On Friday, I held the second official WagerKey Category League Fantasy Basketball Mock Draft for the 2025-26 NBA season.
The players below are sorted by where they went in the mock draft, but I also included how that compares to our Top 200 Fantasy Basketball Rankings Cheat Sheet and Fantrax ADP data. From there, I included their variance across the three datasets, and included the highest and lowest each player falls in any of the three.
Below the results, I’ll quickly break down some of the more interesting findings.
Fantasy Basketball Mock Draft Results
| Player | MOCK | RANKINGS | ADP | VARIANCE | HIGHEST | LOWEST |
| Shai Gilgeous-Alexander | 1 | 3 | 2 | 0.6666666667 | 1 | 3 |
| Nikola Jokic | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0.2222222222 | 1 | 2 |
| Victor Wembanyama | 3 | 2 | 3 | 0.2222222222 | 2 | 3 |
| Luka Doncic | 4 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 4 | 4 |
| Giannis Antetokounmpo | 5 | 6 | 5 | 0.2222222222 | 5 | 6 |
| Cade Cunningham | 6 | 7 | 6 | 0.2222222222 | 6 | 7 |
| Anthony Edwards | 7 | 5 | 7 | 0.8888888889 | 5 | 7 |
| Karl-Anthony Towns | 8 | 13 | 8 | 5.555555556 | 8 | 13 |
| Trae Young | 9 | 9 | 11 | 0.8888888889 | 9 | 11 |
| Anthony Davis | 10 | 8 | 9 | 0.6666666667 | 8 | 10 |
| Domantas Sabonis | 11 | 12 | 18 | 9.555555556 | 11 | 18 |
| LeBron James | 12 | 14 | 20 | 11.55555556 | 12 | 20 |
| Evan Mobley | 13 | 19 | 20 | 9.555555556 | 13 | 20 |
| Amen Thompson | 14 | 32 | 28 | 59.55555556 | 14 | 32 |
| Donovan Mitchell | 15 | 20 | 17 | 4.222222222 | 15 | 20 |
| James Harden | 16 | 11 | 10 | 6.888888889 | 10 | 16 |
| Devin Booker | 17 | 10 | 12 | 8.666666667 | 10 | 17 |
| Kevin Durant | 18 | 24 | 16 | 11.55555556 | 16 | 24 |
| Tyrese Maxey | 19 | 16 | 21 | 4.222222222 | 16 | 21 |
| Stephen Curry | 20 | 21 | 13 | 12.66666667 | 13 | 21 |
| Scottie Barnes | 21 | 18 | 25 | 8.222222222 | 18 | 25 |
| LaMelo Ball | 22 | 22 | 26 | 3.555555556 | 22 | 26 |
| Jalen Brunson | 23 | 27 | 22 | 4.666666667 | 22 | 27 |
| Josh Giddey | 24 | 17 | 31 | 32.66666667 | 17 | 31 |
| Jalen Williams | 25 | 15 | 19 | 16.88888889 | 15 | 25 |
| Jaren Jackson | 26 | 34 | 23 | 21.55555556 | 23 | 34 |
| Jalen Johnson | 27 | 23 | 28 | 4.666666667 | 23 | 28 |
| Alperen Sengun | 28 | 33 | 30 | 4.222222222 | 28 | 33 |
| Dyson Daniels | 29 | 37 | 35 | 11.55555556 | 29 | 37 |
| Cooper Flagg | 30 | 41 | 36 | 20.22222222 | 30 | 41 |
| Bam Adebayo | 31 | 25 | 29 | 6.222222222 | 25 | 31 |
| Paolo Banchero | 32 | 29 | 35 | 6 | 29 | 35 |
| Chet Holmgren | 33 | 28 | 32 | 4.666666667 | 28 | 33 |
| De’Aaron Fox | 34 | 30 | 33 | 2.888888889 | 30 | 34 |
| Jaylen Brown | 35 | 35 | 40 | 5.555555556 | 35 | 40 |
| Myles Turner | 36 | 51 | 40 | 40.22222222 | 36 | 51 |
| Franz Wagner | 37 | 40 | 42 | 4.222222222 | 37 | 42 |
| Derrick White | 38 | 26 | 35 | 26 | 26 | 38 |
| Ja Morant | 39 | 38 | 46 | 12.66666667 | 38 | 46 |
| Jamal Murray | 40 | 50 | 42 | 18.66666667 | 40 | 50 |
| Tyler Herro | 41 | 36 | 38 | 4.222222222 | 36 | 41 |
| Pascal Siakam | 42 | 31 | 34 | 21.55555556 | 31 | 42 |
| Desmond Bane | 43 | 43 | 42 | 0.2222222222 | 42 | 43 |
| Jalen Duren | 44 | 62 | 64 | 80.88888889 | 44 | 64 |
