Players seem to either have the rebounding knack or they don’t have it. Despite the huge shuffle of major players from one team to another, the only thing that seems to affect a players rebounding numbers is that amount of time that they have on the court. If a starter from one team becomes a starter on another team, you can pretty much count on his rebounding numbers being the same as they were on the previous team or the previous year.

So let’s get into the top rebounders in the league. Make sure you snatch a couple of the top rebounders up as quickly as possible, but be careful for low free throw percentage numbers if that is a factor in your league.

Tier 1 (900+ rebounds)

1. Dwight Howard (1082) – Howard is always a monster on the boards. Too bad his free throw numbers will kill any Fantasy team he is on. He is by far the best rebounder in the NBA right now.
2. Zach Randolph (950) – Randolph continues to surprise me. His troubles never seem to impact his numbers too much, and last year seemed like a stellar year for Randolph.
3. David Lee (949) – Lee is going from New York to Golden State. I don’t expect that he will see any less errant shots at the basket that he can snarf up and put back.

Tier 2 (800-900 rebounds)

1. Marcus Camby (871) – We’ll see if some of the other Portland bigs can stay healthy enough to take away minutes from Camby. My bet is that he continues to be dominant in rebounds, as he has for years.
2. Lamar Odom (802) – Always great at a variety of different categories.
3. Al Horford (799) – Horford just about made it last year. I expect him to improve and pass 800 this year.
4. Pau Gasol (734) – Injuries kept Gasol from getting 800 rebounds.
5. Joakim Noah (705) – Noah probably would have made it last year if not for injuries. It’s even possible that Noah becomes a Tier 1 Rebounder this year, but I think I’d rather wait and see than anoint him so quickly.
6. Al Jefferson (703) – I’m guessing that continued physical improvement and a move to a real team like the Utah Jazz will help Jefferson become a second tier rebounder.
7. Andrew Bogut (701) – Injuries kept Bogut from getting 800 rebounds last year.
8. Carlos Boozer (874) – The injury to Boozer is going to drop him out of the top 3 tiers this year, but Boozer is normally a tier 2 rebounder.

Tier 3 (700-800 rebounds)

1. Tim Duncan (788) – Tim Duncan can still rebound, despite the fact that age is catching up with him.
2. Samuel Dalembert (784) – Dalembert is a nice rebounder and good at blocking shots, but be careful of picking him up too early. His stats make him good enough to pick up in the fifth round, but don’t do it if you haven’t picked up some solid scorers and point guards in rounds 1 through 4.
3. Gerald Wallace (762) – I debated on whether top put Wallace in Tier 2 or Tier 3. He’s right on the line.
4. Chris Bosh (759) – Bosh was easily a Tier 3 rebounder last year. On the Heat, however, it’s hard to say.
5. Emeka Okafor (742) – Okafor was finally healthy last year. I don’t think he’s going to rebound much better or worse than last year.
6. Troy Murphy (737) – Murphy is a nice all around player, and you can usually pick him up for a steal in round 5 because he’s always playing on teams that nobody sees.
7. Amar’e Stoudemire (732) – Stoudemire is another player teetering between Tier 2 and Tier 3 this year. Phoenix’s and New York’s tempo seem similar enough, that I’m betting that he remains a Tier 3 rebounder.
8. Brendan Haywood (715) – Like Dalembert, Haywood only rebounds and blocks shots. He’s a good 7th or 8th round pick, especially if you really need a center, but you better have shored up your points, assists, and steals in earlier rounds.
9. Brook Lopez (709) – Lopez can do no wrong in my book. With the constant improvements that he makes year after year, he might pass 800 this year, but I wasn’t willing to slot him in for a full rebound or rebound and a half increase this coming season, after he only increased by half a rebound per game in the previous season.
10. Josh Smith (705) – Smith is another all around player who excels at rebounds. I don’t see him increasing too much over last season, though.
11. Chris Kaman (704) – Another player who I expect to have similar numbers to last season.
12. Kevin Love (658) – I expect the loss of Al Jefferson and a healthier body will increase his numbers significantly. He might even creep into Tier 2, but I wasn’t willing to put him there on a whim.
13. Mark Gasol (640) – Injuries forced Gasol into lower numbers than he might have gotten otherwise. I expect him to come back healthy and continue to improve his stats.

Other notables to look for in cracking into Tier 3: Paul Millsap, J.J. Hickson, Andrew Bynum, and Michael Beasley.

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