Little is coming off a disappointing 2022-23 campaign in Portland. He managed to play just 54 games, closing outside the top 300 in standard formats. He ended with averages of 6.6 points per game to go with 2.6 rebounds and 1.1 made three-pointers. Still only 23 years of age, Little could find new beginnings in Phoenix. The defensive-minded forward was traded to the Suns this offseason as part of a blockbuster deal that landed Damian Lillard in Milwaukee. While Little has yet to establish himself as a must-play asset, the fact he has dealt with various injuries has to be taken into account. The 6-foot-5 wing shot a career-high 36.7 percent from deep last year, so he has the potential to be a solid three-and-D depth piece for a star-studded Suns squad. However, that role likely won't warrant much fantasy upside, so managers in standard leagues should look elsewhere at the end of drafts. Read Past Outlooks
$Signed a four-year, $28 million contract extension with the Trail Blazers in October of 2022. Traded to the Suns in September of 2023.
Personal Bio/PreCareer Summary
Nassir Shamai Little was born in 2000 in Pensacola, Florida. He is the son of Harold and April Little, who both served in the United States Military. Little started his high school career at Oakleaf High School in Jacksonville before transferring to Orlando Christian Prep after his sophomore year. He graduated as salutatorian of his class with a 4.2 GPA while being a member of the National Honors Society. Little was named the MVP of the 2018 McDonald's All-American Game and the co-MVP of the 2018 Jordan Brand Classic before spending one year with Roy WIlliams at UNC and departing for the NBA. You can follow Nassir Little on Twitter @2ez_Nassie and on Instagram @Nassir. A highly touted recruit in the 2018 class, Little played one season at North Carolina. He appeared in 36 games, making one start and averaged 9.8 points, 4.6 rebounds and 0.6 assists in 18.2 minutes per game. Little reached double-figures in scoring 18 times and topped 20 points on three occasions. On Jan. 21 against Virginia Tech, he dropped a career-best 23 points in only 20 minutes. In the first round of the NCAA Tournament, Little scored 19 points in a win over Iona. And versus Washington in the Round of 32, he would finish with 20 points and seven rebounds.
Gets garbage-time run in return
FPhoenix Suns
March 15, 2024
Little (knee) played the final 2:58 of Thursday's 127-112 loss to the Celtics, finishing with zero points (0-1 FG, 0-1 3Pt) and one rebound.
ANALYSIS Little was available to play for the first time since late February after a two-plus-week absence due to left knee inflammation, but as had been the case before him missing time with the injury, he wasn't a part of head coach Frank Vogel's rotation. He didn't check into the game until less than three minutes remained in the contest, when Boston had already built an 18-point lead and Phoenix had essentially conceded the win.
2023 NBA Per Game Split Stats - Starting/Off Bench
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2023 NBA Per Game Split Stats - Days Rest
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2023 NBA Per Game Split Stats - Vs Opp
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2023 NBA Per Game Split Stats - By Result
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Advanced Stats
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2022
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Stat Review
How does Nassir Little compare to other players?
This section compares his stats with all players from the previous three seasons (minimum 200 minutes played)*. The bar represents the player's percentile rank. For example, if the bar is halfway across, then the player falls into the 50th percentile for that stat and it would be considered average.
True Shooting %
An advanced statistic that measures a player's efficiency at shooting the ball that takes field goal percentage, free throw percentage, and three point percentage into account.
Effective Field Goal %
A statistic that adjusts field goal percentage to account for the fact that three-point field goals count for three points while field goals only count for two points.
3-Point Attempt Rate
Percentage of field goal attempts from three point range.
Free Throw Rate
Number of free throw attempts per field goal attempt.
Offensive Rebound %
An estimate of the percentage of available offensive rebounds a player grabbed while they were on the floor.
Defensive Rebound %
An estimate of the percentage of available defensive rebounds a player grabbed while they were on the floor.
Total Rebound %
An estimate of the percentage of available rebounds a player grabbed while they were on the floor.
