SH 2024-25 NBA Fantasy League Draft Review

4th draft pick was assigned to me

Yahoo Fantasy projection engine has predicted as follows 
1st Wemby, 2nd Nokic 
Wemby is understandable as he has proven (just a single season tho) that he is not as injury-prone as he appears to be
Nokic is half understandabe and half puzzling as he has proven himself as the most perfect fantasy value-adding player for few years 
So, with these consideration, I predicted that, from 3rd to 10th pick, fantasy league participants' choices would vary a lot

My stance was clear 
1. Avoid injury-prone players 
It eliminates AD, Embiid and, to some extent, Luka
2. Upside should exist either by the player himself or by team roster changes
It eliminates Sobonis and Tatum
3. From 1st usage of my picks on, the rest of picks should consider and adjust to previous pick choices and position distribution

The actual draft started and Wemby (1st), Nokic (2nd) and Luka (3rd) were gone

1st Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (OKC-PG)

I had to choose one out of SGA, Haliburton and Giannis
One important thing is that, in Fantasy draft, you don't have to follow all Yahoo Fantasy draft projection as you might lose that chance to grow your own ability to build unique hypothesis projection on NBA player 

Considering age, SGA and Haliburton seem like better options
Also considering team rank, I made up my mind to select SGA as my 1st pick

16 picks are taken before I made my 2nd choice
Out of 16 picks, Edwards, LaMelo and Chet were the ones that I would be very much willing to select

2nd Kevin Durant (PHX-SF,PF)

Two qualities I looked for 
1. Stable scorer
2. Not PG position
3. Winning team player

I always wanted to select high-volume, pure scorer
KD seemed right as he is still unstoppable top player in terms of mid-range and 3-point shots

3rd Bam Adebayo (MIA-C)

Even though I tried to avoid selection of previously-owned players, I was eyeing on S.Barnes and P.Banchero
Number one offence option from mediocre teams seemed good
However, both were taken few picks earlier from my 3rd pick

Other than D.Fox, nothing else looked that appealling so I chose Bam to fit him in my empty center spot

4th Franz Wagner (ORL-SF,PF)

Similar reason as my selection of KD was applied for the choice
His previous season stats also seemed decent

At some point, I hesitated to choose Wagner over Siakam but, again, tried to avoid previously-owned player

5th Brandon Miller (CHA-SG,SF)

I had watched few Youtube videos regarding NBA Fantasy potential breakout player lists
Brandon Miller was always mentioned
I personally had not watched his plays but took Youtube advices, also considering LaMelo's injury history
With this opportunity, this Fantasy season would make me learn more about this promising young gaurd
This was my first addition to SF position, too

6th Julius Randle (MIN-PF)

I was very much eyeing on Brandon Ingram and he was taken right before my 6th pick usage
Although Ingram has frequent injuries throughout his career, Zion and CJ McCollum are even more fragile so it would be a reasonable bet
With the trade between NYK and MIN, I expected Randle to be 2nd offensive option after Edwards
Kept Randle in previous seasons, Randle's capability to contribute in most of stats is another reasion, too

7th Michael Porter Jr. (DEN-SF,PF)

Bradley Beal was taken right before my turn
Denver with Nokic is always solid for playoff advancement and winning games would provide better FG%
Longevity of roster continuity is a virtue in modern NBA where teams are constantly changing season after season
Nokic is picked in 1st round and 2nd option in the team would be Murray but personally I think Murray is very much overrated
3-point stats is also concerned and thus MPJ is selected

8th Tyler Herro (MIA-PG,SG)

At this point, center position was a weakness in my roster so kept my eye on Clint Capela which was taken right before my pick
Hield and Anunoby were considered since they both have potential for breakout
However, as my team is heading for offence-heavy roster, I decide to enhance my strength, rather than covering up my weakness
Tyler Herros was my Fantasy favorite since his rookie season
With older Butler and absence of Lowry (Now, it is Rozier), his stat lines would be better this season
Selected him again 

9th Daniel Gafford (DAL-PF,C)

Center position was much needed and I was not able to hold back anymore
Health center, in a winning team, who can give 10+ rebounds and occasional blocks was my expectation
Gafford and Lively were considered
During the live draft, I took the advice from SK (The other manager of this blog)
If I want stable one, go for Gafford, however Lively was rolling 2nd half of last season
I selected Gafford

10th Al Horford (BOS-PF,C)

Austin Reaves was selected right before mine
Under Lebron's Lakers, 1st and 2nd options are prone to injuries and 3~5th options shine towards 2nd half of the season according to my observation
Reaves can contribute to most of stat lines and also have a very high ceiling for points
With Reaves gone, I went for another center, I chose Horford as he is in no.1 team in NBA as starting center which would be most likely guaranteed before Porzingis' return

11th Scoot Henderson (POR-PG)

Good plaers from good teams are mostly gone already
11th pick, I wanted to utilize my selection for potential breakout player
Knowing Henderson would be given many chances in Blazers, I went for Henderson
He would compete with A.Simons who, I think, is also overrated with high volumes with not-that-high efficiency

12th Jordan Clarkson (UTA-SG,SF)

Shooting guard position should be filled
Other than Sochan, no players are attractive to be selected
Jordan with his 6th man role in Utah would give 15+, 5+ performance in each game nights
Stable pick after adventurous pick of Henderson

13th Celab Martin (PHI-SG,SF)

With injury-prone Embiid, the chances of Celab being loaded with heavy works seemed high
Also, with Phily known for giving lots of game minutes to starting players, Celab's rebounds and assists would be good

Minor fact is that I wanted to select Lonzo as sign of support but could not find him in Fantasy list during given selection time

This is all for my draft 24-25

Gotta watch more games this season to
have a more confident selections in 25-26

Thanks for reading!