Injuries! Suspensions! Tanking! Load Management! Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh. They have all made a mockery of the fantasy season so far. With that said, opportunities have arisen for the chosen few. Let’s take a look at these newly christened ballers and see if they are worth your time. There will also be the boring players that continue to get overlooked for some reason. Something for everyone!
Every Wednesday, I will present this waiver wire piece. The Yahoo player list and ownership percentages will be utilized. I will only highlight those players who are owned in less than 50% of leagues.
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Troy Brown Jr. (SG/SF – WAS): 16% owned
Brown has only played in three games this season, but the minutes are trending in the right direction: 17, 22, and 31. Against the Pistons on Monday, Brown scored 14 points on 5-of-10 shooting and contributed 10 rebounds, four assists, and three steals. The Wizards are a #NotGood basketball team, so development of their young players will be paramount. Plus, look at the depth chart at the small forward position: C. J. Miles, Isaac Bonga, Admiral Schofield, and Davis Bertans. Yeah, Brown should do plenty for you as the season progresses.
Eric Paschall (SF/PF – GS): 50% owned
Paschall doesn’t technically adhere to the criteria I wrote in the lede, but I’m a flexible individual. Plus, it’s 50% ownership. If it was 51%, then I’d expect internet tomatoes to be thrown at my head. Pascall just put up a 34 point/13 rebound game on Monday against the Trail Blazers. Is he, therefore, a must add? The Warriors have been decimated by injuries to begin the season, so what happens when D’Angelo Russell, Draymond Green, and Kevon Looney return to the rotation? The likely starting frontcourt will consist of Looney and Green with Paschall going back to the bench. With that said, the Warriors will likely be in tank mode and load manage their players on a consistent basis, so Paschall will continue to get playing time. Just don’t expect 40 minutes with 19 shot attempts like in his game against Portland.
Danuel House Jr. (SG/SF – HOU): 39% owned
As a starter in six games this season, House is averaging 31.7 minutes, 13 points, 2.7 three-pointers, 6 rebounds, 0.8 steals, and 1.3 blocks. The turnovers have been minuscule at 0.8 as well. The Rockets play at the second-fastest pace in the league and have the second-worst defensive efficiency, so there will be plenty of opportunities to collect fantasy goodies. Something to keep an eye on, though, is that D’Antoni relegated House to the bench two games ago in favor of Eric Gordon, so it’s possible that he rolls out a lineup with Harden, Westbrook, Gordon, Tucker, and Capela. Gordon has been terrible and is better suited off the bench, so House should be in the starting lineup, but I’m just a guy writing from his mom’s basement.
Luke Kennard (SG – DET): 50% owned
Kennard has started five games while coming off the bench for three games. He’s averaging two more minutes as a starter but is scoring almost three more points off the bench. Whatever role he’s in, Kennard has shown the ability to be productive and contribute points, three-pointers, assists, and fall into a few rebounds. He won’t contribute much in the defensive categories but does shoot well from the free-throw line. Now, Derrick Rose and Blake Griffin have been out, so some usage and production may subside, but he should still be a viable fantasy asset.
Meyers Leonard (PF/C – MIA): 29% owned
Leonard has played 28, 25, and 25 minutes the past three games. Over that span, he’s averaged 13.3 points, 7 rebounds, 1.7 assists, 1 steal, and 2 blocks. He shot 69% from the field and 62% from beyond the arc. The free-throw shooting has been poor at 60%, but on low volume. That always boggles my mind when players who can shoot well from over 20 feet struggle to make a free throw. Anyways, the 60% shooting from the field is obviously going to regress and the defensive stats look to be an anomaly, but you never know about these things. Could Kelly Olynyk start playing better while Leonard regresses and we start at square one? Well within the range of outcomes, but deal with that if/when it happens.
Bryn Forbes (PG/SG – SA): 23% owned
Forbes is money. People don’t like money? He’s started every game and averages 28.6 minutes, 14.2 points, 3.5 rebounds, 1.3 assists, 0.7 steals, and 2.5 three-pointers per game. I get it. He’s a three-point specialist who shoots 35% from beyond the arc, but is only shooting 40% from the field in total. If you need three-pointers, though, Forbes is indeed money.
Ky Bowman (PG – GS): 16% owned
Bowman has to be mentioned because of the situation in Golden State. Steph Curry is out for a while and D’Angelo Russell has missed games. The team will likely tank and load manage their players, so opportunities will be there. Bowman is one of the healthy point guards at the moment and, as a starter in two games, he’s averaged 38 minutes, 17.5 points, 1.5 three-pointers, 5.5 rebounds, 6 assists, and 1 steal. He shot 60% from the field! That is unsustainable. For perspective, in four preseason games over the summer, Bowman shot 39% from the field. When Russell does return and play, Bowman will soak up the backup point guard minutes and get the occasional start, but he’s not as good as the two-game sample size of starts show.
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Stan Son is a featured writer at FantasyPros. To read more from Stan, check out his archive and follow him @Stan_Son.