Alex Len

Len was a non-factor last season, and it would appear to be the case again in 2022-23. Although he has a proven ability to put up numbers when given adequate minutes, he is buried on the depth chart in Sacramento and would need a lot to go his way to even sniff 12-team value. As a player who may not even play on a nightly basis, he should not be a priority in any league format.

The 7-foot center's 2020-21 season did not start off on the right note. After signing with the Raptors in the offseason, he was waived after just seven appearances. Len did not spend too long as a free agent, as he was picked up by the Wizards just a few days later. Despite starting in 40 out of 57 appearances with Washington, Len only averaged 15.1 minutes per game while putting up totals of 6.8 points, 4.2 rebounds and 0.9 blocks. This season, Len has signed with the Kings but will be facing no shortage of competition for playing time with his new team. Both Richaun Holmes and Tristan Thompson figure to be ahead of him on the depth chart while the team also drafted big man Neemias Queta in the draft. Due to a crowded center position and Len's unimpressive play over the past few seasons, it is hard to see a big fantasy season out of the 28-year-old center.

Len started off the season with Atlanta, averaging 18.6 minutes as part of a crowded frontcourt rotation that included Dewayne Dedmon, Damian Jones and Bruno Fernando. He was efficient when on the court, though his playing time was limited. Len headed to Sacramento at the trade deadline, where he averaged 5.9 points, 6.1 boards and a block across 15 minutes. He was huge on a per-36-minute basis, but once again, he was forced to compete for playing time at center. He mostly came off the bench for the Kings behind Harry Giles due to Richaun Holmes' frequent absences from the lineup, but with Holmes healthy for the new season, Len may have a tough time finding the court. He's an unrestricted free agent, and it's possible he looks for a new team that will give him an expanded role. The big man has proven to be an effective rebounder and rim-protector throughout his career, and while he's unlikely to find a new home as a starter, he could play key minutes for a team in need of frontcourt depth.

Len finished his first season in Atlanta with a career high in points (11.1) to go with 5.5 rebounds, 1.3 combined blocks/steals and 1.0 three-pointers per game. Len split time with Dewayne Dedmon for most of the season, but he filled in for an injured Dedmon admirably at the end of the season, averaging 18.6 points, 6.1 rebounds, 2.0 assists, 1.0 blocks and 3.1 threes over his final seven games of the season. With Dedmon donning a Kings jersey this season, Len is likely to open the season as the starter, where he'll have to fend off new addition Damian Jones and upstart rookie Bruno Fernando to retain that starting job. More playing time could mean a bump in production, and Len averaged 19.9 points, 9.9 rebounds, and 2.2 combined blocks/steals per 36 minutes in 2018-19.

Len has struggled to live up to expectations since being taken with the No. 5 overall pick in the 2013 NBA Draft, but that didn't stop the Suns from extending him a qualifying offer ahead of the 2017-18 campaign in what was a last ditch effort to get some value out of him. However, the 7-foot-1 big man ultimately provided more of the same, operating as a solid backup center that was strong on the boards. Len averaged 8.5 points, 7.5 rebounds, 1.2 assists and 0.9 blocks across 20.2 minutes, while knocking down a career-high 56.6 percent of his field goal attempts. Still, it wasn't enough to earn an extension from the Suns, who drafted fellow center Deandre Ayton with No. 1 overall pick in this year's draft. Atlanta had the cap space and roster flexibility to bring in Len on a short term deal this offseason, inking the 25-year-old to a low risk two-year, $8.5 million contract with the hope of reaching his untapped upside. The expectation is that Len will slot in as Dewayne Dedmon's backup right away, battling for reserve minutes with Miles Plumlee. That would likely keep Len's minutes similar to the 20.2 he averaged a season ago. Considering Len is still fairly young, he could push Dedmon for playing time if he shows some improvement as a whole, so he's still someone to keep a close eye on heading into training camp. Len will be an intriguing DFS option when an injury allows him a start or extended minutes, but otherwise, he'll merely be a solid source for rebounds in deeper leagues. It's also worth it to note that Len has averaged just 67 games across his first five years in the league, so health is a concern.

Len’s first two seasons in the league were marred by injuries, but health wasn’t an issue for the 7-foot-1 big man in 2015-16, as he suited up in a career-high 78 games. With Tyson Chandler brought in last offseason to start at center, Len saw more limited court time in the early going, but the 23-year-old saw his minutes expand beginning in December, after injuries began to take their toll on Chandler and many other players on the roster. From Dec. 1 onward, Len was a regular double-double threat with averages of 10.1 points and 8.4 rebounds in 25.6 minutes per game. The increased role did, however, lead to decreased efficiency for Len, who shot a career-low 42.3 percent from the floor, a drop of more than eight points from the season before. The Suns even experimented with him as part of supersized starting frontcourt next to Chandler, but after the team addressed the power forward spot this summer by adding Jared Dudley and first-round picks Dragan Bender and Marquese Chriss, it’s likely that Len will see nearly all of his time at center in 2016-17. Since Chandler is the better defensive anchor at the back end, he’ll retain the starting role to open the season, but his perennial health problems should open up extended run for Len at various points during the campaign.

After missing much of his rookie season in due to injury, Len returned healthy in 2014 and showed flashes of what made him worthy of the fifth overall pick in the 2013 draft. While his per-game averages - 6.3 points, 6.6 rebounds, 1.5 blocks - don't leap off the page, Len, still fairly raw on the offensive end, averaged a double-double per-36 minutes and shot nearly 51 percent from the field after struggling to a 42-percent mark last season, albeit in limited minutes. His production was mostly inconsistent throughout the season, though Len put together a number of strong performances, including a six-game stretch in late-February during which he averaged 9.0 points and 10.6 rebounds to go with 2.4 blocks. The 22-year-old appeared poised to step into an expanded role this season, but given the team's addition of Tyson Chandler in the offseason, it's now unclear exactly where he stands. Both Len and Chandler are true centers - Len has played 100 percent of his minutes at center since entering the league, per Basketball-Reference - so one will likely be shifted to the bench. The 33-year-old Chandler certainly didn't sign with Phoenix to come off the bench, so Len appears to be the obvious candidate. Coach Jeff Hornacek will play the two in tandem in certain situations, but given both players' offensive limitations, they'll be difficult to keep on the floor together.

Len enters his second season in the league after a an injury-plagued rookie season. The fifth-overall pick in the 2013 NBA Draft, Len averaged 2.0 points, 2.4 rebounds, and 0.4 blocks in nine minutes per game last season. He shot 42 percent from the field on 1.9 attempts and 65 percent from the free-throw line on 0.7 attempts per contest. Though Len carried potential heading into the 2013-14 fantasy basketball season, he had his thunder stolen by Miles Plumlee, who is now the starter at center for the Suns. Len projects as the backup, as long as he is healthy, and he should have an expanded role as the Suns look to feel out his potential. Right now, Len doesn't carry a tremendous amount of value in standard leagues, as he'll play behind Plumlee with little chance of cracking the starting lineup, barring an injury.

Len gives Phoenix a rare true 7-footer who is the team's primary backup center and understudy. After averaging 11.9 points and 7.8 rebounds per game at Maryland as a sophomore, Len makes the considerable leap to the league. He will assuredly face some ups and downs as a rookie, but should be a reliable rebounder out of the gate. A relatively low volume of shots will prevent him from being the type of asset he should be in field goal percentage in seasons to come.