Fantasy Basketball End of Season Roundtable: Nikola Jokic, Dyson Daniels among the fantasy MVPs
The Rotoworld fantasy basketball staff had different choices for their most valuable fantasy player this season.
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While some fantasy managers compete in leagues that run through the end of the NBA's regular season, most were completed by the end of Sunday's games. Congratulations to those who won their leagues and the money (and bragging rights) that comes with it. Those who did not will reflect on what went wrong and how they can avoid a similar fate next season.
With the fantasy season effectively over, now is a good time for the Rotoworld fantasy basketball staff to have a few roundtable discussions.
The final installment focuses on the most valuable players in fantasy basketball. For some, it's the player who led the way in the rankings, while others prefer to pick a player who proved far more valuable than expected during the preseason. Nick Shlain, Noah Rubin, Raphielle Johnson and Zak Hanshew made their choices, which are (mostly) unlikely to align with the winner of this season's official Most Valuable Player award.
Who is your Most Valuable Player in fantasy basketball this season?
Nick Shlain: The top three players that separated themselves from the pack this season were Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Nikola Jokic and Victor Wembanyama. With Wembanyama going down with injury at the All-Star break, that left SGA and Jokic. While I’ve been partial to Jokic in the past and believe his skillset is more valuable in fantasy in a vacuum, injuries cost him some games in the second half. Entering play Friday, Jokic played 68 games to Gilgeous-Alexander’s 76. In my opinion, that’s significant enough to tip the scales for SGA, who had an incredible season that will likely result in his first MVP award.
Noah Rubin: You could look at this award a few different ways. Sure, Nikola Jokic and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander were technically the "most valuable" players in fantasy basketball. However, relative to ADP, few players were as valuable as "The Great Barrier Thief." Dyson Daniels was also my pick for the most improved player in fantasy basketball, and I had to limit myself from giving him more awards. He's on pace to play in 77 games, which is a huge win in today's NBA. Of course, the massive lead in steals and the improvements across the board have made Daniels a fantasy superstar. He won't win this award again since there is no way he goes this late in drafts again. The season-long numbers are already fantastic, but he's also made improvements throughout the year, as he has averaged more points, rebounds and assists per game over the past two months than he has for the season while also improving his field goal percentage. The No. 8 overall pick in 2022, Daniels has soared in his first season in Atlanta and helped many fantasy managers bring home rings.
Raphielle Johnson: While most of the players at the top of the rankings were expected to be there before the season began, I think the more valuable fantasy assets are those who exceed preseason expectations by a significant margin. Dyson Daniels certainly qualifies, but I'll take Josh Hart here. He's set the Knicks franchise record for triple-doubles in a season, and the versatile wing has provided top-30 per-game value in eight- and nine-cat formats. Between the positional eligibility, production and availability, Hart has been one of the most valuable players in fantasy basketball this season. And unlike Daniels, whose Yahoo! ADP will likely skyrocket in the fall, Hart may still be able to provide elite value relative to where he's drafted. Unless the Knicks were to move one of Jalen Brunson, Karl-Anthony Towns, OG Anunoby or Mikal Bridges during the offseason, Hart will again be fifth in the offensive pecking order next season. That could keep his ADP within "reason," setting up Hart to remain a high-value option in fantasy leagues.
Zak Hanshew: It feels cheap to name Nikola Jokic as the fantasy MVP, but there's no denying his greatness. Jokic was drafted as a top-three pick and delivered in a way no one expected. He set personal bests in points, assists and steals, delivered stat lines that have never been seen and passed Wilt Chamberlain for most triple-doubles in a single season by a center. Joker is on pace to become only the third player to average a triple-double for a season and the first center to accomplish that feat. If we're getting down to the nitty-gritty, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander may be slightly ahead of him in per-game fantasy ranking, but SGA wasn't a week-winner nearly as much as Jokic. Jokic has him handily in rebounds and assists, sits only slightly behind him in scoring and surprisingly holds the edge in steals. No other player in the Association put up numbers quite as gaudy as Joker, who posted 20-assist and 20-rebound games with regularity and just last week notched a 60-point triple-double. If you drafted Jokic, there's a good chance he single-handedly led you to victory multiple times throughout the 2024-25 campaign, and no other player can boast that level of impact.
