Fantasy Basketball Mid-Week Streamers: Week 15

Mike Barner looks at some mid-week waiver wire options for fantasy basketball leagues. These players may be free agents to target on waivers in Week 15.

There are some significant schedule advantages to make note of for the remainder of the week. There are four teams who will play just one game each, dealing significant blows to the fantasy values of the players on those squads. There will also be two teams that play three games each.

Let’s look at the remaining schedules for each team and discuss some players to consider streaming. For those in daily lineup leagues, streaming players with favorable schedules can be key to having a winning week. However, be sure to be aware of your league rules. If you have games played cap for the week, then streaming too much might not be ideal.

All roster percentages used in this article are from Yahoo.

Weekly Schedule: Thursday to Sunday

Teams that play only game (AVOID): Brooklyn, Chicago, Dallas, New Orleans

Teams that play two or three games (TARGET): Boston, Charlotte, Cleveland, Denver, Detroit, Houston, Indiana, LA Clippers, LA Lakers, Memphis, Miami, Minnesota, New York, Oklahoma City, Orlando, Philadelphia, Phoenix, Portland, Toronto, Utah, Washington

Teams that play back-to-back (TARGET): Atlanta, Golden State, Milwaukee, Sacramento, San Antonio

Shallow League Streaming Options

Nick Richards, C (53%)

Richards is rostered in just over half of leagues, and it’s about time. Mark Williams (back) isn’t going to return anytime soon. With how little progress he has made and the Hornets already having their eye on next season, there are legitimate concerns that he might not return at all. Across 24 games as a starter this season, Richards has averaged 10.1 points, 8.8 rebounds, and 1.5 blocks. He has also shot 66.7 percent from the field in that role.

Aaron Nesmith, SF/PF (53%)

The Pacers are one of the two teams that will play three games over the remainder of the week. That makes players on their roster especially valuable. Nesmith has logged 27 minutes per game for the season, but he has averaged 33 minutes since the Pacers traded away Bruce Brown Jr. in the deal that landed them Pascal Siakam. Over that timeframe, he has averaged 15.9 points, 7.1 rebounds, 3.1 assists, and 2.4 three-pointers.

Kelly Oubre Jr., SG/SF (48%)

Despite continuing to start, Oubre has seen his production on the decline. That was until the 76ers started to deal with injuries. Tyrese Maxey (ankle) and De’Anthony Melton (back) have both been out, which has contributed to Oubre providing 21.7 points and 5.7 rebounds over his last three games. Joel Embiid is also battling a knee injury that could force him to miss multiple games, so Oubre could remain busy over the 76ers’ final two games of the week.

Norman Powell, SG/SF (41%)

Powell’s job on the Clippers is to provide a scoring spark off the bench. He has done just that, averaging 14.2 points and 2.4 three-pointers over his last 16 games. The downside is, he provides virtually nothing in terms of assists and defensive stats. Still, for fantasy managers in need of scoring and three-pointers, Powell is worth adding with two games remaining this week.

Deep Leagues Streaming Options

Andrew Nembhard, PG/SG (29%)

Tyrese Haliburton made his return from a hamstring injury Tuesday against the Celtics. However, he only logged 22 minutes with the Pacers looking to ease him back into action. The expectation is that he will remain limited for a while, so with three games in four nights, Nembhard should still see considerable playing time. Over his last nine games, Nembhard has averaged 14.7 points and 6.7 assists, while shooting 52.0 percent from the field.

Santi Aldama, PF/C (27%)

The Grizzlies have been hammered by injuries. That means the few healthy players that they have left will continue to play a lot. That includes Aldama, who has also had his own injury issues this season. However, he has started each of his last five games, averaging 11.0 points, 6.4 rebounds, 3.0 assists, and 2.2 three-pointers. The Grizzlies are the other team that has three games remaining, leaving Aldama with significant appeal.

Jabari Walker, SF/PF (23%)

Walker has worked his way into a prominent role with the Trail Blazers, averaging 29 minutes over their last 11 games. He has made the most of his opportunity, putting up 9.6 points, 8.9 rebounds, and 0.9 three-pointers per game during that span. As the Trail Blazers continue to have an eye on the future, look for Walker to remain busy for much longer than just their final two games of this week.

David Roddy, SF/PF (5%)

Roddy has logged an average of 28 minutes over the last 11 games for the Grizzlies, four of which he started. His numbers don’t jump off the page, but his averages of 10.6 points, 5.9 rebounds, 2.4 assists, and 1.3 three-pointers during that span are nothing to overlook. Given how widely available he is and that the Grizzlies still have three games left this week, he is an excellent target for this in deep leagues.

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