Assist %
An estimate of the percentage of teammate field goals a player assisted while they were on the floor.
Steal %
An estimate of the percentage of opponent possessions that end with a steal by the player while they were on the floor.
Block %
An estimate of the percentage of opponent two-point field goal attempts blocked by the player while they were on the floor.
Turnover %
An estimate of turnovers committed per 100 plays.
Usage %
An estimate of the percentage of team plays used by a player while they were on the floor.
Fantasy Points Per Game
NBA Fantasy Points Per Game.
Fantasy Points Per Minute
NBA Fantasy Points Per Minute.
True Shooting %
57.2%
Effective Field Goal %
54.4%
3-Point Attempt Rate
56.5%
Free Throw Rate
16.1%
Offensive Rebound %
3.6%
Defensive Rebound %
14.4%
Total Rebound %
9.3%
Assist %
6.1%
Steal %
0.9%
Block %
1.9%
Turnover %
8.3%
Usage %
13.9%
Fantasy Points Per Game
7.1
Fantasy Points Per Minute
0.7
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Total
Per Game
Per 36
NBA Historical Fantasy Stats
How are these ratings calculated?
Our historical fantasy ratings are standard scores calculated using 8-Category settings with 12 teams and 13 players per team.
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NBA Per Game Historical Fantasy Stats
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NBA Per 36 Historical Fantasy Stats
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Historical ADP
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Suns Depth Chart
Our full team depth charts are reserved for RotoWire subscribers.
Average Fantasy Points are determined when Nassir Little was active vs. non-active during the season. Click here to view average fantasy points for a different time period.
Minutes
FanDuel
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Recent RotoWire Articles Featuring Nassir Little See More
ANALYSIS Little has been sidelined for nine of Phoenix's past 11 games due to a knee issue, but he returned to action and logged four minutes in Friday's win over New Orleans. Averaging 4.9 points and 2.4 rebounds while shooting 48.4 percent from the field and 31.4 percent from deep in 14.7 minutes across 25 appearances this season, Little has been solid when available. His wing archetype and three additional years of team control at an average annual salary of $7.25 million makes him a viable trade asset.
Little missed the final 10 weeks of the 2021-22 season due to a shoulder injury that ultimately required surgery, compounded by an abdominal issue that in turn, also required surgery. Prior to his injury, Little put together the best stretch of his career, scoring in double digits in 11 of 16 games. His playing time was consistently in excess of 30 minutes as the Trail Blazers battled through a number of injuries to key players. All signs point to Little being healthy to begin the season, and there's a chance he starts at small forward if the Blazers want some size on the wing next to Damian Lillard and Anfernee Simons. However, unless he makes significant strides and starts consistently seeing 30 minutes per game, it seems unlikely he'll have standard-league relevance outside of streaming opportunities.
Little was projected by many to go much higher than pick 25, and he could be a valuable selection by Portland. He averaged 9.8 points and 4.6 rebounds (47.8 FG%, 26.9 3P%, 77.0 FT%) in 18.2 minutes per game while coming off the bench for North Carolina as a freshman this past year. Little appeared in four summer league games, but he was underwhelming. In 17.6 minutes per game, he averaged 3.3 points on 4.5 shots and 3.3 rebounds. It seems like he'll have to put in some work with the training staff to get to a skill level more in line with how he was viewed coming out of high school, which was that of a top-five recruit. Portland is relatively thin at small forward, but Little will still have to beat out Kent Bazemore, Rodney Hood, Anthony Tolliver and Mario Hezonja to see consistent playing time.
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Likely to return against Boston
FPhoenix Suns
Knee
March 13, 2024
Little (knee) is listed as probable for Thursday's game versus the Celtics.
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Out another week
FPhoenix Suns
Knee
March 6, 2024
Suns head coach Frank Vogel said Wednesday that Little received a platelet-rich plasma injection for his left knee and will be sidelined "for a week or so", Duane Rankin of The Arizona Republic reports.
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