How to Play Fantasy Basketball 2025-26: Draft tips and beginner’s guide - NBC Sports
Fantasy basketball draft season is approaching. This guide walks you through rules, draft formats, and tips to win.
Skip navigation
Search Query
Submit Search
MLB
NFL
NBA
NHL
NASCAR
Premier League
College Football
Men’s College Basketball
Horse Racing
Top News
FLEX Finder Week 3: Josh Downs and Bhayshul Tuten can jumpstart your lineup
Rivers McCown,
Rivers McCown,
Cardinals at 49ers prediction: Odds, expert picks, QB matchup, injury update, betting trends, and stats
Rotoworld Bet Staff,
Rotoworld Bet Staff,
Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone wins 400m world title, nearly breaks world record
Nick Zaccardi,
Nick Zaccardi,
Top Clips
Kebinatshipi wins 400m, Botswana’s 1st world title
Wentz to start for sixth team in six years
Why Dolphins could benefit from trading Hill
Trending Teams
Washington Commanders
St. Louis Cardinals
New York Yankees
All Sports
All Sports
NFL
MLB
NBA
NHL
Soccer
Motors
NASCAR
College Football
Olympics
Golf
Fantasy Sports
WNBA
Men’s College Basketball
Women’s College Basketball
Paralympics
Tennis
Horse Racing
Cycling
On Her Turf
Figure Skating
National Dog Show
Rugby
Navy All-American Bowl
WWE
Rotoworld
Rotoworld
Fantasy Home
Betting Home
Fantasy Football
NFL Player News
Matthew Berry
Fantasy Baseball
MLB Player News
Fantasy Basketball
NBA Player News
WNBA Player News
PFT
Golf Channel
Watch
Podcasts
Peacock
Betting Home
Milan Cortina 2026 Olympics
Telemundo Deportes
GolfNow
GolfPass
NBC Sports NOW
SportsEngine
NBC Sports Press Box
Search Query
Submit Search
MLB
NFL
NBA
NHL
NASCAR
Premier League
College Football
Men’s College Basketball
Horse Racing
Top News
FLEX Finder Week 3: Josh Downs and Bhayshul Tuten can jumpstart your lineup
Rivers McCown,
Rivers McCown,
Cardinals at 49ers prediction: Odds, expert picks, QB matchup, injury update, betting trends, and stats
Rotoworld Bet Staff,
Rotoworld Bet Staff,
Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone wins 400m world title, nearly breaks world record
Nick Zaccardi,
Nick Zaccardi,
Top Clips
Kebinatshipi wins 400m, Botswana’s 1st world title
Wentz to start for sixth team in six years
Why Dolphins could benefit from trading Hill
Trending Teams
Washington Commanders
St. Louis Cardinals
New York Yankees
All Sports
NFL
MLB
NBA
NHL
Soccer
Motors
NASCAR
College Football
Olympics
Golf
Fantasy Sports
WNBA
Men’s College Basketball
Women’s College Basketball
Paralympics
Tennis
Horse Racing
Cycling
On Her Turf
Figure Skating
National Dog Show
Rugby
Navy All-American Bowl
WWE
Rotoworld
Fantasy Home
Betting Home
Fantasy Football
NFL Player News
Matthew Berry
Fantasy Baseball
MLB Player News
Fantasy Basketball
NBA Player News
WNBA Player News
PFT
Golf Channel
Watch
Podcasts
Favorites
Favorites
Profile
Peacock
Betting Home
Milan Cortina 2026 Olympics
Telemundo Deportes
GolfNow
GolfPass
NBC Sports NOW
SportsEngine
NBC Sports Press Box
Profile
Login or Create Profile
Profile
Login or Create Profile
Favorites
Menu
Favorites
Sign up to follow your favorites on all your devices.
Sign up
League
NBA
Date
All Scores
Programming Alert
NBA returns to NBC, debuts on Peacock opening night, Oct. 21, with Thunder vs. Rockets, Warriors vs. Lakers
Close
How to Play Fantasy Basketball 2025-26: Draft tips and beginner’s guide
By
Raphielle Johnson,
By
Raphielle Johnson
Published September 17, 2025 06:00 PM
Facebook
Twitter
Email
{"unknownError":"There has been an error","expiredError":"This video has been expired due to copyright restrictions.","unavailableError":"This content is not yet available.","georestrictedError":"This content is not available in your location.","networkId":"169843","adManagerUrl":"https://mssl.fwmrm.net/libs/adm/7.2.1/AdManager.js","serverId":"https://29773.v.fwmrm.net/ad/g/1","profileId":"169843:nbcu_web_jwp_cs_moat_https","afid":"140315314","caid":"nbcs_nbc_dls_pablo_250912","csid":"nbcsports_embed_on_domain","sfid":"751525","adHocGroup":"","athlete":"","businessUnit":"NBCSports","category":"","duration":"830897","event":"","externalAdvertiserId":"nbcs_nbc_dls_pablo_250912","genre":"Interview, News, Trending, Previews, Storytelling, Fun","guid":"nbc_dls_pablo_250912","league":"NBA","network":"169843","platform":"PC","playlist":"","show":"The Dan Le Batard Show","sport":"Basketball","subtype":"","team":"Los Angeles Clippers","title": "Torre on Leonard story: 'We did it the right way'","datePublished":"September 12, 2025 01:08 PM","videoPageUrl": "https://www.nbcsports.com/watch/the-dan-le-batard-show/pablo-torre-discusses-latest-on-kawhi-leonard-clippers-nba-investigation","availableDate":"2025-09-12T17:08:29Z","expirationDate":"","countries":"","comscorePublisherId":"3000055","comscorePluginSrc":"https://sb.scorecardresearch.com/c2/plugins/streamingtag_plugin_jwplayer.js","mParticleData":{"Brand":"","Sport":"Basketball","League":"NBA","Teams":"Los Angeles Clippers","Athletes":"","Article Title":"How to Play Fantasy Basketball 2025-26: Draft tips and beginner’s guide","Episode Title":"Pablo Torre discusses latest on Kawhi Leonard, Clippers, NBA investigation","Video ID":"2451150915598","Video Type":"Short-Form VOD","Video Duration":"13","Genre":"Interview, News, Trending, Previews, Storytelling, Fun","Secondary Genre":"","Product":"nbcsports.com"}}
With fantasy basketball drafts starting soon, now is the perfect time to prepare for the season ahead. If you saw the title of this article and clicked, first and foremost, thank you. You’re likely looking for tips on how to approach your first fantasy basketball experience.
Whether you’re playing amongst friends for bragging rights or competing for cash prizes, fantasy basketball can make the season more exciting and enjoyable if played properly.
The goal of this article and the fantasy basketball content we’ll be releasing over the next month is to put you in a position to have a successful season, whether you’re an expert juggling multiple teams or a novice looking to have a fun first experience.
The NBA regular season begins on October 22 with a fun doubleheader that can be seen on NBA and Peacock. Without further ado, here are some tips that could prove valuable as you jump into fantasy basketball.
Rating: 5