The learning curve for NBA rookies is generally pretty steep, but in rare instances you’ll see first-year NBA players make a significant impact like Victor Wembanyama did for the Spurs in 2023-24. Wembanyama averaged 21.4 points, 10.6 rebounds, 3.9 assists, 3.6 blocks and 1.2 steals per game to give Fantasy basketball managers an enormous boost. The 2024 NBA Draft class doesn’t appear to include a generational talent like Wemby, but there will be a number of players expected to make an impact.
Zaccharie Risacher and Alex Sarr went No. 1 and No. 2 overall and they’re both lengthy French prospects like Wembanyama. So where exactly do they belong in the 2024 Fantasy basketball rankings, and who are some of the potential 2024 Fantasy basketball sleepers, breakouts and busts that you need to be aware of ahead of draft season? Before making any 2024-25 Fantasy basketball picks, be sure to check out the 2024 Fantasy basketball rankings and cheat sheets from the proven computer model at SportsLine.
SportsLine’s proven model simulates each season 10,0000 times. This model is powered by the same people who powered projections for all three major Fantasy sites. These cheat sheets and rankings, available for leagues on many major sites, are updated multiple times every day. Any time an injury occurs or there’s a change on a roster, the team at SportsLine updates its cheat sheets.
Last year the model called Thunder G/F Josh Giddey a bust, predicting that he would never live up to his sixth-round ADP. The result: Giddey had his minutes reduced significantly with Oklahoma City’s roster improving and saw corresponding drops in points (16.6 to 12.3), rebounds (7.9 to 6.4) assists (6.2 to 4.8) and steals (0.8 to 0.6). The Thunder ultimately decided to trade him to the Bulls for Alex Caruso this offseason and Fantasy basketball managers who avoided the headache last season were better off for it.
The model also nailed DeMar DeRozan as a sleeper in 2021-22 before he averaged a career-best 27.9 points per game and called Paolo Banchero’s and Victor Wembanyama’s breakout seasons before they went on to win NBA Rookie of the Year honors the last two seasons. Anyone who followed the model’s Fantasy basketball advice on them was well on their way to making a deep postseason run.
Now, SportsLine has simulated the entire NBA season 10,000 times and released its latest Fantasy basketball rankings 2024-25, along with plenty of sleepers, breakouts and busts. Head to SportsLine now to see these 2024-25 Fantasy basketball rankings.
One of the top 2024 Fantasy basketball sleepers the model is predicting: Suns center Jusuf Nurkic. In his 10th NBA season last year, and first in Phoenix, Nurkic averaged a double-double with 10.9 points and 11 rebounds per game. He also filled up the box score, averaging 4 assists, which ranked fifth amongst centers, to go along with 1.1 steals and 1.1 blocks per night. Add in that he shot over 50% from the field, and Nurkic provided both the Suns and Fantasy managers everything you’d want out of a big man.
He gets overlooked playing alongside Kevin Durant, Devin Booker and Bradley Beal, and he isn’t a go-to option on offense, but Nurkic provides stability, with no glaring holes to Fantasy basketball lineups. He also showed durability last season in playing 76 games after averaging just 38.3 games over his previous four seasons. The SportsLine model has Nurkic amongst the top 10 centers in the 2024 Fantasy basketball rankings, and even has him on par with the man he replaced in Phoenix, Deandre Ayton, despite Ayton being drafted multiple rounds earlier on average. See more Fantasy basketball sleepers 2024 here.
One of the 2024 Fantasy basketball breakouts the model has identified: Grizzlies center Zach Edey. A two-time national player of the year at Purdue, Edey was selected No. 9 overall in the 2024 NBA Draft by Memphis and the Grizzlies will be hoping that questions about his athleticism are overshadowed by his productiveness. Edey averaged 25.2 points, 12.2 rebounds, 2.3 blocks and 2.0 assists in his final season with the Boilermakers and redeemed a first-round loss in the NCAA Tournament the year prior by leading Purdue to the national championship game in 2024.
Teams will try to draw him outside of the paint at the next level but he uses his incredible size (7-foot-4 and 285 pounds) to pin defenders down, dominate the boards and protect the rim. Expect Memphis to have a clear plan to use him and he should be aided by playing with a premier point guard (Ja Morant). That’s why the model ranks him as a top-15 center despite the fact that he’s the 36th player off the board at the position on average. Identify other Fantasy basketball breakouts 2024 here.
As for players to avoid, the model lists Thunder forward Jalen Williams as one of its top 2024 Fantasy basketball busts. The No. 12 overall pick in the 2022 NBA Draft was the runner-up for NBA Rookie of the Year honors in 2023 and then finished fourth in most improved player voting last season after averaging 19.1 points, 4.5 assists and 4.0 rebounds in 2023-24.
However, Williams saw his usage rates wane late in the regular season and only averaged 11.8 points per game in April. With the addition of Alex Caruso this offseason, Williams could see his role reduced slightly in favor of Caruso and Luguentz Dort on the wing for defensive purposes. That’s a big reason why the model ranks Williams outside the top 25 Fantasy basketball forwards for 2024-25. Avoid these 2024 Fantasy basketball busts as well.
SportsLine is also has a shocking prediction for one of the league’s biggest names and advises avoiding him in 2024 Fantasy basketball drafts at his current ADP. This bust fails to live up to his first-round ADP, ranking behind players available in the third round or later like Damian Lillard and James Harden. You can only see who it is, and the 2024 Fantasy basketball rankings for every player, at SportsLine.
So which 2024-25 Fantasy basketball sleepers, breakouts and busts should you target and fade, and which huge name should you avoid? Visit SportsLine now to get 2024-25 Fantasy basketball cheat sheets for every single position, all from the model that’s nailed its Fantasy basketball picks, and find out.
