Fantasy Basketball Mailbag: Building around Embiid, Wemby's Value, Bulls Point Guards and More

Welcome back to the second season of Dr. A's RotoWire Mailbag! This column only exists if questions are coming in so keep that in mind when you see future tweets (are they still called that?) from me asking for questions. Let's get right into it.

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander or Tyrese Haliburton early in Round 1? Big men are much deeper, give me one of the two best guards. - Ben Allen (@BenAll22) 

Hey, Ben. Obviously you're probably going to need a top-5 pick to make this happen but if the draft gets to me and both are available, I'm going with SGA. He could flirt with leading the league in scoring, fills it up in almost every category and will try to build on last season's massive success story. The Thunder won't be tanking this season and SGA could flirt with an MVP Award if the Thunder live up to the hype.

I want a top-5 pick this year so I can come away with one of either Luka Doncic, SGA or Haliburton, and honestly, SGA and Hali seem to be better bets than Luka due to health and shutdown concerns, Doncic is already iffy for Game 1 due to a gimpy calf. I'd rank them SGA, Haliburton and Luka at this point, but if I'm in three different drafts and have a top-5 pick, I'll probably walk away with one of each of them in each league. This also addresses a similar question from Michael O (@miod__).

10 teams, eight-cat, head-to-head league. I have picks 10 and 11 at the turn. Who should I be targeting? - Brian McPherson (@Bmac) 

Hey, BMac! Thanks for the question. Of course, it all depends on how your league drafts and who's there, but I'm thinking some combination of Giannis Antetokounmpo, Jaren Jackson Jr. and Anthony Edwards is the way to go, with a dash of Domantas Sabonis and Trae Young thrown in for good measure. I don't think you can go wrong with any of these five dudes, although Giannis' free throw percentage and seemingly tender knee are not for the weak at heart.

Personally, I'd probably go with JJJ and Edwards, taking care of blocks, scoring and three-pointers early while checking off the boxes in almost every other category as well. I'm going to ask Rick Kamla a lot of these questions in Thursday morning's RotoWire Fantasy Basketball Podcast (live at 11 AM ET), so be sure to see if he has a different idea than I do.  

Who's on your 'do not draft' list? - Scottie (@mackedonut)

Pick an old/injury-prone guy, any old/injury-prone guy who was formerly a fantasy stud. I'm not even sure where to begin, but I'm probably not touching Anthony Davis, Kyrie Irving, James Harden, Jimmy Butler, LeBron James, Kawhi Leonard, Zion Williamson or Brandon Ingram. There is a point in your draft that all of these guys will be draftable in my mind but they'll be gone before I'm comfortable taking them. Give me health and youth every single time. 

Can you please rank Khris Middleton, Tyus Jones, Derrick White, Terry Rozier and Spencer Dinwiddie? Part 2: Are you taking Victor Wembanyama or Chet Holmgren this season? - Illgobbo (@Illgobbo) 

I don't love Middleton coming off the injury and dealing with Damian Lillard and Giannis, so I'm probably passing on him. I'd rank these guys Jones, Rozier, White, Dinwiddie and Middleton in my drafts. 

As for Wemby vs. Chet, I'm fine with getting both of them but it will likely take a second- and third round pick to get them, with Wemby being your second-round pick. I'm believing the hype and not as concerned about their bean-pole like bodies as other folks are. If I leave my draft with both of them I'm at least assured of having an entertaining team to track this season, but one plays for Gregg Popovich, the godfather of load management, while the other is coming off a major injury. But I don't really care. 

Which point guard are you targeting in Rounds 3 and 4 among Fred VanVleet, Cade Cunningham, Dejounte Murray and Darius Garland? - Chili Palmer (@PrinceChillTx)

I really like what Cunningham was doing last season before he was shut down after just 12 games and I could see myself going all in on him again after he averaged 19.9 points, 6.2 rebounds, 6.0 assists, 0.8 steals, 0.6 blocks and 1.4 three-pointers in his short stint last year. I'd rank them: Cunningham, Garland, VanVleet and Murray for now. 

Is it OK to think about taking Gilgeous-Alexander at No. 2 instead of Joel Embiid? - Bandwagoner (@KD35ERT)

Yes, I think it's fine. Embiid shocked us all by playing in 68 and 66 games in each of the last two seasons and if he flirts with 70 games played again, he's going to be a serious MVP threat. But if you want to take the Embiid injury risk out of the equation and go with SGA, I'm all for it.

I will say that in a two-center league I'd give Embiid the edge, but in one-center leagues he loses a little value and SGA is simply going to be a blast to have on your roster this season. Deciding who to draft at No. 2 is a good problem to have this year. 

Ben Simmons or Dennis Schroder? - Looselips67 (Looselips671)

I actually have come to kind of love both of them at the end of drafts, as the risk is mitigated and thrown out the window at that point. Simmons has actually looked good and has some positive vibes coming into the season and can be a three-cat monster in points, rebounds and assists, but will hurt you in three-pointers and free throw percentage.

Schroder, the journeyman, looks like the starting point guard in Toronto and I don't see anyone taking the job away from him. And if you do end up with one or both of these guys late, you can always drop them and pick up a hot free agent if things are going as planned. 

Will Robert Williams have an impact as a backup center in Portland? Which of these three Atlanta players will produce more in head-to-head? De'Andre Hunter, Saddiq Bey or Jalen Johnson? - Richard (@rlota10)

Williams will make an impact if his knee allows him to play in more than 40 games but that's a big 'if'. Deandre Ayton is going to get a ton of minutes in the middle for the Blazers but Williams is simply too dominant of a big man to be sitting on the bench, as well. And the good news is that you won't have to use a valuable pick to get Williams this season. As for those Hawks, I'd rank them Hunter, Bey and Johnson, although I don't actually trust any of them and won't be specifically targeting them. 

Are you a Wemby believer? - Rate Limit Exceeded (@jdls210)

Yes. Yes I am. I'm all in on Wemby and am not afraid to use a second-round pick to get him. And if he falls to me in Round 3 I'll consider myself a big winner. 

Is Domantas Sabonis a top-10 pick in head-to-head leagues with bonuses for double-doubles and triple-doubles? - JP (@1fastdog)

Yes. I have Sabonis ranked 14th based on his lack of blocks, steals and three-pointers, but he's been going near the end of Round 1 in most leagues I've drafted in thus far. And if your league is of the two-center variety, Sabonis gets a bump because of position scarcity. The lack of blocks, steals and triples probably rules him out for me personally, but he'll put up monster numbers everywhere else, so I'm not going to tell anyone not to draft him. He's just not one of 'my guys.'

Best point guard option on the Bulls? - Ricardo Llorens (@Llorens_ricardo)

I like the upside of Coby White, although it is a bit crowded there with guys like Jevon Carter, Alex Caruso and Ayo Dosunmu all hanging around. But White appears to be the favorite to start, you won't have to use a valuable pick to get him and he has the most upside of any of them. I kind of really like him this year. 

Best strategy to build around Joel Embiid out of the No. 2 spot this season? - Shant (@shantapelian) 

Assuming it's a 12-team league you're looking at the No. 23 pick on the way back in Round 2. I just happen to have Mikal Bridges ranked in that spot, followed by Cade Cunningham, Lauri Markkanen and Darius Garland. If you can get Bridges at No. 23 I love that pairing and then I think you take Cunningham, Garland, Fred VanVleet, Wemby, Dejounte Murray, De'Aaron Fox or Jalen Brunson in Round 3. 

Great questions to kick this thing off everyone! Let's keep it going next week! Good luck in your drafts!