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Fantasy Basketball: James Harden Sits At The Top Of My Top 10 Shooting Guards

By Dave Fuqua

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Today we will be unpacking my top 10 SGs in fantasy basketball land. For this list, we will attempt to focus primarily on players who we did not feature on the PG list, and will be going with players who have primary eligibility as a SG on ESPN.com. For me, SG has always seemed to be a tough position to fill as for years it seemed to be if you didn’t have Dwyane Wade or Kobe Bryant, you were left fighting for table scraps. Now there seems to be a bit of depth at the position, so lets jump right in and start breaking it down. Again we will focus on what we perceive to be overall value and not be specific to points, cats or roto leagues.

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10. Joe Johnson, Brooklyn Nets: As much as I would like to, it is just too hard to remove Johnson from this list. The vastly overpaid Johnson offers very little in the way of upside as a Net, and as he is ages past his prime. Once better known as Iso Joe, he offered value and upside aplenty. Some would even claim he would rival Kobe and Wade for the top SG spot. That never quite materialized. Give credit to Joe for remaining valuable to the Nets, and staying a mildly valuable fantasy commodity.

9. Dwyane Wade, Miami Heat: This one may still ruffle some feathers for the Heat faithful who didn’t migrate north when a certain other fantasy stud did. However, it is hard for this guru to rank him any higher than this as I went through the list, and decided that if I owned Wade, I would have dealt him for any of the players listed here in the top 8. Wade is very valuable player still, don’t get me wrong, but for those of us in H2H leagues, he is a killer when he decides to sit games out.

8. Victor Oladipo, Orlando Magic: I have never been much of a fan of Oladipo, and tended to think he was a bit over-rated coming out of college. He is slowly winning me over as he begins to put together some nice games and provide some consistency. One can only wonder what would have happened had the Cavs decided to take him over Anthony Bennett in the 2013 draft. I look for Victor to continue to improve, and I might even consider adding him to a buy low list very soon. The Magic, I think, believe in him and have been known to shake up their roster at the deadline.

7. DeMar DeRozan, Toronto Raptors: I know DeRozan finds himself on the shelf right now, and that is probably what has landed Monta Ellis in front of him. DeRozan has really improved his game over the last few years, and he may even still continue to do so if he could ever begin to hit the 3 ball with any regularity. Hopefully he will get helthy quick and keep from sliding off this list entirely.

6. Monta Ellis, Dallas Mavericks: Ellis has always reminded me a bit of a riverboat gambler. I do not really know why, and I do not know much about his personal life. I think it is mostly becuase of his uncanny ability to drop 30 points one night and 3 the next. Ellis is a fun player to watch, and can always be a little streaky, but he has seemed to be on a hot streak for most of this year. Can he keep it up? Only time will tell, but for now I think he will.

5. Klay Thompson, Golden State Warriors: Thompson is one of a handful of players who has really stepped up his game this season. The lesser half of the splash brothers, Thompson has really began to round out his game this season. Steve Kerr seems to be doing an excellent job coaching right now, and has this Warriors team tearing through the Western Conference.

4. Gordon Hayward, Utah Jazz: Hayward had really started out this season on a hot streak. I had a tough time deciding between him and Klay Thompson, and could make solid arguments with myself about who to put fourth. Just in case you are wondering, no, I do not always argue with myself. When I do, though, it is usually when deciding which players I would rather own on my fantasy teams. As of today I would prefer Hayward, but that could change as soon as tomorrow.

3. Jimmy Butler, Chicago Bulls: Some people might argue with my placement of Jimmy G. Buckets, as Bulls announcer Stacy King likes to call him. If you are asking me, the G stands for GOOD! That is exactly what Jimmy has been this season is very good. Butler is racking up stats, and has taken his game to a new level this season. I have to attribute it to a lot of hard work. My only mild concern is that as Derrick  Rose begins to round himself back into pre-injury form, is if it will put a dent in Butler’s usage rates, thus affecting his stats. As of right now, I think Coach Thibodeau will likely give him enough minutes that it won’t affect his stock, and I feel good with him right here on this list.

2. Kobe Bryant, Los Angeles Lakers: The only real concern here is the fact that Bryant isn’t getting any younger. Add to that the fact that the Lakers might not even make the playoffs if they were in the Eastern Conference. Still, Bryant seems like a man on a mission this year with no other purpose than to hush the critics that assumed his demise as he only played around six games last year. Kobe will be just fine, and keep his spot on this list on lockdown.

1. James Harden, Houston Rockets: Maybe the only person on this list that an argument can not be made against, Harden has been purely dominant since the Thunder foolishly let him go. I am not one to think about what the sporting world would look like if certain trades had not been made, but this is one you just can not help but think about. Even now as Jeff Green rounds into form wearing Celtic green, it makes me wonder what it would look like in Oklahoma with Westbrook, Harden, Durant, Green and Ibaka. I can say that is definitely a fantasy lineup I would be proud to roll out on a weekly basis.

Well there you have it, the ten best SGs you can own in your fantasy basketball league. Now go and make some trades and try to upgrade your team. Click the button up top and give me a follow on Twitter for help with all your fantasy basketball needs. @davefuqua

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