Fantasy Basketball 2021: Waiver-Wire Advice for Injured Players After Mar. 10
The San Antonio Spurs should be the first team you look to for fantasy basketball waiver-wire additions in the coming months.
San Antonio is scheduled to play 40 games in the second half of the season, and it has an abundance of players who can be fantasy fill-ins for injured players.
With Kevin Durant, Christian Wood and Anthony Davis still sidelined, there is a demand for waiver-wire adds to bridge the gap to their returns. In March alone, the Spurs have 12 games, which means they have four contests in each of the next three weeks.
San Antonio's waiver-wire potential grew Wednesday when it parted ways with LaMarcus Aldridge. That means a few frontcourt players should be open to more time, which gives you more options to replace Wood and Davis.
The Spurs are not the only team with waiver-wire gems, but they should be the primary focus with games coming at a rapid pace.
Mine the Spurs Roster for Gems
San Antonio's Wednesday loss to the Dallas Mavericks gave us a glimpse into which players could be the most valuable adds in the coming weeks.
Patty Mills, Rudy Gay and Lonnie Walker IV all hit multiple three-point shots and scored more than 10 points off the bench, and Keldon Johnson produced 12 points in 21 minutes.
Johnson could be a direct replacement at small forward for Durant while he is sidelined. ESPN's Malika Andrews reported that Durant will receive another scan on his hamstring next week. His production should only go up in the next few weeks as he works back to full fitness following a spell away from the court in health and safety protocols.
The second-year player out of Kentucky is averaging 14 points, 6.6 rebounds and 2.1 assists per game, all of which are improvements from his rookie season.
Although Jakob Poeltl did not have a great performance Wednesday, he should be in line for more production with Aldridge leaving the team. In the past six weeks, Poeltl has six double-digit rebound games and four performances with 14 or more points.
If he can add more consistent scoring totals, Poeltl could be a solid fill-in for Wood or Davis. Wood is closer to returning to the floor than Davis given he has resumed basketball activities, per ESPN's Tim MacMahon.
Poeltl may be good to have on the roster as a safety net in case Wood is on a minutes restriction to slowly ramp up his fitness upon his return to the Houston Rockets lineup.
Go After Robert Williams
Robert Williams is one of the top non-Spurs waiver-wire candidates.
The Boston Celtics big man turned in three double-digit point outings in his past four games. All of those outings came in 20-plus-minute appearances.
If he continues to get a run in the Boston frontcourt, Williams should be a decent fill-in for Wood and Davis and a reliable backup for when those stars return.
In addition to his increased point totals, Williams has been a consistent force on the glass. He pulled down 32 rebounds in the four games prior to the All-Star break.
Williams does not offer much from beyond the arc, but he fills up the points and rebounds categories enough to justify a pickup.
If he continues to play around 20 minutes, Williams could see those numbers move up on a consistent basis and would be a better fantasy option than Tristan Thompson and Daniel Theis in his own frontcourt.
Follow Joe on Twitter, @JTansey90. Statistics obtained from Basketball Reference.