Welcome, fantasy basketball general managers, to the first-year rookie draft in your dynasty basketball league. Playing scout and director of basketball operations can be tough. My 2023 Dynasty Rookie Rankings consider skill, positional versatility, and the possibility of minutes to determine if a player is going to be a valuable asset to your team.
Having the proper resources to make this determination is important. Realistically, who can blame a drafter for taking rookies on hype alone? Highlighted by the French Phenom Wembanyama, this year’s draft class has plenty of hype. However, the last three years have shown that many can be immediate contributors, and this draft is no different. Who to take and when to take them will be an important determination this year. After all, playing the role of general manager is why we are all in dynasty leagues. Hopefully my dynasty rookie rankings will help you make it a successful season.
2023 Dynasty Rookie Rankings
Projection
Projection, concerning both ability and roster value, is important to determine how your own dynasty rookie rankings shape up. Following the draft pick-by-pick is a fool’s errand, and can often lead to landing a bust on your dynasty roster. For example, take 2020. Even though the Covid year did not allow for extended looks for a lot of players, the draft had its own twists and turns. A lot of boards would have seen LaMelo Ball and Tyrese Haliburton over Anthony Edwards/James Wiseman and Jalen Smith/Devin Vassell respectively. That is not how the draft turned out. I think if you asked these teams to redo the draft they would’ve picked differently.
Building a dynasty is hard, with a capital H. Take into consideration, age, relative competition, size, and overall statistics. Any advantage you can get can be the difference between next year’s championship or last place. Our comparisons are relative. They take all of this into consideration with some playstyle focus as well. Following that up, the second round is harder to predict. The comparisons can help take a player that would otherwise be cut next year into a likely bench piece.
Player Notes
A few overarching notes on player placement within my dynasty rookie rankings; first is Anthony Black being as low as he is, lower than Jett Howard or Gradey Dick.
Generally, players have trouble finding minutes or value in fantasy when they are non-shooters. Black is a fine player, and possibly a great player in the league. Conversely, many pundits and draftniks are high on his playmaking and athleticism. Even so, Orlando is a team that lacks shooting. Although this particular list is about dynasty basketball, fantasy dynasties can have short windows or combustible opportunities. Having a non-shooter on your squad is always a risk, especially if they are not a forward or big.
If you can, trade for a pick in the lower end of the first round. There are really good players like Sensabaugh and Kobe Brown that are most likely going to get minutes and produce early. Alternatively, players like Marcus Sasser are destined for bench success. Tread lightly with some of these fit picks.
Overall, this draft can work out in your favor. Happy Hunting!
2023 Rookie Rankings
Below are my dynasty rookie rankings for the 2023-24 fantasy basketball season. The base is here but there’s no doubt injuries and changes in situation will cause these to change as the season draws nearer.
| # | Name | Pos. | Team | Quick Fantasy Notes | Relative Comps (2015-2023) |
| 1 | Victor Wembanyama | F/C | San Antonio Spurs | Immediate Blocks, Rebounds and minutes, future points production, FG%, steals candidate. | Chet Holmgren, Jaren Jackson Jr., Jalen Smith, Kristaps Porzingis |
| – | Chet Holmgren* | F/C | Oklahoma City Thunder | Immediate Blocks rebounds, FG%. Future 3P% at the F/C position | Jaren Jackson Jr., Jalen Smith, Kristaps Porzingis |
| 2 | Scoot Henderson | G | Portland Trailblazers | Immediate Assists, Guard Rebounds, future points production. Minutes and role dependent on Dame. | De’Aaron Fox, Dennis Smith Jr., Kira Lewis, Ja Morant |
| 3 | Brandon Miller | F | Charlotte Hornets | Immediate Points, 3P%, Rebounds, minutes. Points production to be determined. | Between Mikal and Miles Bridges. |
| 4 | Ausar Thompson | G/F | Detroit Pistons | Currently some steals, blocks, rebounds, assists, and FG% possibility. Extrapolate for the future. Quicker path to starter. | Scottie Barnes, Josh Giddey, Jarrett Culver |
| 5 | Amen Thompson | F | Houston Rockets | See above, to a lesser extent. Wary of FG%. Less potential for starters minutes for two-three years. | See Above. |
