RADIO
Now a couple of weeks into the 2014-15 NBA season, the waiver wire has taken its typical place in the weekly/daily routine of fantasy basketball managers. The following centers, whether of the “sleeper” variety or just cashing in temporarily on an unforeseen opportunity, almost certainly deserve attention across the various formats.
Position Eligibility & Ownership Rate Based on Yahoo! Fantasy Basketball Player List
Waiver Wire Center for Right Now
Brandan Wright (DAL, PF/C) - 25% Owned
Wright is simultaneously frustrating and awesome to have on your fantasy team. He is frustrating due to only playing 15-20 minutes per game. He is awesome because, even in that limited time, the 27-year-old post player is an enormous boost to field-goal percentage and blocks, without hurting free-throw percentage or turnovers.
So far this year, Wright has posted a ridiculous 75 percent success rate from the floor while swatting 1.4 shots and only turning the ball over 0.3 times per game. If you need to fill in some starts at center, Wright makes for a great plug-in.
Waiver Wire Center in Deep Leagues
Chris Kaman (POR, PF/C) - 6% Owned
Kaman is another guy, like Wright, that is locked into a part-time role, but delivering with tremendous efficiency. Despite seeing just shy of 20 minutes per game, Kaman has pulled down at least five rebounds in every game for the Trailblazers. He is also averaging 1.4 blocks per game, including a monster effort in that department on Sunday.
The reason Kaman is not worth owning in a standard-depth league is because he turns the ball over at a relatively high rate and does not put up monstrous percentages, though they are typically solid.
For those in deeper leagues, Kaman is an excellent add for depth at center. The veteran center has additional upside for some strong statistical lines in any game that teammates Robin Lopez or LaMarcus Aldridge were to sit out.
Waiver Wire Center to Keep an Eye On
Patrick Patterson (TOR, PF/C) - 7% Owned
With Amir Johnson (ankle) missing a few games during the past week, Patterson was given a chance to start. Intriguingly, over a trio of starts, he hit seven three-point shots to go along with totals of 35 points, 16 rebounds, five assists, four steals and two blocks.
While Patterson is not an advisable fantasy option if stuck in limited time behind Johnson, the long-range shooting potential could make him a rare and valuable type of player if he landed a starting role.
Center-eligible players that trade some traditional big-man stats for three-point shooting – like Channing Frye or Ryan Anderson – are incredibly valuable on a fantasy team that is punting blocks or field-goal percentage. Those running with that type of roster should keep an eye on Patterson.
When Johnson, or any other frontcourt contributor in Toronto for that matter, is inevitably banged up again, be prepared to stream Patterson as a quick fix at center.
