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Welcome back to RotoBaller's weekly fantasy basketball waiver wire column and schedule breakdown. How's this season going for you? Need some help with your team? Let's get you some!
It's hard to believe we're already as far into the NBA season as we are. Week 9, y'all! It's almost Christmas, which is when it feels like the NBA season has really, really arrived.
These recommendations are mainly for 9-cat leagues, but if you play in another format, there's a good chance that the information here can still help you. We'll be looking at centers, forwards, and guards whose low rostership and upside make them ideal players to get onto your fantasy team. Our staff at RotoBaller has great insight and daily columns on how to improve your squad and tips to make your team successful, so be sure to check them out! Now, let's get prepared for Week 9.
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NBA Week 9 Schedule Guide
Let's take a look at some notable things on the schedule this week.
Teams with four games: Boston, Cleveland, Dallas, Golden State, Indiana, Los Angeles Clippers, Miami, Minnesota, Oklahoma City, Portland, Washington
Teams with three games: Atlanta, Brooklyn, Charlotte, Chicago, Denver, Detroit, Houston, Los Angeles Lakers, Memphis, Milwaukee, New Orleans, New York, Orlando, Phoenix, Sacramento, San Antonio, Toronto, Utah
Teams with two games: Philadelphia
Number of teams playing each day:
Monday: 14
Tuesday: 10
Wednesday: 20
Thursday: 8
Friday: 20
Saturday: 14
Sunday: 14
Back-to-Backs:
Sunday/Monday: Atlanta
Monday/Tuesday: Boston
Tuesday/Wednesday: Golden State, Sacramento
Wednesday/Thursday: Los Angeles Clippers, Miami
Thursday/Friday: 0
Friday/Saturday: Cleveland, Dallas, Oklahoma City, Portland
Saturday/Sunday: Washington
9-Category Leagues - Waiver Wire Adds
This column is written based on H2H 9-category 12-team leagues. All players in this article are rostered at around 50 percent or less.
Jalen Duren, F/C - Detroit Pistons - 34% rostered
I was high on Duren before the season, and the rookie made an impact immediately, grabbing double-digit rebounds in his first two NBA games. But for a while there, he had a low offensive ceiling, just because of volume, but he's now posted double-doubles in back-to-back contests, which includes his first career start on Friday, when he was 5-for-7 with 10 points and 12 boards. Assuming the move to the starting lineup is permanent, Duren should be rostered in your league.
Jose Alvarado, G - New Orleans Pelicans - 36% rostered
Alvarado's been a roller coaster, but the highs are worth it. Here are his scoring totals over the last six games: 15, 4, 15, 38, 2, 20. Hard to really know what to make of him on a night-to-night basis, but what we do know is that when the Pelicans need some offense, Alvarado is someone they can turn to. I mean...just three games ago, he made eight threes. Sure, he seems just as likely to have an off night because of how many weapons the Pels have, but the highs are too good to ignore if you need points, threes and assists.
Jordan Goodwin, G - Washington Wizards - 11% rostered
Goodwin's had a couple of really good games in a row, scoring 19 points with four rebounds, three assists and five steals against the Pacers, then following that up with 17 points, four rebounds, six assists and six steals against the Clippers. His increased minutes come because of a LOT of injuries, so he won't keep this up forever, but as long as the team's forced to give him expanded minutes, he should be rostered.
Moritz Wagner, F/C - Orlando Magic - 45% rostered
While it's Franz Wagner who gets most of the attention when it comes to discussing Wagner brothers who play for the Magic, Moritz has scored in double figures in three consecutive games, including this impressive line against the Clippers: 20 points, 13 rebounds, three assists, two steals, one block. He's scored in double figures in three straight games, with double-digit rebounds in two of those contests.
Larry Nance Jr., F/C - New Orleans Pelicans - 32% rostered
Three games in a row with multiple stocks for Nance, including four steals and one block last game against the Suns. He also had 17 points and nine rebounds. While he suffers from the same issue Alvarado does in terms of "lots of mouths to feed in New Orleans" in terms of points, he can give you the occasional big showing on the scoreboard while also consistently providing rebounds, steals and blocks.
Austin Reaves, G/F - Los Angeles Lakers - 17% rostered
Reaves scored 25 points on Friday against the 76ers, also adding in two rebounds, five assists and four threes. We've seen Reaves have some big scoring games this season and then not really build on that, so don't think that his numbers (in an overtime game) necessarily mean much, but this was his best scoring game of the year and his assists have been up the last couple games. Speculative add here.
Grayson Allen, G/F - Milwaukee Bucks - 21% rostered
Allen's filled up the stat sheet nicely in the past two games. Against Sacramento, he had 10 points, six rebounds, two assists and two threes, and then against the Mavericks he had 12 points, five rebounds, five assists, two steals and one three. Allen's an unexciting play that provides a little bit of everything. He won't win you a matchup, but you can plug him in when you have an open spot in your roster to help raise your floor.
Torrey Craig, F - Phoenix Suns - 12% rostered
After a three-game absence, Craig returned and has scored double-digit points in his last two games, and he made four threes against the Pelicans on Friday. He seems guaranteed to play around 30 minutes per night and has shot 42% or better in the last five games he played, so there's definitely some streaming appeal with Craig this week.
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