Nic Claxton

Fantasy managers know what they're getting with Claxton, but he's one of the best at what he does. This is strictly a big man who finishes at the rim, grabs every board and plays some of the best defense in the NBA. That's evident in his averages, finishing last season with 12.6 points, 9.2 rebounds, 1.9 assists, 0.9 steals and 2.5 blocks on 70.5 percent shooting. That shooting percentage was the highest total in the NBA, while the blocks were third. That's impressive since he never played more than 20 minutes a game in the three years prior, posting a 30-minute average last season. It's clear that the ticker is pointing up for this youngster, but one has to wonder if this is Claxton's ceiling with the lack of offensive game. He attempted just 7.7 shots per game last year, and almost all of them were at the rim. That's a low-impact total, which means the shooting percentage isn't as valuable as it looks. His free-throw shooting can also be a disaster, with Claxton converting just 54.1 percent last year. That's one of the worst marks in the NBA. What's nice is that there are no other proven centers in Brooklyn, so his 30 minutes from last season should be sustainable. He ranked 40th in per-game, eight-category production last season.

Claxton has been a name to watch for the past two seasons. Claxton flashed his upside on both ends of the floor again last year. He ended with averages of 8.7 points, 5.6 rebounds, 1.1 blocks and 0.5 steals in just under 21 minutes per game. Projecting forward, it would appear as though the time is now for Claxton, especially given that he has little competition for minutes. The only other center on the roster is Day'Ron Sharpe, but he's undersized and spent significant time in the G League last year as a rookie. It's also possible Ben Simmons spends some time at center. In general, things look good for Claxton to have a career-best season, and for anyone drafting early, he is a viable top-100 target.

Claxton was selected by the Nets with the first pick in the second round of the 2019 Draft. The 6-foot-11, 215-pound center spent two seasons at Georgia. Last year, he earned Second Team All-SEC (Coaches) honors, averaging 13.0 points (46.0 FG%, 28.1 3P%, 64.1 FT%), 8.6 rebounds, 2.5 blocks, 1.8 assists and 1.1 steals across 31.6 minutes. Appearing in four summer league contests, Claxton posted 5.5 points and 4.8 rebounds in 15.8 minutes per game. Claxton has clear upside as a defender, and it's possible he develops an outside shot. However, he was just 26-for-86 (30.2 percent) from deep in his 65 college appearances and hit only 61.1 percent of his 257 free-throws. With Brooklyn, Claxton is firmly behind the likes of DeAndre Jordan and Jarrett Allen in the center rotation, and the rookie will probably only see real action if there is an injury.