Hope you all enjoyed the NBA All-Star Break. Of course, after the game, there is a lull in the season. As boring as it may be, this is a great time to work the waiver wire and retool your roster for the stretch run. The following guards, whether of the “sleeper” variety or just cashing in temporarily on an unforeseen opportunity, almost certainly deserve attention across the various formats during Week 17 of the campaign.
Position Eligibility & Ownership Rate Based on Yahoo! Fantasy Basketball Player List
Note: NBA Trade Deadline transactions not official upon time of this writing
Waiver Wire Guard for Right Now
Gerald Green (PHX, SG/SF) - 56% Owned
Green has been awful lately, and steadily losing minutes in the Suns rotation. That's the bad news. The good news is that his slump probably means he's been dropped in your league, and now may be a good time to grab him before somebody else does.
After a hot November, Green has steadily declined, but his numbers since January 25 have really been terrible. From then until now, a span of eight games, Green hasn't scored double digits in any of them. To make things worse, Green is shooting just .345 from the field in that span, and he's doing so in roughly 14.5 minutes per game. In other words, he's doing more bad than good in a very little amount of time.
So what makes Green a guard to add right now? First, Green is notoriously streaky, and could hit a hot streak at any minute. Maybe the All Star break is what Green needs to get back on track. Second, the Suns have announced that they will try to move Goran Dragic before the NBA trade deadline. The Suns' have been terribly crowded in the backcourt and wing positions all year, and a Dragic trade would surely free up most of the minutes Green has already lost.
Green is not a sure thing, but I'd be willing to make a speculative add here going forward. The Suns will surely move Dragic, who plans on leaving as a free agent after the season, and I'm willing to gamble that Green sees a huge bump in minutes going forward.
Waiver Wire Guard For Deeper Leagues
Randy Foye (DEN, PG/SG) - 27% Owned
After a very solid 2013-14 season, Foye has been a disappointment this year. He's been injured and ineffective all season long, while playing for one of the most disappointing teams in the NBA. Much like Green, Foye has also been pretty poor lately, albeit he is coming off of a solid 12 point, two steal effort on 2/10 against the Lakers.
Foye is another guy who could benefit greatly from the looming trade deadline. The Nuggets have made it known that everyone not named Jusuf Nurkic is available as Denver looks to rebuild. Foye could find himself being dealt to a better situation with more playing time, but even if he remains in Denver, Foye could end up being productive down the stretch.
Foye's value is at an all time low, so it's no surprise that teams have been more interested in trading for Arron Afflalo. Afflalo's name has come up in plenty of trade rumors, most recent rumors have him going to Portland. There's no doubt in my mind that he'll be dealt somewhere, and once he is, Foye is going to see a huge increase in minutes.
Foye went off last year filling in for an injured Ty Lawson, and he is going to be productive as long as he is on the court. He's another streaky guy, but he can fill up the points and three point categories in a hurry if he gets hot. He's worth a speculative shot going forward.