Last Updated on November 25, 2025 6:20 pm by Mike Passador | Published: November 25, 2025

We are now deep enough into the season where looking at the standings is revealing actual information. Your team has settled in and early over- and under-performers are not necessarily over- or under-performing anymore; we’re getting a glimpse of what the reality is for most of these players. Roster decisions are starting to trickle in and the guys who were added early as speculative pickups might not hit the wire again.

In the last couple of weeks we’ve seen a few guys “graduate,” so to speak, going from deep-league targets to full on must-roster guys. Collin Gillespie is chief among them (though he’s still showing up on our Quick Hits list because he’s only at 29% rosters), but Andre Drummond, Noah Clowney and Jay Huff among others are all on to bigger and brighter things. That means it’s time to cycle through the next batch of potentially available players to see who can provide a lift to deep-league GMs.

Let’s see what we’ve got.

Quick Hits

These are the players under 30% rostered that really should be, even in standard leagues. You’re going to start seeing them talked about in your regular waiver columns as well so if they’re available in deeper formats, feel free pick them up right now.

Season-long potential: Noah Clowney (22%), Collin Gillespie (29%), Collin Sexton (26%), Daniel Gafford (22%), Moussa Diabate (25%), TJ McConnell (12%), Vince Williams Jr. (23%), Jay Huff (10%), Tre Jones (19%), Ayo Dosunmu (24%), Jaylon Tyson (14%), Ace Bailey (26%)

Streamable in the short term, maybe more: Peyton Watson (23%), Brandon Williams (16%), Luke Kornet (10%), Saddiq Bey (13%), Tristan da Silva (14%),  Naji Marshall (15%), Klay Thompson (14%)

Boring but reliable: Sam Merrill (7%), Harrison Barnes (21%), Duncan Robinson (21%), Mitchell Robinson (6%), Alex Caruso (10%), Max Christie (15%), Svi Mykhailiuk (3%)

14, 16, 18 Teams

We’re going to be referencing Yahoo roster percentages for the most part. In one of my 12-team leagues, the highest-rostered player who is still a free agent is D’Angelo Russell (23%), but there are only two other players at 20% or above (who aren’t injured). As such, we’re going to set the guardrails for this between 5% and 20% rostered — for the most part.

That doesn’t mean that someone who falls outside that arbitrary band can be overlooked — they just may not be available enough to help out the bulk of deep-league GMs. Basically, if you’re probably going to hear about them in 12-team conversations, we’ve included them above. Remember, just because someone isn’t in a certain section of the article doesn’t mean you can’t bend the rules. If there’s a player that’s 4% rostered that’s a perfect fit for your build, go ahead an add him, even in a 14-team league. Things get increasingly flexible as leagues get deeper.

Jamal Shead (8%)

The Raptors are on fire and have a little something cooking. Brandon Ingram, Scottie Barnes and the other big names will get most of the attention, but don’t discount the work that the second unit is putting in. Shead has quietly become one of the best backup PGs in the league and has been giving the team great minutes. He is a consistent source of assists — scarce even in standard leagues — and is liable to chip in some 3-pointers and steals, too. Shead has also been among the league’s best in AST:TO, giving him some extra punch in 9-cat leagues. RJ Barrett is dealing with a knee sprain and Shead has joined Toronto’s other four usual starters in the closing lineup for each of the last two games. He’s earning everything he’s getting and the consistent output in assists alone makes him roster-worthy in 16-team leagues with a defensible spot in 14-team formats if you have the right roster build.

Profile: Strong add with season-long upside

Julian Champagnie (7%)

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Mike Passador

Mike graduated from Boston University’s Dual Degree Program with a BA in Economics and a BS in Business with Concentrations in Marketing and Operations Management. He is a faithful supporter of Toronto sports and the Detroit Lions and is always ready to be let down. Tweet to him @Mike_Pandador, but if you badmouth Jose Calderon you might get blocked.

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