Fantasy Basketball Waiver Wire Pickups and Streamers for Week 5 (2025): 11/17-11/23

November 17, 2025

Thunder Dan's fantasy basketball waiver wire pickups for Week 5 of the 2025-26 NBA season. Consider these players as fantasy basketball adds, streamers, and stashes.

As the first month of the NBA season comes to a close this week, we are seeing the return of some players who have been sitting out since the season began (like Coby White), while other troublesome injuries to superstars continue to linger (Joel Embiid, Anthony Davis, Jalen Green). Young players are emerging, including an impressive batch of rookies, and we have, quite easily, the most loaded set of waiver wire pickups so far this year!

Let's keep working the wire to find the most valuable long-term pickups and short-term streamers - and stay the course! It's a long season, and there's plenty of time to get your roster looking like you want it and build a contender.

I have always been an advocate of being aggressive on the waiver wire! If your league has daily lineups, you should use that to your advantage and maximize your weekly games in H2H formats when necessary. Every week, I will give you my top adds for standard 10-12 team leagues as well as deeper formats and the schedule breakdown for all 30 teams. I am using Yahoo for the percentage rostered; however, I am adjusting my benchmarks as the new 10-team high score leagues on Yahoo have impacted those percentages.

Week 5 Schedule Breakdown (11/17 to 11/23)

Schedule Highlights

• The Rockets and Lakers are the only teams that play just two games this week.
• Most valuable back-to-backs: Detroit (Mon-Tues), Atlanta (Sat-Sun), Charlotte (Sat-Sun), LA Clippers (Sat-Sun)
• Most valuable streaming schedules: Atlanta (Tues-Thurs-Sat-Sun), Charlotte (Mon-Wed-Sat-Sun), LA Clippers (Mon-Thurs-Sat-Sun), Philadelphia (Mon-Wed-Thurs-Sun)

Standard League Adds - Fantasy Basketball Waiver Wire for Week 5

Percent owned numbers for Yahoo! "Standard Leagues" refer to 10- or 12-team leagues.

We are using 25% or lower as the cutoff again this week, with 10% or below being right around where I draw the line between standard league and deep league adds.

Derik Queen - C (25%) and Jeremiah Fears - PG (24%)

Both first-round rookies started together yesterday for the first time, with Zion Williamson and Jordan Pool remaining out for the Pelicans. Zion is on the cusp of returning, which could send Queen back to the bench. But it's also possible that the new Pels' regime decides to start the two big men together.

Queen has displayed an impressive offensive arsenal and is a more polished player than I anticipated. He's been an above-average passer and rebounder in addition to being able to get buckets. New Orleans would be dumb not to keep playing him 25 minutes or more per night.

The craziest timeline would be New Orleans trading away an unprotected first in a loaded draft class for Derik Queen and it ending up as the CORRECT decision pic.twitter.com/a5Me0BFn0I https://t.co/Hks7D1UhHA

— Point Made Basketball (@pointmadebball) November 5, 2025

Meanwhile, Fears has put together two really strong games in a row, scoring 19 and 17 points in his last two on 50% shooting. He had seven (yes, SEVEN) steals on Friday night against the Lakers and is now at 1.8 swipes per game. He should have at least one more week before Poole returns from injury, so he's still a must-play in standard leagues for teams that need a boost in scoring and steals.

Brandon Williams - PG (22%)

Williams bounced back last night with 15 points and six assists on 50% from the floor and 83% from the charity stripe. I was a bit worried about him after he was benched for D'Angelo Russell down the stretch on Friday night, but I think he should continue to start for the Mavs going forward.

Anthony Davis is out another 7-10 days, so there are plenty of shots to go around in Dallas, and Williams is also adding 1.8 steals per game. He and Fears are producing similar stats right now, but Williams has more upside in assists. I prefer Williams to Fears, but both guys are great adds this week.

Moussa Diabate - C (22%)

The Hornets center has logged two double-doubles in his last two games. Ryan Kalkbrenner missed one of those games, but the two young bigs split the minutes nearly equally in the second. The timeshare continues to be productive, as both players are doing enough in 25 minutes to warrant rostering in standard formats.

