Fantasy Basketball Busts: 4 players going way too high in 2022-23 drafts

Fantasy Basketball Busts: Desmond Bane gets buckets, but he needs to do more.

There’s no doubt that Memphis Grizzlies gem Desmond Bane is one of the most alluring young guards in basketball. His exceptional inside-out game and shooting range make for a fantastic combination while his intangible understanding of the sport pays off in dividends for the young team. Even with that being the case, he’s not the type of player to stuff the stat sheet on a nightly basis, which makes him a bit less compelling than the spot where he’s being drafted.

Next season, Bane is likely playing the same role he did the year prior next to superstar point guard Ja Morant. Unless the Grizzlies begin to stagger the two more often, it’s not likely that Bane will see massive increases in his playmaking opportunity and the team has role players dedicated to attacking the glass. While it’s plausible that his scoring average increases again, taking a speculative swing on Bane’s improvement in the fourth or fifth round isn’t quite as valuable as some of the other options in that range.

On certain platforms, players being picked after Bane include Brandon Ingram, Chris Paul, Jarrett Allen, Ben Simmons and others whose impact across stat categories far outweighs Bane’s primary contributions as a scorer. Although it’s not an indictment against him as a player, these things ultimately mean quite a bit as the year progresses.

Average draft position is 50.5 on Yahoo, 54.7 on ESPN.