When drafting in fantasy basketball, it is easy to get caught up in the hype of looking to grab up all the biggest names available. However, it is important to balance expectations based on a player's potential with the reality of a player's actual returns over the course of a season. In this article, we will look at a handful of players that are more than capable of putting up major numbers, but who also have shown the tendency to miss a large number of games, a caveat that can utterly terminate a fantasy season, especially when these players are often picked within the first few draft rounds.
Zion Williamson is an archetypal player in this category, as he came into the league with major talent and expectations but played a total of just 114 games through his first three seasons in the league. Last year marked his most consistent campaign, as he played a career-high 70 games However, a combination of injury trouble and a directionless season for the Pelicans has him sitting on 30 games played this year. Despite career averages of 24.6 points, 6.7 rebounds, 4.1 assists and 1.0 steals, Williamson's track record speaks for itself in making him a major risk for fantasy managers.
It seems that the process is still loading for Joel Embiid, who has yet to play 70 games in a season in his nine-year career, with this season and last season being two of his three most troubled campaigns. Unfortunately for
When drafting in fantasy basketball, it is easy to get caught up in the hype of looking to grab up all the biggest names available. However, it is important to balance expectations based on a player's potential with the reality of a player's actual returns over the course of a season. In this article, we will look at a handful of players that are more than capable of putting up major numbers, but who also have shown the tendency to miss a large number of games, a caveat that can utterly terminate a fantasy season, especially when these players are often picked within the first few draft rounds.
Zion Williamson is an archetypal player in this category, as he came into the league with major talent and expectations but played a total of just 114 games through his first three seasons in the league. Last year marked his most consistent campaign, as he played a career-high 70 games However, a combination of injury trouble and a directionless season for the Pelicans has him sitting on 30 games played this year. Despite career averages of 24.6 points, 6.7 rebounds, 4.1 assists and 1.0 steals, Williamson's track record speaks for itself in making him a major risk for fantasy managers.
It seems that the process is still loading for Joel Embiid, who has yet to play 70 games in a season in his nine-year career, with this season and last season being two of his three most troubled campaigns. Unfortunately for the big man, his knee issues do not seem to be going anywhere, as he has been plagued by similar injuries for a long time. Surely the idea of a healthy Embiid is a fantasy manager's dream, as he can put up the kind of numbers that can carry a squad. The reality is that he has not proven capable of keeping it up through the long haul. As luck seems to go, he is liable to come up unavailable at the most inconvenient of times.
Despite having youth on his side, LaMelo Ball is another player that has hardly been able to enjoy a healthy season in his career. He played 51 games in his rookie campaign, a career-high 75 games in his sophomore year but then played a combined 58 games over the last two seasons and will be lucky to pass 50 games played this year. He seems to be hampered by reoccurring ankle injuries, which is a significant sign that this trend could easily continue. Again, he is a player that can absolutely stuff the stat sheet, but it is likely better off to avoid dealing with the risk that history may repeat itself.
Kawhi Leonard is one of the top players in the league most associated with ongoing injury trouble, as he has only surpassed the 70-game mark twice in his 13 seasons and, including this season, has six seasons with fewer than 60 games played. While he is definitely one of the most well-rounded players when healthy, his reputation is already known to precede him in fantasy drafts, a trend which will likely continue after he missed over 50 percent of his squad's games this season. If he slips to the later rounds, he is definitely worth the risk, but by no means should managers look at Leonard as a player they can count on to help lead their squad.
Paul George made a miraculous recovery from a gruesome leg injury back in 2014 and managed to play at least 75 games in the following four seasons. However, his luck took a downward turn beginning in 2019, as a trend of injury trouble crept up on him, resulting in him playing more than 50 games just three times in the last six seasons and playing more than 60 just once in that span. After a rough go around this season, where he was not only limited by injury trouble but also put up some of the weakest scoring and shooting numbers of his career, it is time to acknowledge that George is not a reliable pick for fantasy managers and should be considered only after a reliable core has been secured.
Ja Morant is perhaps the player that feels most out of place on this list. However, when the fact of the matter is that he has never played 70 games in a season, and that he seems to be developing a tendency towards nagging injuries in his shoulder and hamstring, then the reality sets in that he may be more of a liability than a lock for fantasy managers. Of course, he still has youth on his side, but with his high-intensity style of play, the reoccurring injury trouble may be something that is hard for him to shake. That being said, Morant should not slip too far in many drafts, as there is surely still plenty of hope that he gets back to his top form and returns as one of the most dynamic guards in the league.
Kristaps Porzingis played 72 games in his rookie season, but it has been relatively downhill from there, as the big man has been hampered by various foot/leg injuries on a reoccurring basis. He has played more than 60 games just twice in the last eight seasons, including three with less than 50 (including this season, as he is up to just 36 games played, with 10 games left in the campaign). Porzingis has shown that he is a top-tier player at his position when healthy, but given his history, it is clear that he is not a wise pick early in fantasy drafts.
LeBron James was impressively consistent for the majority of his career, but it is understandable that at the age of 40, managers can no longer expect him to dominate for a full season. James has played less than 60 games in four of the last seven seasons, but he also played 71 games last year and is already at 60 games played this season. Nonetheless, the point remains, especially for next season, as he will be beyond an age when most people would consider it possible to play in the NBA, that James is not the first-round lock that managers will be fighting over. Drafting him will have to come with the understanding that he could sit out just about any night with little to no explanation, simply for the sake of rest and maintenance.
In the context of this article, Anthony Davis represents the expression "save the best for last", as perhaps more than any other player, whether warranted or not, he has the reputation for missing games due to a seemingly constant stream of incidental injury trouble. This is perfectly exemplified by the non-contact injury that he suffered in his debut game with the Mavericks, an injury which kept him sidelined for over a month and a half. Like all the players on this list, Davis is a statistical monster when healthy, but he has played more than 70 games just three times in 13 seasons, with a high of 76 games played last year. Prior to last season, he played a total of 132 games over three seasons.
