Fantasy Basketball Rankings 2020: Top 50 guards in the NBA ranked!

The Fantasy Basketball Season is just under 2 weeks away so drafts will be happening thick and fast.

Below we’ve prepared a draft primer for you to help organize your draft day. We have toiled through the stats and broken down who we believe will be the top 50 guards in Fantasy Basketball for the NBA season. Not only have we ranked them in numerical order, but we have separated them into 6 tiers to show you the true difference between the players in these rankings.

These tiers should help you prioritize guys you want to get at specific points in the draft as it gives you a better grip on where they should be drafted. Due to the surplus of good guards this year we believe that taking 2 in the first 2 tiers will be a big key to a successful fantasy season. Enjoy the Fantasy Basketball rankings below!

Tier 1 

1. James Harden – Even though Harden has been causing issue after issue this off-season, we still can’t make a case for him not being the best fantasy player in the game. The rate that he gets to the Free Throw line will win you Free Throw Percentage every week, as well as 3 pointer, ’s made and most likely points. He is sneaky with his hands and grabbed almost 2 steals a game as well as chipping in a lazy 7 rebounds and 8 assists. Harden has to be pick 1 as from what the Rockets are saying he won’t be traded this year.

2. Steph Curry – The Chef is back and he’s going to have a great season. Hasn’t been a top 10 fantasy player since 2015-16 but with Durant gone and Klay missing the season the offense will be falling on his shoulders. Steph is going to get you around 5 boards and 5 assists a game so his real value comes from his elite Field Goal and Free Throw percentages, as well as 3 pointers, made. I’m hoping to take him with pick 4.

3. Luka Doncic – Luka was unreal last season and he’s going to carry that through to this fantasy season. Porzingis is going to miss time and be eased back in around February, so it’s not silly to think Luka could possibly be averaging 30 points, 10 rebounds, and 10 assists for the first month or so. If you love counting stats, pick Luka.

4. Damian Lillard – Not much to say, Dame doesn’t miss games and is an easy 30 points and 6 assists guy. Due to his durability, we can see him going anywhere from pick 4-8.

5. Bradley Beal – Next to Russell Westbrook Beal’s offense is going to be staggeringly good. Averaged 30 points a game last year and 3 3’s, Having Russ next to him is going to lead to some much better shots so expect that fg% to tick up as well. 

6. Lebron James – Lebron is the greatest basketballer in the world, however, he is a man who has sustained his athletic abilities due to his incredible drive to look after his body. Nobody can make him rush into a season when he is not ready and we think this is gonna cap him through lots of rest days and reduced impact when on the court. He’ll be great late season but will make your playoff run difficult early on.

Tier 2 

7. Devin Booker – Big jump for Devin now that he has a decent team around him. Was unconscious in the bubble leading the Suns to 8-0. If he plays like that again he’s going to be very handy for your side.

8. Trae Young – Averaged 30 points and 9 assists last season. Unsure if he can reach the heights of this again with the new signings as he won’t be able to launch as many shots as before. Will still put up late first round to early second-round value. Temper expectations here.

9. Kawhi Leonard – He won’t play back 2 backs which hurts his value but he averaged 27 points, 8 rebounds and 5 assists when he did play. If you can handle the missed games Kawhi is great early second-round value.

10. Ben Simmons – Daryl Morey has cleared out the spacing issues so expect Simmons to play much more of a point forward role unless he starts to shoot 3s. He will stuff the stat sheet and continue to average 18 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists. The real question is will he shoot 3’s and will he improve his FT%. If you think yes, get him in.

11. Kyrie Irving – Questions marks over his health, I believe has more upside than this but he will fall to the 20’s in your draft easily. Don’t forget he averaged 25 points and 6 assists playing next to Lebron James, so there is no question he can reach big heights alongside Kevin Durant.

12. Russell Westbrook – Could go either way in Washington and we have no qualms if you take him from pick 18 onwards. We’ve all seen the brodie at his best so it’ll be interesting to see if he can reclaim some OKC form under former coach Scott Brooks.

13. Jimmy Butler – Consistent baller who is relentless, Has said he wants to take a back seat to Bam so interesting to see how his fantasy value plays out. He’s a mid-late second round pick.

Tier 3

14. Donovan Mitchell – Points, points, points. That’s what Donovan is going to offer you so if you want someone to average 25+ points pile in a ton of 3’s and match it with good %s, Donovan is your guy.