| 6 | Jarace Walker | F | Indiana Pacers | Starting potential early, base level FG%, Rebounds, Assists, blocks, steals. Replacement level forward. | Justise Winslow, PJ Washington, Jeremy Sochan |
| 7 | Taylor Hendricks | F | Utah Jazz | Early returns on 3P%, rebounds, blocks, FG%, potential in lower level points. Tertiary type of scorer. | Lesser Jabari Smith. |
| 8 | Dereck Lively II | C | Dallas Mavericks | Traditional Big, Rebounds, FG%, Blocks. Easy path to minutes. Not a floor-stretcher | Mark Williams, Justin Patton, Jaxson Hayes |
| 9 | Jordan Hawkins | G | New Orleans Pelicans | Immediate return on 3P%, patience on points. One trick pony, could start. | Quintin Grimes, Jerome Robinson |
| 10 | Gradey Dick | G/F | Toronto Raptors | Sooner than later 3P% return, rebounds at the g/f positions, risk in minutes until Raptors illuminate path. Quicker path to minutes than most. | Saddiq Bey, Kevin Knox |
| 11 | Anthony Black | G | Orlando Magic | Potential in FG% from touch and athleticism, early return on assists, rebounds, steals. Non-shooter as of right now. | Jarrett Culver, Dyson Daniels |
| 12 | Jaime Jaquez Jr. | F | Miami Heat | All-around player, good spot. Likely starter after seasoning. | Kyle Kuzma, Chandler Hutchison, Franz Wagner |
| 13 | Bilal Coulibaly | F | Washington Wizards | Mystery Box. Early returns on Rebounds, FG%. Wary of 3P% and points. High athleticism. | Sekou Doumboya, Deni Avdija, Josh Jackson |
| 14 | Jett Howard | F | Orlando Magic | Early minutes potential due to shooting, 3P% and positional assists. | Taurean Prince, Justin Jackson |
| 15 | Cam Whitmore | F | Houston Rockets | Rookie level FG%, rebounds potential. Be wary of fizzling out. Ranking based on athleticism. | Usman Garuba, Troy Brown, Nassir Little, Cam Reddish |
| 16 | Keyonte George | G | Utah Jazz | Assists lower for a rookie guard, not a defensive player. Donovan Mitchell is way too high of a ceiling. | Between Donovan Mitchell and Josh Christopher |
| 17 | Jalen Hood-Schifino | G | Los Angeles Lakers | Hood-Schifino has a path to playing time with a Lakers team in need of guard playmaking. Assist potential high, average shooter, good positional rebounder. | Lesser Josh Okogie, Keon Johnson, Romeo Langford |
| 18 | Kris Murray | F | Portland Trailblazers | Instant rebounder, shooter, steals plus blocks candidate. Potential for consistency. | Obi Toppin, Patrick Williams, Keegan Murray |
| 19 | Kobe Bufkin | G | Atlanta Hawks | Rebounding from the guard position, steals, FG%, FT%, extrapolate for potential. Delon Wright is the model with Jordan Poole potential. | Delon Wright, Jordan Poole |
| 20 | Cason Wallace | G | Oklahoma City Thunder | Lack of starter minute potential over 5 years. Decent potential in guard rebounds, steals. | TyTy Washington, Tyrese Maxey, Frank Jackson |
| 21 | Brice Sensabaugh | F | Utah Jazz | Early returns on 3P%, good rebounder, could be a real scoring steal. Big fan. | Keldon Johnson, AJ Griffin, DeAndre Hunter |
| 22 | Dariq Whitehead | F | Brooklyn Nets | Not the same scorer/rebounder Sensabaugh is, but similar profile. | Keldon Johnson, AJ Griffin |
| 23 | Brandin Podziemski | G | Golden State Warriors | Earlier returns on scoring, 3P%, rebounds from the guard position, not an assist booster, has steal potential. | Donte Divincenzo, Landry Shamet |
| 24 | Julian Strawther | G/F | Denver Nuggets | Strawther has great rebound and 3P peripherals, lacking in defensive and assist metrics early on. Should be an inside-out scorer. | Justin Anderson, Justin Jackson |
| 25 | Kobe Brown | G/F | Los Angeles Clippers | Big-bodied, efficient, rebounding G/F. Will play F long term, can play-make. Possible steals candidate. Possible early minutes getter on Clippers. | Taurean Prince, De’Andre Hunter, Semi Ojeleye |
| 26 | Ben Sheppard | G | Indiana Pacers | Shooter, 3P% player specifically. Not much starter potential. Concerns about FT%, rebounding. | Lesser Josh Hart, Quentin Grimes, Desmond Bane. |
| 27 | Noah Clowney | F/C | Brooklyn Nets | Early rebounds returns, no defensive metric potential, some C 3P% potential. | Nic Claxton, Skal Labissiere, Harry Giles |
| 28 | Marcus Sasser | G | Detroit Pistons | Defensive metric and 3P% first player, not a starter long term. | Carsen Edwards, Payton Pritchard, Jalen Brunson, Aaron Holliday |
| 29 | Olivier-Maxence Prosper | F | Dallas Mavericks | Efficient interior forward, not a defensive statistic candidate or shooter. | Non-defensive Herb Jones |
| 30 | Leonard Miller | F | Minnesota Timberwolves | Mystery Box. | Juan Hernangomez, Nikola Jovic, Darius Bazley |
| 31 | Nick Smith Jr. | G | Charlotte Hornets | The relative comps don’t factor in the lack of shooting, scoring efficiency, or lack of overall individual potential in a category. Least favorite first-round pick. | Cameron Thomas, Dejounte Murray |
