NBA Waiver Wire: Four-Game Fantasy Basketball Sleepers (1/5 - 1/11)

This weekly column is geared toward anyone playing in a head-to-head format, and especially those of you in weekly lineup leagues. It is a great idea to keep up with which players are scheduled to play four games during the upcoming week (1/5 – 1/11), as fantasy basketball managers can use this information to gain an advantage in games played over an opponent. Simply put, the more games played, the more potential there is for production.

Based on their respective four-game schedules, the following four players should be viewed as “sleepers” for next week. Advising fantasy owners to play the likes of LeBron James or Anthony Davis is a waste of time and effort; hopefully it is common knowledge that studs of that nature should be in lineups regardless of how many games they are slated to play.

Position Eligibility & Ownership Rate Based On Yahoo! Fantasy Basketball Leagues.

Top-Four Game Sleepers (1/5 - 1/11)

Cole Aldrich (NYK, C) - 23% Owned

The Knicks are one of the worst teams in the NBA, and are going nowhere this season. They have been plagued by injuries, which is the major reason they only have five wins at this point of the season. However, even bad teams can produce fantasy gold. Injuries create opportunities. This is where Aldrich comes in.

Aldrich has seen an uptick in playing time because he is one of the few healthy bigs New York has right now. Over his last three games he has been a revelation, averaging 10.3 points, 12.7 rebounds, 2.7 assists, 2.3 steals, and 1.7 blocks while playing at least 30 minutes in each game. His shooting has not been pretty, but owners will forgive him if he keeps up this torrid pace in the counting stats. It is a small sample, but it is time to take notice.

Next week New York will play at Memphis, at Washington, Houston, and Charlotte. The Knicks have a very old roster, so it is unlikely that their bigs will get healthy at all this season. Aldrich has an excellent chance to sustain value the rest of the way if he can avoid the injury bug. Owners should pick him up this week, and continue to ride him until he slows down.

Tony Wroten (PHI, PG/SG) - 47% Owned

Wroten got the start on Saturday against the Clippers, as Michael Carter-Williams sat out with a shoulder injury. The injury is considered minor, and MCW is saying that he will play on Monday. This is your friendly reminder that Wroten is a must-start whenever MCW does not play.

However, even if Carter-Williams does come back, Wroten is still an excellent play. He has caught fire of late, scoring 20 or more points in four of his last five games. He has also been a sneaky thief, averaging 2.0 steals in that same span.

The Sixers get blown out a lot, which is normally a concern in fantasy, but Wroten appears to be blowout-proof. He typically comes off the bench, but stays on the court even when they are losing big. His usage rate is 28.7, which ranks him tenth in the NBA. The bottom line is, this guy is going to get minutes despite coming off the bench, and he is going to put up numbers because he is such a ball-dominant player. If you can live with bad percentages and a lot of turnovers, Wroten is a tremendous asset in the counting stats.

Philadelphia’s upcoming schedule features Cleveland, Milwaukee, at Brooklyn, and Indiana. These are all favorable spots for Wroten to be productive, and he gets an even bigger bump if MCW is still out. Either way, Wroten should be owned in standard leagues, and you are going to want to play him this week.

Jodie Meeks (DET, SG) - 42% Owned

The Pistons got off to a dreadful start this season, but have won four in a row following the dismissal of Josh Smith. Meeks deserves a lot of credit for their sudden turnaround, as he is finally getting healthy. In fantasy, Meeks is more of a specialist, but he offers elite production in a few key areas.

On December 30th, Meeks exploded for 34 points, two steals, and a mind-boggling nine three-pointers! This type of line will not be the norm for him, but it does illustrate the category juice that he can provide in points, steals, and threes. He is a very good free throw shooter (87.6 percent career) and an outstanding three-point shooter (37.9 percent career). He is even better in nine-cat formats due to his very low turnover rate.

The schedule for Meeks next week includes matchups at San Antonio, at Dallas, Atlanta, and Brooklyn. He has scored in double figures in five straight games, and has 15 treys in his last three. If you are looking for help in these categories, Meeks is the guy to pick up this week.

Rudy Gobert (UTA, C) - 38% Owned

Gobert was featured in this slot a month ago as a recommended stash. He was already providing late-round value, even in limited minutes off the bench. I told you then if he ever got his hands on a starting role, he would do some major damage. Well, my friends, that time is now.

Enes Kanter missed Utah’s last game with an ankle injury. Gobert got the starting nod in his place, and blew up for 13 points, 11 rebounds, one assist, one steal, and six blocks! It is unclear how much time Kanter will miss, but this is what you can expect from Gobert when he is in the starting lineup.

The sky is the limit for Rudy. He is already one of the best shot blockers in the league. Kanter has not displayed any semblance of defensive ability at any point in his career. Gobert has tremendous upside, but he is already more talented than Kanter in just his second season. The Jazz are simply a better team with Gobert on the floor, and it would be a disgrace if Utah continues to limit his playing time when Kanter returns.

Next week the Jazz will square off with Indiana, at Chicago, at Oklahoma City, and at Houston. Gobert could be the waiver wire pickup of the year. He is severely under owned right now, so stop what you are doing and pick him up in all formats!