Fantasy Basketball 2020: Top NBA Player Rankings and 1st-Round Mock Draft

LaMelo Ball is dropping behind-the-back dimes, Talen Horton-Tucker is putting up big buckets and James Harden is supposed to start practicing. The preseason is here, and the NBA season is coming. With a start date scheduled for December 22, 2020, it's time to start getting fantasy basketball drafts going too.

If you haven't selected your fantasy roster for the 2020-21 season just yet, here's a primer for the early rounds.

These rankings are based on a head-to-head category format that considers points, rebounds, assists, steals, blocks, three-pointers, field-goal percentage, free-throw percentage and turnovers. Further, players will be allotted the positions they are expected to play the most of this season, although many will be given multiple positions depending on your platform of choice.

1. Luka Doncic, Dallas Mavericks

2. Damian Lillard, Portland Trail Blazers

3. Stephen Curry, Golden State Warriors

4. Trae Young, Atlanta Hawks

5. Kyrie Irving, Brooklyn Nets

6. Ja Morant, Memphis Grizzlies

7. Ben Simmons, Philadelphia 76ers

8. Russell Westbrook, Washington Wizards

9. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Oklahoma City Thunder

10. Jamal Murray, Denver Nuggets

The point guards are an interesting group this season, as they break apart into shaky tiers. The first tier, from Doncic at No. 1 to Irving at No. 5, feels pretty clear. Morant, though, feels like a wild-card candidate to erupt into the top group, giving him a tier of his own at No. 6. Then a tier of two emerges with poor shooters, but stat-sheet-stuffers, in Simmons and Westbrook.

Past them, the third tier can extend all the way outside of the top 10. Gilgeous-Alexander and Murray could have great seasons, but Jrue Holiday, Chris Paul, De’Aaron Fox and D’Angelo Russell are all fantastic options who could take a step thanks to new environments or added experience. Each could provide value at the one, especially if available in the later rounds.

1. James Harden, Houston Rockets

2. Devin Booker, Phoenix Suns

3. Bradley Beal, Washington Wizards

4. Donovan Mitchell, Utah Jazz

5. Jimmy Butler, Miami Heat

6. Paul George, Los Angeles Clippers

7. Zach LaVine, Chicago Bulls

8. CJ McCollum, Portland Trail Blazers

9. Buddy Hield, Sacramento Kings

10. Andrew Wiggins, Golden State Warriors

No matter where Harden ends up this season, he should be one of fantasy's very best if he's playing. After him, the shooting guards become a mess of uncertainty, and managers will need to simply follow their heart.

Booker, Beal and Mitchell all fit the volume scorer mold, with threes and points galore. Butler is more of a balanced option, while George is the most intriguing player to draft since an unsavory bubble performance could have turned him into a legitimate sleeper this year.

1. Giannis Antetokounmpo, Milwaukee Bucks

2. LeBron James, Los Angeles Lakers

3. Kawhi Leonard, Los Angeles Clippers

4. Brandon Ingram, New Orleans Pelicans

5. Khris Middleton, Milwaukee Bucks

6. Tobias Harris, Philadelphia 76ers

7. Jaylen Brown, Boston Celtics

8. Gordon Hayward, Charlotte Hornets

9. DeMar DeRozan, San Antonio Spurs

10. Caris LeVert, Brooklyn Nets

You can't go wrong with any of the top three small forwards, and then the next three also provide a capable tier. Past those initial six, the water is muddied with efficiency and injury concerns. LeVert sneaks into the top 10 based on upside, but sleepers such as Jerami Grant and Robert Covington could excel in new environments.

1. Anthony Davis, Los Angeles Lakers

2. Kevin Durant, Brooklyn Nets

3. Jayson Tatum, Boston Celtics

4. Pascal Siakam, Toronto Raptors

5. Jaren Jackson Jr., Memphis Grizzlies

6. Zion Williamson, New Orleans Pelicans

7. Michael Porter Jr., Denver Nuggets

8. Christian Wood, Houston Rockets

9. John Collins, Atlanta Hawks

10. Domantas Sabonis, Indiana Pacers

From No. 1 to No. 3, this year's power forwards should all be fantasy superstars. Siakam and Jackson Jr. should enjoy guaranteed production too, but past them, the position becomes much more uncertain.

Interestingly, Williamson, Porter Jr. and Wood are all young players who could take big steps this season. Wood may be the most intriguing, as he's entered a new environment and could enjoy greater three-point volume as the season progresses (after knocking in 38.6 percent of his attempts last year).

1. Karl-Anthony Towns, Minnesota Timberwolves

2. Nikola Jokic, Denver Nuggets

3. Joel Embiid, Philadelphia 76ers

4. Bam Adebayo, Miami Heat

5. Deandre Ayton, Phoenix Suns

6. Nikola Vucevic, Orlando Magic

7. Rudy Gobert, Utah Jazz

8. Andre Drummond, Cleveland Cavaliers

9. Mitchell Robinson, New York Knicks

10. Jonas Valanciunas, Memphis Grizzlies

Like power forward, the top three centers can all be fantasy cornerstones. Each is, at the very least, certain to secure points, rebounds and some threes—while having their own leans toward blocks or assists.

For the rest of the centers, selections will likely depend on roster construction. If punting free-throw percentage to prioritize rebounds and points (possibly by selecting Westbrook or Simmons early), then someone like Drummond becomes an excellent pairing. But, if prioritizing buckets (with an earlier pick of a gunner like Curry or Young), a more efficient shooter like Vucevic or Valanciunas may be the better option.

1. James Harden, Houston Rockets

2. Anthony Davis, Los Angeles Lakers

3. Luka Doncic, Dallas Mavericks

4. Giannis Antetoukounmpo, Milwaukee Bucks

5. Karl-Anthony Towns, Minnesota Timberwolves

6. Damian Lillard, Portland Trail Blazers

7. Nikola Jokic, Denver Nuggets

8. Stephen Curry, Golden State Warriors

9. LeBron James, Los Angeles Lakers

10. Kevin Durant, Brooklyn Nets

11. Kawhi Leonard, Los Angeles Clippers

11. Jayson Tatum, Boston Celtics

12. Trae Young, Atlanta Hawks

If the NFL season has taught us anything, it's that this season of fantasy could be a bit more unpredictable than usual. With the possibility that players end up missing games because of unforeseen circumstances, some degree of risk aversion ought to be implemented in the early picks.

LeBron is always a candidate to sit out games to rest, while Curry and Durant each have injury concerns. Understandably, they're likely to be downgraded in drafts because of those additional concerns. All three deserve to be drafted in the first round, given talent and role, but they may not be worth gambling on until the safer cornerstones have been selected.