12-Team, 9-Cat Salary Mock Draft: Nikola Jokić, SGA command high prices

With football season beginning in earnest this weekend, the attention of many is on the gridiron, and understandably so. However, that also means fantasy basketball is right around the corner, making this an excellent time to begin the mock draft process. Some may prefer the standard snake draft process, with or without a third-round reversal, while others favor the salary-style draft. With $200 to play with, the task is to build out a roster capable of delivering glory (and, in some instances, prize money) in the spring.

Do you spend most of your funds on a few elite players and then fill out the roster with low-cost options toward the end of the draft? Or do you look to take a more balanced approach, which may result in a stronger roster on the back end? Rotoworld fantasy basketball analyst Raphielle Johnson recently participated in a salary mock draft hosted by Fantasy Basketball International’s Adam King. Below are the results and some thoughts on how the draft played out.

The primary reason for a salary mock draft is to understand better how much players are commanding on the market. Of course, a Nikola Jokić, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander or Victor Wembanyama will command a high fee. But how much are managers willing to pay? Based on the early data, our salary mock was more conservative regarding the money managers were willing to pay. According to Hashtag Basketball, Jokić’s average in Yahoo! leagues was $85 and $69.60 in ESPN leagues. In our mock draft, which was completed on Fantrax, the winning bid for the three-time MVP was $69.

Four players commanded winning bids of more than $60. In addition to Jokić, Gilgeous-Alexander ($62), Luka Dončić ($62) and Wembanyama ($61) were also above that threshold. Four more players came off the board for at least $50: Anthony Edwards ($55), Cade Cunningham ($54), Giannis Antetokounmpo ($51) and Anthony Davis ($50). Among the high-priced players are some health concerns, notably Wembanyama, Cunningham and Davis. However, these players rank among the best in fantasy basketball when healthy, so the high dollar amounts are understandable.

– What should we make of the draft values of Joel Embiid and Zion Williamson?

For managers participating in standard drafts, Embiid and Williamson are two of the more polarizing prospects. While the question in that format is when they should be selected, for managers in salary drafts, the question is how much they should spend. Embiid, who is not guaranteed to be healthy when the season begins after undergoing knee surgery, went off the board for $18, while Williamson’s fee was $16. Williamson, whose 2024-25 season ended prematurely due to a back injury, has surpassed 60 games twice in his six NBA seasons. Fantasy managers are right to be concerned about these two, with Embiid offering a higher ceiling in nine-cat leagues when healthy.

– How much are managers willing to spend on stars working their way back from injury?

Embiid and Williamson aren’t the only players whose values took a hit due to injury. With Indiana’s Tyrese Haliburton (Achilles) already ruled out for the season, the values of the Pacers’ Andrew Nembhard ($13) and Bennedict Mathurin ($5) received modest boosts, while Pascal Siakam’s price tag in this mock draft ($19) was significantly lower than his Yahoo!/ESPN average according to Hashtag Basketball ($30).

Boston’s Jayson Tatum ($2) has not been ruled out for the 2025-26 season, so it makes sense that he would come off the board. His absence to begin the season should raise the fantasy ceilings of Derrick White ($22), Jaylen Brown ($18) and Payton Pritchard ($19), but Brown’s price in the mock was nearly $10 lower than his projected value. Is $19 too much to pay for Pritchard? That may depend on Anfernee Simons ($7), who has been the subject of trade rumors despite not making his official Celtics debut.

Lastly, Dallas guard Kyrie Irving ($1) continues to rehab from the ACL tear he suffered in early March. While January has been reported as a potential target for his return, it was clear in this mock draft that managers weren’t willing to take the risk. Also, D’Angelo Russell, who will begin the season as Dallas’ starting point guard, went for just $2 in this mock draft.

– How much should we be willing to pay for the rookies?

Dallas’ Cooper Flagg was the first rookie put up for bid, with his final price of $19. By comparison, his average price in Yahoo! and ESPN leagues is just under $25, according to Hashtag Basketball. Other than the top overall pick in June’s draft, there wasn’t much willingness to spend cap money on first-year players in this draft.

Spurs guard Dylan Harper was not nominated for a bid, likely because the backcourt already has De’Aaron Fox, Stephon Castle and Devin Vassell rather than the rookie undergoing thumb surgery recently. The hope is that Harper will be recovered in time for the start of the season. Phoenix’s Khaman Maluach, who appears likely to begin the season as Mark Williams’ backup in Phoenix, went off the board for $2, while college teammate Kon Knueppel was a $1 bid.

One rookie I wish I’d nominated in this mock draft is Washington’s Tre Johnson. While that rebuilding roster is loaded with young players, especially on the wing, his scoring ability could make him a valuable rookie, especially during the second half of the season.

