As the NBA season rolls into Week 5, most fantasy basketball owners have already dealt with at least one injury. How you replace your injured stars with temporary fill-ins or streamers throughout the season plays a big part in your squad being a contender or a pretender. Our waiver wire and free agent streamer column will help steer you in the right direction and give you a leg up on your leaguemates each week.
Every Monday, we scour the free agent pools on Yahoo and list the best available 9-cat options. We start by mentioning the guys between 50 percent and 75 percent rostered who should absolutely be owned in 100 percent of leagues. We will then feature the cream of the proverbial crop among the sub-50 percent guys, highlighting our favorite guards, forwards, and centers for the week. Finally, we will pick one top streamer for every day of the slate, providing you with a blueprint to take advantage of your head-to-head matchup.
Every fantasy hoops manager experiences ups and downs throughout the season — bad news and sudden depth issues are as inevitable as Toronto Raptors injuries. The ability to replace injured players with comparably skilled free agents and high-upside streamers separates the championship contenders from the pretenders. Check in with us at the top of each week so you beat your opponents to the punch with the next big pickup.
Let’s get to our Week 5 waiver wire gems, first listing the must-roster players between 50-75 percent owned and then featuring the best players available in over half of all leagues. Good luck in Week 5 and beyond!
Best Fantasy Basketball Waiver Wire Pickups Week 5: Must-roster players available in 50-75 percent of leagues
The following players are available in 25-50 percent of Yahoo leagues and should be considered ‘must-roster’ players in standard 9-cat formats.
Josh Hart, G/F, Blazers (75 percent rostered) — Perennially one of the best guard-eligible rebounders, Hart really does a little bit of everything and has the clear trust of Blazers coach Chauncey Billups and franchise player Damian Lillard. He deserves your trust, too. With Hart, you get all the peripheral stats with none of the hits to your percentages.
Herbert Jones, G/F, Pelicans (74%) — Jones is one of the most promising young perimeter defenders in the NBA, and he's also a solid mid-range and free-throw shooter. His ceiling as a scorer might not be very high as of yet, but the potential is there to eventually flirt with Mikal Bridges' numbers.
Jarred Vanderbilt, F/C, Jazz (72%) — Vando might be about the unsexiest pick we could feature here, but he certainly contributes a ton across the board. While he won't regularly produce double-digit points, his upside as a rebounder, passer, and defensive stud is too good to pass up in 9-cat formats. If he continues to develop his three-point shot and improve his free-throw shooting, he will shoot to the moon.
Kelly Olynyk, F/C, Jazz (68%) — Two Jazz listed in the must-roster section in the same week? That's 2022 for ya. KO has been fantastic this season, stroking triples and locking down star bigs. His percentages are great, and he provides assists and outside shooting that most center-eligible players could only dream of possessing.
Caris LeVert, G, Cavaliers (68%) — Like we said last week, LeVert has been lighting it up for the Cavs this season, and it's clear his role will remain even with All-Star guard Darius Garland back from injury. LeVert merits an own in all standard 9-cat formats, especially in punt-turnover and punt-stocks builds. He can score, dish, and even rebound better than most NBA wings in similar roles.
Royce O'Neal, G/F, Nets (64%) — O'Neal isn't the type of guy atop any leaderboards, but he could definitely help lead your fantasy squad to 9-cat glory. A prototypical three-and-D guy, O'Neal offers threes, rebounds, assists, and steals and occasionally adds some blocks and high point totals. He's also a career 79-percent free throw shooter, which we'll take.
Chris Boucher, F/C, Raptors (53%) — The inevitable Raptors injuries have already started, with point guard Fred VanVleet missing time early in the season and big man Precious Achiuwa now out indefinitely with an ankle injury. Fire Boucher up — he hits threes, gobbles up boards, protects the rim, and dishes the ball surprisingly well. All this guy ever needs is minutes — the field goal percentage and ball control won't always be great, but the other stats will be awesome.
Other players available in 25-50 percent of leagues you should consider ‘must-own’: Steven Adams, C, Grizzlies (75%); Kevin Huerter, G/F, Kings (75%); Jalen Smith, F/C, Pacers (69%); Marcus Morris Sr., F/C, Clippers (65%); Monte Morris, G, Wizards (63%); Kevin Love, F/C, Cavs (63%); Max Strus, G/F, Heat (60%); Aleksej Pokusevski, F/C, Thunder (58%)
Best Fantasy Basketball Waiver Wire Sleepers Week 5: Five top adds under 50 percent rostered
The following players are available in over 50 percent of Yahoo leagues and make for solid additions and streamers in standard 9-cat formats.
