Fantasy Basketball Midseason Top 100: LeBron James Is the New No. 1

We are at the midway point of the NBA season, and that means it is a good time to reevaluate where guys land in the ranking system of fantasy basketball.

It’s not an easy task to choose between some of these guys, but it can be very helpful for trading to know where each player ranks and who might be valued higher or lower than they actually are.

These rankings are pertain to now through the rest of the season and do not take into consideration long-term value.

So without further rambling, here is my own Top 100 for the second half, complete with a new No. 1 player:

1. LeBron James—Miami Heat
2. Kevin Durant—Oklahoma City Thunder
3. Kevin Love—Minnesota Timberwolves
4. Chris Paul—Los Angeles Clippers
5. Deron Williams—New Jersey Nets
6. Dwayne Wade—Miami Heat
7. Russell Westbrook—Oklahoma City Thunder
8. Kobe Bryant—Los Angeles Lakers
9. Dwight Howard—Orlando Magic
10. Derrick Rose—Chicago Bulls
11. Dirk Nowitzki—Dallas Mavericks
12. Al Jefferson—Utah Jazz
13. Monta Ellis—Golden State Warriors
14. Josh Smith—Atlanta Hawks
15. LaMarcus Aldridge—Portland Trail Blazers
16. Kyle Lowry—Houston Rockets
17. Pau Gasol—Los Angeles Lakers
18. Andrew Bynum—Los Angeles Lakers
19. Stephen Curry—Golden State Warriors
20. Blake Griffin—Los Angeles Clippers
21. Rudy Gay—Memphis Grizzlies
22. John Wall—Washington Wizards
23. Marc Gasol—Memphis Grizzlies
24. DeMarcus Cousins—Sacramento Kings
25. Carmelo Anthony—New York Knicks
26. Danny Granger—Indiana Pacers
27. Rajon Rondo—Boston Celtics
28. Marcin Gortat—Phoenix Suns
29. Greg Monroe—Detroit Pistons
30. Paul Millsap—Utah Jazz
31. Steve Nash—Phoenix Suns
32. Paul Pierce—Boston Celtics
33. Tony Parker—San Antonio Spurs
34. Kyrie Irving—Cleveland Cavaliers
35. David Lee—Golden State Warriors
36. Andre Iguodala—Philadelphia 76ers
37. Ricky Rubio—Minnesota Timberwolves
38. Amare Stoudemire—New York Knicks
39. Marcus Thornton—Sacramento Kings
40. Ty Lawson—Denver Nuggets
41. Roy Hibbert—Indiana Pacers
42. James Harden—Oklahoma City Thunder
43. Chris Bosh—Miami Heat
44. Serge Ibaka—Oklahoma City Thunder
45. Joe Johnson—Atlanta Hawks
46. Jeremy Lin—New York Knicks
47. JaVale McGee—Washington Wizards
48. Ryan Anderson—Orlando Magic
49. Tyreke Evans—Sacramento Kings
50. Gerald Wallace—Portland Trail Blazers
51. Brandon Jennings—Milwaukee Bucks
52. Kevin Martin—Houston Rockets
53. Nikola Pekovic—Minnesota Timberwolves
54. Luol Deng—Chicago Bulls
55. Mike Conley—Memphis Grizzlies
56. Nicolas Batum—Portland Trail Blazers
57. Joakim Noah—Chicago Bulls
58. DeAndre Jordan—Los Angeles Clippers
59. Danilo Gallinari—Denver Nuggets
60. Jrue Holiday—Philadelphia 76ers
61. Tyson Chandler—New York Knicks
62. Brook Lopez—New Jersey Nets
63. Jamal Crawford—Portland Trail Blazers
64. Paul George—Indiana Pacers
65. Kris Humpries—New Jersey Nets
66. Nene Hilario—Denver Nuggets
67. Tim Duncan—San Antonio Spurs
68. Antwan Jamison—Cleveland Cavaliers
69. Jose Calderon—Toronto Raptors
70. Kevin Garnett—Boston Celtics
71. Marshon Brooks—New Jersey Nets
72. Carlos Boozer—Chicago Bulls
73. Jason Terry—Dallas Mavericks
74. Luis Scola—Houston Rockets
75. Ray Allen—Boston Celtics
76. Darren Collison—Indiana Pacers
77. Mo Williams—Los Angeles Clippers
78. Dorell Wright—Golden State Warriors
79. Manu Ginobili—San Antonio Spurs
80. Caron Butler—Los Angeles Clippers
81. Jeff Teague—Atlanta Hawks
82. David West—Indiana Pacers
83. Zach Randolph—Memphis Grizzlies
84. Kemba Walker—Charlotte Bobcats
85. Nick Young—Washington Wizards
86. DeMar DeRozan—Toronto Raptors
87. Al Harrington—Denver Nuggets
88. Rodney Stuckey—Detroit Pistons
89. Wilson Chandler—Free Agent
90. Ersan Ilyasova—Milwaukee Bucks
91. Isaiah Thomas—Sacramento Kings
92. Drew Gooden—Milwaukee Bucks
93. Channing Frye—Phoenix Suns
94. Trevor Ariza—New Orleans Hornets
95. Wesley Matthews—Portland Trail Blazers
96. Chris Kaman—New Orleans Hornets
97. Lou Williams—Philadelphia 76ers
98. Jason Richardson—Orlando Magic
99. Jared Dudley—Phoenix Suns
100. Andrea Bargnani—Toronto Raptors