12-Team, 9-Cat Salary Mock Draft Results

	Pick	Position	Player	Team	Cost (Dollars)
Manager:	4	G	Luka Doncic	Los Angeles Lakers	62
Adam Sandy	10	G	Jalen Williams	Oklahoma City Thunder	29
	16	G	Tyrese Maxey	Philadelphia 76ers	39
	34	C	Walker Kessler	Utah Jazz	18
	37	F	Franz Wagner	Orlando Magic	31
	61	G	Stephon Castle	San Antonio Spurs	5
	73	F	Santi Aldama	Memphis Grizzlies	1
	86	C	Zach Edey	Memphis Grizzlies	3
	109	F	Kon Knueppel	Charlotte Hornets	1
	118	F	RJ Barrett	Toronto Raptors	6
	121	F	Jayson Tatum	Boston Celtics	2
	129	G	Jaylen Wells	Memphis Grizzlies	1

Manager:	6	G	Trae Young	Atlanta Hawks	43
Alex Barutha	26	F	Paolo Banchero	Orlando Magic	26
	30	F	Pascal Siakam	Indiana Pacers	19
	35	F	Scottie Barnes	Toronto Raptors	25
	38	C	Bam Adebayo	Miami Heat	25
	41	C	Kel’el Ware	Miami Heat	7
	46	F	Brandon Miller	Charlotte Hornets	20
	62	F	Paul George	Philadelphia 76ers	7
	63	G	Kevin Porter	Milwaukee Bucks	6
	65	G	Coby White	Chicago Bulls	17
	124	G	Keyonte George	Utah Jazz	4
	133	C	Neemias Queta	Boston Celtics	1

Manager:	5	F	Amen Thompson	Houston Rockets	45
Chad Simpson	13	F	Evan Mobley	Cleveland Cavaliers	45
	33	G	Dyson Daniels	Atlanta Hawks	27
	70	C	Jalen Duren	Detroit Pistons	12
	77	G	Immanuel Quickley	Toronto Raptors	17
	78	F	Ausar Thompson	Detroit Pistons	15
	90	C	Alex Sarr	Washington Wizards	12
	99	G	Cameron Thomas	Brooklyn Nets	10
	101	G	Scoot Henderson	Portland Trail Blazers	10
	102	F	Ryan Dunn	Phoenix Suns	1
	122	G	CJ McCollum	Washington Wizards	4
	125	C	Khaman Maluach	Phoenix Suns	2

Manager:	24	G	Tyler Herro	Miami Heat	27
Heat Lifer	25	F	Kevin Durant	Houston Rockets	37
	42	F	Jimmy Butler	Golden State Warriors	21
	45	F	Deni Avdija	Portland Trail Blazers	19
	51	C	Kristaps Porzingis	Atlanta Hawks	16
	52	G	Jamal Murray	Denver Nuggets	29
	64	G	Jordan Poole	New Orleans Pelicans	15
	76	C	Jakob Poeltl	Toronto Raptors	11
	88	C	Isaiah Hartenstein	Oklahoma City Thunder	7
	96	F	Jaden McDaniels	Minnesota Timberwolves	7
	106	F	Brandon Ingram	Toronto Raptors	9
	132	F	Andrew Wiggins	Miami Heat	2

Manager:	15	F	Anthony Davis	Dallas Mavericks	50
Matty G	20	F	LeBron James	Los Angeles Lakers	27
	28	G	Donovan Mitchell	Cleveland Cavaliers	31
	39	G	De’Aaron Fox	San Antonio Spurs	29
	59	F	Kawhi Leonard	LA Clippers	18
	71	C	Jarrett Allen	Cleveland Cavaliers	13
	107	G	Bradley Beal	LA Clippers	8
	113	F	Draymond Green	Golden State Warriors	3
	116	G	Norman Powell	Miami Heat	7
	130	C	Jay Huff	Indiana Pacers	2
	137	F	Bobby Portis	Milwaukee Bucks	1
	139	G	Dejounte Murray	New Orleans Pelicans	2

Manager:	1	C	Nikola Jokic	Denver Nuggets	69
Nanjing	19	C	Alperen Sengun	Houston Rockets	33
	27	C	Jaren Jackson	Memphis Grizzlies	27
	43	G	LaMelo Ball	Charlotte Hornets	27
	49	G	Desmond Bane	Orlando Magic	18
	58	C	Rudy Gobert	Minnesota Timberwolves	7
	115	G	Keon Ellis	Sacramento Kings	2
	119	F	Tobias Harris	Detroit Pistons	4
	120	C	Dereck Lively	Dallas Mavericks	4
	123	G	Jaden Ivey	Detroit Pistons	5
	127	F	Bilal Coulibaly	Washington Wizards	3
	134	F	P.J. Washington	Dallas Mavericks	1