Kalkbrenner is the superior shot-blocker, but Diabate has added 1.3 blocks per game as well and more boards (8.0 per contest). If you need boards and blocks, Diabete is one of a few attractive bigs out there on the wire.

Daniel Gafford - C (22%)

The best scoring big man who is widely available is Dallas center Daniel Gafford. Gafford has logged 27, 27, and 31 minutes in his last three games, while Dereck Lively II has returned and played just 17 and 11 minutes so far.

With the news that Anthony Davis is still at least a week away from a return, Gafford should be rostered in standard leagues for the four-game week on tap for the Mavericks. His 20 points last night were a season-high, and he has stacked up eight blocks over his last three.

Andre Drummond - C (22%)

Joel Embiid is set to miss yet another game tonight, and there's no concrete news surrounding his return. Andre Drummond has filled in admirably, posting three straight double-doubles. Drum isn't the shot-blocker that he once was, but he's added the three-pointer to his arsenal, drilling four threes over his last three starts. He also doesn't kill FT% like he used to, as he's shooting 60% from the line this year and simply doesn't take that many attempts (1.8 per game).

Naji Marshall - SF/PF (22%)

We have no shortage of Mavericks on the list this week, and I didn't even include Klay Thompson, who has been heating up from behind the arc, on my list.

Naji is coming off the bench, but doing his thing as the super-sub sixth man and putting up some excellent numbers across the board. We saw him do this in the second half of last season and he should absolutely be rostered everywhere until AD returns. He's a monster on the boards for his size and can pile up steals in a hurry, even on nights when he's not scoring.

Kevin Huerter - SG/SF (21%) and Ayo Dosunmu - SG/SF (22%)

Coby White made his return to the Bulls rotation last night and came off the bench. He'll likely slide back into his starting spot within a few games, but an ankle injury to Tre Jones could open enough minutes for both Huerter and Dosunmu to hang onto standard league relevance for a bit longer.

Isaiah Collier - PG (20%)

Collier continues to come off the bench, but he closed out last night's double-OT win against the Bulls and finished with 16 points and 9 assists in 36 minutes. A move back into the starting lineup feels inevitable at this point, as the Jazz could slide Keyonte George over to shooting guard and send Ace Bailey back to the second unit.

Collier is an elite passer who is now averaging 7.4 assists per game in just 26 minutes a night. He's been an efficient scorer so far, too, shooting 60% from the floor and taking fewer threes. That's music to my ears, and I'm adding him everywhere I can.

Max Christie - SG/SF (19%)

I'm going into less detail with some of these guys who are showing up on the list in multiple weeks, but Christie continues to score in double figures and drill 2-3 treys per night with solid efficiency. His role in Dallas is secure right now, and he offers reliable, even if boring, production.

Bogdan Bogdanovic - SG/SF (16%)

The Clippers have been ravaged by injuries to start the season. Kawhi Leonard continues to miss time, Bradley Beal is done for the year, and both Derrick Jones Jr. and Jordan Miller left yesterday's game with injuries.

Bog-Bog has played 35 and 37 minutes in the last two games and offers some upside in scoring, threes, assists, and steals. He's a former top-75 player and he should have an opportunity to contribute in L.A. this year, even if it's in a sixth-man role off the bench. The Clippers badly need some playmaking and shot-making from someone besides Harden, and Bog's 21-3-3 line with five threes and four steals on Friday night offers us a glimpse of what he can do on a good night.

Collin Gillespie - PG (14%)

Another team that just can't get healthy is Phoenix. Jalen Green is out for at least a month, and now Grayson Allen has gone down. Gillespie had arguably his best game of the season last night against Atlanta in a tough loss, posting a strong 15-8-7 line with two steals in 32 minutes.

That's a strong finish by Collin Gillespie. Ball is swung to the second side, and he uses a nifty crossover to get into the paint pic.twitter.com/ekVftsedhU

— Shane Young (@YoungNBA) November 17, 2025

He will probably continue to come off the bench, but Gillespie is looking at 28 to 30 minutes a night in the short term until Allen gets healthy. Make sure he wasn't dropped in your league last week when he bottomed out with a few clunkers in a row.

