Week three brought with it the news we were hoping had passed us by as a number of players were ruled out due to COVID-19 protocols. To be honest, it was a bit of wishful thinking on my part to even consider that this would not be an issue moving forward. But, here we are again. While clearly not as big of an issue as it has been over the past two seasons, it is certainly going to impact fantasy value in general and so knowing which players to target on your waiver wire becomes even more important.

In this edition of Working the Wire, we’ll take a look at the games schedule for week three, including those teams that have a back-to-back set. Before looking ahead, let’s quickly take a look at last week’s waiver wire pickups and whether we struck gold or came up empty. We will then run down the list of players you could consider picking up for longer than a couple of games, although do remember that not every player is going to suit your needs. Finally, we take a look at a list of current streaming options, based on categorical need.

Games Schedule – Week 5

Back to Backs

Mon/Tues: 
Tues/Weds: BKN
Weds/Thurs: CLE, MIA, MIN, WAS
Thurs/Fri: DEN, GSW, LAC, TOR
Fri/Sat: BOS, CHA, IND, MIL, NOP, OKC, ORL, SAC
Sat/Sun: NYK
Sun/Mon (of Week 4): CHI, PHX

A Look Back…

Guards

Anfernee Simons (344th ranked player) – Big miss here

Monte Morris (176th ranked player) – I’m actually calling this a slight hit, given why you added him

Shake Milton / Georges Niang (238th / 116th ranked player) – Miss and hit

Patrick Beverley (168th ranked player) – A miss here, but not a huge one

Forwards

Aaron Gordon (46th ranked player) – A clear hit

Lu Dort (64th ranked player) – Another clear hit

Nic Batum (25th ranked player) – A trifecta of hits

Furkan Korkmaz (181st ranked player) – Probably a miss here

Centers

Hassan Whiteside (319th ranked player) – Clearly a miss

Drew Eubanks (94th ranked player) – A nice hit

Waiver Wire Options

Guards

Killian Hayes – Hayes has looked much improved over the past couple of games. His offensive game still needs some refining but his assists and steals numbers are more than enough to warrant a roster spot in 12-team leagues. Anything else is a bonus.

Terrence Ross – Jalen Suggs was forced from Saturday’s game with an ankle injury after just 24 minutes. If he is forced to miss time, the Magic could turn to their veteran for scoring punch. Ross is a proven contributor, although he does only offer upside in a handful of categories.

R.J. Hampton – Much like Ross, Hampton would need Suggs to miss time to have any significant value. He has the ability to do a bit of everything and so his appeal is a little more far-reaching than that of Ross.

Herbert Jones – Jones has been an interesting player thus far this season, and to be honest, it has been surprising. He is inside the top-200 on the season and trending upwards. He appears to have a reasonably secure role and is certainly a stout defender.

Forwards

Darius Bazley – We know what Bazley can do, and yet he remains unrostered in a lot of places. This is generally due to his inefficient scoring, something that he has been able to rectify over the past week. The Thunder can trot out some wild and wacky rotations, but Bazley’s role seems about as secure as you could hope for.

Jae Crowder – Crowder is another player with a secure role, and yet he too is largely unrostered. His production can vary from one night to the next, usually resulting in him frequenting the waiver wire. He is by no means a lock to put up 12-team value, but if you need 3s and steals, give him a look.

Nassir Little – Damian Lillard is going to miss Sunday’s game and there is a chance his absence extends beyond just one game. Little is coming off his best game of the season, and while we wouldn’t expect to see lofty numbers on a nightly basis, he seems to be well-liked by the coaching staff and an opportunity could be coming his way.

Pat Connaughton – The Bucks will get their personnel back at some point and when that happens, Connaughton will take a hit. However, his familiarity with the Bucks’ system and his ability to score from the perimeter both work in his favor when it comes to rotational decisions.

Centers

Frank Kaminsky – With Deandre Ayton still on the sidelines, Kaminsky has been a surprisingly solid option at center. JaVale McGee is starting, but it has been Frank the Tank who has stepped up. He is the 28th ranked player over the past two weeks and as long as Ayton remains out, Kaminsky is worth a flier.

Daniel Theis – Theis is starting for the Rockets and although he is not a part of their long-term plans, he does have a relatively fantasy-friendly game. His playing time feels as though it is going to hover around the mid-20s on most nights, but even that is enough for him to put up some backend value.

Streaming Targets

Points

Jeff Green

Alec Burks

Bones Hyland

Eric Gordon

Derrick Rose

3-pointers 

Doug McDermott

Justin Holiday

Alec Burks

Furkan Korkmaz

Immanuel Quickley

Bones Hyland

Assists

Rajon Rondo

Andre Iguodala

Davion Mitchell

Derrick Rose

Goran Dragic*

Rebounds

Kevon Looney

P.J. Tucker

JaVale McGee

Dwight Howard

Taj Gibson

Isaiah Hartenstein

Steals

Dorian Finney-Smith

Bruce Brown

Gary Payton II

Kentavious Caldwell-Pope

Josh Richardson*

Blocks

Taj Gibson

Isaiah Hartenstein

Dwight Powell

JaVale McGee

Dwight Howard

Is Adam on the money with his Waiver Wire piece? Let him know in our Fantasy Basketball Forums or over on our members-only Discord channel

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