So you’re interested in playing fantasy basketball. The best way to start is to simply experience it! There’s nothing like giving yourself a year or two of experience through experimentation to help you develop a true understanding of how fantasy basketball works.
 

However, if you want to be competitive from the get go, there are some things you might need to know first. The most basic thing to realize is that there are many different types of fantasy basketball. That means that whenever you read or hear what an expert has to say, make sure you take it with a grain of salt. That’s not to say that the fantasy sports experts you see at Fantapedia.net, Yahoo Sports, NBA.com, ESPN.com or any other fantasy basketball site don’t know what they’re talking about necessarily. It simply means that chances are they may be basing their opinions on league settings or fantasy basketball league types that are different from the league(s) you’re participating in. It’s just something to keep in mind.
 

At Fantapedia, we generally base everything on rotisserie style using the Yahoo Fantasy Sports default scoring system (9 STAT CAT Leagues). However, that’s not to say that we won’t from time to time comment on head to head or other fantasy types, or that our experts won’t answer specific questions about other types of leagues. Why do we like Yahoo’s default scoring? Because we think it’s the best free fantasy basketball you can play on the net.
 

Types of Fantasy Basketball:

• Rotisserie League: In rotisserie style leagues (also referred to as roto), there are a set amount of STAT CATs (statistical categories) determined by the league’s commissioner (or if you’re in a public league, by Yahoo’s default system). Teams earn points based on how their team finishes in each category. Each STAT CAT is worth the same as the others. For instance, if points and steals are two STAT CATs in your league, getting more steals than any other team earns you just as many points as getting more points than any other team. If there are twenty teams in your league, winning in any one of these categories would earn you 20 points. Getting second in any one of these categories would earn you 19 points. This continues until the last place person (for that category) earns one point. Total scores are determined by how well a team does in each STAT CAT. For more information on rotisserie leagues specifically, check out the Rotisserie Breakdown.
   
• Head-to-Head League: In Head-to-Head Leagues (or H2H), each manager sets his/her lineup daily (unless the league settings are set to something else) and squares off each week against another manager in the league according to the league schedule. Whoever accumulates the most fantasy points according to how your league is set up, wins the match for that week. Typically, H2H Leagues are set up similar to rotisserie style leagues in that there are a set amount of STAT CATs to compete in. Let’s say out of nine STAT CATs your team beat your opponent’s team in seven. You would score seven wins for the week and two losses, while your opponent scored two wins for the week and seven losses. In non-playoff leagues, the team with the best winning percentage wins the championship. In playoff leagues, the top teams have an elimination tournament (playoffs) to determine the winner. These playoffs usually consist of the final week or two of NBA season.
   
• Points-based League: In point-based leagues, each statistic that is included earns your team a set amount of points. Set a daily lineup (unless customized) based on league requirements with the goal of collecting more fantasy points than any other team. Points are tallied throughout the season and the team with the most total points wins.
   
• Keeper Leagues: Keeper leagues can have any scoring system applied to it, but imply that the league will continue past just one season. In keeper leagues, managers may opt to retain a certain amount of players who were on their team at the end of the prior season. Keeper leagues typically run for three seasons.
   
• Pick ‘em Leagues: Pick ‘em leagues are like playing the stock market. Every week, day, or month (or however the league is set up), participants select what players they think will produce during that allotment of time. Multiple participants can select the same players.

A couple other notes:

Some leagues have a fake salary structure in place that teams have to work around. If that’s the case, get to know that salary structure as they will be an integral part of how well you finish.

Some leagues are set up so that each NBA team is represented. There is often no fantasy draft in these leagues and managers are assigned the line up of that particular NBA team. These leagues are often seen as more of role playing leagues. They are still competitive, but obviously certain teams start off at a huge disadvantage.