The 2022 NBA Draft brought another impressive wave of new talent into the league and with opening night set for Tuesday in the 2022-23 NBA season, Fantasy basketball owners across the country are trying to figure out how the Fantasy basketball rookies fit into the larger picture. The Pistons added a pair of NBA lottery picks to their lineup on draft night by selecting Jaden Ivey No. 5 overall and trading for No. 13 overall pick Jalen Duren. Now those two players will join a young core that already includes Cade Cunningham and Saddiq Bey.
Are Ivey and Duren potential 2022 Fantasy basketball breakouts that you should have on your Fantasy basketball draft board? And who are the 2022 Fantasy basketball sleepers and busts that you need to be aware of? A reliable set of 2022 Fantasy basketball rankings can help you answer those questions and more. Before making any 2022 Fantasy basketball picks, be sure to check out the 2022 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. And that same group is sharing its 2022 Fantasy basketball cheat sheets.
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 was extremely high on DeMar DeRozan even though he was being drafted in the fifth round on average, predicting he'd outperform small forwards being drafted ahead of him like Khris Middleton and Brandon Ingram. The result: DeRozan had a resurgent year where he finished fifth in the NBA in scoring (27.9 ppg) and wound up being a top-10 player overall in Fantasy basketball.
The model also called past Fantasy basketball sleepers like Lauri Markkanen and Aaron Gordon in 2018-19 and warned about Zach Randolph being a bust that same year. 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 2022, along with plenty of sleepers, breakouts and busts. Head to SportsLine now to see them.
Top 2022 Fantasy basketball sleepers
One of the top 2022 Fantasy basketball sleepers the model is predicting: Grizzlies center Steven Adams. The New Zealander averaged just 6.9 points in his first season in Memphis but also put up career-highs with 10 rebounds and 3.4 assists per game. He then signed a two-year, $25.2 million extension in the offseason to remain Memphis' starting center for the next few years.
Grizzlies coach Taylor Jenkins says he's given Adams the green light to be more aggressive this season, even shooting 3-pointers. That would be a bonus to his already solid Fantasy value as an elite rebounder and one of the best-passing centers in the league. Adams should also see more playing time this year with fellow big man Jaren Jackson Jr. (foot) doubtful for the start of the season after surgery. More minutes and a new offensive weapon has Adams as a top-20 center in SportsLine's 2022 Fantasy basketball rankings.
Top 2022 Fantasy basketball breakouts
One of the 2022 Fantasy basketball breakouts the model has identified: Rockets power forward Jabari Smith. After spending a season at Auburn where he averaged 16.9 points, 7.4 rebounds, 2.0 assists, 1.1 steals and 1.0 blocks per game, Smith was the No. 3 overall pick in the 2022 NBA Draft and Houston will be expecting him to stretch the floor with two dynamic young guards like Kevin Porter and Jalen Green in their lineup.
Smith shot 42% from the 3-point line at Auburn and he showed a willingness to step outside and shoot from distance while also dropping inside to hit the glass in the NBA Summer League. In his preseason debut on Sunday, Smith produced 21 points and eight rebounds in just 24 minutes and his upside will be high as Houston's best frontcourt scoring option. That's why the model ranks him as a top-10 power forward in its 2022-23 Fantasy basketball rankings.
Top 2022 Fantasy basketball busts
As for players to avoid, the model lists Lakers point guard Russell Westbrook as one of its top 2022 Fantasy basketball busts. Westbrook's 2021-22 season was an unmitigated disaster, as he saw significant dropoffs in points, rebounds, assists and steals from the previous season while the Lakers missed the playoffs. It was Westbrook's fourth different team in four seasons and the inability to gel with LeBron James and Anthony Davis has made him the subject of trade rumors yet again this offseason.
However, the Lakers haven't gotten a deal done yet and it appears that Westbrook will at least start his season in Los Angeles, with some discussion he could even come off the bench. Fantasy basketball players are drafting him in the seventh round on average but the model ranks 10th-round options like Porter and Mike Conley ahead of the nine-time NBA all-star.
How to find proven 2022 Fantasy basketball rankings
SportsLine is also extremely high on a forward to make a big leap and advises you target him in 2022 Fantasy basketball drafts. This youngster is listed as a shocking top-five option ahead of superstars like Anthony Davis and Kevin Durant. You can only see who it is, and the 2022 Fantasy basketball rankings for every player, at SportsLine.
So which 2022 Fantasy basketball sleepers, breakouts and busts should you target and fade? And which forward shocks the NBA with a top-five performance at the position? Visit SportsLine now to get 2022 Fantasy basketball cheat sheets for every single position, all from the model that's nailed its Fantasy basketball picks, and find out.
