The season is young, but never too early to look at a few “buy low” candidates that have the potential of turning it around this year. Here’s our short list of players we think could be acquired for a lower-than-drafted price, including current ADP (average draft position) and Z scores based on favorable builds for each player.

How to read z-scores

Thanks to our friends at fantaZscores.com we’ve been able to include Z scores associated with each player, helping you identify the areas of strength for each player based on your build. The numbers included below are the top categories the player gains value in, “0” meaning league average and any number above “0” are reflective of above average scores. The higher the number the more competitive that player is relative to that category. It will hopefully help you target players that will help strengthen your build.

1. D’Angelo Russell (MIN)

ADP (via Hashtag Basketball)
75.1 → 122

Z-Score Value (via FantaZscores.com)
AssistsZ: +.80
StealsZ: +.93

The Timberwolves loaded up this year on some new weapons for D’Angelo Russell and, well, things don’t seem to be clicking quite yet despite the Timberwolves floating around .500. As a 9 year veteran, this is the lowest Russell has been scoring since his rookie season along with his shooting percentages from the floor and at the line. The good news here? Russell’s usage is pretty close (23.9 USG) to what it was last year (24.6 USG) despite adding another mouth to feed in Rudy Gobert. We’ve seen flashes of what Russell could be this year, but not enough to warrant a 75 ADP like he was this year. If Russel can increase his volume and efficiency from the 3 point range, his averages would be sneaking closer to what they were last year. His 3 point attempts are down this year (5.8) compared to last year (8.1) and he’s shooting them at a much lower percentage, too – from 34% to 29% this year. There’s too much history here to think Russell won’t snap out of this rough start to the year, but it looks like you’ll have to be a little patient as the Timberwolves work some of their kinks out.

2. Jalen Green (HOU)

ADP (via Hashtag Basketball)
68.8 → 134

Z-Score Value (via FantaZscores.com)
PointsZ: +.51
3sZ: +.98

At first glance, this doesn’t seem like a good “buy low” opportunity, does it? We would agree, for the most part, since Jalen Green has turned in some gems his last few games and this season averages are all better than they were for his rookie campaign. The biggest reasoning for Green landing on this list are his inconsistent percentages which are both down from last year. The FG% doesn’t really bother us so much since he’s a volume scorer but his percentages from the line are pretty brutal for an elite scorer like Green. If he can shore up those percentages, he’ll be scoring well over 20 points per game and not killing your percentages as much as he has been this year. Like we said earlier, he has been heating up, but maybe a Green owner was waiting ro a good game to try and move him if they’re tired of dealing with those percentages. Worth checking in and exploring!

3. Kyrie Irving (BKN)

ADP (via Hashtag Basketball)
21.7 → 12

Z-Score Value (via FantaZscores.com)
PointsZ: +1.60
Ft%Z: +1.47
3sZ: +.91

Another name that, statistically, should not be on this list, but here we are! We do our best to try and stick to the fantasy basketball aspect on all things, however sometimes you have to look at the full scenario to understand what is going on. Currently, Kyrie Irving finds himself serving a suspension that is a minimum of 5 games following controversial statements and a whole lot of messy press conferences. There’s no guarantee Kyrie will be back after the 5 game suspension is served and there’s speculation that the Nets won’t even bring him back at all, meaning they could waive his contract. There’s still a lot of unknowns, and Kyrie has demonstrated some tendencies in the past to leave every option open for the rest of the season. All of this is a huge risk for anyone owning Kyrie, but if you have an open IR spot and like dancing on the wild side of life then it might be worth checking in and seeing how bad his current manager wants to get rid of him.

4. Jabari Smith Jr (HOU)

ADP (via Hashtag Basketball)
106.4 → Not ranked

Z-Score Value (via FantaZscores.com)
BlkZ: +.84
TovZ: +.82

Rookies – am I right? Jabari Smith had a pretty strong preseason and actually started out the year pretty consistent, scoring in double digits in 6 straight games and grabbing a healthy amount of rebounds and blocks. Since then, it’s been pretty brutal.There’s been almost no redeeming qualities recently and his stock has come crashing down to earth. The overall sentiment here is that Jabari is not as bad as he’s been playing, in fact the start of the season and preseason kind of proves that. The rockets are a very young team and are committed to giving enough opportunities for their young talent to succeed – hopefully. If he can hit some of his open shots and gain some more confidence, those numbers will be back to what they were early in the season no problem. Since he’s a rookie and had a fairly low ADP, he may have already been dropped in your league. Keep an eye on the young rookie and watch him turn it around. He is a unique source of 3’s, blocks and good FT percentages that is hard to find.  

5. Jamal Murray (DEN)

ADP (via Hashtag Basketball)
71.9 → 184

Z-Score Value (via FantaZscores.com)
3sZ: +.23
AstZ: +.08

Let’s all be honest here – we’re just waiting for “Bubble Murray” to make a return but it looks like we’ll have to keep waiting. Truthfully, Jamal Murray isn’t playing that bad after being out all year last year recovering from an ACL injury, so some patience is required here. However, almost all of his averages are career lows outside from his rookie season when he started only 9 games. It looks like he’s still shaking off some rust and will hopefully continue to get better the more he’s able to play this year. His usage is actually higher this year (26.7) than when he last played (24.4) but he’s getting to the line a lot less than ever before. His percentages are pretty consistent with his career averages, so if he can increase his volume we think the big games are still to come for Murray. 

6. John Collins (ATL)

ADP (via Hashtag Basketball)
67.8 → 42

Z-Score Value (via FantaZscores.com)
BlkZ: +1.57
RebZ: +1.45
Fg%Z: +.51

Another name that started the season red hot and has since cooled off a bit. Collins ripped off 4 games scoring double digits with 3 double-doubles in there all at insanely efficient percentages, but has followed with a few duds which is why he’s included on this list. His current ranking is still favorable from his preseason ADP, however the start the the season is inflating that a little bit for him. There’s a lot to like about Collin this year; it looks like he’s fixed his FT%, he’s rebounding and blocking at a higher rate while still being efficient from the floor similar to this numbers last year. Owners might be reluctant to move him since his red hot start was only a few weeks ago, but his stock has definitely leveled out a bit from the start of the year.