| Alex Sarr | 45 | 59 | 80 | 206.8888889 | 45 | 80 |
| Ivica Zubac | 46 | 45 | 46 | 0.2222222222 | 45 | 46 |
| Austin Reaves | 47 | 44 | 47 | 2 | 44 | 47 |
| Zion Williamson | 48 | 46 | 62 | 50.66666667 | 46 | 62 |
| Deni Avdija | 49 | 55 | 55 | 8 | 49 | 55 |
| Trey Murphy | 50 | 42 | 51 | 16.22222222 | 42 | 51 |
| Kawhi Leonard | 51 | 56 | 49 | 8.666666667 | 49 | 56 |
| Darius Garland | 52 | 47 | 48 | 4.666666667 | 47 | 52 |
| Brandon Miller | 53 | 48 | 68 | 72.22222222 | 48 | 68 |
| Joel Embiid | 54 | 39 | 49 | 38.88888889 | 39 | 54 |
| Walker Kessler | 55 | 57 | 65 | 18.66666667 | 55 | 65 |
| Jarrett Allen | 56 | 74 | 58 | 64.88888889 | 56 | 74 |
| Jimmy Butler | 57 | 67 | 56 | 24.66666667 | 56 | 67 |
| Nikola Vucevic | 58 | 49 | 47 | 22.88888889 | 47 | 58 |
| Kristaps Porzingis | 59 | 71 | 61 | 27.55555556 | 59 | 71 |
| Ausar Thompson | 60 | 111 | 100 | 480.2222222 | 60 | 111 |
| Nikola Topic | 61 | 266 | 288 | 10448.66667 | 61 | 288 |
| Fred VanVleet | 62 | 87 | 62 | 138.8888889 | 62 | 87 |
| Zach LaVine | 63 | 61 | 54 | 14.88888889 | 54 | 63 |
| DeMar DeRozan | 64 | 64 | 64 | 0 | 64 | 64 |
| OG Anunoby | 65 | 63 | 57 | 11.55555556 | 57 | 65 |
| Jordan Poole | 66 | 53 | 60 | 28.22222222 | 53 | 66 |
| Jakob Poeltl | 67 | 76 | 74 | 14.88888889 | 67 | 76 |
| Lauri Markkanen | 68 | 69 | 69 | 0.2222222222 | 68 | 69 |
| Naz Reid | 69 | 79 | 94 | 105.5555556 | 69 | 94 |
| Donovan Clingan | 70 | 84 | 85 | 46.88888889 | 70 | 85 |
| Coby White | 71 | 52 | 65 | 62.88888889 | 52 | 71 |
| Immanuel Quickley | 72 | 58 | 72 | 43.55555556 | 58 | 72 |
| Anfernee Simons | 73 | 89 | 77 | 46.22222222 | 73 | 89 |
| Josh Hart | 74 | 54 | 56 | 80.88888889 | 54 | 74 |
| Julius Randle | 75 | 66 | 69 | 14 | 66 | 75 |
| Onyeka Okongwu | 76 | 73 | 70 | 6 | 70 | 76 |
| CJ McCollum | 77 | 97 | 101 | 110.2222222 | 77 | 101 |
| RJ Barrett | 78 | 82 | 96 | 59.55555556 | 78 | 96 |
| Rudy Gobert | 79 | 83 | 68 | 40.22222222 | 68 | 83 |
| Paul George | 80 | 72 | 74 | 11.55555556 | 72 | 80 |
| Mark Williams | 81 | 96 | 79 | 57.55555556 | 79 | 96 |
| Kel’el Ware | 82 | 90 | 97 | 37.55555556 | 82 | 97 |
| Michael Porter | 83 | 68 | 78 | 38.88888889 | 68 | 83 |
| Payton Pritchard | 84 | 81 | 92 | 21.55555556 | 81 | 92 |
| Jalen Green | 85 | 60 | 70 | 105.5555556 | 60 | 85 |
| Cameron Thomas | 86 | 75 | 97 | 80.66666667 | 75 | 97 |
| Miles Bridges | 87 | 65 | 76 | 80.66666667 | 65 | 87 |
| Jalen Suggs | 88 | 95 | 84 | 20.66666667 | 84 | 95 |
| Deandre Ayton | 89 | 98 | 81 | 48.22222222 | 81 | 98 |
| Draymond Green | 90 | 100 | 95 | 16.66666667 | 90 | 100 |
| Norman Powell | 91 | 117 | 98 | 120.6666667 | 91 | 117 |
| Jaden McDaniels | 92 | 105 | 97 | 28.66666667 | 92 | 105 |
| Andrew Nembhard | 93 | 91 | 97 | 6.222222222 | 91 | 97 |
| Bennedict Mathurin | 94 | 116 | 119 | 124.2222222 | 94 | 119 |
| Toumani Camara | 95 | 107 | 101 | 24 | 95 | 107 |
| John Collins | 96 | 112 | 89 | 92.66666667 | 89 | 112 |
| Nicolas Claxton | 97 | 88 | 97 | 18 | 88 | 97 |
| Matas Buzelis | 98 | 99 | 114 | 53.55555556 | 98 | 114 |
| D’Angelo Russell | 99 | 108 | 115 | 42.88888889 | 99 | 115 |
| Zaccharie Risacher | 100 | 134 | 147 | 392.6666667 | 100 | 147 |