15. Jamal Murray – Broke out in the playoffs after a disappointing regular season mired by injury. Jamal has the keys alongside Jokic to this offense and you would expect at a minimum 20 points and 5 assists from Jamal this season after what he showed in the playoffs. Extra value for him comes from elite FT%, 3’s and he is sneakily good at steals.

16. Ja Morant – What can we say, Ja looked great last year and is the bonafide leader of the Grizzlies. Averaged 18 and 7 in his rookie year and we think he’s only going to get better. Needs to improve on his 76% Free Throw percentage to push himself into the top echelon.

17. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander – Only real competent player on the OKC at this point. A lot of the scoring and playmaking duties will fall to him. Expect him to average around 20 points and throw in assists and boards. The question marks come around his 3 pointers and fg% not playing next to Chris Paul and other players who stretch the floor.

18. Jrue Holiday – Jrue Holiday finished last year as a top 25 guy. More than likely will slip a bit further down this year as the offense in Milwaukee is not as fast-paced as NOLA was. Elite guy for 3’s, steals and assists.

19. Zach Lavine – New coach bodes well for Zach who was on fire last year averaging 25 points a game. Needs to add a few more assists and clean up his fg% to make him a top tier guy but Lavine is someone you can definitely grab as your 3rd pick in the draft.

20. Kemba Walker – After the news of knee injuries may be even lower than this. Not someone you really want to take a risk on but is a 22 points and 5 assist guy when he’s playing. Walker will probably not be healthy till February at the earliest. 
21. Chris Paul – Dropped him down the rankings as we believe last year was an anomaly. Will probably average 15 points and 10 assists next to Booker but will be a rest candidate on Back to Backs. 

22. John Wall – Lots of queries about him, and hasn’t played a competitive game since 2018. Coming off the worst injury in basketball and thrown into a completely new Rockets rotation this selection could really go either way. If you’re feeling risky you can look to take him 50+.

Listen to “Fantasy Draft Prep: Top 50 Guards in the NBA ranked!” on Spreaker.

Tier 4 

23. Khris Middleton – Khris with a K averaged 20 points, 6 rebounds and 4 assists on just under 30 minutes a game last season. Milwaukee has cleared out their bench and will probably have to play him 30-35 a night. With the addition of Jrue we think he’ll be around the same clip with the extra minutes.

24. De’Aaron Fox – Sacramento looks like being awful again this season. Hield (potentially?) wants out and Bogdanovic has already gone, so a lot of production will have to come through Fox. HIs counting stats may look nice but I’m expecting some horrific efficiency with that Sacramento rotation.

25. Kyle Lowry – A real warrior but as mentioned before, Father Time is undefeated. He’s 35 this year and cannot be selected before Chris Paul.

26. Malcolm Brogdon – Injuries really hampered his season last year but they look to be behind him and you can select him with confidence. A new up-tempo offence with a heavier focus on 3 pointers should open the game up for Brogdon, and make him a valuable fantasy asset for his excellent assist to turnover ratio.

27. D’Angelo Russell – volume guard who stuffs the stat sheet but really hurts your efficiency. If you can overlook the fg% and the horrendous turnover rate, he’s a nice option as a 3rd or 4th guard. 

28. Lonzo Ball – Bledsoe trade is a bit of a value killer but he should still be pushing 30+ minutes a night in a 6 man role. New Orleans sorely needs some consistent shooting so if he can connect regularly on that 3 ball his fantasy prospects look immense this year. Defensive stats are excellent and justify his place here.

29. Demar Derozan – Probably should be much higher on this list, just too much uncertainty in a shortened season has really hurt his fantasy outlook. If you’re well connected within the Spurs organization and can guarantee DeRozan will play all year then feel free to draft him earlier, but I’m still non-committal about chaining my fantasy hopes to him too early in the draft.

30. C.J. Mccollum – Points & 3’s. Excellent in these categories but at this stage of his career he is what he is, can’t expect much outside of that. Lack of defensive stats really hurts his value.

31. Gordon Hayward – New team, new role, ready for Hayward to look more like the all-star in Utah than the square peg in a round hole that he was in Boston. 
32. Fred VanVleet – Fresh off a big pay-day there will be an increased reliance on Fred this year. Considering Lowry is a year older and Ibaka and Gasol have moved on would give me some pause, but it’s tough to have him too high on this list considering he wasn’t a top 40 9-cat player last season. The points and steals are nice but expect your fg% to take a decent hit.

