| Pick | Overall | Player | Team | Position | Writer |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | Anthony Davis | NO | PF/C | Ian Goldsmith |
| 2 | 2 | James Harden | HOU | PG/SG | Russell Peddle |
| 3 | 3 | Giannis Antetokounmpo | MIL | SF/PF | Brett Oswalt |
| 4 | 4 | Karl-Anthony Towns | MIN | C | Sam Hauss |
| 5 | 5 | Kevin Durant | GS | SF/PF | Alex McDonald |
| 6 | 6 | Stephen Curry | GS | PG/SG | Tom Whalen |
| 7 | 7 | LeBron James | LAL | SF/PF | Michael Rondello |
| 8 | 8 | Russell Westbrook | OKC | PG | Jordan Sharp |
| 9 | 9 | Victor Oladipo | IND | PG/SG | Austan Kas |
| 10 | 10 | Kawhi Leonard | TOR | SG/SF | Jay Kim |
| 11 | 11 | Nikola Jokic | DEN | PF/C | Shae Cronin |
| 12 | 12 | Damian Lillard | POR | PG | Dale Redman |
There is essentially a top-six in fantasy hoops this year and then a drop-off after that. Across the industry, you'll generally find Anthony Davis, Karl-Anthony Towns, Stephen Curry, Kevin Durant, James Harden, and Giannis Antetokounmpo in some order at the front of the round (that's exactly the order we have them in our projections). Our first 12 picks played out pretty close to how you'd expect them to, so there isn't a whole lot to talk about here.
Shae Cronin arguably got the most valuable pick of the round, with Nikola Jokic (the sixth-ranked player in our projections) falling to him at 11th.
My pick: As previously mentioned, you can't really go wrong picking in the top-six, but James Harden felt like the perfect pick at second overall. I was ready to take Anthony Davis if Ian Goldsmith had passed on him, but I'll gladly take a guy who has ranked in the top-eight in each of his last six seasons instead.