| Malik Monk | 101 | 78 | 99 | 108.2222222 | 78 | 101 |
| Mikal Bridges | 102 | 70 | 74 | 202.6666667 | 70 | 102 |
| Brandon Ingram | 103 | 77 | 85 | 118.2222222 | 77 | 103 |
| Cameron Johnson | 104 | 103 | 83 | 93.55555556 | 83 | 104 |
| Stephon Castle | 105 | 101 | 105 | 3.555555556 | 101 | 105 |
| Scoot Henderson | 106 | 94 | 105 | 29.55555556 | 94 | 106 |
| Kyle Filipowski | 107 | 114 | 118 | 20.66666667 | 107 | 118 |
| Khaman Maluach | 108 | 193 | 226 | 2470.888889 | 108 | 226 |
| Herbert Jones | 109 | 125 | 117 | 42.66666667 | 109 | 125 |
| Shaedon Sharpe | 110 | 86 | 96 | 96.88888889 | 86 | 110 |
| Donte DiVincenzo | 111 | 131 | 127 | 74.66666667 | 111 | 131 |
| Bradley Beal | 112 | 129 | 101 | 132.6666667 | 101 | 129 |
| Keegan Murray | 113 | 92 | 112 | 93.55555556 | 92 | 113 |
| Kevin Porter | 114 | 119 | 139 | 116.6666667 | 114 | 139 |
| Bilal Coulibaly | 115 | 115 | 118 | 2 | 115 | 118 |
| Jaden Ivey | 116 | 110 | 121 | 20.22222222 | 110 | 121 |
| Kyrie Irving | 117 | 171 | 112 | 713.5555556 | 112 | 171 |
| Tobias Harris | 118 | 122 | 108 | 34.66666667 | 108 | 122 |
| Brandin Podziemski | 119 | 102 | 120 | 68.22222222 | 102 | 120 |
| Dejounte Murray | 120 | 191 | 116 | 1186.888889 | 116 | 191 |
| Isaiah Hartenstein | 121 | 85 | 78 | 354.8888889 | 78 | 121 |
| Zach Edey | 122 | 118 | 123 | 4.666666667 | 118 | 123 |
| Christian Braun | 123 | 80 | 86 | 361.5555556 | 80 | 123 |
| Keyonte George | 124 | 113 | 117 | 20.66666667 | 113 | 124 |
| Yves Missi | 125 | 130 | 130 | 5.555555556 | 125 | 130 |
| Ace Bailey | 126 | 161 | 146 | 205.5555556 | 126 | 161 |
| Jay Huff | 127 | 146 | 148 | 89.55555556 | 127 | 148 |
| Bobby Portis | 128 | 104 | 122 | 104 | 104 | 128 |
| P.J. Washington | 129 | 136 | 128 | 12.66666667 | 128 | 136 |
| Devin Vassell | 130 | 93 | 97 | 274.8888889 | 93 | 130 |
| Santi Aldama | 131 | 120 | 130 | 24.66666667 | 120 | 131 |
| Jabari Smith | 132 | 135 | 133 | 1.555555556 | 132 | 135 |
| Jonathan Kuminga | 133 | 148 | 133 | 50 | 133 | 148 |
| Khris Middleton | 134 | 180 | 226 | 1410.666667 | 134 | 226 |
| T.J. McConnell | 135 | 123 | 143 | 67.55555556 | 123 | 143 |
| Quentin Grimes | 136 | 164 | 122 | 304.8888889 | 122 | 164 |
| Andrew Wiggins | 137 | 106 | 108 | 200.6666667 | 106 | 137 |
| Cason Wallace | 138 | 128 | 140 | 27.55555556 | 128 | 140 |
| Dylan Harper | 139 | 139 | 131 | 14.22222222 | 131 | 139 |
| Ryan Dunn | 140 | 215 | 193 | 990.8888889 | 140 | 215 |
| Rasheer Fleming | 141 | 220 | 361 | 8280.222222 | 141 | 361 |
| Aaron Gordon | 142 | 132 | 133 | 20.22222222 | 132 | 142 |
| Tari Eason | 143 | 109 | 103 | 310.2222222 | 103 | 143 |
| De’Andre Hunter | 144 | 150 | 138 | 24 | 138 | 150 |
| Dereck Lively | 145 | 121 | 125 | 110.2222222 | 121 | 145 |
| Carlton Carrington | 146 | 133 | 133 | 37.55555556 | 133 | 146 |
| Moussa Diabate | 147 | 228 | 223 | 1373.555556 | 147 | 228 |
| Kon Knueppel | 148 | 154 | 152 | 6.222222222 | 148 | 154 |
| Sam Hauser | 149 | 157 | 268 | 2949.555556 | 149 | 268 |
| Isaiah Jackson | 150 | 211 | 152 | 800.6666667 | 150 | 211 |
| Neemias Queta | 151 | 186 | 306 | 4405.555556 | 151 | 306 |
| Scotty Pippen | 152 | 138 | 144 | 32.88888889 | 138 | 152 |
