Luka Doncic

Doncic signed a five-year, $207 million extension with the Mavericks in the offseason, coming off a 2020-21 campaign in which he averaged 27.7 points, 8.6 assists, 8.0 rebounds and 1.0 steals in 34.3 minutes. He also reached career-highs in field-goal percentage (47.9) and three-point percentage (35.0). That resulted in Doncic ranking 14th in fantasy production on a per-game basis -- a marginal dip from his 2019-20 rank of 10th. Most impressively was the 22-year-old stepping his game up in the playoffs against the Clippers and the elite wing defense of Kawhi Leonard and Paul George. In the seven-game, first-round series, Doncic averaged 35.7 points on 49/41/53 shooting, 10.3 assists, 7.9 rebounds and 1.3 steals in 40.2 minutes. Doncic is the betting favorite for MVP heading into 2021-22, demonstrating how much of a phenom he already is. His usage should stay stagnant, as the Mavericks didn't make any impactful additions in terms of playmakers during the offseason, and arguably the only meaningful addition they made at all was Reggie Bullock -- a much-needed 3-and-D wing. Putting aside turnovers for the purposes of most fantasy leagues, the only significant hole to poke in Doncic's game is his poor free-throw percentage. He's a 73.5 percent career shooter in the NBA and was an 80.1 percent career shooter in Europe, so there's certainly room for improvement. Even if he doesn't make strides there, Doncic is still worth a first-round selection in almost all fantasy leagues due to his pure upside as a nightly 30-10-10 threat. He also may be the most valuable player in keeper/dynasty fantasy formats.

Doncic built upon his electric rookie campaign, improving his numbers essentially across the board. The sophomore 20-year-old averaged 28.8 points, 9.4 rebounds, 8.8 assists, 2.8 threes and 1.0 steals in 33.6 minutes during 2019-20. Doncic is in complete control of the Mavericks' offense, posting the second-highest usage rate in the league (36.8 percent), trailing only Giannis Antetokounmpo and just ahead of James Harden. What resulted was the 10th-best fantasy season on a per-game basis in eight-category leagues. Doncic's big performances were historic, including a game against the Bucks in the bubble where he recorded 36 points, 19 assists, 14 rebounds and a steal with just two turnovers -- one of his 17 triple-doubles. While it doesn't seem like there's much more for him to improve in terms of raw numbers, he's just 21 years old, so improvement is practically inevitable. For Doncic, that would probably take the form of better efficiency from three (31.6 percent) and the free-throw line (75.8). All things considered, Doncic is a no-brainer first-round fantasy selection who has the upside to crack the Top 5 if things break right.

The 2018-19 Rookie of the Year, Doncic had one of the best opening campaigns in NBA history. He became the first rookie ever to average at least 20 points, 7 rebounds, 6 assists and 1 steal, and he did it as a 19-year-old. Not only did Doncic record an impressive 21.2 points per game, he did it in unique fashion for a young player, with the only other rookie ever to average at least 2 made threes and 4 made free-throws being Allen Iverson. The Mavericks are already comfortable handing Doncic the keys to the offense, and his all-around skillset makes him a valuable fantasy commodity. He ranked 11th in usage rate (30.5%) last season, and Doncic recorded eight games with at least 30 points, 22 games with at least 10 rebounds, 11 performances with 10-plus assists, and nine outings with greater than three steals. It's difficult to over-emphasize how NBA-ready Doncic looked as a teenager. Heading into his second season, fantasy owners will look for the 6-foot-7 playmaker to increase his efficiency, as he shot a less-than-ideal 42.7 percent from the field, 32.7 percent from deep and 71.3 percent from the charity stripe. If Doncic can bump those percentages up while making small statistical strides elsewhere, he has a strong shot at making the All-Star team in 2019-20 and being a top-tier fantasy asset.

Doncic entered the 2018 NBA Draft as one of the more hyped international players in recent memory. He picked up EuroLeague MVP honors in his fourth season with Real Madrid and finished the year with averages of 16.0 points, 4.9 rebounds, 4.3 assists and 1.1 steals across 33 games. He also hit 1.7 three-pointers per contest at a 32.9 percent clip. Doncic's production earned him a selection with the third overall pick in the 2018 NBA Draft and he now heads to Dallas as another building block for the future. It seems likely that Doncic is thrust into big minutes right away and even though there may be some growing pains in terms of his fit alongside promising second-year guard Dennis Smith, his extended range at 6-foot-8 and versatility to make in impact at three different positions are all positives for his future Fantasy outlook. Doncic's numbers likely won't be overly gaudy in Year 1, but he'll enter the season as the best all-around Fantasy rookie, and he projects as a much more efficient scorer than the other guards in his draft class. Look for the rookie to be a coveted selection in dynasty leagues and he'll also be an intriguing late-round selection in standard drafts for those hoping Doncic makes a seamless transition to the NBA.