It’s the final weekend before the NBA regular season begins, which means you’re coming here for your fantasy basketball drafts.
Should you draft LaMelo Ball this season? Here’s the latest outlook, projections, and rankings for the Charlotte Hornets Point Guard.
Should You Draft LaMelo Ball in Fantasy Basketball?
LaMelo Ball heads into Year 6 as one of fantasy basketball’s most divisive players, with nagging ankle and wrist injuries repeatedly preventing him from reaching his ceiling.
When available, the one-time All-Star has been an undisputed early-round asset, producing high-volume scoring, assists, and outside shooting while thriving at the charity stripe. Unfortunately for Ball, he has appeared in 51 or fewer outings in four of his first five seasons, including just 105 out of a possible 246 contests over his last three campaigns.
Across 47 appearances last season, Ball averaged a personal best 25.2 points, 4.9 rebounds, 7.4 assists, 1.1 steals, and 3.8 3-pointers per game, knocking down 84.3% of his free throws. His scoring uptick came despite him shooting a career-worst 40.5% from the field, suggesting he could be in store for another offensive leap if he improves his shot selection.
The 24-year-old’s upside arguably remains high enough to warrant a second or third-round selection, regardless of format. However, his lingering availability concerns make him a high-risk, high-reward player that some fantasy managers may want to avoid entirely.
Looking for more fantasy basketball outlooks? Head over to our NBA landing page for analysis on 200 players.
What Are Ball’s Fantasy Basketball Projections This Season?
Based on our proprietary metrics here at PFSN, we project Ball to score 2,416.3 fantasy points this season, with him averaging 25.1 points per game.
This includes 8.3 field goals per game, 4.6 three-pointers per game, 4.0 free throws per game, 5.7 rebounds per game, 9.3 assists per game, 1.1 steals per game, and 0.2 blocks per game.
Where Does LaMelo Ball Rank in the Upcoming Fantasy Basketball Season?
Ball is ranked 61st overall and 11th at his position. The five players ranked ahead of him overall include Jarrett Allen, RJ Barrett, Kristaps Porzingis, Cooper Flagg, and Deandre Ayton.
The five players ranked behind him overall include Jordan Poole, Ja Morant, Kevin Porter Jr., Kawhi Leonard, and Jalen Johnson.
The five players ranked ahead of him at his position include Stephen Curry, Jalen Brunson, De’Aaron Fox, Jamal Murray, and Darius Garland.
The five players ranked behind him at his position include Poole, Morant, Porter, Dyson Daniels, and CJ McCollum.