| Klay Thompson | 153 | 152 | 141 | 29.55555556 | 141 | 153 |
| Dennis Schroder | 154 | 184 | 126 | 560.8888889 | 126 | 184 |
| Jared McCain | 155 | 153 | 141 | 38.22222222 | 141 | 155 |
| Wendell Carter | 156 | 166 | 143 | 88.66666667 | 143 | 166 |
The Undisputed Top Tier
The league’s fantasy basketball superstars—Nikola Jokic, Luka Doncic, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Victor Wembanyama and Giannis Antetokounmpo—are consistently ranked at the very top. It’s extremely rare that you’ll find a draft this season that doesn’t have some combination of those players rounding out the Top 5.
A Massive Wildcard
One drafter selected Nikola Topic (not Jokic, not Jovic) with the 61st overall pick, believing in his draft pedigree and potential as a Sixth Man of the Year candidate. Topic missed all of his true rookie season last year and probably would have been drafted higher than 12th in 2024 had that not been a baked-in risk. The Thunder’s rotation is tight, but they’re also known to experiment throughout the season, and especially when games get out of hand.
What is Ausar Thompson’s Upside?
Amen is the brother getting all the hype, which makes it easy to forget about Ausar. The latter missed the beginning part of last season due to a blood clot issue, but he rounded into form by the end of the year. Could he see 30 minutes per game this year and take a massive leap? One drafter thinks so, and selected him 60th overall.
Is There Room for Jalen Williams to Grow?
Williams was selected 25th in this draft — after ADP and our rankings. He was worth an early third-round pick last season and emerged as an All-Star-caliber two-way player for the Thunder. But how much growth potential does he have on a team with such an established hierarchy?
Alex Sarr as a Sophomore Sleeper
Sarr was selected an aggressive 45th in this mock, much higher than ADP (80). He’ll likely be a polarizing prospect this season. As a rookie, he shot terribly from the field. But he also played just 27 MPG and showed upside as a shot-blocker. A small boost in efficiency and a true starter’s workload would go a long way to making Sarr a viable mid-round asset.
10 Most Stable Values (highest rank outside of Top 10)
- DeMar DeRozan
- Desmond Bane
- Lauri Markkanen
- Ivica Zubac
- Jabari Smith
- Austin Reaves
- Bilal Coulibaly
- De’Aaron Fox
- Stephon Castle
- LaMelo Ball
10 Least Stable Values (with highest rank inside Top 100)
- Nikola Topic
- Ausar Thompson
- Zaccharie Risacher
- Christian Braun
- Isaiah Hartenstein
- Devin Vassell
- Alex Sarr
- Mikal Bridges
- Fred VanVleet
- Bennedict Mathurin
Essential Resources for Fantasy Basketball Success
Check out WagerKey’s How to Play Fantasy Basketball guide for a complete walkthrough, but here is some basic advice:
- Check out custom NBA Fantasy Projections
- Look into Fantasy Basketball Mock Drafts
- Listen to a Fantasy Basketball Podcast
- Check in on Fantasy Basketball Player News
- Read Fantasy Basketball Articles
- Dive into WagerKey’s Fantasy Basketball Draft Kit
- Study NBA Depth Charts
- See WagerKey’s Fantasy Basketball Dynasty Rankings
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