Last Updated on November 6, 2025 12:03 pm by Mike Passador | Published: November 6, 2025

It’s Thursday, which means it’s time to hit the waiver wire and see what’s out there. There’s a ton of roster churn early in the season as managers love to overreact to small sample sizes, not to mention the simple fact that this is as engaged as your league is likely to be. Everyone still has a chance in the standings and is still setting lineups, making moves and all that fun stuff. There’s a ton of value up for grabs so it’s going to pay to be proactive and punish any early mistakes you see.

As usual, the article will be broken down as follows:

• Double-Check Zone: Players who should be on a 12-team roster, but whose roster percentages suggest you need to make sure they’re not on your wire.
• Standard Leagues: Players worth an add in standard leagues with a potential path to value over a decent stretch of time (or the season).
• Streamers, Maybe More: Players on a hot streak or a path to short-term value with a smaller chance of long-term upside if certain things break their way.
• Watch-List: Players who may not quite be surefire adds yet, but those who should be monitored in case they trend up.
• Deep Leagues: Lower-rostered players who should be available in 14-team or 16-team leagues and beyond.
• Weekend Watch: A quick look at teams with strong weekend schedules if you’re planning on some very short-term pickups.

We’re into the season for real now, which means some managers are making panic moves and dropping guys with legitimate season-long appeal for the flavor of the week. It also means that we’re getting a glimpse into the thought process for a lot of teams, with new rotations emerging and injury news creating massive opportunities for players to break out.

Double-Check Zone

Most of these players will be rostered in competitive leagues, but we get just enough questions about them to warrant another call-out. These are your priority adds and if anyone on this list is still available, thank your lucky stars.

Donte DiVincenzo (40%)
Key Note(s): Secured starting PG role, averaging over 30 minutes a night with top-65 value so far

DiVincenzo should be rostered in any competitive league, even going down to 10 teams. He’s entrenched as the starting PG in Minnesota and has a history of legitimate standard-league value when he gets consistent run. His previous career-high in playing time was 29.1 mpg; before that it was 27.5 a night. DiVincenzo has it all in front of him and is laughably under-rostered.

Nickeil Alexander-Walker (37%)
Key Note(s): Starting PG while Trae Young is out for the next four weeks

Alexander-Walker has been awesome for the Hawks so far, stepping up in the wake of Young’s injury and giving the team good minutes as a starting PG. He’s a little miscast in that role and the value — just outside the top-110 — doesn’t quite match the minutes, but Alexander-Walker is playing a ton with bankable points, 3-pointers and steals. If you’re not worried about his .430 shooting, things get even better. Nobody’s coming for his minutes and the Hawks need a lot out of him, so Alexander-Walker is (and has been for a bit) a must-start.

Jusuf Nurkic (21%)
Key Note(s): Walker Kessler is out for the season

Nurkic was getting picked up as a short-term guy when Walker Kessler didn’t travel for Utah’s road trip, but he’s a must-add now with news that Kessler will miss the rest of the season after shoulder surgery. Fantasy GMs should be mindful that Nurkic won’t change your team’s fortunes — he’s going to get random nights off and figures to either be traded or shut down eventually — but he’ll only need something like 24 minutes a night to make hay while the sun shines. Nurkic is going to be a drag on both percentage categories but the upside of him in a starting role again warrants an add in all formats.

Cameron Johnson (79%)
Key Note(s): Is still Cameron Johnson

We’ve gotten a few questions about dropping Johnson amid a slow start but you should definitely not do that, and if he’s available you need to pick him up. Johnson’s shooting will turn around and when he does you have a legitimate top-80 guy just waiting to go. Last year he shot .475 from the field and .390 from deep for a horrible Nets team and this year Johnson is at .400 and .250 for a Nuggets offense that has the world’s best playmaker at the wheel. Don’t overreact to two weeks.

Ryan Rollins (47%)
Key Note(s): Getting closer to locking down the PG role full-time

Rollins has blossomed as Milwaukee’s starting PG after hitting the radar last year as the backup. Kevin Porter Jr. won’t be back until mid-December at the earliest after tearing his right meniscus and Cole Anthony has settled down after a couple solid games last week. Rollins gives the Bucks the best on-court impact of any of their options, and with minimal competition he is sewing up the gig with each passing game. He’s lost some luster after a few so-so scoring games but the rest of Rollins’ numbers are strong. He’s just outside the top-60 on the season.

Cedric Coward (34%)
Key Note(s): Playing consistently, rising up wing rotation and actually playing well through turmoil

Coward has been a bright spot for Memphis in a season that is already teetering. He’s carved out real minutes and most critically can excel without the ball in his hands. He’s got a great skill set as a complementary player but is ready for more on his plate if the Grizzlies steer into a youth movement. So far Coward has turned 26.0 mpg into 15.3 points, 5.0 rebounds, 2.5 assists, 1.0 steals, 0.4 blocks and 1.8 triples on .583 shooting. The efficiency will come down but Coward is cruising right now and also holds some serious second-half intrigue depending on how things go.

Collin Sexton (33%)
Key Note(s): Bankable fantasy game, stabilizing role and now LaMelo Ball is injured

Sexton was a borderline draft pick in standard leagues but his main competition has already landed on the injury report — first Brandon Miller with a shoulder subluxation and now LaMelo Ball with more ankle troubles. His time in Utah proved that Sexton can pile up numbers on a bad team and right now there’s not much in his way to 17 points, five assists and a couple 3-pointers per night on solid marks from the field. The rest of Sexton’s stat set is lacking but while he’s guaranteed big minutes, you should run with him.

Honorable Mention(s): Toumani Camara, Herb Jones, Jaden McDaniels, Cason Wallace and PJ Washington should just be on a roster to begin with but their roster percentages remain far, far too low. 

Standard Leagues

These players are either approaching 12-team value or have already seized it but every fantasy league may not have caught on to that yet. They may not be guaranteed to hold ROS value but they are worth a look nonetheless as it may be a possibility, or there may at least be some medium-to-long-term appeal.

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