1. Chris Paul, New Orleans Hornets
It’s difficult to pass on LeBron James when you have the first pick in your fantasy basketball draft, however Chris Paul is actually the better pick. He’s a basketball stud who has almost no downside.

2. LeBron James, Cleveland Cavaliers
On talent alone, there’s no player in the NBA who can match LeBron James. If you have a top-two selection, picking LeBron isn’t a bad move at all.

3. Danny Granger, Indiana Pacers
Even though he might not be a household name, Danny Granger’s game is built for fantasy basketball. As long as he stays healthy, he’s an all-around producer who will help your team every night.

4. Kevin Durant, Oklahoma City Thunder
If you want to shoot for the stars, go with Kevin Durant. He’s a superstar in the making and could make a massive jump in fantasy value this season.

5. Dwyane Wade, Miami Heat
Dwyane Wade has been a walking injury concern as of late. But when he’s healthy and playing his best, there are few players in the league that can match his production.

6. Kobe Bryant, Los Angeles Lakers
While Kobe Bryant is no doubt a fantastic player, there’s some question about his fantasy worth this coming year. With so much talent around him, he may not have to carry as big of a load as usual.

Kobe Bryant - Los Angeles Lakers (Image: Zuma Press)

7. Dwight Howard, Orlando Magic
Yes, his free throw shooting is horrible. But he showed improvement at times in the playoffs last year and the rest of his game is so dominant that he’s worth a top ten fantasy basketball draft selection.

8. Deron Williams, Utah Jazz
Last year, Deron Williams was somewhat disappointing at times. But now that he’s fully healed from injury, Williams has the potential to become an absolute fantasy stude.

9. Dirk Nowitzki, Dallas Mavericks
With his personal problems behind him, you have to think that Dirk Nowitzki is geared to have a very good season. He brings a lot of value to your fantasy team — especially in terms of three-point shooting.

10. Chris Bosh, Toronto Raptors
Heading into the 2010 free agent market, Chris Bosh as every reason to have a monster season. Plus, the Raptors will want to keep him happy with plenty of touches. He doesn’t have a tremendous ceiling but he should be very, very good.

Chris Bosh - Toronto Raptors (Image: Zuma Press)

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In 30 minutes, Griffin had 27 points and 12 rebounds, while hitting 11-of-15 shots from the field. Riding Griffin, the Clippers were able to defeat the Los Angeles Lakers summer league team by a final score of 93-82.

While Griffin had a successful debut, it wasn’t perfect. The first pick of the 2009 NBA Draft hit only half of his eight free throws and committed five turnovers.

For those considering adding Griffin to their fantasy basketball team, this debut had to be very encouraging. While it’s very unlikely he could be a 20-point, 10-rebound player as a rookie, he definitely showed that potential in his first summer league game.

Keep an eye on Blake Griffin to see how he performs over the next week in summer league action.

Here is a video of Blake Griffin’s debut:

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Sam Young, Memphis Grizzlies
In the 2009 NBA Draft, Young fell to the second round mostly due to his age. At 24, he wasn’t a very exciting prospect. But he could come in right away and play for the Grizzlies.

DeJuan Blair, San Antonio Spurs
Young’s teammate at Pittsburgh also fell to the second round. Blair’s issue were a pair of bad knees. But with the Spurs, there’s a chance that he could play a lot of minutes next to Tim Duncan.

Patrick Beverley, Miami Heat
The Heat got a good year out of Mario Chalmers but Beverley could push him for minutes. Beverley has great energy and his defense should make him a favorite in Miami.

Chase Budinger, Houston Rockets
Budinger undoubtedly has first round talent. But due to his questionable work ethic and toughness, he fell to the Rockets in the second round. If he can capitalize on his talent, Budinger could surprise.

Robert Dozier, Miami Heat
Although Dozier was the last pick of the draft, Dozier fell into a very good spot with the Heat. The Heat desperately need bigs and keep on eye on whether Dozier can carve out a niche with the Heat.

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1. Blake Griffin, Los Angeles Clippers
Griffin is very talented and a great athlete on top of that. He’s also entering a situation in need of a superstar. As long as the Clippers trade a few bigs to make room for him, Griffin should be very good his rookie year.

2. James Harden, Oklahoma City Thunder
Next to Russell Westbrook, Kevin Durant and Jeff Green, Harden will fit right in. He’ll likely start at shooting guard right away and provide the team with yet another young building block. For fantasy purposes, Harden should provide scoring, efficiency and good assist numbers.

3. Stephen Curry, Golden State Warriors
No matter if he ends up with the Warriors or if he’ll be traded to the Suns (like the rumors indicate), Curry will land in a very good situation. Both of those teams like to run and shoot … and that fits right in with Curry’s game.

4. Tyreke Evans, Sacramento Kings
If Evans can win the point guard job in Sacramento, he could have fantasy value right away. It’s not a lock that he can play PG at the NBA level, so stay tuned.

5. Hasheem Thabeet, Memphis Grizzlies
Thabeet is raw and might not be able to play many minutes in the NBA yet but his shotblocking could make him valuable right away in the 2009-2010 fantasy basketball season.’

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Here is a list of five rookies who won’t be ready to live up to their potential:

Ricky Rubio
Yes, Rubio has a massive amount of potential. But he’s only 18 right now and will need a year or two to adjust. As a rookie, he’ll probably average around eight points and six assists.