Noah Clowney - PF/C (13%)

We now have a pretty strong sample size of Clowney being pretty solid as the starter at power forward in Brooklyn. He's hit double figures in scoring in six of his last seven had two or more threes in all but one of those games as well.

He'll need to improve his FG% before we can take him too seriously, but as a streamer for points, boards, and threes, he's viable this week and makes for a decent stash for the rest of the season.

Tristan da Silva - SF/PF (12%)

Paolo Banchero is dealing with a groin injury and has missed the last two games. Those injuries tend to linger, and I would be surprised if we see Banchero this week.

Tristan da Silva, like Paolo & Franz, blends a unique combination of size, ball-handling, and playmaking feel

He slides right into their offense whenever one of Paolo & Franz is missing because of how seamlessly he can replicate their games

Love seeing him operate on fastbreaks https://t.co/gvZBmSr05W pic.twitter.com/PRW5nBZGYM

— Point Made Basketball (@pointmadebball) November 17, 2025

The sophomore da Silva has played well in both of his first two starts, including a 22-9-1 performance with five threes against the Nets on Friday. I am intrigued by his skill set, as he has shown the ability to run the floor in transition while also knocking down open threes.

Daniss Jenkins - PG (12%)

The Pistons play a back-to-back to start this week, and Cade Cunningham is questionable to return tonight. If Cunningham sits out one more game, we get at least one start from Jenkins, who has been fantastic as Cade's replacement the last three games.

Once Cunningham returns, we will have to see what Jenkins' role will be, but he has certainly played well enough to deserve minutes in this rotation. I'd add him for this back-to-back set and then see what happens. You can always churn him for another player for the second half of the week.

Moses Moody - SG/SF (12%)

I have been hesitant to call Moody a "must-add" this year, even while he has had some big games already. Those games were with at least one of Butler or Curry out, but last night he dropped 32 points and drilled eight threes while both of the Warriors veterans were in the lineup.

MOSES MOODY CANNOT MISS.

5 threes in the first 7 minutes of Warriors-Pelicans 😳 pic.twitter.com/yDBg97eqJQ

— NBA (@NBA) November 17, 2025

He does enough in other categories (0.9 steals, 0.8 blocks) to provide some value even when he's not scoring the basketball. It's becoming quite clear that Golden State needs another scorer on the floor with Butler and Curry, and that Jonathan Kuminga is not that guy. I'm buying Moody for now, and I think you should, too. But just be prepared to weather a few stinkers mixed in with these outbursts.

Deep League Adds - Fantasy Basketball Waiver Wire for Week 5

Percent owned numbers for Yahoo! "Deep Leagues" refer to 14-team leagues or larger.

Sam Merrill - SG/SF (10%)

The Cavs' sharpshooter has found his way back into the starting lineup with injuries to Darius Garland and Jaylon Tyson opening up playing time. You know the drill by now with Sam, he's a points and threes player mainly but he does offer a few assists as well, and he usually shoots the three-ball quite efficiently, though the last few weeks he has struggled from deep.

Vit Krejci - SG/SF (10%)

Vit is one of the better bench players in the league that you probably haven't heard much about. He was limited to just 7-3-2 in last night's win, but still led the bench unit in minutes (22) and has seen his role increase over the last few weeks.

He's been shooting lights out from behind the arc, drilling eight threes in a game last Monday and another six treys on Thursday night.

Tim Hardaway Jr. - SG/SF (10%)

THJ is coming off his best game of the season in his first start of the year. He poured in 23 points on five triples and a perfect 6-6 at the free throw line. With Christian Braun out for at least six weeks, we should see THJ as the new starting shooting guard going forward.

His game has always been pretty limited in terms of 9-CAT, but his production in points, threes, and percentages should be strong with his increase in playing time. The added efficiency that comes from playing alongside Nikola Jokic has me more interested in adding Hardaway than I would normally be.

