Fantasy Basketball Waiver Wire Pickups for the Stretch Run

March 16, 2014

Need waiver wire advice for your fantasy basketball team? Brad Leibfried has you covered with his NBA analysis and the best waiver wire pickups at each position.

Now that we are in the stretch run, it's important to target the savvy waiver wire pickups who can help you win the final few weeks of your fantasy basketball season. Let's take a look at some players that can be useful off the waiver wire:

Waiver Wire Pickups for Fantasy Basketball

With just a few weeks left in the fantasy season, we are eliminating the “keep an eye on” category and will just highlight a few guards and big men to pick up down the stretch.

SF: Maurice Harkless: Seemingly out of nowhere, Harkless has seen a huge bump in minutes to nearly 33 a game over the past week.  With the departure of Glen Davis and injuries to Jameer Nelson, Arron Afflalo and Victor Oladipo, Harkless has been plugged into the lineup.  He has proven to be a solid source of fantasy value with double figure points in seven of the past eight games.  Harkless has also been elite on defense, with 13 steals and 9 blocks in the last seven games.  Along with solid rebounding numbers, including one double-double, he is a great roto-league pickup.  Consider Harkless a must-own and top pickup in all types of leagues.

C: Pero Antic: With a decimated frontline, Antic's return has been a welcome lift for the Hawks.  Now that he has been given the starting role, the rookie should continue to provide his rare numbers from the center position.  In five games since returning ,he has scored in double figures in four while averaging 4.5 rebounds.  Those numbers do not jump out at you, but where he does stick out is shooting prowess.  Antic is making 2.3 three pointers a game since his return, and is shooting 53% from the floor and 83% from the free throw line.  If you can take the slight hit in rebounding, Antic can bring you guard-type numbers from one of your big man positions, and he should continue to see over 30 minutes a game the rest of the season.

PG: Tony Wroten: Over the past two weeks, it is not hard to argue that the best point guard on the Sixers has been Wroten and not Michael Carter-Williams.  Wroten is putting up 16.7 points, 3.6 rebounds and 1.6 steals a night.  Much like his teammate Carter-Williams, Wroten is a fantasy monster when his shot is falling, and he is on a stretch where he is making 46% from the floor, which is above his season average.  Wroten w0n't provide much from beyond the arc or in the assist category, but for a player on the waiver wire, you likely won't find a higher-end talent.  He has also played over 22 minutes in every game since February 12th, so his role as sixth man seems locked in.  Things could only get better if Philadelphia plays it safe and shuts down their rookie point guard down, handing the reins to Wroten.

C: Andrew Bynum: After an 8-point and 10-rebound game in his debut for the Pacers, Bynum’s name shot to the top of many pickup lists.  He is undoubtedly talented, evidenced by what he did a mere 16 minutes in his first game. The problem with the new Pacer big man is that he is behind stalwart Roy Hibbert and has also already been ruled out of the team's next game.  If you are in a daily league, he could be a great pickup, as you can plug and play him on nights he is in the lineup, but he will still be tough to own as he may only get one to two games per week.  When on tue court, Bynum will provide great rebounding and field-goal percentage numbers while also chipping in points and blocks, if you need to boost those categories down the stretch.