2024-25 Fantasy Basketball Recap: Best Guards for Points Leagues

The time has come to reflect on the season that was. Certain players came into the season with high expectations and delivered in spades, while others climbed to the top of the ranks in surprising fashion. In fantasy basketball points leagues, it typically comes down to counting stats and usage, with percentages merely an afterthought. Here are the top five guards in points formats for the 2024-25 season.

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Oklahoma City Thunder (54.1 FP/G)

No real surprise here. Gilgeous-Alexander is arguably the favorite for the MVP award this season, proving to be a dominant force, both in fantasy and reality. He led the Thunder to the best record in the league, averaging 32.7 points, 5.0 rebounds, 6.4 assists, 1.7 steals and 1.0 blocks. He is and should continue to be a no-brainer when it comes to selecting your first-round pick. Although the roster around him continues to improve, Gilgeous-Alexander is clearly the driving force behind their recent success. He led the league in scoring this season, and there is no reason to think that won't happen again next season. His 2.7 combined steals and blocks are an underrated part of his game, but as fantasy managers can attest, they are arguably as important as his ability to score the basketball. At this stage, the only thing holding him back from being the number-one asset in points leagues is the fact that he doesn't have to be the do-it-all player for OKC.

Luka Doncic, Los Angeles Lakers (52.5 FP/G)

Despite a surprising mid-season trade, Doncic cobbled together another dominant fantasy season. Now saddled alongside LeBron James, it will be interesting to see if Doncic plays with a slightly reduced ceiling. He ended the 2024-25 season with averages of 28.2 points, 8.2 rebounds, 7.7 assists, 1.8 steals and 0.4 blocks. The 28.2 points per game were actually the third-lowest of his career, while the rebounds and assists were similarly ranked. However, on the defensive end of the floor, he made some giant strides, taking his steals from 1.4 per game to a career-best 1.8. At this point, we only have a small sample size of what Doncic looks like playing with James. He arrived in Los Angeles coming off a calf injury that ended up costing him 23 games. He was a little slow to get going, but once we hit March, he appeared to be back to his best. Moving forward, there is reason to think that his points and assists could struggle to get back to what he was putting up during his last few seasons in Dallas. With that said, the Lakers are now his team, and with James likely creeping toward a downtick in production, Doncic could once again get back to being a top-3 overall asset.

Cade Cunningham, Detroit Pistons (48.0 FP/G)

Of all the names on this list, Cunningham is arguably the most surprising. After dealing with leg injuries throughout his career, Cunningham managed to put together easily his best season, averaging 26.1 points, 6.1 rebounds, 9.1 assists, 1.0 steals and 0.8 blocks. Unsurprisingly, the Pistons tripled their total wins this season, ending as the sixth seed in the Eastern Conference. Upside has never been an issue for Cunningham, having seen glimpses of what he is capable of over the past three years. It's hard to know just how good he will be given this is really his first healthy season since being drafted back in 2021. The Pistons are a team on the rise and for them to push into the upper echelon alongside Boston and Cleveland, they are going to need Cunningham to take his game to another level. Looking at his numbers, the obvious improvement could be on the defensive end. During his rookie season, he averaged 1.2 steals per game across 64 games. If he can get back to that range, while also making small improvements across the board, he could push to be a top-5 overall player next season and beyond.

James Harden, Los Angeles Clippers (45.0 FP/G)

Harden was a nice surprise for managers given where he was being drafted. Not only were his per-game numbers better than expected, he also played in 79 games, the most he has played in since the 2016-17 season. He closed the campaign with averages of 22.8 points, 5.8 rebounds, 8.7 assists, 1.5 steals and 0.7 blocks. The 22.8 points per game were the most he has scored in the past four years. Of all the names on this list, it's hard to see him improving next season, during which he will be 36 years of age. However, as long as he can maintain his across-the-board production, there is no reason he can't put together another top-20 overall season.

Trae Young, Atlanta Hawks (44.7 FP/G)

Young has been a picture of consistency over the past four years, averaging between 44 and 46 fantasy points in each season. Although his scoring numbers have taken a small hit, he finished the 2024-25 season as the league leader in assists, averaging a career-best 11.5 per game. He added 24.3 points, 3.1 rebounds, 1.2 steals and 0.2 blocks. He projects to be sharing offensive duties with breakout forward Jalen Johnson, but Young should still ultimately run the show and be in position for 20-and-10 performances regularly. The point guard had five performances this season with 60-plus fantasy points.

Honorable Mentions

Tyrese Maxey, Philadelphia 76ers (43.6)

Anthony Edwards, Minnesota Timberwolves (43.4)

LaMelo Ball, Charlotte Hornets (42.9)

Damian Lillard, Milwaukee Bucks (42.5)

De'Aaron Fox, San Antonio Spurs (41.6)