| 32 | James Nnaji | C | Charlotte Hornets | A potential backup big, possible rebounder and shot blocker. | Khalifa Diop, Mitchell Robinson, Neemias Queta |
| 33 | Hunter Tyson | F | Denver Nuggets | Shooter, will benefit sooner on the offensive end. Rebounder for position potential, age works against this pick. | Anthony Brown, Jordan Nwora |
| 34 | Jalen Pickett | G | Denver Nuggets | Efficient backup PG, has starter potential with injury risk. Non-defenisve metric contributor short or long term. | Shorter Ayo Dosunmu |
| 35 | Colby Jones | G | Sacramento Kings | No starter potential, some assists potential, decent steals mix long term. Good development team. | Patrick McCaw, Dwayne Bacon, Tyler Dorsey, Jacob Evans |
| 36 | Julian Phillips | F | Chicago Bulls | Minutes potential to develop with potentially tanking Bulls. Other than that stay away. | Greg Brown, Caleb Houstan |
| 37 | Andre Jackson Jr. | G/F | Milwaukee Bucks | non-scorer with potential to collect rebounds and assists as a guard. 3 year minutes potential. | Bruce Brown, Justin James |
| 38 | Emoni Bates | F | Cleveland Cavaliers | Possible minutes getter with shooting in 2 years. | Caleb Houstan, Patrick Baldwin Jr. |
| 39 | Mouhamed Gueye | F/C | Atlanta Hawks | Gueye is worse Noah Clowney. | Skal Labissiere |
| 40 | Tristan Vukcevic | C | Washington Wizards | Mystery Box, do not chase the unicorn second round slavic big. | Sasha Vezenkov, Marko Simonovic, Filip Petrusev |
| 41 | Maxwell Lewis | G/F | Los Angeles Lakers | Average shooting guard/forward with some potential in defensive metrics. | Pat McCaw, CJ Elleby, Dwayne Bacon, Jay Scrubb |
| 42 | Amari Bailey | G | Charlotte Hornets | Overstated shooter, lacking seasoning, not many minutes available. | Jahmi’us Ramsey, Trevor Keels |
| 43 | Jordan Walsh | F | Boston Celtics | Big, non-shooting, non-rebounding, non-defensive potential player. | Not much 2nd round precedent |
| 44 | Seth Lundy | G/F | Atlanta Hawks | Only possible shooter, minutes minimum, low potential | Sindarius Thornwell, Devon Hall, George King, Quinndary Weatherspoon |
| 45 | Sidy Cissoko | F | San Antonio Spurs | Low overall potential with some defensive statistic upside given minutes. Bad FG% prospect. | Didi Louzada, Kenyon Martin, Juhann Begarin |
| 46 | GG Jackson | F | Memphis Grizzlies | Some rebounding potential from a forward, non-shooter, no defensive metric value. | Not much 2nd round precedent |
| 47 | Mojave King | G | Indiana Pacers | No displayable value outside of some bench rebound guard possibility. | Isaia Cordinier, David Michineau, Juhann Begarin |
| 48 | Rayan Rupert | G | Portland Trailblazers | Not necessarily a shooter, may have some minutes and development time. | Gabriele Procida |
| 49 | Jalen Wilson | F | Brooklyn Nets | Could be a dynamic rebounding guard. | Sir’Dominic Pointer, George King |
| 50 | Keyontae Johnson | G/F | Oklahoma City Thunder | Immediate contributor possibility, rebounding and playmaking forward with some defensive metric upside. | Dillon Brooks, Kessler Edwards, Tyrese Martin |
| 51 | Trayce Jackson-Davis | F/C | Golden State Warriors | Minutes potential with playmaking, rebounding, shotblocking older big. GSW mixes in guys like this. | Ray Spalding, Dewan Hernandez, Xavier Tillman, Isaiah Mobley |
| 52 | Jordan Miller | F | Los Angeles Clippers | See Keyontae Johnson | See Keyontae Jonhson |
| 53 | Toumani Camara | F | Phoenix Suns | Rebounding potential, some defensive metric possibility, efficient scorer potential. Minutes potential on short Suns team. | Aaron White, Alize Johnson, Paul Reed |
| 54 | Jaylen Clark | G | Minnesota Timberwolves | Rebounding and defensive metric potential as a guard, has efficiency potential. Non-three point shooter | Norman Powell, J.P. Tokoto, David Johnson, Aaron Wiggins |
| 55 | Jalen Slawson | F | Sacramento Kings | Given minutes, has efficiency, rebounding, playmaking and defensive metric potential | Sterling Brown, Vince Edwards |
| 56 | Isaiah Wong | G | Indiana Pacers | Backup pointguard type, potential 3P% and rebounder as a guard. | Joe Young, Skylar Mays |
| 57 | Chris Livingston | F | Milwaukee Bucks | Non-shooter, some rebound potential with no defensive metric upside | Not much 2nd round precedent |
| 58 | Tarik Biberovic | F | Memphis Grizzlies | Not worth drafting. | Not worth drafting |
*Holmgren does qualify in some leagues but may already be drafted. Adjust your strategy accordingly.
Got a beef with Aaron’s Fantasy Basketball Dynasty Rookie Rankings? Let him hear about it in the comments below! For more great analysis and rankings check out our 2023 Fantasy Basketball Draft Kit.