This article is part of our NBA Waiver Wire series.
With all the oddities that come with the NBA Christmas slate now behind us, fantasy owners can breathe a sigh of relief with Week 12 returning to a somewhat normal schedule. There are a number of enticing options on the wire this week, though the key, as always, is finding players who are trending in the right direction and, more importantly, are guaranteed a healthy workload.
With that said, the waiver wire is stocked with players who have been unable to produce night in and night out -- there's a reason they're on the wire, after all -- so approach any move with skepticism. There have also been a few key injuries of late, which may result in role players stepping into a more prominent role.
Nearly all teams play three or more games in Week 12, with the one exception being the Knicks, who will be limited to two contests. There are eight teams that play four games, including Dallas, Memphis and Toronto.
Before getting to a few waiver wire additions, there are a couple players worth mentioning who may be in position to benefit from injuries. Jeff Teague still appears to be at least a few days away from returning and Derrick Rose just came back from an ankle injury, so Tyus Jones (5 percent rostered) figures to see time as the backup point guard and receive around 20-to-25 minutes per night. Jones notched his third start of the season Sunday at Oklahoma City and was on the
With all the oddities that come with the NBA Christmas slate now behind us, fantasy owners can breathe a sigh of relief with Week 12 returning to a somewhat normal schedule. There are a number of enticing options on the wire this week, though the key, as always, is finding players who are trending in the right direction and, more importantly, are guaranteed a healthy workload.
With that said, the waiver wire is stocked with players who have been unable to produce night in and night out -- there's a reason they're on the wire, after all -- so approach any move with skepticism. There have also been a few key injuries of late, which may result in role players stepping into a more prominent role.
Nearly all teams play three or more games in Week 12, with the one exception being the Knicks, who will be limited to two contests. There are eight teams that play four games, including Dallas, Memphis and Toronto.
Before getting to a few waiver wire additions, there are a couple players worth mentioning who may be in position to benefit from injuries. Jeff Teague still appears to be at least a few days away from returning and Derrick Rose just came back from an ankle injury, so Tyus Jones (5 percent rostered) figures to see time as the backup point guard and receive around 20-to-25 minutes per night. Jones notched his third start of the season Sunday at Oklahoma City and was on the court for 32 minutes when Rose and Teague were both on the shelf, but his scoring upside is rather limited.
Rodions Kurucs (29 percent owned) of the Nets is also worth a look with Allen Crabbe's status still up in the air. Kurucs has started the last six contests and is averaging 12.8 points along with 5.0 boards per game in that span.
Adds for All Leagues
Noah Vonleh, Knicks (48 percent rostered)
Vonleh has been a part of the starting lineup for the majority of the season, although his ownership is still below 50 percent as we near the midway point in the 2018-19 campaign. He's put up double-doubles in each of his last three contests contests and has notched double-digit rebounding totals in seven of his last nine games. However, when it comes to his scoring output, the only item fantasy owners can count on is his sporadic point totals. Vonleh is a candidate to score in double figures on any given night, but he's also not a focal point of the Knicks' offense. The 23-year-old is averaging 8.5 points and 9.5 rebounds over 30.6 minutes in his last 10 games. His role looks to be safe for the time being, though with the Knicks playing only two games in Week 12, Vonleh is a player to consider claiming and stashing on the bench until New York's four-game Week 13.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Clippers (44 percent rostered)
Gilgeous-Alexander has solidified his role within the starting five since early November and has logged 28.3 minutes per contest since that time. He's also found ways to contribute in a variety of ways, posting diverse stat lines on most nights (11.4 points, 3.0 rebounds, 2.8 assists, 1.0 steal over his last 25 games). However, Gilgeous-Alexander's scoring totals tend to fluctuate from night-to-night, with a poor performance typically following a double-digit scoring output. Consistency is the name of the game when it comes to Gilgeous-Alexander, as is the case with most of these potential waiver claims.
Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Lakers (39 percent rostered)
Caldwell-Pope could reemerge as a relevant fantasy option with Lebron James recently going down with a groin injury. Caldwell-Pope saw a sizeable gain in minutes on Christmas Day (26) and put up nine points while collecting three boards, an assist and a steal. He followed up with 28 minutes in Thursday's loss to Sacramento, though he took only four shots. While Lonzo Ball, Brandon Ingram and Kyle Kuzma are the three frontrunners to make up for James' absence, don't rule out Caldwell-Pope as someone who could log closer to 30 minutes over the next several games until James is back in the mix. His upside is relatively limited, of course, but Caldwell-Pope is a volume three-point shooter who could provide help in that category as a streamer.
Reggie Bullock, Pistons (31 percent rostered)
Bullock drilled seven shots from beyond the arc and finished the night with 33 points Dec. 19 against Minnesota, but he's fallen back to Earth over his last few contests. He's totaled just 13 points over his team's previous two games despite logging 32 or more minutes. The North Carolina product hasn't managed to put up consistent scoring efforts throughout the season, although he's certainly shown that he can score 20 points on any given night. Bullock is also good for a few boards and assists nearly every game, which can tack on value in those areas. Bullock is a borderline, buy-low add, despite his starting role in Detroit.
Garrett Temple, Grizzlies (23 percent rostered)
Temple has been a staple of Memphis' starting lineup all season, and he's posted double-digit scoring outputs in each of his previous five contests. He's also tacked on 3.6 rebounds, 1.0 assists, 1.4 steals and 1.6 blocks per game over that stretch. The 32-year-old guard may be one of the more consistent scoring options on this list, as he's averaging 10.7 points (the highest of his career) over 34 games in 2018.
Other suggestions: E'Twaun Moore, Pelicans (29 percent rostered); Davis Bertans, Spurs (six percent rostered); Wesley Matthews, Mavericks (47 percent rostered); Terrence Ross, Magic (32 percent rostered); Nemanja Bjelica, Kings (54 percent rostered)
Deep League Adds
Iman Shumpert (four percent rostered)
Shumpert has been heating up of late, turning in three double-digit scoring outputs over his previous three matchups. However, this likely won't last for more than a few more games, so he could be used as a quick streaming option while his recent hot streak lasts. One of the upsides of rostering Shumpert is that he's been on the floor for 21-plus minutes in all but two of his 27 games this season, so although he's struggled to put up relevant fantasy lines, he should continue to have opportunities to do so. On the season, Shumpert ranks just outside the top-100 in average fantasy production.
Michael Kidd-Gilchrist (four percent rostered)
Kidd-Gilchrist is the furthest reach on this list, but he's been adding at least some value on the boards and in the scoring column of late, so he could also be picked up as a quick streamer in deep leagues or as a cheap addition to any DFS lineup. He's averaging 7.0 points, 4.2 rebounds and 1.0 assist over his previous six contests and has been on the court for 17.0 minutes per game off the bench over that stretch. Don't expect the former No. 2 overall pick to do anything spectacular, but he's good for a decent (and diverse) final line on occasion.
Other deep-league adds: Wayne Ellington, Heat (nine percent rostered); Rodney McGruder (17 percent rostered); Sam Dekker, Wizards (one percent rostered); DeAndre' Bembry, Hawks (four percent rostered); Dorian Finney-Smith, Mavericks (three percent rostered); Richaun Holmes (18 percent rostered)
