Greg Monroe (PF/C, TOR) - Week 10 Waiver Wire Pickups

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ANALYSIS: At 28 years old and in the midst of his ninth season in the NBA, Greg Monroe has seen his role minimized to the lowest level of his career while coming off the bench for the Toronto Raptors. His 7.6 minutes per game rank just 13th on the roster, and in that time on the floor he is accumulating only 3.9 points, 3.1 rebounds, and 0.4 steals per contest (all currently being career-worst figures). While the 6-11, 265-lbs. veteran big-man appears to be far down the depth chart on one of the best teams in the league, an opportunity appears to have presented itself. Jonas Valanciunas has just had thumb surgery and will likely be in a cast for at least four weeks, meaning that Monroe can take great advantage of the 18.8 minutes that Valanciunas is vacating. While he'll still be behind such prominent Toronto bigs as Serge Ibaka and Pascal Siakam, Monroe is the only true backup center at the moment and his efficiency on the court seems to indicate that this increase in playing time will net high rewards.

In terms of production per 36 minutes of playing time, Monroe stands out even on the Raptors roster in his output levels. He ranks sixth on the team in points with 18.2, second on the team in rebounds with 14.5, and actually leads the team in steals with 2.0. That bodes extremely well for his chances to shine statistically with an uptick in MP. Also of note (while it may seem inconsequential), while he has never attempted more than four three-pointers in a full season (and has yet to convert one in his career), he has already attempted two shots from long-range this season in just 107 total minutes. With Valanciunas out for an extended period of time, Greg Monroe will see the floor plenty more as one of the few true centers for Toronto and will utilize that time to stack up a solid volume of points, rebounds, and steals.