Charles Bassey, F/C, Spurs (30%) — Gregg Popovich loves him some hard-working big men who have been counted out by other organizations. Bassey has bloomed in San Antonio, grabbing boards and swatting shots like he's channeling his inner Tim Duncan. The 22-year-old Nigerian should only improve with more playing time and confidence, so we're grabbing him now.
Norman Powell, G/F, Clippers (41%) — Like Bassey, Powell has five games this week, four of which are on low-volume days. He won't contribute much in the way of blocks and his field-goal percentage will dip here and there, but he's a solid scorer who can produce across the board as the Clippers' sixth man. He's scored 16-plus points in three straight games and should only get better once L.A. gets healthier.
Reggie Jackson, G, Clippers (34%) — If you can hold your nose with his field-goal percentage, Jackson can be a fun player to own. He's still the clear point guard on this above-average offense, and he's a good passer, sharpshooter, and dead-eye free-throw shooter. He even tosses in a steal here and there and the occasional block. And, again, five games this week for the Clips.
Killian Hayes, G, Pistons (34%) — Hayes reemerged as a starter when 2021 No. 1 pick Cade Cunningham recently went down with a shin injury, and the third-year point guard has looked pretty good. Over Detroit's past two games, Hayes is averaging 13/6/7 with 1.5 steals and 3.5 turnovers. He also splashed three triples against Boston on Saturday. If you're not punting field goal percentage or turnovers, stay away from Hayes, but if your build disregards efficiency and ball control, grab him until Cunningham returns.
Bruce Brown, F, Nuggets (34%) — Brown has stepped up big time with backup point guard Bones Hyland out due to health and safety protocols. Over Denver's past two games, the veteran is averaging 14/10.5/6/1.5 and he's drained a three-pointer in consecutive contests as well. Nuggets coach Mike Malone has been singing the former Nets' praises all season, and back-to-back MVP Nikola Jokic clearly likes playing with him. With Denver seemingly always bit by the injury bug, BB is a solid add, at least for the short-term.
Best Fantasy Basketball Waiver Wire Streamers Week 5: One streamer for each day of the upcoming slate
Best streamer under 50 percent owned for every day of the upcoming slate.
Monday, Nov. 14
Points/Assists/Threes: Cameron Payne, G, Suns (40 percent rostered) — Payne continues to fill in for Chris Paul (heel), and he's doing a fantastic job if you look beyond the occasional turnover issues. His passing, steals, and elite shooting make him a must-have whenever he gets the start, but shy away once CP3 returns.
Rebounds/Assists/Percentages: Grant Williams, F, Celtics (32%) — Batman quietly put up 19/10/4 against Detroit in Boston's last game, and now he gets to do some damage against an OKC squad that's even younger than the Pistons. This should be a plentiful night for C's top reserve, especially if backup point guard Malcolm Brogdon misses time with his hamstring injury. Hold onto Grant for Boston's Wednesday tilt with Atlanta, too, although that's a high-volume day.
Tuesday, Nov. 15
Threes: Trey Murphy III, F, Pelicans (39%) — It's in the name! Trey is a knock-down shooter from all three levels and will fill it up in a hurry if opponents like Memphis on Tuesday spend too much time guarding Zion. Bonus: The Pels play Tuesday and Wednesday, so you get an extra day from the stream if you have open starting spots on Weds.
Steals: Alex Caruso, G, Bulls (47%) — If you want to build up a significant early-week lead in steals, adding Caruso would be a strong move. He has eight steals in the past four games, and he added 11 boards and 11 assists against Toronto last weekend. He's usually a one-trick pony, though.
Wednesday, Nov. 16
High-volume day — carry Payne or Williams over from Monday if you have an open spot on your starting lineup.
Thursday, Nov. 17
Threes/Assists/Steals: Reggie Jackson, G, Clippers (34%) — Revenge game! Jackson takes on his former squad at home and should get cooking early. The threes and assists will be nice, but the increased motivation on defense should also make for some even-nicer stocks.
Friday, Nov. 18
High-volume day — hold onto a streamer from earlier in the week if you need a spot. Otherwise, save your streams for Sat/Sun.
Saturday, Nov. 19
Threes/Rebounds/FT%: Marcus Morris Sr., F/C, Clippers (65%) — Senior continues to light it up as the Clippers' mid-range and three-point specialist off the bench, and he adds some rebounding and some occasional blocks and steals. His percentages are pretty strong for a guy as free shooting as Morris. Grab him for Saturday and hold onto him for Monday of next week against the Jazz.
Saturday, Nov. 19 and Sunday, Nov. 20
Charles Bassey, F/C, Spurs (30%) — The fantasy world is about to learn about Bassey, who plays five games this week, all of which are on low-volume days. This dude ripped 14 rebounds in his last game, adding four blocks. We believe in the power of Bassey, and you should, too!
