Last Updated on February 26, 2026 3:44 pm by Mike Passador | Published: February 26, 2026

It feels like just yesterday that the season began, and yet here we are. In most head-to-head leagues, the fantasy playoffs will begin either next week or the week after if they haven’t begun already. That move is designed to dodge the final weeks of the season where chaos reigns supreme, though the Jazz, Grizzlies, Wizards and Kings are trying their hardest to bring that in a little early. With the playoffs literally right around the corner, this is your last gasp to strike gold if you’re on the borderline, while managers with some security can plan ahead and pursue players who might peak in a week or two at the cost of some immediate production.

The other thing you should remember from here on out is that the waiver ecosystem is about to change. When eliminated teams are prevented from making moves, your pool of available talent will be facing less competition, but it will be more targeted. You’re going to see players hit the wire who should generally not be dropped, but winning playoff matchups requires ruthless decisions and sometimes you simply need to swap out a surplus for a weakness. As such, you might find a series of surprising players available to you in the weeks to come, and you might not be in position to add them. For example, if you’re already dominant in rebounds and blocks but close to your opponent in 3-pointers, adding Moussa Diabate might not make any sense despite the fact that he shouldn’t be on waivers. Stay active and make sure you’re maximizing your roster slots. Let’s finish strong.

Here is the article layout:

• Double-Check Zone: Players who should be on a 12-team roster, but whose roster percentages suggest some leagues are lagging behind.
• 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 and a path to short-term value with a smaller chance of long-term upside if certain things break their way.
• 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 or poor weekend schedules if you’re planning on some very short-term pickups.
• Fantasy Playoff Schedules: A quick look at the rest-of-season weekly schedules to see how many games each team has per week.

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.

Jaden McDaniels (48%)
Key Note(s): Still in the top 60!

It’s genuinely shocking that McDaniels is still so widely available. He was always going to be a 12-team guy and has surged past even the most optimistic of expectations this year. You would think that his last game — 29 points, six rebounds, three steals, five blocks and five 3-pointers — would push him closer to 60% on its own, and even that would be still far too low. There are some inactive leagues out there, and those with no transactions, but not nearly enough to account for the 52% where McDaniels is somehow available.

Brook Lopez (17%)
Key Note(s): Top-55 since the trade deadline.

Lopez has stepped into the starting center spot and while there was some thought that the Clippers might give longer looks to Yanic Konan Niederhauser and Isaiah Jackson to prepare for the future, that has not played out. The veteran is a top-55 value in the last three weeks and playing nearly 31 minutes per game. Add in the fact that he’s relatively fresh given his modest role for most of the season and you have a clear-cut add in all formats.

Ty Jerome (35%)
Key Note(s): Memphis’ starting PG when available and absolutely tearing it up.

Jerome has only played eight games so far but he’s fared quite well with a stat line of 19.6 points, 2.8 rebounds, 5.6 assists, 1.3 steals and 2.6 3-pointers on .515 shooting in only 21.0 mpg. There are regular absences and it feels increasingly like Jerome is already at his playing time ceiling this year, but that’s just too good to pass up.

Kyle Filipowski (38%)
Key Note(s): The runway is finally clear.

Filipowski has basically been a season-long stash but it’s paying off now. It took longer than hoped for, and it looked like the Grizzlies were going to mess it up by buying at the deadline, but here we are. Jaren Jackson Jr. and Jusuf Nurkic are out for the season and Lauri Markkanen may not be far behind. We know what Filipowski did last year and he’s lined up for a repeat.

Maxime Raynaud (38%)
Key Note(s): Boring but reliably effective.

With all due respect to Drew Eubanks, Raynaud is the only center left standing in Sacramento. The rest of the rotation is a mess but you can expect Raynaud to play a lot by default, and with a standard center stat set of blocks, rebounds and a good FG%, you know what you’re going to get.

Honorable Mention(s), i.e. guys who are obviously must-roster players so we won’t waste more time talking about them at length: Collin Gillespie, Keegan Murray, Tari Eason, Jabari Smith, Andrew Wiggins, Grayson Allen, Wendell Carter Jr., Reed Sheppard, Neemias Queta, Kelly Oubre

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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