As I approach this, my blackjack plus legal voting age’th year on the earth, a few TV shows stick in my brain. My all-time favorite is Star Trek: The Next Generation, and who can forget the time that Captain Jean-Luc Picard was stranded on a planet with an alien who spoke in metaphors. “Shaka, when the walls fell!” And Picard had to understand not just the language, but the context and the syntax with which it was spoken. Isn’t that situation just the metaphor for all of our lives? We may share the same experiences, but not everybody gets the context right away. And isn’t that just a hop-skip-travel away from describing being a rookie in the NBA?
Isaac Okoro was drafted fifth overall by the Cleveland Cavaliers in the 2020 NBA draft. Yay potential! But potential means very little when there’s Covid floating around and the season is a mess and players are frustrated. As we come off the All-Star break, more than a few players vented their frustration about the state of the league, yet here we go, planting one foot in front of the other and still traipsing on. We may understand the experience, but the context is novel, and it takes some time to adapt. That’s where Okoro comes into play: he’s figuring out the NBA context, and it’s starting to click. Let’s check the details!
Availability: He’s rostered in 7% of Yahoo leagues. It’s like those commercials where they shout “Free” at you and hope you’ll suddenly jump out of your couch, dash out the door, and sign away your pension for ice cream. Wait, how’d you get a pension? I want one!
Recency Bias: Is that a measurable stat? It is now! What I do in this series of articles is: highlight some lesser-rostered players, and explain how they help you. I remember a few years ago finding Donovan Mitchell on the waiver wire by using this recency bias method. I’m not saying Isaac Okoro is Donovan Mitchell, but he’s the fifth overall pick with a ton of steam. If you look at his year-long stats, they’re yawn-stipating. But! Let’s look at the past 10 games: .455 FG%, .378 3 PT%, 1 steal per game, 0.7 blocks per game, and a couple of rebounds and assists. That’s a young player looking like things are starting to click.
Usage: Past 10 games: 33 minutes per game. Whoa, Nelly! [puts band-aid on cheek] His usage in those games? 13%. He’s a rookie, what do you expect? That he suddenly becomes the Floor General? They don’t give out promotions just because you play a lot. Wait, I think that’s exactly how it works. ENYWHEY. It’s going up like my stonks portfolio.
Efficiency: Again, just looking at the past 10 games: .556% true shooting percentage and .545 effective field goal percentage. So, he’s being efficient with his shots. He’s above league average in defense and about league average in offense. But, using that metaphor of understanding context, we’re looking at a player who’s finally “clicking” on the NBA level. He’s got a starting gig, and he’s got the draft capital to be given every chance to start clicking. Efficiency will be useful for redraft leagues, and it will keep him on the radar for dynasty leagues.
Fantasy Takeaway: You’re looking at Isaac Okoro more for his dynasty value than his redraft value. Even in redraft, you could use him as a starter in deep leagues, or as a flier to see if he gets more shots off in standard leagues. But if he finishes the year strong, you could be seeing Top 100 draft value next season. Draft capital + potential + understanding the NBA context = high ceiling. If you can get that for $1 or a waiver wire add, go get Okoro now and see what happens.
What’s your take on Isaac Okoro? Drop a note down in the comments, and I hope you have an awesome week!
