Seven NBA Preseason Position Battles to Watch – NBC Sports

While there are numerous players whom fantasy managers can rely on heading into drafts when it comes to the consistency of their roles, there are others whose values hinge on where they land in a rotation. While starting can give some the opportunity to emerge as a fantasy steal, there are others whose values decrease after losing a position battle during the preseason. Below is a look at some key position battles for fantasy managers to be mindful of during draft season, especially if they’ll be doing their picking closer to Opening Night.
If one assumes that Tyrese Haliburton, Bennedict Mathurin, Bruce Brown, and Myles Turner are penciled in as starters for the Pacers, the power forward position is what will need to be addressed during training camp. While Toppin was acquired from the Knicks this summer, Walker was the eighth overall pick in the draft. It was reported on Tuesday that Toppin was part of the lineup with the four players mentioned above, but what’s true on October 3 may not be the case come October 25.
Toppin’s fantasy ceiling was limited in New York, where he backed up Julius Randle and played just 15.7 minutes per game last season. With the Pacers, there’s the opportunity to provide fantasy managers with decent value, even if Walker beats him out for the starting job. The key for Toppin will be improving the defensive production, as he’s averaged 0.3 steals and 0.3 blocks per game as a pro. As for Walker, the rookie forward was responsible for 1.0 steals and 1.3 blocks per game during his lone season at Houston while averaging 11.2 points and 6.8 rebounds. Jalen Smith is still on the Pacers’ roster and began last season as a starter, but this competition sets up to be a two-man affair.
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Mavericks coach Jason Kidd made a move that raised some eyebrows early in training camp, announcing that Lively and fellow first-round pick Olivier-Maxence Prosper would start the team’s preseason opener in Abu Dhabi on Thursday. Lively, the 12th overall pick in June’s draft, is an athletic big who some have compared to former Mavericks center Tyson Chandler. And the two worked out together this summer, so it’s quite clear what the franchise hopes to see from its rookie pivot.
Lively will compete with two veterans for the starting job: Holmes, whose trade from Sacramento to Dallas could rejuvenate his career, and Powell. Powell isn’t the “sexiest” fantasy option when it comes to value, but he’s been a consistent presence in the Mavs rotation since joining the franchise during the 2014-15 season. Lively offers the highest upside, whether we’re talking redraft leagues or those of the dynasty variety. But fantasy managers shouldn’t overlook Holmes, especially if he’s on the board in the later rounds of drafts. While Powell may not be a player many managers look to use a pick on, he’s someone who could emerge as a streamer once the season is in full swing.
This will likely be the most crowded position battle on the list, as up to five players stand to get a look at the point for the Jazz. In addition to Clarkson, Sexton, and George, one of the team’s three first-round picks, there’s Talen Horton-Tucker and Kris Dunn. Of the five, Clarkson stands to be in the best position; if he isn’t named the starting point guard, it feels safe to assume that he’ll simply slide over to the two. But if Clarkson wins the job, does that open the door for Ochai Agbaji to start at the two for defensive reasons?
Due to offseason knee surgery and a hamstring injury, Sexton was limited to 48 games last season, while Horton-Tucker was his most productive when the Jazz were playing out the string. The decision to pull the proverbial plug also benefitted Dunn, who appeared in 22 games and was a top 75 player in per-game value. As for George, his play during the summer showed that he may be further along as a playmaker than many believed. He was a combo guard during his lone season at Baylor, sharing the perimeter with Adam Flagler and LJ Cryer. George had no such timeshare to deal with in the summer, and he flourished in the point guard role. If he can carry that over into the regular season, George has the potential to be one of the top fantasy rookies in 2023-24.
Given the expected offensive firepower in the Lakers’ starting lineup, Vanderbilt’s defensive ability may give him an early advantage on Hachimura. The former started 24 of the 26 games he appeared in for the Lakers after being acquired at the trade deadline, while the latter made nine starts in 33 appearances. As a Laker, Vanderbilt averaged 7.2 points, 6.7 rebounds, 1.6 assists, and 1.2 steals per game, shooting 52.9% from the field and 78.4% from the foul line. Hachimura was more productive as a scorer, averaging 9.6 points per game on 48.5% shooting after joining the Lakers, but his rebounding, assist, steals, and blocks averages were all lower than Vanderbilt’s.
