Tyrese Haliburton

Haliburton turned heads in his first NBA campaign, earning a selection to the All-Rookie First Team on the strength of 13.0 points, 5.3 assists, 3.0 rebounds, 2.1 three-pointers and 1.3 steals per contest. He was especially effective in 20 games as a starter, posting per-game averages of 14.9 points and 6.0 dimes. The Iowa State product couldn't match the scoring output of Anthony Edwards or LaMelo Ball -- the only two first-year players to finish ahead of him in Rookie of the Year voting -- but he was a much more efficient shooter, knocking down 47.2 percent of his field-goal tries (including 40.9 percent of his attempts from three-point range) and 85.7 percent of his shots from the charity stripe. Haliburton's refined offensive game is a boon to a talented young Kings squad that is looking to end a 15-year playoff drought, but there is some uncertainty regarding how the backcourt will shake out. De'Aaron Fox remains the unquestioned focal point of the offense, and Buddy Hield started every game in which he played last season. Haliburton has performed well next to Fox and seems deserving of a larger role, so Hield could very well end up as the sixth man (if he isn't traded). The addition of rookie Davion Mitchell -- the recently crowned 2021 NBA Sumer League co-MVP -- further complicates the picture, though he isn't likely to significantly threaten Haliburton's minutes off the bat. Despite the mini-logjam, there's zero doubt that Haliburton will get significant playing time in his sophomore campaign. He appears safe as a mid-round selection in fantasy drafts.

Haliburton seemed like a lock as a top-10 pick, but he slipped to the Kings at No. 12. Haliburton's strength is his playmaking ability. As a sophomore at Iowa State, he averaged 6.5 assists to just 2.8 turnovers. Haliburton has three-and-D upside as well, making 2.4 threes at 41.9 percent while also swiping 2.5 steals and blocking 0.7 shots per game. While he's not an explosive athlete and often shies away from contact around the rim, all signs indicate he'll be a productive NBA player out of the gate. For the Kings, he projects as a sixth man playing both guard spots and possibly some small forward if needed. If that's the case, he could crack the top 100 in fantasy.