Jrue Holiday
Last year, Russell Westbrook came out of UCLA and was a good fantasy basketball player. Don’t expect the same out of Holiday. Like Rubio, he’ll need a year or two.

DeMar DeRozan
Perhaps the rawest top prospect in the draft, DeRozan is definitely a project. He has the size and athleticism to be a star but he still has a lot of learning to do.

B.J. Mullens
Mullins has very good size and is one of the better center prospects in the draft. That said, he’s a player you can safely ignore in fantasy basketball for the 2009-10 season.

Brandon Jennings
This past season in Europe, Jennings showed a lot of promise. But he also proved he wasn’t ready for the spotlight. Don’t expect that to change next year right out of the gates.

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First of all, Meeks is only 6-foot-4. As a shooting guard, that is shorter than the height NBA scouts prefer. On top of that, he doesn’t possess long arms or extreme athletic ability to make up for his lack of height. Although he’s strong, it’s difficult for strength alone to give a 6-foot-4 player the ability to play shooting guard in the NBA.

Secondly, his hot shooting this season has seemingly come out of nowhere. In high school, Meeks was known as a good shooter but not a great shooter. In his first two seasons in Kentucky, Meeks didn’t shoot or play very well. His explosion this season may be looked at with a skeptical eye since he doesn’t have much of a history.

All that said, if Meeks can continue his current level of play, his numbers alone will likely get him looks at the end of the first round and throughout the second round. For Meeks, it might be best to come back for his senior year to give NBA scouts more of a look at what he’s capable of doing over the long haul.

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1. Blake Griffin
2. Ricky Rubio
3. James Harden
4. Hasheem Thabeet
5. Stephen Curry
6. B.J. Mullens
7. Al-Farouq Aminu
8. Brandon Jennings
9. Jrue Holiday
10. Gani Lawal
11. Chase Budinger
12. Austin Daye
13. Patrick Mills
14. Earl Clark
15. Damion James

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2. OJ Mayo, Memphis Grizzlies
While the Grizzlies aren’t that good, OJ Mayo is putting on a show. He’s proving to be a very good scorer on the NBA level. Surprisingly his shooting percentages are healthy and he’s doing a good job of not turning the ball over too much. Overall, Mayo is adjusting very quickly to the NBA level.

3. Michael Beasley, Miami Heat
The Heat coaching staff has been hard on Michael Beasley — benching him for poor play. But when he’s on the court, Beasley’s natural talent shines through. He can score and rebound effortlessly and he’s destined to get better as the season progresses.

4. Greg Oden, Portland Trail Blazers
After a slow start to the season, Greg Oden is coming into his own. He’s still not starting but that is only a matter of time. Once he does, he’ll be a double-double machine for the next 15 years — as long as he stays healthy.

5. Rudy Fernandez, Portland Trail Blazers
Rudy Fernandez is the Blazers’ energy player off the bench. For your fantasy team, Fernandez can do a little bit of everything. If his minutes go up, he could really turn into a fantasy force by the end of his rookie campaign.

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Rose surprised some by being the starting point guard right away for the Bulls. With news that Kirk Hinrich is out for three months following a thumb injury, Rose’s stock will rise even more. There is no reason for Rose not to average between 32 and 35 minutes per game now.

Although he’s still a bit raw, he has a lot of tools to work with. He’s already scoring better than most scouts foresaw and his playmaking ability is apparent each time you see him play. In his rookie season, he looks very capable of putting up averages of about 17 points and 7.5 assists.

Rose likely won’t rise to become a top five point guard in fantasy basketball this season, but he definitely has the ability to rise to those heights in a year or two. If you have him in a dynasty basketball league, you have to be excited about what you see so far.

Here is the Derrick Rose dunk video where he throws down a vicious jam over Leandro Barbosa of the Phoenix Suns:

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1. Derrick Rose, Chicago Bulls
Coming into the NBA, everyone knew Derrick Rose could pass the ball. What is surprising NBA scouts is his ability to score the ball. He uses his combination of quickness and strength to get to the rim and score against bigger defenders. Since he’s starting and already playing big minutes, he’s not only looking like a good fantasy basketball player but also the lead candidate for Rookie of the Year.

2. Michael Beasley, Miami Heat
Although he has struggled a bit in his first couple of games, the immense talent of Michael Beasley is obvious. He can score the basketball from everywhere on the court and can also be a beast on the boards. Once the Heat figure out how to share the ball, Beasley could blossom into an 18-point, 10-rebound player faster than originally thought.

3. Jason Thompson, Sacramento Kings
Jason Thompson has been the surprise of the 2008 NBA Draft class so far. He’s putting up great numbers off the bench for the Kings. If he keeps playing at his current level, he’ll find his way into the starting lineup before too much longer. It’d be smart to stash him away on a redraft league if you have the space. In a dynasty league, he’s a very good player to have.

4. Mario Chalmers, Miami Heat
Speaking of draft surprises, Mario Chalmers has gone from second round pick to starting point guard for the Heat. After an amazing first game against the Knicks, Chalmers has come back down to earth. But as long as he keeps starting, he’s going to be a useful fantasy player. Right now, he looks like a player who could give you about ten points, six assists, three rebounds and a couple of steals per game.

5. Kevin Love, Minnesota Timberwolves
Kevin Love hasn’t gotten the huge amount of playing time other rookies have received but he looks solid so far. Minutes will be the big question mark for Love as long as he’s coming off the bench. Keep an eye on him, however, because once he starts he will be able to put up good fantasy numbers.

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