33. Markelle Fultz – If you want an in-depth look at how we think Fultz will go this year check out our Orlando Magic breakdown podcast. This is the year Fultz makes the leap, and he will prove to be a reliable fantasy contributor this year.

Tier 5

34. Jaylen Brown – Although he’s a long way down this list there is a lot of intrigue surrounding Brown’s role. Kemba will be missing to start the season and with Hayward now out of the picture the Celtic’s are going to lean on Brown to become a bonafide 25ppg scorer. He can definitely do it, just there really isn’t much else to his game fantasy-wise. I wouldn’t hate you for taking him a lot earlier.

35. Mike Conley – Bit of a down year in Utah for Mike but Father Time is still undefeated. He’s had time to work through the growing pains and there were signs of life in the bubble, but he’s still not the most exciting selection and I can’t make a case for him above many in this list. 

36. Eric Bledsoe – The move out to New Orleans will probably see a similar role for Bledsoe this season. We know what he is at this stage of his career and although he won’t set the world on fire, he’s a solid late-round selection if you need guard help. 

37. Killian Hayes – Apparently the best true point guard in the draft, should get thrown into the deep end in Detroit and start. He will have some growing pains but we think he is worth the risk. 

38. Dejounte Murray – Averaged 11 points, 6 rebounds and 5 assists last year. This should be the year he breaks out, but we said that last year. A lot of guards in this backcourt makes it hard for Murray to get the minutes he needs to truly crack the top end of PG’s. He is still an elite rebounder and great for steals at the PG spot.

39. Lamelo Ball – Averaged 17 points, 5 assists and 5 rebounds in the NBL. Let’s see if he can take it to the big time and still pull those numbers. Our prediction is he will score a little less but keep the extras to boost his value.

40. Andrew Wiggins – Should have a decent role on the warriors however playing alongside Draymond will cap his other stats outside scoring. If you want someone to pile in points on a decent percentage I’d reach for him earlier than this.

41. Devonte’ Graham – Has willingly said he will take less shots this year which is good and bad. Shot 38% for the season but did average 3.5 threes and 18 points. Pick your poison.

Tier 6 

42. Derrick Rose – Finishing off the year averaging 18 points and 6 assists should have him much higher up our list, however, Rose struggles to stay on the court to give you that upside. The added factor that the Pistons are contending for nothing could mean he’s shipped off to back up a title contender and cap his fantasy value.

43. Malik Beasley – Has tons of talent which he showed at Minnesota. Drops this low due to the drafting of Anthony Edwards and now adding Ricky Rubio but was borderline flying to finish last season. Offseason scandals could cause issues within the organization and his playing time.

44. Marcus Smart – Injury to Kemba Walker makes him a little more likable, just hard to have based on play time and fantasy output out of all the guards at Boston. Should play a decent backup role.

45. Mikal Bridges – Elite Field Goal % and having a couple of players alongside him to space the floor will do wonders for Mikal Bridges. Phoenix has always been bullish on Bridges potential so we’re happy to take the punt on him late in the draft hoping this is the year he puts it together.

46. Terry Rozier – Terry drops due to the additions of Lamelo Ball and Gordon Hayward. Didn’t shoot the ball particularly well last year finishing the year at 42% from the field, so on fewer shots he will probably regress from his 18 points last year.

47. Colin Sexton – Doesn’t give you anything but 20 points per game on a bad FG%. If you want points he’s an easy late-round guy for you but don’t expect anything more than 2-3 assists a game.

48. Josh Richardson – Had a poor year in terms of steals and blocks at .9 steals and .7 blocks. Uncertain of his role in Dallas but we see his stat line being similar to last season at 13 points, 3 rebounds and 3 assists.

49. Norman Powell – should have a slightly increased role this year with the stripped-back Raptors. If you’re basing your team on points, FG%, and 3’s Norm is your man. Drops down our rankings as he doesn’t give you much else.

50. Kevin Porter Jr. – Had been given the keys to the second unit by JB Bickerstaff before getting injured. Averaged 13 points, 3 rebounds, 3 assists in those 16 games. If he can crack the starting rotation he will be a steal.

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