NBA Waiver Wire: Pickups and FAAB for Week 4

Recommending pickups in fantasy basketball can be difficult at times, especially for a site like RotoWire that has a committed community of intelligent users. Most of the players mentioned below are already owned in standard leagues. Shallow league managers might not have any of the players below, but that's because they're suspect plays in shallower leagues. When looking at the Waiver Wire, I add a lot of conditional players to my watch list.

Conditional players are guys who "if this happens" they'll be great, but until an injury, trade, or a trip to Narnia takes the player ahead of them in the roation out of the lineup, it's hard to suggest picking up certain guys. For instance, Cody Zeller is someone I speculatively added Friday afternoon with the idea that he might start at power forward with Marvin Williams (knee tenditis) possibly sidelined. Now, Williams played, so the potential extra minutes Zeller was going to get dried up, and I was left feeling like an idiot for overreaching.

Why did I add Zeller on Friday afternoon? Because I think he'll be the starting power forward for the Hornets by the end of the season, and I thought his chance to usurp the role was going to come Friday. Also, I was going to be busy Friday evening, as most of us are, keeping me away from the wire. Concerned that I might miss out on a player I like, I preemptively added Zeller in any leagues where I felt like I had a player worth dropping. Now, I'll be dropping Zeller for one of the players below.

Pickups By Position

Point Guard

Mario Chalmers, MIN: (watch in standard leagues); FAAB: $0
Chalmers had a huge 23-point, 11-assist double-double in Friday's game against the Hawks, but that was with Dwyane Wade out of the lineup. LeBron James is no longer in town, so Chalmers should have become a more prominent fantasy player this season, but he struggled to define himself as the unquestioned starting point guard in the preseason and lost the job to Norris Cole. Chalmers has had a couple good games recently, but he shouldn't be added in standard 10- or 12-team leagues, yet. Make sure he's on your watch list, because the opportunity is there for Chalmers if he ever decides to claim it. He's currently owned in 53 percent of ESPN leagues.

Trey Burke, UTA: (add in all standard leagues); FAAB: $16+
Burke is owned in 73 percent of ESPN leagues, so he's already owned in most leagues, but wherever he's available in 10- or 12-team leagues due to someone dropping him, he should be picked up. While Burke continues to struggle with his shot, he did hit a game-winning buzzer beater Friday against the Knicks that could give him the confidence he needs to correct any hitch in his shot. He's averaging 9.6 points, 7.0 assists, 1.2 steals, and 1.2 three-pointers in 33 minutes per game over his last five contests. The scoring will rise as he finds his shot better throughout the season, and the assists are reason enough to use him in all standard leagues.

K.J. McDaniels, PHI: (watch list and deeper leagues); FAAB: $0-4
McDaniels was moved into the starting lineup for the Sixers' game last Thursday, but he then moved back to the bench Friday. He's a rookie on a one-year non-guaranteed deal, and it's possible he could be the next Wesley Matthews-esque player, going into restricted free agency early to collect what may be a great contract as a sophomore next summer. Through nine games, he's averaging 8.6 points, 2.4 rebounds, 1.1 three-pointers, 0.9 steals, and 1.4 blocks on 46 percent shooting from the field, 40 percent from beyond the arc, 56 percent from the line in 23 mpg. His block numbers from the shooting guard/small forward positions could be enormous for fantasy teams this season. If he had locked down the starting job, McDaniels would have had a suggested $19-23 FAAB bid this week. As it stands, he remains a player to keep an eye on, because if he gets 30 mpg at some point this season, he'll likely be averaging at least two blocks and worth the sticker price.

Victor Oladipo, ORL: (wherever available); FAAB: $50+
Oladipo returned from injury early, and he's available in 0.5 percent of ESPN leagues. This is probably obvious to most of RotoWire's users, but for the sake of meeting everyone where they are, it's important that everyone make sure Oladipo's not sitting on the wire. He's a potential top-20 player this season in fantasy.

Zach LaVine, MIN: (standard or deeper); FAAB: $16
LaVine is only owned in six percent of ESPN leagues. He was mentioned here last week, but after LaVine's dud performance Saturday against the Mavericks in which he put up four points and zero assists in 19 minutes, lots of people dropped him. Check the waiver wire, and make sure he's not sitting there in standard leagues. Assists are the hardest stat to obtain after the draft. LaVine is in a wonderful position to provide assists to teams, especially well in head-to-head leagues where his poor shooting from the field won't kill you.

Aaron Brooks, CHI: (watch list and deeper leagues); FAAB: $4
Brooks could be this season's D.J. Augustin for the Bulls if Derrick Rose's body doesn't start working right at some point. Rose suffered a hamstring injury Thursday and sat out Saturday's game against the Pacers. Brooks only played 18 minutes in that game, but the Saturday before that, with Rose sidelined with sprained ankles (plural is correct), Brooks played 28 minutes and put 26 points and eight assists. Kirk Hinrich, the primary backup point guard, is on a quiet minutes restriction, so there will be times where Brooks get leaned on heavily this season. Keep an eye on him in case Rose continues to play more like Brandon Roy.

