10 Fantasy Basketball Waiver Wire Targets for Week 9
We're here once again to look at 10 of the most interesting players to emerge off fantasy basketball waiver wires over the past week.
As always, make sure you're checking out last week's edition (and the week before for good measure). We try not to repeat ourselves, but there are always some high-priority options to be found in previous iterations of this column who should still be on your radar if they're out there.
All rankings come courtesy of Basketball Monster.
Now, let's hit the wire.
Juan Hernangomez, SF/PF, Denver Nuggets
Yahoo Ownership: 45%
Paul Millsap suffered a broken toe on Friday night, and although he doesn't have a timetable to return just yet, it's safe to assume that he's going to be on the shelf for a while. Trey Lyles has replaced him in the Denver Nuggets' starting lineup (more on him in a minute), but Juan Hernangomez is the priority player you should be looking to add in the wake of the Millsap injury.
Hernangomez has already started 14 consecutive games in place of an injured Will Barton (hip), and has been the 66th-ranked player over that span, averaging 12.9 points, 2.1 threes, 7.1 rebounds, 1.2 assists, 0.6 steals, 0.5 blocks, and 1.1 turnovers in 32.7 minutes per contest, while shooting 50.0% from the field and 78.8% from the free throw line. He's been heating up even more recently, ranking 42nd over his last seven contests.
When Barton returns, it will be hard to keep Hernangomez out of the lineup with the way he's been playing, so there's a decent enough chance that he sticks in the starting five and Lyles gets moved to the bench. Hernangomez has played 64% of his career minutes at power forward, according to Basketball-Reference.com, so he is plenty comfortable there.
Whether you're looking for short-term success or the opportunity for long-term value, Hernangomez is a priority add this week.
Trey Lyles, PF, Denver Nuggets
Yahoo Ownership: 20%
Trey Lyles has not been playing particularly well lately, but as mentioned above, his new job as the starting power forward for the Denver Nuggets opens up the opportunity for better fantasy returns.
In his first game as a starter on Saturday, Lyles scored nine points on 2-for-13 shooting from the field and a perfect 4-for-4 from the charity stripe, while chipping in a triple, 10 rebounds, two assists, a steal, a block, and only one turnover in 38 minutes played. The shooting is an eyesore, but there's plenty to like in the rest of the line, especially the playing time.
Once again, Juan Hernangomez is the top add to make in response to the Millsap injury, but if he's not available in your league, Trey Lyles is a decent consolation prize at the moment.
Dewayne Dedmon, C, Atlanta Hawks
Yahoo Ownership: 50%
Dewayne Dedmon is only owned in 50% of Yahoo leagues, despite being the 95th-ranked player in nine-category leagues on a per-game basis so far this year. He doesn't score many points, which is likely why he's so consistently overlooked, but he does enough in other areas to make him well worth owning.
Over his last six games, he's been particularly effective, averaging 6.8 points, 0.5 three-pointers, 7.7 rebounds, 1.7 assists, 2.7 steals, 0.7 blocks, and 1.8 turnovers in 23.8 minutes per contest, while shooting 41.0% from the field and 85.7% from the free throw line. Again, he's not scoring many points, but he's still been the 56th-ranked player over that span thanks to the rebounds, defensive numbers, and general efficiency.
If you're in need of a center and can make up for the lack of scoring elsewhere, Dedmon should really be added to your roster if he's available.
Alec Burks, PG/SG, Cleveland Cavaliers
Yahoo Ownership: 25%
The Utah Jazz recently shipped Alec Burks to the Cleveland Cavaliers for veteran sharpshooter Kyle Korver. Burks has had a couple rough shooting nights since joining the Cavs, but the overall body of work is strong enough to warrant ownership in standard leagues, especially with his shift to the starting lineup on Saturday.
Over his six games in Cleveland, Burks has averaged 14.3 points, 1.5 threes, 5.8 rebounds, 3.2 assists, 1.0 steal, 0.0 blocks, and 1.3 turnovers in 29.0 minutes per contest, while shooting 40.3% from the field and 82.6% from the line.
The eight-year veteran has never really knocked down shots at an efficient clip, but if you can take the hit in field goal percentage, it looks like Burks will have plenty of opportunity to otherwise fill the box score in Cleveland.
Jaylen Brown, SG/SF, Boston Celtics
Yahoo Ownership: 55%
Jaylen Brown has been having a disappointing fantasy season, ranking 226th in nine-category leagues through 21 games. A recent tailbone injury cost him three games, and he's been demoted to the bench for both contests since his return, but he's played well enough in his new role to put him back on fantasy radars.