Keldon Johnson - SF/PF (8%)

Johnson makes this column just about every week, and since the Spurs play on Tuesday, Thursday, and Sunday this week (three days with fewer numbers of games), I think he makes sense as a streamer for points, boards, and FG% once again.

Keldon Johnson brings out the double-clutch jam 😤

Watch on NBA League Pass: https://t.co/dHAlGeLCZ5 pic.twitter.com/fRAW56et09

— NBA (@NBA) November 16, 2025

Dominick Barlow - PF/C (6%)

Barlow made his first appearance since the first week of the season and made an immediate impact for the Sixers with 10 points, eight boards, three assists, and two blocks in 29 minutes. The Trendon Watford experiment has failed badly since his triple-double, and Barlow could slide into the starting lineup at power forward with Kelly Oubre Jr. suffering an injury this weekend.

Jordan Clarkson - PG/SG (6%) and Landry Shamet - SG/SF (3%)

The Knicks are going to lean hard on their bench this week and perhaps beyond, depending on how much time Jalen Brunson misses. We already know that OG Anunoby is out for at least two weeks. And now Miles McBride is questionable for tonight's game.

Clarkson provided a big spark for the Knicks with a 24-4-3 line on Friday, including a 9-11 performance at the free-throw line. Whether he starts or comes off the bench, Clarkson has always been able to fill it up with minutes during his career. He won't add many defensive stats, but he can be an asset in points, threes, and assists.

Shamet was the unlikely hero in the Knicks' win on Friday night, pouring in 36 points and burying six threes. He's not likely to replicate that kind of output again this season, but he should be a good source of points and threes with more regular playing time in the short term.

Peyton Watson - SF/PF (5%)

Watson drew the start for Denver on Saturday at small forward with Christian Braun and Cameron Johnson both out. He played 34 minutes and provided just 12 points and three boards, but he added three more "stocks" and is now averaging 1.2 steals and 1.1 blocks per game this season.

Terrific defense from Peyton Watson on Anthony Edwards pic.twitter.com/mf8xU2FP3k

— Matt Brooks (@MattBrooksNBA) November 16, 2025

Braun is out for at least six weeks, and Cam Johnson was playing so poorly that he could easily move to the bench when he returns. Watson's defense fits nicely alongside Nikola Jokic and Jamal Murray. He could easily carve out some nice value just with hustle stats and a few easy transition buckets.

Jalen Smith - C (3%)

I have to leave Smith on the list this week as Chicago plays four times, and he continues to offer low-end production in points, rebounds, and threes in only 16 minutes per night.

Sandro Mamukelashvili - PF/C (2%) and Jamal Shead - PG (2%)

The Toronto Raptors are one of the deepest teams in the Eastern Conference this year, and their 8-5 start has as much to do with their loaded starting lineup as it does with their bench. With a healthy Jakob Poeltl back at center, the big man we have come to know as "Mamu" is back on the second unit, but still playing some impressive basketball.

Sandro Mamukelashvili is the most eficient player of the NBA!!!

Mamu is the only NBA player with:

— 59+ FG%
— 5+ FGA per Game
— 44+ 3P%
— 2+ 3PA per Game
— 5+ GP

This season, Sandro must be one of the best signing this season 🔥. #WeTheNorth pic.twitter.com/B3GgXJkJ9Y

— RaptorsMuse 🦖 (@RaptorsMuseOk) November 16, 2025

If you need a big man who can add threes without sacrificing efficiency, then Mamu is a great stream this week with four games. And if you're hunting assists, Jamal Shead is averaging 5.1 dimes per contest this year despite playing just around 18 minutes a night. It's never easy to find assists on the wire, and Shead is adding 1.2 threes as well without hurting you in turnovers. The foursome of Shead, Mamu, Gradey Dick, and rookie Collin Murray-Boyles is all providing valuable minutes right now.

Luka Garza - C (1%)

Garza was one of my sleepers coming into the season as I thought he could eventually compete for the starting center job in Boston. He isn't starting, but he has seen his minutes increase lately to around 17 per game over his last four games.

Garza has double-digit points in three of those four outings and averages of 14 points, 7 boards, and 1.0 threes over that stretch.

Good luck this week - happy streaming, friends!

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