Shooting Guard

Evan Fournier, ORL: (all leagues); FAAB: $23
Fournier stayed in the starting lineup Saturday with Oladipo starting at point guard. Rookie Elfrid Payton moved back to a bench role. As long as Fournier continues to produce, he should remain in the starting lineup and be a great fantasy play in standard leagues. He's currently owned in 91 percent of leagues, but considering that he's averaging 17.6 points, 2.5 rebounds, 2.1 assists, 0.7 steals, and 2.2 three pointers on 49 percent shooting from the field, 51 percent shooting from beyond the arc, and 72 percent shooting from the line in 35 minutes per game, Fournier should be owned in everything but the shallowest of leagues. He's a legit efficient shooter, but he's never had the opportunity he's receiving in Orlando before in his career. Fournier is real. Don't let him go to waste on someone else's team.

Ben McLemore, SAC: (12-team and deeper); FAAB: $14
McLemore has several things going well for him right now. His defense has improved, and while he doesn't record many steals, blocks, or rebounds, McLemore will get to stay on the court longer and play more minutes if is defense is improved this season. Over his last five games, he's averaging 14.6 points, 2.4 three-pointers, and 3.4 rebounds on 52 percent shooting from the field, 44 percent shooting from beyond the arc, and 82 percent shooting from the line in 35 minutes per game. His shot is falling, and that's where all of his value is tied right now. That's great for as long as it lasts, but the worry in relying on McLemore in leagues is the fact that he doesn't give you production anywhere else, meaning that when his shot isn't falling, he's essentially as useful as the government. [Joke note: That's just a bad joke. Please don't write a dissertation about the effectiveness of the US government in the comments section. XOXO - Kyle]

Others to consider: J.J. Redick (84% owned on ESPN), J.R. Smith (51% owned on ESPN)

Small Forward

Solomon Hill, IND: (all standard leagues); FAAB: $19
The rub with Hill is that the Pacers have several injured players sidelined right now, and while those terrible players like Rodney Stuckey (foot), C.J. Watson (foot), and C.J. Miles (calf) will return eventually and reduce Hill's minutes, in the long run, Hill will be the player to own this season at small forward for the Pacers. Over his last five games, Hill has averaged 16.6 points, 7.2 rebounds, 0.8 three-pointers, and 1.2 steals in 38 mpg. He's shooting 40 percent from the floor this season and 34 percent from beyond the arc, but his efficiency should improve with more reps. Hill is owned in 25 percent of ESPN leagues. He should hold good value for at least a couple more weeks, and he has a good chance of being useful all season.

DeMarre Carroll, ATL: (12-team and deeper); FAAB: $15
Carroll isn't fun to own, and he's currently dealing with a groin injury, which can be tricky. He's been dropped in a lot of leagues since going down with the injury, and while he's a good pickup for most deeper leagues, especially rotisserie leagues where his percentages can help more. In the six games he played in to start the season, Carroll was averaging 12.0 points, 6.3 rebounds, 1.2 steals, and 1.8 three-pointers on 49 percent shooting from the field, 46 percent shooting from beyond the arc, and 79 percent shooting from the line. He's a great Kawhi Leonard-like player for 9-category rotisserie leagues.

Others to consider: Harrison Barnes (28% owned on ESPN), Giannis Antetokounmpo (79%)

Power Forward

Channing Frye, ORL: (all leagues); FAAB: $21
It probably won't take $21 to secure Frye, but that's a price I'd be willing to pay to get him. He's currently owned in 35 percent of ESPN leagues. Through his last five games, Frye is averaging 12.2 points, 6.2 rebounds, 3.0 three-pointers, and 1.0 steal on 45 percent shooting from the field and 52 percent shooting from beyond the arc in 37 mpg. The Magic are giving Frye nearly nine more minutes of run than what the Suns gave him last season. That's going to open up his production this season. Also, with Aaron Gordon going down with a broken foot, there's not nearly as much depth on the wing to push Frye off the court. He's a discount version of Ryan Anderson that isn't really much less productive. If you have Danilo Gallinari on your team, Frye is someone who is actually playing big minutes and producing.

With no other great pickup suggestions at power forward, some players who are great buy-low options right now in trades are: Al Horford and Kenneth Faried.

Center

Kelly Olynyk, BOS: (all leagues); FAAB: $25+
Olynyk was featured here last week, and he's owned in 88 percent of ESPN leagues, but it feels necessary to list him here once again until he's owned in those other 12 percent of leagues. Over his last five games, Olynyk is averaging 16.6 points, 7.4 rebounds, 0.8 blocks, and 1.8 three-pointers on 64 percent shooting from the field, 56 percent shooting from beyond the arc, and 71 percent shooting from the line in 32 mpg. Those numbers can be used anywhere. The biggest concerns about Olynyk coming into the season were the number of minutes he'd get and how efficient he'd shoot the ball. Both of those worries have been erased thus far. Olynyk should be owned in all leagues.

Chris Kaman, POR: (deeper leagues); FAAB: $4
Kaman is hard to love, so the price and league size suggested above should be taken with the understanding that he comes with risk. He's rarely healthy and productive for extended stretches. The Trail Blazers are using him in a bench role, and Kaman has been remarkably productive in limited action. Over his last five games, he's averaging 12.0 points, 7.0 rebounds, and 1.8 blocks on 54 percent shooting from the field and 74 percent shooting from the line in 19 mpg. That production is ludicrous and unsustainable, but if you're willing to roll him out there this week, the Blazers have three games.

Buy low trade suggestion: Andre Drummond. Several outlets have written about the Pistons' efforts to speed up Drummond's development this season, and the force-feeding they're doing to put Drummond in a position to grow is leading to poor numbers at the outset. When everything rounds into shape down the road, whoever owns Drummond will be licking their chops.