Kyrie Irving vs. Ricky Rubio

A lot of people are enamored with Ricky Rubio, and I am one of them. I love watching the guy play, almost more so than anyone else in the NBA. But when I step back and look at Kyrie Irving compared to Rubio for fantasy, I have to side with Kyrie by just slightly.

I think Irving is developing as a passer, and his assists totals will climb up to over six per game by the end of the season. He’s also improving defensively and will continue to add to his steals totals.

I would give an edge to Rubio long term because I think his game is still developing and he’ll continue to get better and better, but for the rest of this season it’s Irving for me.

The Mighty Has Fallen

I even surprised myself a little when I was trying to find a place to pencil Amar'e into my rankings, and I had to talk myself into working him into the Top 40—a guy who was a borderline top-10 pick before the season.

The more talent around Amar'e, the worse his stats get.

The presence of Tyson Chandler is taking away from his rebounding, and the presence of Carmelo Anthony and now Jeremy Lin is taking away from his points.

Until Amar'e finds a way to work in this system again, he’s going to be closer to the Roy Hibbert-type of centers than the Dwight Howard types. 

The Rise of Pekovic

The NBA is enthralled with Linsanity and it is a ton of fun to watch, I have to admit. But meanwhile, there are other guys doing impressive things, and one of them is Nikola Pekovic in Minnesota.

Through 13 February games, Pekovic has averaged 17.2 points, 10.4 rebounds, 1.2 blocks and 0.9 steals.

Pekovic has quickly established himself as this year’s version of Marcin Gortat and just keeps piling up the stats. It’s amazing that anyone can average double-digit rebounds playing next to Kevin Love, but the big man from Yugoslavia is making it happen right now. 

Free Wilson

He may not have a team to play for yet, but it’s only a matter of time before Wilson Chandler is back in the NBA. I am expecting some very nice things from him in the second half.

Chandler was one of my favorite sleepers before getting trapped in China, and now that he is forgotten he may be an even bigger sleeper.

Wherever Chandler lands I anticipate he’ll put up 15-16 points, 5-6 rebounds and a block and steal per game. Don’t sleep on Chandler just 'cause he’s been gone for a while—he could have a very nice second half.

What do you think of these rankings? There’s nothing like a good ranking list to stir up some controversy, so tell me where I am wrong or where I am right. I would love your opinions either way.

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