Mason Plumlee

Plumlee is coming off the best season of his career as the Pistons' starting center. In 26.8 minutes per game, he averaged 10.4 points, 9.3 rebounds, 3.6 assists and 1.7 combined blocks-plus-steals. He also shot 61.4 percent from the field and a career-high 66.9 percent from the free-throw line. All together, that resulted in him ranking 96th in fantasy on a per-game basis. During the 2021 offseason, he was dealt to Charlotte in what was essentially a salary dump by Detroit. With the Hornets, Plumlee again projects to be a starter, but P.J. Washington and Bismack Biyombo figure to see time at center, as well. With that in mind, it seems safe to assume Plumlee should have a similar role and could put up comparable numbers to last season. He's a low-upside pick, but there's a decent chance he'll again return top-100 value.

Plumlee may have found himself what would have been deemed a rather unexpected starting opportunity before free agency, as he secured a three-year, $25 million deal from the frontcourt-needy Pistons in late November. How Plumlee will fit into a true starter's role remains to be seen, as he's yet to average more than 26.5 minutes per game in any of his seven seasons and has been under 20.0 per contest in two of the last three campaigns specifically. Plumlee's ability to rack up stats across the board has always been impressive, with last season's per-36 averages of 14.9 points, 10.8 rebounds, 5.2 assists, 1.3 blocks and 1.1 steals serving as the most recent example. However, he's often garnered those numbers against fellow second-unit players, so it will be interesting to see if his production remains up to par over a 72-game grind as a regular member of the first unit. If Plumlee is up to the task, he could serve as a sneaky source of later-round value in drafts.

Plumlee averaged 7.8 points and 6.4 rebounds in 21.1 minutes for the Nuggets last season, shooting 59.3 percent from the floor and adding 3.0 assists and 1.7 combined blocks/steals. Much like his teammate Nikola Jokic, Plumlee is an adept passing big man, which boosts his overall value. Plumlee is the clear backup to Jokic, but in 17 starts last season, he averaged a healthy 10.5 points, 8.0 rebounds, 3.5 assists and 2.2 combined blocks/steals per contest. He has upside as an all-around player, and he displayed that with seven games of at least 10 points, six rebounds and five assists. He was one of only five centers to average at least 7.8 points, 6.4 boards and 3.0 assists last season, and he played the fewest minutes of any of them. For now, he is stuck firmly behind Jokic, but he is a high-end backup who could provide immediate production if the latter misses time. Ultimately, Plumlee has some standalone value in deeper leagues.

During his first full year in Denver, Plumlee played a mostly bench role (26 starts), seeing 19.4 minutes per tilt. He was a solid rebounder (5.4) and defender (1.8 combined blocks/steals) in those minutes, and also made sure to take shots within his range (7.1 points on 60.1 percent). The Duke product also showed proficiency in the Nuggets’ offensive scheme where big men do much of the passing, averaging 3.6 assists per 36 minutes. However, given the presence of both Nikola Jokic and Paul Millsap, there’s little room for Plumlee’s role to expand. As a result, he projects to have nearly identical Fantasy value heading into 2018-19, and will be mostly a deep league option and DFS play in the event of injuries.

Acquired from the Nets last summer, Plumlee was one of several Trail Blazers who thrived in 2015-16 while ascending into expanded roles in place of the team's departing talent. In Plumlee's case, he ended up replacing Robin Lopez as the team's starting center, suiting up for all 82 games and providing stability for the team at both ends of the floor. The 26-year-old relied on his considerable athleticism and advanced play-making skills to generate 9.1 points, 7.7 rebounds, 2.8 assists, 1.0 block and 0.8 steals in 25.4 minutes per game, while shooting 51.6 percent from the floor. That assist figure stands out as an exceptional mark for a center and carried over to the postseason, when Plumlee dropped 53 dimes in 11 games to help Portland upset the Clippers in the first round and take the Warriors to five games in the second round. Going forward, Plumlee still needs to add more strength in order to prop up his interior defense, but from a fantasy standpoint, he looks like a player on the rise. His near-double-double production and elite passing already make him a nice asset in points leagues, and the improvement he showed from the charity stripe last season (64.2% on 335 attempts) offers hope that he'll develop into a more reliable commodity in rotisserie formats.

Coming off a steady rookie season and stint with USA Basketball at the FIBA World Cup, Plumlee found difficulty securing consistent run under new coach Lionel Hollins until Brook Lopez sustained a lower back strain in early December. For the next 41 outings, Plumlee effectively spelled Lopez as a starter, averaging 12.4 points (on 63 percent shooting), 7.8 rebounds, 1.0 assist, 1.0 steal, and 1.0 block in 27 minutes. When Lopez retained the starting center gig on Mar. 8, though, Plumlee's workload dried up slowly but surely, culminating with eight minutes per game in the Nets' first-round series loss to the Hawks. Plumlee was given a new start following a draft-night trade to the Blazers, who soon suffered frontcourt casualties (LaMarcus Aldridge and Robin Lopez) in the free-agent marketplace. Portland general manager Neil Olshey has since expressed confidence that Plumlee will start at center in the upcoming campaign, but a few caveats remain unexplored. Of the 791 field goal attempts in Plumlee's first two seasons, 76 percent occurred within three feet of the basket, meaning he'll likely leave the floor when the similarly-constrained Ed Davis enters. Furthermore, Plumlee has cobbled together a career 55-percent clip from the foul line, which could keep him confined to the bench in crunch time. If he's unable to buck either trend, he'll hold far more value in head-to-head formats than rotisserie leagues in 2015-16.

The 22nd overall pick in the much-maligned 2013 draft, Plumlee emerged as one of the top rookies in the NBA last season. He appeared in 70 games (starting 22), averaging 7.4 points, 4.4 rebounds, and 0.8 blocks in 18 minutes per game. Plumlee connected on nearly 66 percent of his field goals en route to All-Rookie First Team honors. The 6-10 Plumlee helped to fill the void left when Brook Lopez was lost for the season with a broken foot and spent the majority of his minutes at center, despite having prototypical size for the power forward position. With Lopez back in the fold this season, Plumlee will likely spend more time at power forward and should push Kevin Garnett for the starting job. While new head coach Lionel Hollins has a reputation for favoring veterans, Garnett is 38 years old, and Plumlee is coming off of a very impressive summer that saw him qualify for the United States' FIBA World Cup squad over several well-known talents. Even if Garnett or fellow-veteran Andre Kirilenko starts, it will be difficult for Hollins to keep the athletic Plumlee off the court.

The first-round pick out of Duke has the strength and athleticism to succeed in the NBA, but his lack of polish offensively will likely limit his role as a rookie. Plumlee could spend time in the D-League as he adjusts to the professional game.