Waiver wire pickups: Who steps up when injuries strike?

Working the waiver wire is pivotal to succeeding in fantasy basketball. With so many games, injuries and endless shifts in rotations throughout the marathon campaign, we’ll need to source stats from free agency to maximize imaginary rosters. A willingness to entertain competition for the last few spots on your fantasy hoops roster can prove rewarding. When curating this fluid collective of statistical contributors, it helps to consider your end-of-bench players in direct competition with the talent floating in free agency.

The goal of this weekly series is to identify players at each position widely available in free agency in ESPN leagues. Some nominations are specialists capable of helping in one or two categories, while others deliver more diverse and important statistical offerings.

In the breakdowns below, I’ve ordered players at each position with the priority of acquisition in mind, rather than roster percentage in ESPN men’s basketball leagues.

Point Guard

Scoot Henderson, Portland Trail Blazers (Rostered in 54.4% of leagues): A slow start to the season followed by a lingering injury saw Henderson’s fantasy stock dwindle, although a recent return and a massive double-double this past week signals a surge is coming. This team could deal off some veteran talent, namely Malcolm Brogdon, which would vault Henderson into a major role right away.

Dante Exum, Dallas Mavericks (16.6%): A revival might not even be the right word given Exum was never this good before in his earlier NBA journey, but since returning to the league and taking over starting duties due to an ailing Kyrie Irving, he’s been a revelation as a two-way contributor.

Shooting Guard

Malik Monk, Sacramento Kings (39.2%): Gaining some ground in regards to attention from fantasy managers, Monk is the rare bench scorer with real playmaking upside. It’s rare for a second unit leader to sustain a high assist rate, but Monk is that outlier that we should appreciate.

Caleb Martin, Miami Heat (12.6%): It doesn’t look like Martin will lose a ton of time or touches once Tyler Herro returns. We saw Martin thrive for the team in their Finals run last summer, while he’s back to being that connector on both ends of the floor.

Collin Sexton, Utah Jazz (40.2%): With some injuries hitting the Utah backcourt, Sexton has seen more minutes and opportunities in recent games. A surge in scoring output reads to his potential to sustain a meaningful role.

Brandin Podziemski, Golden State Warriors (9.5%): This rising rookie has turned into a starter already given the absence of Draymond Green. With real skill on the glass and some potential for diverse lines, “Podz” is worth a roster spot in deeper formats.

Small Forward

Trey Murphy III, New Orleans Pelicans (23.4%): The team is working Murphy back into a major role. Whether he starts or works from the pine, his 3-and-D skill set shines. After all, he’s already averaging 16 PPG on 40% from 3-point range while on the mend from offseason surgery.

Gordon Hayward, Charlotte Hornets (55.6%): Sidelined by an illness lately, Hayward had seen a notable rise in playmaking duties and production since LaMelo Ball’s injury. The durability is always an issue, but the value is present when Hayward is active.

Tari Eason, Houston Rockets (14.4%): Earning more time thanks to endless energy and legitimate two-way skills, Eason is the rare wing who can help you in rebounding.

Power Forward

Bojan Bogdanovic, Detroit Pistons (50.5%): Do you get much beyond scoring and shooting? No, not really. But there is still value in specialists, especially those who can sustain 20 PPG efficiently, as Bogie can.

Patrick Williams, Chicago Bulls (7.8%): A quietly ascendant player, Chicago has seen both Coby White and Williams become realized starting caliber contributors. Williams has a lower floor than the high-usage White, but his fun defensive rates remain steady even when the shot doesn’t fall.

Center

Dereck Lively II, Dallas Mavericks (29.1%): A recent ankle injury has him sidelined to start the week, but Lively remains a top pickup given his production potential as the lone real rim-runner on this Dallas roster.

Isaiah Hartenstein, New York Knicks (8.6%): An injury to Mitchell Robinson moves Hartenstein into a big role in the coming weeks. So far, he’s responded with strong 53rebounding and block rates.

Special Teams

This section focuses on specialists; players who flash in a singular category and can provide specific value to those in category and roto formats. Nominations are based on which category such players are helpful in and will rotate throughout the season.

• 3-pointers: Atlanta’s Bogdan Bogdanovic (65.2%) finally has a high roster rate, but it’s worth mentioning he’s fifth in added value via 3-pointers the past two weeks. The Kings’ Monk is sixth in this regard, with the Heat’s Duncan Robinson (15.6%) 10th in this index of shooting impact.

• Steals: Matisse Thybulle (2.7%) is back to hovering around 20 minutes per game, limiting any appeal past his ridiculous steal rate. The Sixers’ De’Anthony Melton (37.4%) has been larcenous of late and brings some 3-point and rebounding to the table.

• Blocks: We find Hartenstein eighth in added value via blocks the past two weeks, while the Clippers Ivica Zubac (53.4%) is also helpful in rim protection rates.

• Assists: Beyond Monk’s nice assist rate, you can look to Utah’s Keyonte George (7.2%) once his current foot injury heals.