Fantasy Points Per Minute — or FPPM — might be the most overlooked statistic in fantasy basketball, yet it’s one of the most powerful tools for evaluating player value. In a game increasingly driven by pace, efficiency and analytics, FPPM provides one simple but crucial insight: how much fantasy production a player delivers every minute they’re on the floor. FPPM remains a staple of DFS players, and applying it to a season-long format adds a valuable data point to consider when evaluating the boom potential in fantasy basketball.
It’s as simple as it sounds. Take a player’s average fantasy points per game and divide them by their average minutes, or take the total amount of fantasy points and divide by their total minutes played. Boom — you’ve got a stat that tells you how much a guy actually produces when he’s on the floor. A player putting up 30 fantasy points in 25 minutes? That’s a 1.2 FPPM — really good. Someone who needs 35 minutes to get those same 30 points? That’s a 0.85 FPPM — not so good.
[High Score is a new way to play Fantasy Basketball on Yahoo with simple rosters and scoring. Create or join a league]
And that difference matters — a lot. Especially if you’re playing Yahoo’s High Score format, where only a player’s best game of the week counts. In that setup, upside is king. You want volatility. You want players who can blow up on a random Tuesday and help win your week.
That’s where high-FPPM guys come in. Players like Tari Eason, who averaged 1.17 FPPM, ranked in the 91st percentile among forwards who play 25 minutes per game. Any time he sees starter-level minutes, you can expect some boom performances.
Nikola Jokić, Giannis Antetokounmpo and Victor Wembanyama all sat comfortably around 1.7 FPPM, which is absurd. They’re not just good; they’re walking cheat codes.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Anthony Davis weren’t far behind — every minute they’re on the court means something. Zion Williamson is one of my biggest targets in High Score because his production is calculated once per week, and his ceiling is as high as some first-round talents, at 1.56 FPPM.
Even players who entered first-round consideration this year (Cade Cunningham at 1.37 FPPM) had a strong signal that they’re trending toward making that next leap as a fantasy producer.
Meanwhile, heavy and steady-minute players like Mikal Bridges and OG Anunoby? They’re fine in standard points leagues — they’ll give you 35 minutes, but with middling production across categories. But in High Score, that steadiness is more of a ceiling cap.
Their sub-0.9 FPPM marks show they don’t spike often enough to move the needle. Are they worthwhile fantasy assets? Yes, because the opportunity size needs are a relevant factor; however, there are likely better options for ceiling outcomes within the same range as their respective ADPs.
Now, FPPM isn’t a catch-all stat. You still need to consider usage, pace, role, volume and opportunity. But if you’re trying to find players who maximize their time — and who can deliver those week-winning outbursts — FPPM is a valuable metric that can help predict and highlight players who are taking advantage of their time on the court.
Because in fantasy basketball, it’s not about who plays the most minutes — it’s about who does the most with them.
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