TOP DRAFT PICKS in Every Round 12 Team NBA Fantasy Basketball Points League

Part 1 - Rounds 1, 2 and 3

Sep 25, 2025

Your guide to finding Fantasy draft value, with player context to boot

Round 1 Targets:

Early: Cade Cunningham

Your NBA fantasy league draft has finally begun. You blink, and suddenly Jokic, Shai, Wemby, Luka, and Giannis vanish before your very eyes. Once the dust has settled at pick 6, who should you take? Cade Cunningham. A jack of all trades, Cade played 70 games, averaging 26.1pts/6.1reb/9.1asts on reliable shooting splits and a whopping 34.7% usage rate, to go along with 0.8stl/1.0blk. Cade is resilient and dependable in his diverse fantasy production, and is poised to continue his dominance leading the hungry Detroit Pistons to another playoff berth.

Middle: Anthony Davis

Anthony Davis is a perennial per-game monster who can yield top-5 value… If he plays, that is. While he justifiably found himself on many managers’ Do Not Draft lists for years, those who invested their first round pick on him in the 2023-2024 season were rewarded with 76 games of impeccable production. Davis insisted that the Lakers should play him at Power Forward instead of Center in hopes of curbing the physical toll that the position was taking on his body. The Lakers could not oblige, and he was soon traded to the Dallas Mavericks in an internet-shattering trade, while finishing the season with 51 games played. Now with what looks to be a full season of Power Forward ahead of him, Davis has the opportunity to show that he can stay on the court.

Late: Karl-Anthony Towns

There are questions left to be answered regarding the minutes distribution of the New York Knicks’ lineup this season with Coach Mike Brown taking the helm. With that said, there is little doubt that Karl-Anthony Towns will continue to be a focal point of the Knicks offense this coming year. Towns appears to have fully returned to peak form following a severe Grade 3 calf injury in 2022, playing 72 games on 35 minutes per-game, posting averages of 24.4pts/12.8reb/3.1asts with incredible efficiency, along with 1.0stl/0.7blk, solidifying his valuable rank of 11th in per-game and total fantasy points last season.

Round 2 Targets:

Early: Devin Booker

With Kevin Durant and Bradley Beal leaving the deserts of Phoenix, Arizona in pursuit of greener pastures and championship ambitions, Booker will once again bear the burden of authoring the Suns’ story of success this season. Evidently, there is a clear upward shift in Booker’s statistical production when he plays Point Guard vs. Shooting Guard, and he is poised to be the offensive engine with the departure of starting Point Guard Tyus Jones and the aforementioned Durant and Beal. I am also optimistic that the additions of Mark Williams and rookie Khaman Maluach can unlock a new dimension of Booker’s prowess. Competency at the Center position has been an Achilles’ heel for the star-studded Phoenix Suns, and they can offer Booker further optionality in the pick-and-roll. Booker set a career-high in assists per game last year with 7.1. Could he set the bar even higher?

Middle: James Harden

Harden enters this year fresh off one of the healthiest years of his career, playing 79 games for the Clippers, earning him the 4th-ranked spot in fantasy point totals. This is undeniably an incredible feat for anyone, let alone an 11x All-Star who just turned 36 years old this past August. He was also notably ranked 16th in per-game production, smashing his mid-3rd round season pre-rank of 28th. His role is established and should pick up where it left off, and with John Collins and Bradley Beal joining the Clippers in the offseason, they should only complement Harden and create new opportunities for the playmaking virtuoso in the half-court.

Upside gamble? Tyrese Maxey

Don’t want to bank on Harden staying healthy? Tyrese Maxey is a young, high motor All-Star being picked everywhere from the end of the 1st round to the end of the 2nd round. I believe the reason for this fluctuation is that Maxey’s statistical production, usage rate and shooting efficiency are highly affected by the presence of his teammates Joel Embiid and Paul George, or lack thereof. Maxey gets a significant boost in fantasy value and opportunity in games that Embiid or PG miss, especially PG. With a middle 2nd round pick, there isn’t much value lost if the Sixers miraculously have a healthy squad this year, plus you get 1st-round upside when Maxey steps up in their stead.

Late: Steph Curry

It seemed that Steph Curry was finally starting to show his age, posting 22.9pts/4.5reb/6.5asts in the first few months of the 2024-25 season, leaving the return on investment well short of the early 2nd-round pick that many fantasy managers elected to spend. The Golden State Warriors decided they needed to make a splash if they wanted to squeeze the last bit of championship hope and glory out of their franchise icon. The trade deadline arrived. And so did Jimmy Butler III. Steph turned back the clock and averaged 27.2pts/4.3reb/5.6asts in the 27 games with Jimmy at his side; good enough for 1st-round per-game production during that sample. With a full season ahead of the Steph and Jimmy tandem, Steph’s potential upside is undeniable.

Round 3 Targets:

Early: Jalen Johnson

There was a lot of hype surrounding Jalen Johnson coming off a stellar 3rd year performance, and those that snagged him at his 5th-Round ADP were treated with top-20 per-game production to the tune of 18.9pts/10.0reb/5.0asts/1.6stl/1.0blk.. Until Johnson tore his labrum with just 36 games played. A tragic end to the season for one of fantasy draft day’s breakout stars, but based on reports, he is expected to be ready for training camp. While he might need some time to ramp up after a summer of recovery from shoulder surgery, there is no obvious reason why Jalen can’t return to his previous fantasy season’s level of excellence - and beyond.

Upside gamble? LaMelo Ball

One of the most controversial fantasy basketball players in recent history, LaMelo is the epitome of high risk/high reward. Plagued by recurring ankle injuries and yearly Charlotte Hornets tank-a-thon, this combination of factors allows for a top-15 per-game producer in LaMelo to fall further and further down draft boards. Eventually, he falls far enough past his pre-rank that his upside value becomes too good to pass on, and I believe somewhere in the 3rd round hits that mark.

Middle: Evan Mobley

Coming off of an impressive DPOY campaign, Evan Mobley - in just his 4th year - is already a budding 2-way All-Star with heaps of potential in store. Many industry fantasy basketball analysts found Mobley to be one of their darling breakout players this past season, and he certainly delivered. Going into the 2024-25 season, Mobley’s hyped breakout was predicated on being more involved in Cleveland’s offensive scheme, and Coach Kenny Atkinson heard the call. Mobley improved his points-per-game from 15.7 to 18.5, due to taking two more shots per-game. Mobley also diversified his shot diet, taking 3.2 3PA per-game, up from 1.2, and hitting 37% of them. The rest of his stats remained productive and consistent from the previous season, including his minutes played (30.5). Will the trending regression of teammate Jarrett Allen’s role in the Cavaliers’ plans. Could there be more minutes and opportunities on the horizon for Evan Mobley?

Late: Amen Thompson

I previously had Amen Thompson as my early 4th round value-pick this year, but in light of Fred VanVleet’s tragic ACL injury, some fantasy managers are fighting tooth-and nail to grab him as early as the late 2nd round in hopes that Amen can return to the level of production that he showcased across the final months of last season. From January to April, Amen averaged 15.4pts/8.6reb/5.3asts/1.6stl/1.5blk in 35 minutes per-game. Managers who were patient with Amen despite the low minutes early in the season were rewarded tremendously with incredible production across the board heading into the fantasy playoffs. With the newly acquired shooters Houston has recruited this offseason, including future Hall-of-Famer Kevin Durant, Amen’s assist rate could take a decent leap as he’ll certainly be due for more minutes at Point Guard. Can his defensive stats maintain as his responsibilities grow on offense?

Stay tuned for Part 2!

Will Houser