Top draft trends, strategies for 2022-23

The 2022-23 NBA season is less than a week away and fantasy basketball draft season is in full swing. Our fantasy basketball experts have been busy participating in a number of drafts across leagues as well as offering advice about strategy in different formats.

However, there are always a few last-minute takeaways that can help anyone just starting their draft now. André Snellings, Eric Moody, Eric Karabell, Jim McCormick and John Cregan break it all down.

Waiting on centers can pay off

In the most recent draft I did, nine starting centers went between picks 76 and 121, including all three of my centers on that team. I was able to go perimeter early and often and was still able to balance out my squad with quality big men late. — Snellings

Depth at point guard

There is a lot of depth at the point guard position, with a lot of quality starting options for managers. In my H2H category tiers column, I mentioned how essential it is to leave your draft with one from the top three tiers even with the depth at the position. There are 15-point guards in those tiers combined. — Moody

Lack of quality small forwards

I seem to have this issue every season, but even more so this season: I just can’t find many small forwards I feel good about at their ADP, so I keep on passing them up and ending up with Portland’s Josh Hart or the Suns’ Mikal Bridges in the end. I like those Villanova products, of course, and it’s not a bad idea to load up on point guards and power forwards, but still, I find the top-100 depth lacking at the position. — Karabell

Fear of tanking teams is leading to overlooked players

The fantasy market seems to be fading most of the tanking teams and their respective players. I think there is value in this trend, as the market is likely letting team goals influence player expectations too much. Take Shai Gilgeous-Alexander for instance; his recent knee injury has tanked his fantasy stock, but a good degree of the fade is also drive by the risks associated with being on the Thunder. There’s Sexton, who is bound to finish in the top 10 or 12 in usage rate this season, but has relatively zero buzz. Young, and arguably emergent, players from the likes of the Spurs (Devin Vassell, Tre Jones), Pacers (Jalen Smith, Isaiah Jackson), and Rockets (Alperen Sengun, rookie wings) are all somewhat discounted in drafts this season. — McCormick

Clinging to established names over emerging young stars

The second round has the same concentration of uncertainty as the 10th round. Once you get beyond the seventh pick, (let’s say Ja Morant), the next 15 picks are a crapshoot. There In the late-first, early-second round range, managers are clinging to established names with pronounced injury concerns (Durant, LeBron Lillard, Harden, KAT). I think it speaks to how 2022-23 looks like a transitional year in the NBA overall, with this under-recognized rash of under-25 talent staging a low-level takeover. — Cregan