Welcome back to RotoBaller's weekly fantasy basketball waiver wire column and schedule breakdown. How's this season going for you? Need some help with your team? Let's get you some!
It's hard to believe we're already as far into the NBA season as we are. Week 10, y'all! It's the week of Christmas games—the time when it really feels like the NBA gets going.
These recommendations are mainly for 9-cat leagues, but if you play in another format, there's a good chance that the information here can still help you. We'll be looking at centers, forwards, and guards whose low rostership and upside make them ideal players to get onto your fantasy team. 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 10.
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NBA Week 10 Schedule Guide
Let's take a look at some notable things on the schedule this week.
Teams with four games: Dallas, Los Angeles Lakers, Milwaukee, New York, Philadelphia, Phoenix
Teams with three games: Atlanta, Boston, Charlotte, Chicago, Cleveland, Denver, Detroit, Golden State, Houston, Memphis, Minnesota, New Orleans, Oklahoma City, Orlando, Portland, Sacramento, San Antonio, Toronto, Utah, Washington
Teams with two games: Brooklyn, Indiana, Los Angeles Clippers, Miami
Number of teams playing each day:
Monday: 18
Tuesday: 10
Wednesday: 22
Thursday: 4
Friday: 28
Saturday: 0
Sunday: 10
Back-to-Backs:
Sunday/Monday: Charlotte, Los Angeles Lakers, Minnesota, Orlando, Toronto
Monday/Tuesday: Phoenix, Utah
Tuesday/Wednesday: Chicago, Detroit, Golden State, New York
Wednesday/Thursday: 0
Thursday/Friday: New Orleans, San Antonio, Washington
Friday/Saturday: 0
Saturday/Sunday: 0
9-Category Leagues - Waiver Wire Adds
This column is written based on H2H 9-category 12-team leagues. All players in this article are rostered at around 50 percent or less.
Thomas Bryant, C - Los Angeles Lakers - 29% rostered
With Anthony Davis now set to miss the next month of the season, Bryant should be at the top of your fantasy radar this week. He played 23 minutes last game, going 9-for-11 from the floor for 21 points while also adding six rebounds, one assist, and two steals.
With Davis out, I'd expect Bryant to slide into the starting lineup at the five. Notable in projecting that is the lineup data from the last game. Davis missed the entire second half, and Bryant started the second half, plus played down the stretch. Expect to see a lot more of Bryant in the near future. His ability to shoot from deep also boosts his value.
Will Barton, G/F - Washington Wizards - 41% rostered
Barton's an intriguing pickup right now. He's on a tear over his last three games, averaging 19.3 points per game on 14.0 field goal attempts per contest, with 4.3 rebounds and 6.0 assists per game.
On the surface, that looks really good, but there are also two complicating factors. One is that before this run, Barton wasn't playing very well. In the first 25 games, he averaged 7.3 points per contest. The other factor is that once Bradley Beal is back from his hamstring injury, Barton loses value too.
But, and it's an important but, Barton is 100% worth a roster spot in all formats until Beal is back. Once he is back, then Barton can probably be sent back to the wire, but take advantage of this short-term jump in value.
Quentin Grimes, G/F - New York Knicks - 25% rostered
Grimes has scored in double figures in four of the last five games, including two games in that span with 20-plus points. Over this span, Grimes is averaging 15.4 points, 4.6 rebounds, 1.8 assists, and 3.2 threes per game on 55.6% shooting. Since moving into the starting lineup in mid-November, Grimes has been producing some solid numbers, and there's no reason to think that won't continue.
Naz Reid, C - Minnesota Timberwolves - 17% rostered
Reid played over Rudy Gobert on Friday with Gobert out with an ankle issue. In his place, Reid started and scored 28 points, to go along with nine rebounds, three assists, three steals, one block, and three three-pointers. He shot 61.1% from the floor. Reid loses value if Gobert doesn't miss more time, but he's worth adding in case Gobert's absence extends past Friday's contest. If it doesn't, he still has some deep-league value.
Moritz Wagner, F/C - Orlando Magic - 38% rostered
I mentioned Wagner last week, so let's just take a look at what he's done since then instead of rehashing what I said in the other column. Over the last four games, Wagner has averaged 14.8 points per game, along with 1.8 threes and 5.0 rebounds per contest. He's shot 55% over that span and is playing 26.3 minutes per game.
Nickeil Alexander-Walker, G/F - Utah Jazz - 19% rostered
The Jazz wing has scored in double figures in five of the last six games. Over that span, he's averaging 14.8 points, 3.2 rebounds, 4.0 assists, 0.8 steals, and 0.7 blocks per game on 62.7% shooting. He's been a valuable reserve off the bench for the Jazz and has filled in as a starter a couple of times over this span. NAW isn't the most exciting add you could make, but he's a good player who has a role on most fantasy rosters.
Kemba Walker, G - Dallas Mavericks - 10% rostered
Uhh...what? Walker, who recently joined the Mavericks, played 42 minutes against the Cavaliers, scoring 32 points on 12-for-25 shooting, along with five rebounds, seven assists, and one block. He made four threes.
Now, it's obviously worth noting that Luka Doncic sat that game out. When Luka plays, Walker won't really get the same level of usage. He's worth a speculative add in deep leagues because he showed he can perform when he gets extended minutes.
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