Deni Avdija (SF, WAS) - Fantasy Basketball Waiver Wire Pickups for Week 23

BALLER MOVE: Add in 14+ Team Leagues

ROSTERED IN: 8% of leagues

ANALYSIS: The surge of Deni Avdija in all fantasy leaderboards has a very easy-to-grasp reason and that's Kyle Kuzma missing time with an injury. Ruled out Sunday, that made it four consecutive outings missed by the Kuz, which has clearly opened the door for Avdija to play a much larger role with the Wiz of late. So much so that he's even made it to the starting five after not appearing in one (almost) for the last three months.

Although Avdija started 29 of the first 32 games played by the Wiz through December 20, he only had five starts in the following 38 matches up until last week when he grabbed back-to-back starts against Denver and San Antonio on Wednesday and Friday (I'm writing this before Sunday's game, though Kuzma is out and Deni should be in the starting unit once more).

Avdija also played 28 minutes on March 18 and 34 three days later before getting into the starting lineup, which ultimately might be the right move because of his extraordinary production. In Deni's last four matches through Saturday, he's averaged a 14-10-5-1 per-game stat line. He's scored 15+ points in three consecutive games, shooting 83%, 77%, and 64% from the floor on increasing diets of six, nine, and 14 FGA.

The third-year wing is entering a developmental zone in which he's seemingly stuck and not moving that much. In other words, this Avdija is probably what he is going to be for the remainder of his career unless he becomes the face of the franchise in a rebuilding effort and gets the benefit of playing the classic "somebody has to do something" boosting role.

Avdija is scoring a lot on a little bit of an unsustainably-high FG% while also grabbing tons of boards and contributing a bunch of dimes nightly. The turnovers are very hurting, though, with 11 total possessions lost in his last four games alone. As long as Kuz keeps missing time, and even coming off the pine, Avdija is worth roster spot ROS in most deeper formats.

More Fantasy Basketball Waiver Wire Pickups

League Winners: Second-Half Trade Targets and Stashes - 2025 Fantasy Basketball

Things have not gone as planned for fantasy basketball managers who drafted players like Joel Embiid or Jimmy Butler. But there's plenty of basketball left to be played and it's time to reassess how we view players going forward. If you want to win that fantasy basketball league championship, worry less about where your players […]

Dan Palyo 23 hours ago

Fantasy Basketball Waiver Wire Pickups for Week 14 (2024-25): January 27 - February 2

We flip the calendar to February this week and edge closer to both the All-Star break and the NBA trade deadline. Some of the moves you can make in the next few weeks could greatly impact your team's ability to compete for a fantasy championship in March or April! Most leagues have a weekly moves […]

Dan Palyo 5 days ago

League Winners: Players To Stash For the Stretch Run - 2024 Fantasy Basketball

The All-Star Break is upon us and while it's nice to have some time off from setting lineups, making DFS lineups, and placing bets. It's also a nice time to look ahead and what moves you can make to put your team in the best position possible to win a fantasy basketball title. Remember, the […]

Dan Palyo 12 months ago

Trendon Watford (PF, POR) - Fantasy Basketball Waiver Wire Pickups for Week 23

BALLER MOVE: Add in 12+ Team Leagues ROSTERED IN: 7% of leagues ANALYSIS: According to Shams Charania of The Athletic (reporting on Sunday morning), the Portland Trail Blazers are leaning toward shutting down Damian Lillard for the remainder of the season. The Blazers, mind you, have been without Jerami Grant, Anfernee Simons, Lillard, and Jusuf […]

Antonio Losada 2 years ago

Xavier Tillman Sr. (PF, MEM) - Fantasy Basketball Waiver Wire Pickups for Week 23

BALLER MOVE: Add in 12+ Team Leagues ROSTERED IN: 7% of leagues ANALYSIS: With just a week and a half remaining in the regular season and Memphis sitting pretty in the no. 2 seed in the Western Conference, it's hard to envision Steven Adams returning before the playoffs and risking any sort of setback in […]

Antonio Losada 2 years ago