1. Kevin Garnett- How can a team trade this guy? For the 4th straight season, KG led the league in rebounds per game with 12.8. He has grabbed 12+ boards 6 years in a row and 11+ boards 8 years in a row. He has always been an unselfish player who looks to make the extra pass. Last year he averaged 4.1 assists per game, placing him in the top 50 overall. Garnett managed a career-best 83.5% from the line and was a member of the 50/80 club in the 2 seasons prior. For his career, he is just under both marks at 49.1% FG and 78.0% FT. These rock solid shooting percentages are just what you want (and need) from your #1 pick.
2. Kobe Bryant- I am not a Kobe hater but have never really warmed up to him. I guess my affection was for MJ. It seems that the scoring champ has re-dedicated himself to defense, which should boost his steals and blocks and make him even more unstoppable. One concern is that Kobe has only played in 80+ games three times in his career. As a result, I have him ranked #2 overall, but I can’t fault you for picking him #1.
3. LeBron James- LeBron’s ‘06-07 regular season was very disappointing for fantasy owners who picked him #1 overall. His stats were down in almost every category and his FT% was a career-low 69.8%, which is simply unacceptable for someone who gets to the line nearly 10 times per game and is supposed to be the consensus #1 pick. Still, his FG% was good enough to make the 1+ three & 47% FG club, and it’s only going to get better. For ‘07-08, I am projecting a slight upswing in almost every category.
4. Steve Nash- The two-time MVP had another stellar season in ‘06-07, setting career highs in assists, threes made, FG%, and 3P%. In recent years, Nash has dominated the assists category like no one else in any other category. From a fantasy perspective, the only thing you can complain about is his lack of steals. Nash’s has played in 80+ games only twice in his career. However, he keeps himself in great shape (focusing on balance and core strength) and seems to have several more MVP-like seasons in him.
5. Gilbert Arenas- Arenas is a fantasy beast when it comes to points, threes, steals, and FT%, but his poor FG% put teams in a pretty big hole last season. If he could duplicate the 44.7% from the field that he shot in ‘05-06, he would be a lock for #1 fantasy PG, but since this is far from a given, there are plenty of reasons to go with Nash instead. Arenas has played in 80+ games in 3 of the past 5 seasons,
6. Shawn Marion- Marion has probably been the most consistent and reliable fantasy player since the year 2000. He’s shot over 80% from the line and blocked over a shot a game every single year and he’s been over 17 points and 9 boards per game for the past 7 seasons. He’s also made at least 1 three to go with over 2 steals per game for the past 5 years and has shot over 50% from the field for the past 2 years. Except for assists, Marion helps you out in every single category. His 1+ block & 77% FT club and his 1+ three & 47% FG are perfect examples of why he’s so valuable. Perhaps his best statistic is the fact that he’s missed just a total of 12 games since 2000. There’s only one negative surrounding Marion’s fantasy value, but it’s a big one: he’s not happy in Phoenix and recently demanded a trade. The guy has been getting love from fantasy owners for years now, but doesn’t feel like he’s getting the same love from management. If he does indeed get traded, his fantasy value will most likely fall. The Suns have been the best fantasy team for several years now, and any other situation would be a downgrade. Even if he stays with the Suns, the Matrix does not seem happy and that could affect his level of play. Right now I have him ranked #6, but if this situation worsens, his ranking will fall.
7. Dirk Nowitzki- He recorded career -highs in assists, FG%, and FT% last season, but his threes, steals, and blocks were all down. I’m projecting an evening out in all of those cats for ‘06-07. If he can re-join both the 1+ three & 47% FG club and the 1+ block & 77% FT club, it will help out his value considerably. Dirk’s only missed a total of 9 games the past 3 seasons.
8. Andre Iguodala- Iggy’s biggest fantasy strength is steals: he finished 4th in the NBA in steals per game. However, he contributes in every category, and he’ll only hurt you in FG% because he has to carry Philly on his shoulders. After Iverson got traded, He averaged around 19 points, 6 dimes, and 5.5 boards to go along with solid threes and blocks and great FT shooting. What’s scary is that he’s just 23 years old and has plenty of room for improvement.
9. Amare Stoudemire- After a slow start, Amare really turned it on, making 1st team All-NBA and finishing the season as the #1 ranked fantasy center. His FG% was outstanding, but he really helped his cause by hitting over 78% of his free throws, I’m projecting his %’s to drop a little bit this year, but all of his other numbers to go up. Starting from his rookie year, Stoudemire’s games played have gone from 82 to 55 to 80 to 3 to 82. Hopefully the trend doesn’t continue this season, but he’s already undergone minor knee surgery.