Both players were signed to new deals this summer, so one may not have an advantage over the other in that regard. But with LeBron James entering his 21st season, would Darvin Ham prefer to pair him with a more defensively inclined forward? Or will that even matter? ESPN projects Vanderbilt to be the starter at this point in time, but that isn’t set in stone. Vanderbilt’s defensive production makes him a better fantasy option than Hachimura, but the gap isn’t a large one.
After returning to action from a knee injury in mid-March, Lowry was brought off the bench for the remainder of the regular season and Miami’s run to the NBA Finals (he did start Game 5 of the Eastern Conference Finals). The veteran point guard said on October 3 that he expects to be the starting point guard, but Heat coach Erik Spoelstra was non-committal on the matter. While it was reported that Lowry “probably has the inside track” for the job, there’s still a lot of work to be done before Spoelstra makes a decision. That keeps the door open for Herro, whose name also came up in offseason trade rumors, to claim the job as his own.
According to Cleaning the Glass’ data, Herro only played six percent of his minutes at the point last season, a significant decrease from the 2021-22 campaign (23%). Herro’s offensive rating when playing the point was nearly four points higher than his number when playing the two, and his effective field goal percentage and free throw rate were also higher. That was also the case in 2021-22, albeit with a much larger sample size. Lowry was effective when healthy last season, but the injuries did take their toll. If Lowry moves back into the starting lineup, Herro can simply fill the starting shooting guard role as he normally would. But if Spoelstra decides to bring Lowry off the bench, that stands to boost the fantasy value of Josh Richardson, especially with Gabe Vincent (Lakers) and Max Strus (Cavaliers) no longer with the franchise.
Milwaukee will enter this season with a new starting backcourt. While one starter (Damian Lillard) is known, the other is not. So, who fills the void left by Grayson Allen? Connaughton, Beasley, and Beauchamp should all be in the running to do so, with the former having started 33 of the 61 games he appeared in for the Bucks last season. Connaughton produced modest averages of 7.6 points and 1.8 3-pointers per game in 2022-23, but he shot just 39.2% from the field. As for Beasley, in 81 games for the Jazz and Lakers, he averaged 12.7 points and 2.9 3-pointers per game. While he also shot below 40% from the field, Beasley was the better 3-point shooter by nearly three percentage points.
Last but not least is Beauchamp, who appeared in 52 games as a rookie last season. He may be a long shot in this competition, given the Bucks’ approach of chasing titles right now to take advantage of their current core. However, that shouldn’t be taken as a sign that Beauchamp has no chance of winning the job. Of the three, Beasley may have the most to offer in fantasy, especially in category leagues where there’s a need for 3-point production. But all three should have every opportunity to prove themselves, especially with the Bucks having a new head coach in Adrian Griffin.
At this point, we know that Bradley Beal, Devin Booker, Kevin Durant, and the recently acquired Jusuf Nurkic will be starters. But who joins that quartet? Bates-Diop was signed in free agency to add depth and competition at the forward position, while the defensive-minded Okogie sticks around after stepping up as the fifth starter after Phoenix acquired Durant last season. Starting Phoenix’s final 25 games of the regular season, Okogie averaged 11.0 points, 4.3 rebounds, 1.9 assists, 1.1 steals, 0.5 blocks, and 1.6 3-pointers in 28.7 minutes. While the numbers were solid, he still ranked well outside the top 150 in 9-cat per-game value during the final two months of the season.
Bates-Diop started 42 of the 67 games he played in for the Spurs last season, averaging 12.6 points, 4.8 rebounds, 2.0 assists, 0.8 steals, 0.5 blocks, and 1.2 3-pointers as a starter. KBD was a much better shooter on a poorer team; whoever fills the fifth starter role in Phoenix stands to get some very good scoring opportunities playing off of the established stars. And this isn’t a two-man race, either. Yuta Watanabe and Nassir Little, with the latter being acquired from Portland, will also get their opportunities to show what they can do. Damion Lee suffered a right knee injury during a pre-training camp workout and doesn’t have a timeline for return, also he also would have been in the conversation as well if healthy. Can any of these guys offer consistent fantasy value if thrust into the starting lineup? We’ll get our answer by the end of training camp.
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