It’s Thursday. You know what that means.
We are looking ahead to Week 11 as the calendar turns over to 2024.
On a weekly basis, I’m going to look at the waiver wire for the players you should be targeting for both short- and long-term success.
We’ll look at players that you should consider picking up who are rostered in four different rostership tiers:
- 50-60%
- 30-49%
- 15-29%
- 0-14%
What’s more, we’ll give you a breakdown of how many games each team has for the upcoming week so that you can maximize the minutes of your streamers.
Without further delay, let’s get to it, starting with the schedule of games being played for next week.
Check out the latest fantasy basketball expert consensus rankings 
Fantasy Basketball Waiver Wire Week 10
Five games:
N/A
Four games:
BKN, CLE, DAL, DEN, DET, GSW, HOU, IND, LAC, MEM, MIL, MIN, NOP, NYK, ORL, PHX, POR, SAC, TOR, UTA
Three games:
ATL, BOS, CHA, CHI, LAL, MIA, OKC, PHI, SAS, WAS
Two games:
N/A
Rostered in 50-60% of leagues
Jabari Smith exited Thursday’s game with an ankle injury, and that’s after Dillon Brooks hurt his oblique. We had Eason here last week because he was trending up, but if either – or both – of those injuries are severe, he could skyrocket with his rostership percentage. I’d take a flier on Cam Whitmore, too, but Eason is the priority add here.
Is it too early to do a hypothetical redraft of the 2023 NBA Draft? Yes, yes it is. But the reason the conversation is happening is because of the impact that Podziemski has had for the Warriors, and that’s translated into fantasy success given his fantasy-friendly profile.
Podz has been the No. 65 player over the last two weeks in fantasy, and he’s within the top 100 over the last full month. He’s a must-roster player until Draymond Green returns.
Rostered in 30-49% of leagues
Don’t look now, but Henderson is starting to figure it out. Scoot has scored in double figures in his last two games, including a 17-point, 11-assist double-double off of the bench in his last contest. What’s promising is the limited turnovers from Scoot. He’s had just four over his last three games, and mixed in there have been some steals (three against the Warriors) and hitting shots from behind the arc. He’s trending up.
With Nikola Vucevic out for the next 7-10 days, it’s time to fire up the Drummond short-term express. He went nuts against the Hawks in his first start, posting 24 points and 25 rebounds. Yes, that’s a real line. We aren’t expecting that every single game, but we know what Drummond is at this point. He’s a rebounding machine who can score points and get you blocks. Stream him freely for the next week-plus.
Rostered in 15-29% of leagues
Trayce Jackson-Davis (C,PF – GSW)
I don’t like this rostership tier this week. There aren’t many players to make a case for, but Jackson-Davis stands out above the rest. Even with his minutes going down over the last couple of games, TJD is still doing enough to be considered in deeper leagues. He’s scored in double-digits in four of his last five, and he’s averaging 8.8 rebounds per game over his last five games.
Rostered in 0-14% of leagues
It remains to be seen if Smith holds on to the starting gig in Indiana, but while he has it, we have to add him here. He only played 23 minutes for the Pacers, but that’s the most minutes he’s placed since Nov. 8. He’s scored in double figures in three straight games, and in his last game, he pulled in eight boards and had three STOCKs.
Peyton Watson (PF,SF,SG – DEN)
News came out that Aaron Gordon suffered injuries to his face and hand, requiring stitches, after being bit by a dog. That’s a scary situation, and here’s hoping Gordon is OK and recovers quickly. Gordon is a huge piece to what Denver does, so I don’t know if there’s a direct replacement for him for fantasy purposes.
My guess is that Watson gets the first crack at it, given his length, size, and defensive ability. He was a popular sleeper entering the season, and he has a chance to finally make good on the hype.
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Michael Waterloo is a featured writer at FantasyPros. For more from Michael, check out his archive and follow him @MichaelWaterloo.