Over that two-game sample, Brown has been putting up early-round numbers, averaging 22.0 points, 1.5 three-pointers, 4.0 rebounds, 2.5 assists, 1.0 steal, 0.0 blocks, and 1.5 turnovers in 26.8 minutes per contest, while shooting a blistering 71.4% from the field and 84.6% from the line.
Regression is going to hit those shooting marks, but the scoring alone makes him an interesting waiver wire target if he's available in your league. As a member of the Boston Celtics' star-studded starting five, Brown was struggling to get touches, but if he can be more of a focal point for their bench-heavy lineups, his fantasy appeal might actually go up. He's worth a flier to see how this goes.
Kelly Oubre Jr., SF, Washington Wizards
Yahoo Ownership: 45%
Kelly Oubre Jr. may be coming off the bench for the Washington Wizards, but he's getting enough minutes and doing enough with them to warrant ownership in nine-category leagues.
Over his last three games, Oubre has been the 23rd-ranked player in nine-category leagues, averaging 17.7 points, 2.3 triples, 4.7 rebounds, 1.0 assist, 1.3 steals, 1.0 block, and 1.0 turnover in 26.6 minutes per contest, while shooting 51.5% from the field and 92.3% from the free throw line.
He's been a late-round guy this season as it is (ranked 125th on the year as a whole), and he has the chance to flirt with mid-round value when he's getting consistent minutes. He's not a league-winner, but if you're looking for a hot hand, you won't find many hotter than Oubre Jr. at the moment.
JaMychal Green, PF/C, Memphis Grizzlies
Yahoo Ownership: 25%
Whatever claim JaMychal Green ever had on the starting power forward job for the Memphis Grizzlies went out the window when rookie sensation Jaren Jackson Jr. showed up, but JJJ gets himself into foul trouble often enough that Green still manages to get plenty of minutes to contribute off the bench.
Over Green's last four games, he's been the 52nd-ranked player in nine-category leagues, averaging 15.8 points, 1.5 threes, 7.3 rebounds, 0.3 assists, 2.0 steals, 0.3 blocks, and 1.5 turnovers in 25.1 minutes per contest, while shooting 60.0% from the field and 64.3% from the free throw line.
The risk of inconsistency that comes with being a bench player is obviously going to be a factor going forward, but Green has carved out enough minutes for himself to provide late-round value. He's actually knocking on the door of top-100 value on the season as a whole -- he's currently ranked 111th -- so don't sleep on him.
Kelly Olynyk, PF/C, Miami Heat
Yahoo Ownership: 30%
Kelly Olynyk is another reserve that is rolling right now. He's been the 54th-ranked player in nine-category leagues over his last five games, filling up the box score in a variety of ways.
Over that span, Olynyk has averaged 14.0 points, 2.6 triples, 7.0 rebounds, 2.4 assists, 1.2 steals, 0.8 blocks, and 1.2 turnovers in 26.9 minutes per contest, while shooting 37.3% from the field and 79.2% from the free throw line.
The shooting mark leaves a lot to be desired, but there's enough goodies throughout the rest of the line to warrant ownership for now.
Justise Winslow, SF/PF, Miami Heat
Yahoo Ownership: 20%
Justise Winslow has been having a fairly lackluster fantasy season, but he's been heating up over his last three contests.
Over that span, he's averaged 18.3 points, 2.3 threes, 6.3 rebounds, 5.7 assists, 1.0 steal, 1.0 block, and 1.7 turnovers in a healthy 34.1 minutes per game, while shooting 54.1% from the field and 72.7% from the line. Those numbers are good enough to rank him 23rd in nine-category leagues over that small sample, which is a welcomed improvement over his 192nd ranking on the year.
He's almost certainly benefiting from the fact that the Miami Heat are missing a few regular rotation pieces right now, but he's a hot enough hand to warrant a flier while he's rolling, as long as you don't drop anything of long-term value for him.
Jakob Poeltl, C, San Antonio Spurs
Yahoo Ownership: 30%
Jakob Poeltl is not getting enough minutes or playing with enough consistency to make him a sure-fire add at this point in the season, but he's certainly done well enough lately to make him someone to monitor or add until the wheels fall off.
Over his last five games, Poeltl has been the 77th-ranked player in nine-category leagues, averaging 9.6 points, 0.0 threes, 6.4 rebounds, 1.4 assists, 0.2 steals, 1.4 blocks, and 0.8 turnovers in a mere 18.1 minutes per contest, while shooting a blistering 77.8% from the field and a perfect 6-for-6 from the charity stripe.
He's not exactly stuffing the stat sheet, but if you need blocks or an efficiency boost, you could do a lot worse than Poeltl while he's this scorching hot.
