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Jim McCormick, Special to ESPN.com
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 our imaginary rosters.
A willingness to entertain competition for the final 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-the-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 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 listed players at each position in order of priority, rather than roster percentage, in ESPN men’s basketball leagues.
Point guard
Keyonte George, SG, Utah Jazz (rostered in 26.4% of ESPN leagues): A recent ankle injury interrupted what appeared to be a transformative stretch of play from George. Utah hasn’t yet committed to George as a core piece going forward, although this recent surge in playing time and offensive equity speaks to the potential for more in the coming weeks.
T.J. McConnell (16.5%) and Andrew Nembhard, SG (8.3%), Indiana Pacers: Pretty much all creation duties beyond Tyrese Haliburton filters to this duo of complementary guards. McConnell, as you likely know, can deliver awesome passing and defensive results even in limited exposure in a pure backup capacity. Nembhard, meanwhile, fits alongside Haliburton well as a deft passer and savvy, if low-volume, scorer.
Shooting guard
Malik Monk, SF, Sacramento Kings (65.4%): A dynamic wing capable of serving nearly any perimeter role on both sides of the ball, this versatility surfaces statistically with strong shooting, passing and defensive rates for a player often mislabeled as merely a bench scorer.
Ayo Dosunmu, Chicago Bulls (48.0%): If we look past a quiet recent outing against the stifling Boston defense, we find that Dosunmu has produced positive fantasy outcomes for much of December. Capable of doing a bit of everything, Dosunmu’s ability to fill box scores is proving to be a larger trend.
Gradey Dick, SF, Toronto Raptors (41.6%): When it comes to specialists, Dick is certifiable in the shooting department. The second-year Kansas product can get absurdly hot from the floor, moments his team is beginning to recognize and feed at higher rates. Up to 20 PPG on stellar shooting splits over the past week, Dick is worthy of attention in categories and roto formats.
Malik Beasley, Detroit Pistons (18.9%): Speaking of specialists, Beasley is likely an even more extreme example given Dick has stronger peripheral numbers. Beasley, as the kids say, is a bucket. The proof would be in the fact he already has 13 games with at least 10 3-pointers lofted, including one of them with 19 attempts from deep! The point being, Beasley can reward your roster when he’s hot.
Small forward
Trey Murphy III, SG, New Orleans Pelicans (55.3%): A popular inclusion in this space, Murphy has become the Pelicans’ premier perimeter scorer with Brandon Ingram sidelined. Strong steal and block rates combine to vault Murphy into a new tier of value in recent weeks, as he’s first among all small forward eligible players on the Player Rater during the past two weeks.
Bilal Coulibaly, SG, Washington Wizards (32.0%): Found directly behind Murphy as the second-most impactful contributor at the position the past two weeks, Washington’s second-year wing was always regarded as an elite defensive prospect, but now a wave of offensive development is cresting to form a more complete and coveted fantasy producer. Teammate Justin Champagnie (11.8%) is also gaining steam with sticky hands on defense.
Herbert Jones, PF, New Orleans Pelicans (24.7%): If not for Dyson Daniels, the king of steals would be Jones. With a career spent stifling a variety of ball-handlers, Jones is the rare defensive specialist worthy of attention in all formats given just how extreme his blend of steal and block percentage proves. When the shot is falling, Jones becomes a clear top-100 player.
Power forward
Jeremy Sochan, San Antonio Spurs (38.6%): Gone is the quirky point guard experiment of last season; in its place is a rewarding glue-guy gig that perfectly suits this energy forward. With more than a steal and a block per game during the past week, Sochan is emerging as the two-way contributor his rookie season indicated was possible.
Larry Nance Jr., Atlanta Hawks (3.8%): One of my favorite sleeper players when he was at his best with the Pelicans, Nance helps build on this week’s theme of versatile defensive forwards. The Hawks have this new identity of stoppers around Trae Young, with Nance, even later into his career, qualifying.
Center
Goga Bitadze, Orlando Magic (24.3%): The Magic are mimicking the Grizzlies’ frontcourt last season in the sense of an endless wave of impact injuries. With Moritz Wagner now lost for the year and the team still missing its duo of young stars, Bitadze has an unfettered run as the top pivot. The results have been really encouraging in that volume rebounding and blocks aren’t easy to source these days.
Mark Williams, Charlotte Hornets (46.8%): Injuries have defined much of his pro career to date, but Williams is back and beginning to ramp up to a rewarding level of play. I’d suggest giving him a few more games before making space in most formats. The point is that this was a special prospect with what could be a massive role on a team in need of frontcourt growth.
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: Only Anthony Edwards and his newfound volume approach is outpacing Beasley in added value via 3-pointers the past two weeks. Payton Pritchard, of course, is also found among the special shooting contributors.
Steals: Although currently injured, Tari Eason is an awesome source of steals whenever he’s active. Jones, meanwhile, is the clear No. 1 in added value in this category the past two weeks.
Blocks: Bitadze sits 14th in added value via rim protection the past 15 days. We find Jabari Smith Jr. producing atypically elite block numbers from the wing.
Rebounds: You can find pure rebounding volume via Yves Missi of the Pelicans or with Bitadze now that he has no competition on the glass.
Assists: Nembhard and McConnell are obvious answers, but Monk and Dosunmu are sneaky values at off-ball spots.
Source: www.espn.com