This wasn’t the success we’ve been seeing week-to-week here in the Waiver Wire Wishlist, but it’s far from our worst performance of the season. Part of our weekly woes were due to our top suggestion, Hamidou Diallo, not playing as he continues to deal with injuries. Dwight Howard was a huge plug-and-play for us and Isaiah Roby is finally coming into his own with starter minutes. Remember, we have just three weeks of the regular season left.
Each week, Nate with We Know Fantasy will present his must target waiver waiver suggestions. There will be at least five players listed each week with an attempt to cover all eligible positions. The rule of thumb is for players suggested to be owned in less than 40-percent of Yahoo and/or ESPN leagues - give or take. One player will also be owned in less than 10-percent of Yahoo and/or ESPN leagues to cater to all types of leagues. Additionally, Nate will reference both points and category strengths of all suggestions.
As previously mentioned, Diallo did not make his Pacers’ debut this week. Jalen Brunson fell down to earth last week with limited minutes and poor free-throw shooting. Howard was a fantastic plug-and-play with Joel Embiid out for the time being as he averaged a double-double over the last week with 10.5 points and 12 rebounds-per-game. He added 1.3 blocks as well. Royce O’Neal continues to play 30-plus minutes for the Jazz and adds a little bit of everything. Rudy Gay didn’t get the minutes we were hoping for but was not awful on the week. We briefly mentioned Roby previously and he averaged 9.7 points, seven rebounds and 1.3 blocks on the week. Let’s get into Week 14!
Week 13 Results
Hamidou Diallo, SG, Detroit Pistons - Did Not Play
Jalen Brunson, PG, Dallas Mavericks - 18:19 MPG, 7.3 PPG, 2.3 APG & 2 RPG
Dwight Howard, C, Philadelphia 76ers - 24:3 MPG, 10.5 PPG, 12 RPG, & 1.3 BPG
Royce O’Neale, SF/PF, Utah Jazz - 30 MPG, 7 PPG, 5.3 RPG & 2.8 APG
Rudy Gay, PF, San Antonio Spurs - 18:36 MPG, 8 PPG, 3.6 RPG & 1.4 APG
Isaiah Roby, PF/C, Oklahoma City Thunder - 29:4 MPG, 9.7 PPG, 7 RPG, 1 SPG & 1.3 BPG
Week 14 Suggestions
Jordan Poole, SG, Golden State Warriors - Owned in 35% of Yahoo and 17.6% of ESPN leagues
Week 14 Matchups: vs. PHI, @SAC & vs. ATL
After a little stint in the G-League Bubble, Poole has been on bit of a tear since his return to the Warriors. In his most recent three game stretch, Poole has put up 23, 25 and 26 points respectively. In the later two games, he started for the Warriors and saw 34-plus minutes in both games. He’s a bit volatile but I don’t expect him to go back to the G-League anytime soon with his recent production and could be a big boost to your fantasy roster, especially in points leagues.
Moses Brown, C, Oklahoma City Thunder - Owned in 34% of Yahoo and 14.1% of ESPN leagues
Week 14 Matchups: @MIN, vs. MEM & vs. BOS
We’ve talked about Roby in last week’s article and the upside he had with the shutting down of Al Horford as the Thunder look for a trade partner for the veteran big man. In the meantime, over the last two weeks, Moses has been seeing a bunch of court time with 24:36 minutes-per-game. He’s doing well with these minutes as well, averaging 11 points, nine rebounds and two-blocks. That’s a fantastic line for a guy owned so little, mainly in ESPN leagues. In a March 16th game with the Bulls, Brown went for 20 points, 16 rebounds and five blocks. We won’t see these numbers again but it shows that he can take over a game.
Bogdan Bogdanovic, SG/SF, Atlanta Hawks - Owned in 46% of Yahoo and 24.3% of ESPN leagues
Week 14 Matchups: @LAC, @SAC, @GS & @DEN
Bogdan Bogdanovic has spent the majority of the season on the injured list but has been back with the red-hot Atlanta Hawks since the start of the month. It’s taken him a bit of time to get his feet back under him, but on Thursday against the Thunder, he put in a season high 23 points. This Hawks team is currently on a seven-game winning streak as I write this and are playing some of the best basketball in the league. Bogdanovic also gets four games this week and is eligible at SG, SF and PF in Yahoo formats and SG and SF in ESPN leagues. Versatility is key at this point of the season.
De’Anthony Melton, PG, Memphis Grizzlies - Owned in 17% of Yahoo and 10.4% of ESPN leagues
Week 14 Matchups: vs. BOS, @OKC, @UTA & @UTA
The Grizzlies have experimented with this lineup all season long, which is evident with the numerous Grizzlies’ we’ve had in this series over the past weeks. I’d like to suggest Melton higher on my waiver wire list this week, but he has too many under 20 minute games for my liking. Anyhow, when he does go over 20 minutes, he’s a must have in your lineup. Grayson Allen and his poor play can’t continue to dominate minutes in this lineup (or at least we hope not) and therefore Melton is waiting to step into a starting role. As his advanced statistics are through this roof, if Melton can get anywhere near starting minutes, you have a league winner on your hands.
Dwight Howard, C, Philadelphia 76ers - Owned in 46% of Yahoo and 30% of ESPN leagues
Week 14 Matchups: @GS, @LAL & @LAC
I know, I know. Two players owned in more than 40-percent of Yahoo leagues. Sue me. I can’t not, not mention Howard for a second consecutive week after what he did as the fill in starter for the injured Joel Embiid this past week. Embiid is still another week out from being re-evaluated, meaning there’s still plenty of time for Howard to help your fantasy team. If you’re in a category league and need help with rebounds and blocks, here’s your guy.
Isaiah Stewart, PF/C, Detroit Pistons - Owned in 14% of Yahoo and 6.6% of ESPN leagues
Week 14 Matchups: @IND, vs. BKN & @WAS
I’m making Stewart my “owned in less than 10-percent of league” suggestion even though he’s over the mark in Yahoo leagues. The difference in ESPN ownership offsets that. Anyhow, he’s scoring the ball at an extremely efficient clip. In nine of his last ten games, he’s connected on at-least 60-percent of field goal chances. That’s impressive. In his last nine outings he’s averaging 8.1 points, 7.3 rebounds, 1.2 blocks, 1.1 assists and 0.8 steals across 22 minutes. As this Piston’s team continues to look for some more consistency, Stewart’s scoring efficiency should earn him some more minutes.