Here's a look at the Top 10 Power Forwards for the 2016-17 NBA season and don't forget to check out the rest of the Fantasy Basketball Player Rankings for this year.
1. Anthony Davis: Davis is now entering his fifth NBA season, and has been an All-Star in each season since his rookie season. This included last season where he averaged over 20 points and 10 rebounds for the third straight time (24.3ppg, 10.3 rpg). Davis also added 2 blocks and roughly 2 steals per game, but health has been his only issue holding him back from being even greater. He is currently sidelined after spraining his ankle, and will be out of basketball activities for 10-14 days. Davis has shown the ability to return quickly from any type of injury, but has yet to play more than 68 games in a season.
2. Paul Millsap: Millsap’s numbers won’t jump out at you, but he is one of the most all-around PF’s in the game that has stayed healthy throughout his career, with playing in at least 73 games in nine of his ten seasons. Millsap will help your team in every category, and will find a way to contribute whenever he is on the floor. His versatility will be much appreciated while the new look Hawks try to learn how to play together through the early portion of the season.
3. Draymond Green: The signing of Durant may have affected Green’s production the most entering this season. The nightly triple double threat has increased his production in each of his first four years in the league, ending last season with a 14 pts, 9.5 reb, 7.4 ast with a roughly 1.5 blocks and steals a game. He’s yet to reach double digits in any category so far this preseason, but not sounding any sirens yet. Biggest concern will be that he is now the fourth option in the offense, and his 10 field goal attempts per game may go down a bit from last season.
4. LaMarcus Aldridge: Aldridge failed to average over 20 points and 10 rebounds for the Spurs after reaching that mark the prior two seasons with Portland. What he did accomplish was hitting his highest field goal average (.513%) of his 10-year career. If he can become more involved in Popovich’s offense, in which he had his lowest average minutes since his rookie season last year, expect Aldridge to be back to 20 and 10 this season.
5. Dirk Nowitzki: Dirk has been the Mavericks leading scorer for since the 1999-2000 season, finishing with 18.3 ppg. He will consistently provide your team with points and boards with limited turnovers, but won’t help you much elsewhere. Dirk looks as healthy as any 38 year old entering their 19th season can be.
6. Kevin Love: It’s safe to say that Kevin Love on a good team will produce less than the bad team one. Love finished his second season with the Cav’s just shy of averaging a double double (16 pts 9.9 reb) for the second straight season after hitting that mark the prior five seasons in Minn. He will be mainly the third option in the Cav’s offense, but has a 16 and 10 floor with the upside of playing with one of the best in the game. He stated that he has been working hard on his shot this off season, and hitting an extra one or two per game puts him in the 20 and 10 range.
7. Derrick Favors: Favors has increased his scoring average in each of his first six seasons, finishing last season with a 16.4 ppg to go along with 8.1 rebounds. He’s also shot over 50% from the field in each of his last three seasons, and expecting to continue to have an expanding role in the Jazz’s offense. If the extra offense is there for him, look for Favors to add more 30 plus point games to his career than just the two he has over his first six seasons.
8. Serge Ibaka: After spending his first seven seasons with the Thunder, Ibaka has a new opportunity with the Magic this season. He already has a 19 point 17 rebound performance in a preseason game with them, and may be the rebounder that they are not receiving in Vucevic. Ibaka can score from all parts of the court, and has averaged at least two blocks per game in five of his seven seasons. There is some huge upside in Ibaka with the Magic this season.
9. Kristaps Porzingis: News out of New York has been about this season being the coming out party for Kristaps, and everyone will see what the Knicks did while selecting as the fourth overall pick last season. He averaged 14.3 pts, 7.3 reb, and 1.9 blocks per game during his rookie year, and became the only rookie in NBA history to score more than 1,000 points, have 500 rebounds, hit over 75 three-pointers, and block over 100 shots in a season. The addition of Rose and Noah may take some time getting used to, but will only help to improve Kristaps overall production in the long run.
10. Blake Griffin: Blake had injuries that kept him off the court for extended stints three separate times last season. When he played, he was typical Blake though, averaging roughly 21 points with 8 boards and 5 assists per game. He already has two preseason games where he scored at least 24 points in limited minutes, and shooting the ball well again. Blake put in extra work this summer to try to rebound a horrible last season for him. A healthy Griffin on a healthy Clippers team puts his name in the conversation of the top PF options.