Razzball Hoops’ ultimate draft day tool is here!  Well, actually whoever sniped Myles Turner before I could get him in my first RCL draft is the ultimate draft day tool!  Slim’s projections in a sortable spreadsheet is back, and a huge thanks to Slim for all of his statistical Nostradamus-ing and Rudy for all of the… um… Excel-lent sort-ing…  See what I did there?!  These guys should’ve been the stars of CBS’s Numb3rs!  I actually have no clue what that show was about, but if it was about fantasy basketball I’ll sure feel dumb…  Rudy helped us get all of Slim’s projections in the Official Top 200 back into interactive mode, and he’s probably ready for a month off from math with baseball wrapping up.  I can’t wait to see his charcoal drawings from his month away in Amish country!  Anyway, here’s Slim’s 15-16 projections to utilize on draft day, and be sure to put them to test in the 2015-16 Razzball Basketball Commenter Leagues.  Plenty of leagues open with October drafts, so sign up today!

Auction drafts are chess, snake drafts are checkers!  Pretty sure Denzel in Training Day agrees!

Nothing beats a good auction draft.  Yes, they can be long, hard, and full of Kaman, but they also ensure you can get players you like as long as you’re willing to pony up the dough.  Luckily this year has more parity across the first round, and you can spread your bets accordingly.  Pre-Kevin Durant injury last year, it was back-to-back seasons of paying a ridiculous premium for the Slim Reaper since he was safe (ugh, I guess not really!) and so much better than the field.  Now there’s a case to be made for any of the big 3 as #1 overall, I’ve heard KD even enter the discussion that high, some like DeMarcus Cousins over some of the PG, some don’t like John Wall as a first-rounder, etc. etc. etc.  So while I do like the stars-and-scrubs philosophy, I don’t think I have to overpay too much unlike the past two seasons where I had KD in the high-$90s.  However, I will note there’s a steep dropoff for me outside the top-10.  And you’ll notice a bevy of guys at $1-$2.  I’ll go in hoping to get two elites, a few mids, and a lot of dollar guys where I see value.

A big luxury of auction drafts is it’s much easier to maintain a team strategy.  I don’t love punting in snakes, as guys that fit your build can be picked before you.  But in an auction, you can build more efficiently and accurately.  You can also punt positions – I would be all for getting two elite PG and having 3-4 $1-$2 high-upside bigs and hope I hit on one or two to flank some mid-range guys.

And one obligatory final note – I know I am high on Andrew Wiggins this year, so obviously if he hits $23 with only one team left bidding, don’t suddenly climb it with one bid from $23 to $39 willy-nilly!  These suggested auction values are a framework for my ranks, and the price I’d go if drafting with 11 other mes.  Ugh, horrifying, it’d be like having an auction draft in the “Malkovich, Malkovich, Malkovich!” scene!

Values are based on Yahoo standard line-ups (PG, SG, G, SF, PF, F, C, C, UTIL, UTIL, BN, BN, BN) and 12-team leagues (RCL size – and we need more leagues!  Commish one now!) with a $200 budget: