If you need a big man for the next couple, it's slim pickings on the waiver wire in the majority of Yahoo leagues. With so many injuries across the NBA, a lot of viable options have already been scooped up. Keeping that in mind, here are some players who are still available in most leagues who could be worth a look based on their respective schedules.
Moritz Wagner, Washington Wizards (70 percent available): I'm a bit surprised that Wagner is still available in this many leagues given the current state of the Wizards. Yes, Davis Bertans has been an animal of late and he and Rui Hachimura are eating up the majority of the minutes up front with Thomas Bryant (foot) out. However, they can't be on the floor all the time, which still makes Wagner a key part of the Wizards' rotation.
Although he has also dealt with injuries, Wagner has averaged 10 points, eight rebounds and three three-pointers across four games without Bryant. On top of that, he has shot 81.8 percent from the charity stripe. The Wizards have played at the second-fastest pace in the league and will play seven times across Weeks 9 and 10, making Wagner one of the better big men to target.
Nerlens Noel, Oklahoma City Thunder (62 percent available): It's going to be interesting to see what the Thunder do as the trade deadline approaches. Even after trading away Russell Westbrook, they are very much in the thick of
If you need a big man for the next couple, it's slim pickings on the waiver wire in the majority of Yahoo leagues. With so many injuries across the NBA, a lot of viable options have already been scooped up. Keeping that in mind, here are some players who are still available in most leagues who could be worth a look based on their respective schedules.
Moritz Wagner, Washington Wizards (70 percent available): I'm a bit surprised that Wagner is still available in this many leagues given the current state of the Wizards. Yes, Davis Bertans has been an animal of late and he and Rui Hachimura are eating up the majority of the minutes up front with Thomas Bryant (foot) out. However, they can't be on the floor all the time, which still makes Wagner a key part of the Wizards' rotation.
Although he has also dealt with injuries, Wagner has averaged 10 points, eight rebounds and three three-pointers across four games without Bryant. On top of that, he has shot 81.8 percent from the charity stripe. The Wizards have played at the second-fastest pace in the league and will play seven times across Weeks 9 and 10, making Wagner one of the better big men to target.
Nerlens Noel, Oklahoma City Thunder (62 percent available): It's going to be interesting to see what the Thunder do as the trade deadline approaches. Even after trading away Russell Westbrook, they are very much in the thick of it for one of the final playoff spots in the Western Conference. With that being said, they would still probably like to move a couple of veterans with hefty contracts, namely Chris Paul and Steven Adams.
If Adams were to ultimately be dealt, Noel could be in line for a starting role, depending on what the Thunder would receive in return. As things currently stand, he's still ranked 74th overall on a per game basis on Yahoo. Not only is he averaging one steal and 1.6 blocks a game, but he is shooting 65.4 percent from the field and 80.4 percent from the free-throw line. The Thunder will play four times in Week 9 and three times in Week 10, making Noel a viable option if you need defensive stats, especially since he won't tank your percentages in the process.
Dwight Powell, Dallas Mavericks (62 percent available): For as good as the Mavericks are now with Luka Doncic and Kristaps Porzingis leading the charge, they are still lacking talent at several positions. They appear to have finally settled on their starting center with Powell holding onto the job for each of their last 12 games. He hasn't exactly been overwhelming, though, with averages of 7.8 points, 4.9 rebounds and one steal. On the bright side, he's shooting a crazy 74.5 percent from the field.
The problem with Powell is that even though he has been starting, he is only averaging 26 minutes a night. Across the only three games in which he logged at least 30 minutes this season, he has averaged 12 points and nine rebounds. The Mavericks will play four times in Week 9, so he could provide value just based on the volume of games that he will have available to him. They play three times in Week 10, which isn't as favorable, but still probably makes Powell an option in deeper leagues.
Ivica Zubac, Los Angeles Clippers (71 percent available): Few players have been able to do as much with so little playing time as Zubac has done this season. While he remains the Clippers' starting center, he's only averaging 17 minutes a game with Montrezl Harrell garnering most of the minutes up front. With that being said, Zubac is still averaging 8.4 points, 6.7 rebounds and 1.1 blocks.
Zubac's 18.1 percent usage rate isn't exactly anything to write home about, but his average of 2.5 offensive rebounds per game does help him earn some extra scoring opportunities. The Clippers will play four times in Week 9, leaving him as a deep-league option to pursue. Honestly, I'd feel more comfortable deploying him than I would Powell that week. However, the Clippers will only play twice in Week 10, so he's only going to be able to fill a hole for you for the one week.
