Fantasy Basketball Waiver Wire Pickups - Week 12

March 14, 2021

Week 12 fantasy basketball waiver wire pickups, adds, and sleepers for the 2020-2021 NBA season. Justin Carter recommends guards, forwards and centers to target through waivers or free agency in fantasy leagues.

Welcome back! After a double-sized Week 11, it's time to get ready for Week 12.

This week, we've got some interesting waiver wire candidates for you, especially down in Houston, where a struggling -- to put it nicely -- Rockets team is trying out some new pieces.

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. All players in this article are rostered at around 50 percent or less.

9-Category Leagues Waiver Wire

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

Caris Levert, SG/SF - Indiana Pacers

82% rostered - It's possible that someone in your league dropped Caris LeVert after his cancer scare and that he's still sitting out there on waivers. If that's the case, pick him up! Now! Come back to this article later!

LeVert made his return on Saturday, playing 26 minutes as a starter for Indiana. He had 13 points on 5-for-14 shooting and also added seven rebounds and two assists. He was 0-for-4 from deep. The numbers themselves aren't too impressive, but seeing LeVert immediately get this kind of usage in his first game as a Pacer and first game total since January 12th is really, really encouraging. At his best, LeVert's a 20-point per night scorer who can drain multiple threes per night and average over five assists per contest.

Kevin Porter Jr., SG/SF - Houston Rockets

64% rostered - If you're reading this, you probably already picked up Kevin Porter Jr. or someone else in your league has, but the numbers indicate that he's still out there on the wire in 36 percent of Yahoo! leagues. He...should not be.

Porter -- who the Rockets just absolutely stole from Cleveland for a protected second -- made his Rockets debut this week and through two games he already looks like a key part of Houston's rebuild. He's averaging 20 points, nine assists, four rebounds, two steals, and 1.5 blocks per game. He's taking 18 shots per game. He's taking seven threes per game, though has shot just 14.3 percent on them so far, a number that will go up.

KPJ is a must-have. While a healthy Rockets team has some talent in the backcourt, players like Victor Oladipo and Eric Gordon probably aren't part of Houston's future, with Oladipo being a candidate to be moved before the trade deadline. Porter will keep getting heavy minutes.

Kelly Olynyk, PF/C - Miami Heat

40% rostered - Bam Adebayo is currently dealing with a knee injury and Olynyk has played 33 or more minutes in three consecutive games. Over that span, he's averaging 15.7 points, 8.7 rebounds, 4.0 assists, and 1.3 steals per game while draining three three-pointers per contest and shooting 54.5/52.9/100. Those are really good numbers. As long as he's playing this elevated role, he needs to be on your roster and in your lineup.

Michael Carter-Williams, PG/SG - Orlando Magic

26% rostered - While MCW struggled in his last game, he came into that one with three consecutive games with at least 17 points, four rebounds, and six assists. He's carved out a nice role in Orlando this year and is benefitting from lots of injury issues, which right now have him starting and Chasson Randle backing him up. Even if Randle occasionally gets a lot of minutes, I'm not worried about him cutting into Carter-Williams' role. Until Orlando gets injured point guards back, Carter-Williams is a valuable fantasy addition.

Dwight Howard, C - Philadelphia 76ers

25% rostered - With Joel Embiid out at least two weeks with a knee injury, Dwight Howard (and Tony Bradley, if you're feeling risky) will get another chance to play some big minutes. And look, Howard isn't super exciting, but in four games as a starter this year, he's averaging 8.3 points and 9.0 rebounds per game, which are fine numbers if you need help at center, especially because he's blocked a shot per game as a starter.

Kenyon Martin Jr., SF - Houston Rockets

22% rostered - A little earlier, I talked about Kevin Porter Jr. Now, let's talk about another Rockets junior: Kenyon Martin Jr.

Also coming up from the G League bubble, Martin has posted a pair of impressive performances, averaging 14 points and 9.5 rebounds over the last two games, as well as putting in 1.5 steals and two blocks per contest. His role on this team feels less secure going forward than KPJ and he doesn't have quite the upside, but he's an affordable source of points, rebounds, steals, and blocks right now.

De'Anthony Melton, PG/SG - Memphis Grizzlies

20% rostered - Melton's minutes are inching up and he's coming off a solid showing against the Nuggets, with nine points, four rebounds, six assists, one steal, one block, and three threes. He'll occasionally flirt with a big scoring night, but overall Melton's going to just give you some well-rounded production in multiple categories. If you can handle the low usage games, Melton will add some valuable things to your fantasy lineup.

Hamidou Diallo, SG/SF - Detroit Pistons

19% rostered - The Pistons kicked off the trade deadline by dealing for Thunder wing Hamidou Diallo. Currently out with a groin injury, Diallo should see plenty of playing time in Detroit once he's back on the court, as the Pistons reportedly see the third-year player as a key part of their rebuild. He's averaging 11.9 points, 5.2 rebounds, and 2.4 assists per game, but has started just five of his 32 games and is playing 23.8 minutes per game. In Detroit, a healthy Diallo could see closer to 30 minutes, giving him more scoring and rebounding upside. And hey, maybe a new situation will help him finally start shooting over 30 percent from deep?

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