Fantasy Basketball Waiver Wire Pickups - Week 17/18

The waiver wire is where leagues are won and lost. The draft is long past and now your rosters feel completely different if you are even moderately active. Players come and go due to poor performances and/or injury all the time. Staying on top of your needs is essential to winning matchups and grinding your way to a championship.

As a reminder for most leagues, it is crucial to plan ahead. Waiver wire adds, scheduling, and player injuries are all things to consider. Make an effort to improve your team by maximizing your weekly adds and utilizing streamer spots via the waiver wire. Be wary of weekly streaming options and stay ahead of your opponents.

Our staff at RotoBaller has great insight and daily columns on how to improve your squad and tips to make your team successful, so be sure to check them out! Now, let's get prepared for Week 17/18.

Week 17/18 Standard Leagues - Waiver Wire Pickups

*Securing your categorical needs at this point is important, especially if you're playing in head-to-head leagues*

Columns are written based on H2H 9-category standard size leagues:

PJ Washington - PF - Charlotte Hornets (40% owned) 

With Marvin Williams bought out, P.J. Washington has a chance to continue his strong rookie campaign. He was already playing a good amount of minutes per game prior to Williams' departure but maybe this opens up a few shots and increases his usage. Washington's free throw percentage is a major bummer but if you can circumvent the negative impact, he is a solid add for boards and stocks while providing decent points, threes, and a field goal bump. He is coming off of an ankle injury which kept him out for a few games and is likely going to be rusty until after the All-Star Break. Hopefully, he gets a second wind after a few more days off and provides top-120 numbers the rest of the way. He's an end-of-bench add for 12-team leagues and more appropriate for those in shallower formats.

Shabazz Napier - PG - Washington Wizards (25% owned) 

Shabazz Napier's season has been a bit of a rollercoaster. At first, he was playing behind Jeff Teague, then he had the opportunity to start and thrived (fantasy-wise), then he's traded to Denver, and then immediately dealt to the Wizards. Washington is an ideal landing spot for him because, to be honest, there are not many starting jobs available for point guards in the NBA, particularly smaller ones who cannot defend. The Wizards starting point guard at the moment is Ish Smith who, with all due respect, is not very good. Napier has performed well enough over the past few games that he could find himself in a pseudo-starting role where he plays 30-minutes per game off of the bench and maybe even cracks the starting lineup eventually. For now, that is up in the air but his performances of late are promising. You mainly want him for his assists, the points, threes, rebounds, and occasional steals are just a bonus.

Gary Trent Jr. - SG - Portland Trail Blazers (14% owned)

Gary Trent Jr. would be more of a story out of Portland if Damian Lillard was not overshadowing the entire league as a whole. While Lillard is averaging around 40 points per game over his past 10 games, Trent is finding his footing in the league with several solid shooting performances. Over the past month, he is averaging double-digit points with nearly three threes and rebounds and a steal per game. What makes this so fantasy viable is that his efficiency is incredible. Trent Jr. is shooting roughly 50 percent from the field and 85 percent from free throw (although he does not get there much) and most impressive of all, the dude just does not turn the ball over. Trent has one turnover since January 18th. He is an add in all 12-team and deeper leagues.

De'Anthony Melton - SG - Memphis Grizzlies (12% owned)

Melton's been brutal over the past few games but we cannot ignore the impact that Crowder's absence will have on his usage and potential fantasy output. Prior to the trade, Melton was already putting up top-150 numbers in limited minutes per game (roughly 20). Now, he ha an opportunity to soak up between 25-28 if his coach allows for it and he could be a major fantasy asset. Melton's bread and butter are his steals and assists while he also does not hurt your percentages or turnovers. If he can score double-digit points per game soon, he will be a must-add in almost every 10-team and deeper league. He's a speculative add for now with great potential.

Kevin Porter Jr. - SF - Cleveland Cavaliers (7% owned)

Kevin Porter Jr. is showing up over the past two weeks. He's scoring well, hitting threes, grabbing steals and nabbing a few assists and boards. He is not the best add in the world given that the scoring could hit a lull (as is typical with rookies) but for anybody that needs points, he's a worthwhile waiver add. KPJ's role increased with the Jordan Clarkson trade and he is seemingly making the most of it. His minutes are in the high-20's and he has cemented himself as a capable sixth-man for Cleveland this season. He could find a starting role before years end but that probably does not affect his fantasy production much, especially if he's going up against starters. The increase in play-time would offset that spike in competition. We still do not know how much Andre Drummond's arrival will impact the team so KPJ is a volatile add who should be dumped at the first sign of struggle in 12-plus teamers.

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