This article is part of our NBA Draft Kit series.
The start of the NBA season is rapidly approaching, which means fantasy basketball draft season is in full swing. Sometimes lost in the list of sleepers, busts and top rookies are players who could bounce back from a lackluster performance the season prior.
Let's examine five of those players to consider targeting in 2020-21:
Al Horford, Oklahoma City Thunder
When the Sixers added Horford prior to last season, they may have thought that he was an ideal fit for the roster. He could slide into the power forward spot alongside Joel Embiid and spell him at center, which was important given Embiid's injury history. Horford did play well when Embiid was off the floor, averaging 17 points, 8.5 rebounds, 5.2 assists, 1.2 steals and 1.2 blocks per 36 minutes.
However, Horford took a hit in the scoring department when playing alongside Embiid, averaging 14.2 points per 36 minutes. It was clear that the Sixers needed to add more shooting if they were going to make an extended playoff run, and when that need was combined with little flexibility within their payroll, they decided to move on from Horford and deal him to the Thunder.
The move to Thunder could be a major windfall for Horford's fantasy value. The roster around him is awful. His main competition for playing time at center and power forward are Darius Bazley and Mike Muscala. Could he be rested later in the season as the team falls further out of playoff contention? Sure.
The start of the NBA season is rapidly approaching, which means fantasy basketball draft season is in full swing. Sometimes lost in the list of sleepers, busts and top rookies are players who could bounce back from a lackluster performance the season prior.
Let's examine five of those players to consider targeting in 2020-21:
Al Horford, Oklahoma City Thunder
When the Sixers added Horford prior to last season, they may have thought that he was an ideal fit for the roster. He could slide into the power forward spot alongside Joel Embiid and spell him at center, which was important given Embiid's injury history. Horford did play well when Embiid was off the floor, averaging 17 points, 8.5 rebounds, 5.2 assists, 1.2 steals and 1.2 blocks per 36 minutes.
However, Horford took a hit in the scoring department when playing alongside Embiid, averaging 14.2 points per 36 minutes. It was clear that the Sixers needed to add more shooting if they were going to make an extended playoff run, and when that need was combined with little flexibility within their payroll, they decided to move on from Horford and deal him to the Thunder.
The move to Thunder could be a major windfall for Horford's fantasy value. The roster around him is awful. His main competition for playing time at center and power forward are Darius Bazley and Mike Muscala. Could he be rested later in the season as the team falls further out of playoff contention? Sure. However, Horford can contribute in a lot of different areas, which makes him extremely appealing. If he does get off to a hot start and you are worried about his playing time down the stretch, then he could be a valuable trade chip.
Lauri Markkanen, Chicago Bulls
Last season was a disaster for the Bulls. Between injuries and the questionable-at-best coaching from Jim Boylen, they didn't even qualify for the bubble. Markkanen was one of the players who missed time with injuries, but even when he was healthy, he underperformed. After averaging 18.7 points, nine rebounds and 2.3 three-pointers the season prior, Markkanen finished with averages of 14.7 points, 6.3 rebounds and 2.2 three-pointers last season.
Maybe one of the worst moves made by Boylen was decreasing Markkanen's playing time by an average of more than two minutes per contest compared to 2018-19 With Billy Donovan now the coach and a new front office in place, expect Markkanen to once again become one of the focal points of the team.
Think about how well Donovan's coaching style meshed with Danilo Gallinari, who is another three-point shooting power forward who averaged 18.7 points and 2.9 three-pointers last season with the Thunder. Similar production from Markkanen is certainly well within the realm of possibilities.
Blake Griffin, Detroit Pistons
Griffin is coming off of a lost season in which he played only 18 games because of a knee injury. When he did play, he significantly underperformed. He set career-low averages in points (15.5), rebounds (4.7) and minutes (28) per game while shooting an abysmal 35.2 percent from the field. To put how bad he was from the field into perspective, he had never finished with a field goal percentage below 43.8 percent previously.
As bad as things were for Griffin last year, at least his usage rate was still high at 28.4 percent. With the high likelihood that he improves his efficiency this season, his scoring production should increase. The Pistons will be looking for him to score early and often considering their next-best scoring options behind him are Derrick Rose and Jerami Grant. Injuries are always a significant concern for Griffin, but the added time off will likely help his efforts to bounce back, and he'll probably be available at a discount.
Victor Oladipo, Indiana Pacers
Since joining the Pacers, Oladipo has become a top fantasy option. It's difficult to find an area that he hadn't excelled in heading into last season. In his first two seasons with the team, he averaged at least 18.8 points, 5.2 rebounds, 4.3 assists, 1.7 steals and 2.1 three-pointers per contest. He even shot 47.7 percent from the field in the 2017-18 season, although that was an anomaly given his career performance in that area.
A torn quad during the 2018-19 season resulted in him playing only 19 games last season, and he didn't look like himself when he was on the floor. He almost didn't return to the team for their run in the bubble. Still, even though he wasn't himself, he averaged 16.7 points, 4.7 rebounds, 2.7 assists, 1.5 steals and 2.4 three-pointers across 10 games in Orlando. Oladipo has already come out and said that he feels "night and day" better than he did in the bubble, which is encouraging.
The presence of Malcolm Brogdon might limit Oladipo in the assists department, but look for Oladipo to average far more than the 14.5 points per contest that he did last season.
Draymond Green, Golden State Warriors
The Warriors were already facing an uphill battle last season with Kevin Durant no longer on the team and Klay Thompson injured. The bottom then fell out from under them when Stephen Curry went down after just five games. With their playoff hopes gone and having played heavy minutes deep into the playoffs for multiple seasons, it's not a surprise that Green was a fantasy disappointment. The Warriors took no chances with his health, limiting him to an average of 28 minutes across the 43 games.
Even with his playing time down, Green still showed that he can contribute in multiple categories, averaging eight points, 6.2 rebounds, 6.2 assists and 1.4 steals. His 38.9 percent shooting from the field was a disaster, especially after he had shot at least 44.5 percent in back-to-back seasons. With that being said, the Warriors should be in the playoff hunt this season, despite having lost Thompson to another injury.
Not only is Curry healthy, but they will have a full season from Andrew Wiggins to go along with the additions of Kelly Oubre Jr. and James Wiseman. Factor in the added rest during the offseason and a fresh Green could once again be a valuable fantasy option. The assists, rebounds and blocks should be there -- the question is whether he'll ever be able to recapture the floor-spacing ability that made him one of the most unique fantasy players in the league at his peak.