Manager:	8	G	James Harden	LA Clippers	40
NBA Fantasy Bible	9	G	Cade Cunningham	Detroit Pistons	54
	23	G	Stephen Curry	Golden State Warriors	39
	55	G	Zach LaVine	Sacramento Kings	12
	67	C	Onyeka Okongwu	Atlanta Hawks	7
	80	G	Darius Garland	Cleveland Cavaliers	21
	98	F	Michael Porter	Brooklyn Nets	10
	104	C	Nicolas Claxton	Brooklyn Nets	4
	110	F	John Collins	LA Clippers	9
	131	G	D’Angelo Russell	Dallas Mavericks	2
	136	C	Kyle Filipowski	Utah Jazz	1
	141	C	Isaiah Jackson	Indiana Pacers	1

Manager:	2	C	Victor Wembanyama	San Antonio Spurs	61
papiroi	11	F	Giannis Antetokounmpo	Milwaukee Bucks	51
	54	G	Fred VanVleet	Houston Rockets	9
	69	G	Kyrie Irving	Dallas Mavericks	1
	75	F	DeMar DeRozan	Sacramento Kings	9
	81	C	Deandre Ayton	Los Angeles Lakers	12
	83	G	Josh Hart	New York Knicks	8
	84	F	Miles Bridges	Charlotte Hornets	9
	89	G	Jalen Green	Phoenix Suns	10
	92	F	Mikal Bridges	New York Knicks	10
	93	F	Cameron Johnson	Denver Nuggets	14
	117	F	Bennedict Mathurin	Indiana Pacers	5

Manager:	12	G	Devin Booker	Phoenix Suns	45
Prodigy13	14	C	Joel Embiid	Philadelphia 76ers	18
	29	C	Ivica Zubac	LA Clippers	18
	36	G	Josh Giddey	Chicago Bulls	37
	40	C	Myles Turner	Milwaukee Bucks	25
	50	F	Zion Williamson	New Orleans Pelicans	16
	60	F	OG Anunoby	New York Knicks	12
	72	G	Malik Monk	Sacramento Kings	5
	95	G	Anfernee Simons	Boston Celtics	7
	97	F	Herbert Jones	New Orleans Pelicans	6
	108	C	Naz Reid	Minnesota Timberwolves	8
	128	F	Klay Thompson	Dallas Mavericks	2

Manager:	3	G	Shai Gilgeous-Alexander	Oklahoma City Thunder	62
Raphielle Johnson	7	G	Anthony Edwards	Minnesota Timberwolves	55
	18	C	Karl-Anthony Towns	New York Knicks	38
	47	F	Jaylen Brown	Boston Celtics	18
	57	F	Lauri Markkanen	Utah Jazz	15
	111	F	Tari Eason	Houston Rockets	6
	135	F	De’Andre Hunter	Cleveland Cavaliers	1
	138	G	Collin Sexton	Charlotte Hornets	1
	140	F	Jabari Smith	Houston Rockets	1
	142	C	Mitchell Robinson	New York Knicks	1
	143	F	Zaccharie Risacher	Atlanta Hawks	1
	144	C	Daniel Gafford	Dallas Mavericks	1

Manager:	17	F	Trey Murphy	New Orleans Pelicans	29
Eric Ong	21	F	Jalen Johnson	Atlanta Hawks	32
	22	C	Chet Holmgren	Oklahoma City Thunder	32
	56	G	Derrick White	Boston Celtics	22
	66	G	Christian Braun	Denver Nuggets	8
	79	C	Donovan Clingan	Portland Trail Blazers	12
	85	G	Jalen Suggs	Orlando Magic	8
	91	F	Matas Buzelis	Chicago Bulls	15
	100	G	Andrew Nembhard	Indiana Pacers	13
	103	F	Toumani Camara	Portland Trail Blazers	12
	112	G	Brandin Podziemski	Golden State Warriors	5
	126	F	Keegan Murray	Sacramento Kings	8

Manager:	31	F	Cooper Flagg	Dallas Mavericks	19
Simmons from Deep	32	C	Domantas Sabonis	Sacramento Kings	27
	44	G	Jalen Brunson	New York Knicks	26
	48	G	Austin Reaves	Los Angeles Lakers	23
	53	G	Ja Morant	Memphis Grizzlies	26
	68	C	Nikola Vucevic	Chicago Bulls	11
	74	G	Shaedon Sharpe	Portland Trail Blazers	4
	82	G	Payton Pritchard	Boston Celtics	19
	87	F	Julius Randle	Minnesota Timberwolves	9
	94	C	Mark Williams	Phoenix Suns	24
	105	G	Devin Vassell	San Antonio Spurs	7
	114	G	Cason Wallace	Oklahoma City Thunder	5