10. Pau Gasol- Gasol sat out the beginning of the ‘06-07 season with a foot injury .In his first 10 games, he averaged just 25.2 minutes, 17.1 points, and 4.8 rebounds per game. After that his stats were incredible: 38.4 minutes, 21.5 points, 10.9 boards, 3.7 assists, and 2.3 blocks per game.
11. Dwight Howard- Dwight set career-highs in points, assists, blocks, and FG% last season and finished among the top 12 in 3 of the 8 roto categories: 12th in blocks, 3rd in rebounds (was 2nd the year before), and 2nd in FG%). The addition of Rashard Lewis is going to help out Howard a lot, and he could easily drop 20 a game this season. He hasn’t missed a single game in 3 seasons. When you consider all of this plus the fact that he’s just 21 years old, you start to see what kind of upside he has. The only thing he doesn’t have going for him is his free throw shooting: he’s been under 60% each the past 2 years.
12. Yao Ming- Yao was the #1 fantasy center last season using per game averages, but he only played in 48 games. That marked the second year in a row that he played in less than 60 games, after missing only 2 games total his first three years in the league. His recent injuries are a cause for concern.
13. Dwyane Wade- He was the #1 fantasy player in the NBA until he dislocated his shoulder in February. He still didn’t make many threes, but the rest of his per game stats were ridiculous: 27.4 points, 4.7 boards, 7.5 dimes, 2.1 steals, and 1.2 blocks on 49.1% FG shooting and 80.7% FT shooting However, health has been a problem for him. Wade has missed a total of 64 games his first 4 seasons in the league, and it looks to be more of the same in ‘07-08. Wade is still rehabbing his injuries and will most likely miss the beginning of the season.
14. Tim Duncan- He’s one of the best players in the game and a guy that can carry your fantasy team. He’s a lock for 20 points, 10+ boards, 3+ assists, and 2+ blocks per game. His shooting %’s are a little harder to predict. After shooting between 48.4%-51.3% from the field for 8 straight seasons, Duncan hit 54.6% of his shots in ‘06-07, his highest mark since his rookie season. His FT% last year was 63.7%, well below his career average of 68%. Duncan has been pretty solid injury-wise, playing in 80+ games in 5 of his last 7 seasons.
15. Jason Kidd- Kidd is entering his 14th season in the NBA , but he’s still one of the best in the business. Kidd has played in 80+ games in 4 of the past 6 seasons. Kidd averaged a career-high 8.2 boards last season, but that number is sure to come back down with Jamaal Magloire joining the team and Nenad Krstic coming back from injury. Some of his other numbers may decline as well, as Kidd is supposed to play less minutes in ‘07-08.
16. Al Jefferson- Big Al broke through in a big way last season. After coming off the bench for his first 9 games, Al started the rest of the way, averaging 17.1 points, 11.6 boards, and 1.6 blocks. : 19.8 PPG on 55.4% shooting from the field. Al was so impressive that he got traded for Kevin Garnett in the off-season. Jefferson has yet to play in more than 71 games in an NBA season.
17. Carmelo Anthony- Melo’s scoring dipped slightly after the arrival of Iverson, but it was more a matter of his FG% dropping than AI taking shots away from him. Before the arrival of Iverson, Anthony was shooting 50% from the field. After the trade, his FG% dropped to 46%., Anthony is a solid all-around fantasy player who doesn’t hurt you in any category.
18. Josh Smith- He set career-highs in points, rebounds, assists, steals, and blocks per game in ‘06-07. He’s entering his 4th NBA season but is still just 21 years old, meaning he has plenty of room for improvement. His shooting %’s were very poor (43.9% FG, 25.0% 3P, and 69.3% FT), and he won’t be worthy of a 1st round pick until he can get those up. Just remember that when you choose him, your %’s are going to pay for it.
19. Michael Redd- Redd was one of the most potent offensive players in ‘06-07. He finished 5th in points, 10th in FTM, and 12th in 3PM per game, to go along with solid shooting percentages.
20. Vince Carter- Carter had a great all-around season in ‘06-07. He posted career-highs in boards and assists and finished in the top 20 in both points (7th) and threes made (20th) per game. He’ll continue to put up great numbers in those cats in ‘07-08. However, his 1.0 steals and .4 blocks were well below his career averages of 1.3 and .9, respectively, and they have been trending down for several years now). Vince has only missed a total of 3 games the past 2 seasons.

Best of the rest in no particular order: Chris Paul, Paul Pierce, Caron Butler, Deron Williams, Ray Allen, Rashard Lewis, Chauncey Billups, Baron Davis, Joe Johnson, Gerald Wallace, Carlos Boozer, Allen Iverson, Brandon Roy, Marcus Camby, Tracy McGrady