Fantasy Basketball 2022: Pickups and NBA Waiver-Wire Adds After February 2
Whether plugging a temporary void due to injury or finding a long-term replacement for a disappointing player, the waiver wire continues to be a fountain of opportunity.
Embodying that opportunity is February 2's star of the night: the Indiana Pacers' Terry Taylor.
The 22-year-old made the most of his two-way contract by dropping 24 points and 16 rebounds, delighting the three percent of Yahoo fantasy managers who roster him.
While Taylor heads a list of intriguing options, he's far from alone. For those in shallower leagues, players such as the Los Angeles Clippers' Amir Coffey and Sacramento Kings' Davion Mitchell deserve attention.
For those in deeper leagues, we'll look at three players who are rostered in less than 33 percent of leagues: Taylor, the San Antonio Spurs' Devin Vassell and the Houston Rockets' Garrison Mathews. All three are forwards, so if you're in need of bigs, consider the Golden State Warriors' Kevon Looney and Brooklyn Nets' Nicolas Claxton.
Terry Taylor, SG/SF, Indiana Pacers
Taylor made his mark on the Association with a 15-point, eight-rebound outing in 21 minutes against the Los Angeles Clippers on January 31.
Two days later, he carved his presence into the Orlando Magic.
In an extended 36 minutes and 56 seconds against Orlando, Taylor posted 24 points, 16 rebounds, three assists, one steal and one three. He's a rookie on a two-way deal, but the 6'5" wing is playing above his size and well above his draft and contract pedigrees.
With Indiana undergoing roster flux due to rumored trade deliberations, Taylor is worth a short-term swing for those with a fluid roster spot. His floor is relegation to the G League, but his ceiling is apparently a 20-point double-double and value across multiple categories.
Devin Vassell, SG/SF, San Antonio Spurs
Like Taylor, Vassell's floor is lowered by the possibility of minutes slipping away; and, also like Taylor, the young forward is making enough noise to deserve more run.
The sophomore has failed to reach double-digit points in just two of his last 10 games. More importantly, his minutes have trended up to 28.4 per game over his last five outings.
A lottery pick in 2020, the 21-year-old seems to be coming into his own, matching league physicality and finding his highly touted shooting stroke.
In Tuesday's loss to the Golden State Warriors, Vassell posted 14 points, eight rebounds, four assists and two steals. Of more interest to fantasy managers, he did so while making four threes and shooting 100 percent from the free-throw line.
If that shot keeps falling and his place in the rotation continues trending in the right direction, his fantasy value should follow.
Garrison Mathews, SG/SF, Houston Rockets
We've played this game with Mathews before and here we are, playing it again. After being demoted to relative fantasy obscurity, the third-year shooter has worked his way back into the Houston rotation and is delivering.
It would be easy to shrug off the 25-year-old due to inconsistency, but his recent numbers are hard to ignore. In his past three games he's scored 21, 11 and 16 points, with a fantasy goldmine of threes (10 total) and steals (five total).
Mathews is hot right now, and his minutes haven't dipped below 23 since January 12. Threes and steals are invaluable in fantasy, so he is as good a plug-and-play as possible right now.