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 (rostered in 44.0% of ESPN leagues): Part of a new-look Portland bench, Henderson has become a trustworthy floor general and helpful defender in a relatively awesome pivot to what was a rough first 12 months in the league. The Trail Blazers seem to have found a sustainable role for Henderson, and it's one that aligns with fantasy success.
Bub Carrington, SG, Washington Wizards (5.8%): With one of the better names around, Carrington is now empowered by the Wizards to be an offensive engine. The team dealt two ball-dominant veterans last week, opening up usage and actions for Carrington and his young peers. There will be turnovers and lean scoring lines, but also some special showings. The net results are likely to be positive for your fantasy team.
Shooting guard
Max Christie, Dallas Mavericks (10.3%): It's becoming more obvious to fans that Christie was an important part of the blockbuster deal between Dallas and Los Angeles. A gifted and attentive defender who can also slash and shoot next to playmakers, Christie is a lock to play big minutes for the Mavericks the rest of the way.
Brandin Podziemski, PG, Golden State Warriors (20.7%): Even with Jimmy Butler joining the rotation, the Warriors will need Podziemski's shooting volume and point-of-attack defense on the floor to open and close games. Even though the scoring results won't wow you, stellar rebounding and helpful shooting and passing production make Podziemski a strong acquisition this deep into the campaign.
Small forward
Ausar Thompson, PF, Detroit Pistons (32.6%): Possibly inspired by his twin in Houston, Thompson has taken a major step in recent weeks as a two-way force for Detroit. Assists, boards, steals and even blocks surface in binges that are quite entertaining. Now that he's been given some runway, Thompson is taking flight. You should also pursue shares of Minnesota's Jaden McDaniels if he's available; the defensive dynamo is turning into an actual two-way player.
Matas Buzelis, PF, Chicago Bulls (11.1%): The Bulls moved off a high-usage wing and now have plenty of touches to disseminate throughout a young rotation. On a roster light on budding prospects, Buzelis is going to get every chance to succeed in the coming weeks. An awesome block rate helps raise the floor for the still-raw rookie.
Power forward
Guerschon Yabusele, Philadelphia 76ers (19.2%): We are sticking with the same names from last week at the four. "Yabu" is cruising as a bully with craft for the 76ers as one of the only real positives from their season thus far. With Joel Embiid now contemplating a longer recovery process, Yabusele seems likely to play a major role the rest of the way.
Toumani Camara, SF, Portland Trail Blazers (23.5%): The Trail Blazers are playing tough defense on most possessions, and Camara is a key contributor to this somewhat significant shift from how things used to look on that end of the court. With busy hands and endless hustle, Camara brings great defensive rates and improved offense to the court and fantasy rosters.
Center
Richaun Holmes, PF, Washington Wizards (1.4%): The NBA has so much talent buried on benches that you tend to forget Holmes was a rim-running force just a few years ago. Now back in a major role after the deadline, Holmes is a quietly strong pickup.
Jaxson Hayes, Los Angeles Lakers (5.6%): With the Lakers' superstar creators and their famous histories of connecting with lob threats, Hayes is now in a plus spot in the wake of the rescinded deal with the Charlotte Hornets. Hayes is likely to consume heavy minutes unless or until competition comes in via the buyout market, and has a nice role that should include easy looks, lots of rebounds and some swats.
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: Detroit's Malik Beasley is one of the best shooting specialists this season. In fact, he's provided the most surplus value from 3-point range over the past 15 days. Houston's Dillon Brooks has also been lighting it up from deep lately.
Steals: Christian Braun and Detroit's Thompson have been larcenous lately. The best part is both players supply enough rebounding and scoring to stick on fantasy teams.
Blocks: Hayes is suddenly meaningful in this scarce stat, while Holmes might add value via sheer minutes.
Rebounds: Moussa Diabate might not see big minutes if Mark Williams stays healthy, but there is some potential for big lines whenever Diabate sees over 20 minutes.
Assists: Carrington and Henderson are both in great spots to deliver big assist numbers in the second half.