LaVine took a step forward in his second NBA season, playing in all 82 games and averaging 14.0 points, 3.1 assists and 2.8 rebounds while shooting 45.2 percent from the floor and 38.9 percent from distance. After spending most of his rookie year at the point guard spot, LaVine transitioned to a role as the team’s main shooting guard and started 33 games. While LaVine remains an option at point guard, it appears the team’s main priority is developing him as a shooting guard. The addition of Kris Dunn should only reinforce that notion, and the team reportedly deflected several trade offers involving LaVine throughout the offseason. After averaging 28.0 minutes per game last season, the 21-year-old projects see a mild increase in playing time in 2016-17. That should translate to slight increases in the counting stat categories, though it remains to be seen if LaVine’s improvement as a three-point shooter is truly sustainable. If it is, his ceiling, both in real-life terms and as a fantasy commodity, will rise.

LaVine's rookie season was an interesting one. The 19-year-old rookie was thrust into action after Ricky Rubio went down with an ankle injury, and he flashed some serious skills, including a masterful performance in the dunk contest on All-Star Weekend. When it was all said and done, LaVine owned averages of 10.1 points, 2.8 rebounds, 3.6 assists, 0.7 steals, and 0.7 three-pointers in 25 minutes per game. LaVine's 42 percent shooting from the field or 34 percent shooting from three-point-range aren't going to jump off the page, but considering he was a project coming out of college, his performance was above what was expected in a season in which he was asked to start 40 games as a rookie. The future is bright for LaVine going forward, assuming he continues to progress. No longer burdened with being asked to do too much too early, the 6-5 LaVine should have the luxury of seeing backup minutes at either guard spot. He has the athleticism to become a solid scorer and defender and has reportedly been working on improving his outside shot, a development that would certainly boost his fantasy value. For now, LaVine will probably only be a contributor in deeper leagues, but that could change as the season goes on.

Zach LaVine was selected by Minnesota with the the 13th pick in the first round of the 2014 NBA Draft out of UCLA. The 6-5 shooting guard has great athleticism and showed in limited playing time for the Bruins that he could score in bunches and finish fast breaks with authority. In his lone season with the Bruins, LaVine averaged 9.4 points, 2.5 rebounds, and 1.8 assists. He had some of his best games early in the season, including a combined 39 points on 14-of-18 from the field in wins over Nevada and Northwestern in the Las Vegas Invitational. LaVine quieted down in conference play and only scored in double figures in four of his last 18 games. He did hit a season-high six three-pointers in a February 27 loss to Oregon. LaVine's rookie season will be about skill development. He may spend some time in the D-league, but the Timberwolves are not very deep at shooting guard behind Kevin Martin. LaVine will need to learn how to defend professional players, but he certainly has the athleticism to be a good defender. Look for him to make some waves around the time of the dunk contest, but he may not get enough playing time to be much of a fantasy factor as a rookie.