65.0% from the line. He's a fantastic second-round pick and might be worth a late first if you're punting his weak categories (assists, steals, or free throw percentage).
This round in general went pretty chalky when you look at most rankings and average draft position (ADP) data. It's important to note that this league was drafted a few weeks ago, so Mike's aggressive Gordon Hayward pick was made before Hayward dislocated his finger and was ruled out for six weeks. We still have him ranked 41st for this season on a per-game basis, but his upside is certainly capped by the injury and he might slight in your draft.
Al Horford is tends to be a fairly quiet early-round asset, giving you solid but not very flashy production across the board. The move to Boston might have you intrigued, but we have him projected at 38th this season. Do with that what you will.
A popular second-round pick this year is Kristaps Porzingis as he heads into his sophomore campaign. He finished his first season ranked 51st in nine-category leagues but flashed first- or second-round upside for stretches throughout the year. If he can produce consistently, he'll definitely be a top-tier fantasy asset this season. We have him projected 27th this year with averages of 17.2 points, 1.3 threes, 8.5 rebounds, 1.5 assists, 0.7 steals, 2.1 blocks, and 1.8 turnovers, with a shooting split of 44.2% from the field and 83.8% from the charity stripe.
My pick: I was happy to grab Damian Lillard with the 15th pick because the point guard pool essentially goes up in flames after the first four or five rounds and I'm an advocate for locking up the position early. As an added bonus, our projections are very high on Dame this year, seeing him as the seventh-ranked player overall with averages of 24.8 points, 3.0 triples, 4.1 rebounds, 6.8 assists, 1.1 steals, 0.3 blocks, 2.9 turnovers, 44.1% shooting from the field, and 89.3% from the line.
