Jan. 12-15 Fantasy Basketball Takeaways: Top Rookies and Waiver Wire Options | Tim Hardaway Jr., GG Jackson II, Russell Westbrook, Jordan Hawkins, Jabari Walker and More

It’s been a few days since we went over some of the top NBA performances from waiver wire options and rookies. 

Let’s dive into some of those performances which took place from Jan. 12-15.

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Top Monday Outings

Dallas Mavericks’ Tim Hardaway Jr. had another strong showing in the team’s win over the New Orleans Pelicans. Hardaway finished with 41 points, two rebounds and assists and one steal. He made nine 3-pointers.

Hardaway is still available in about 30% of leagues. Yes, he’s taking advantage of no Luka Doncic on the court, but he’s still a solid fantasy asset when the team is at full health. You could stash Hardaway on your bench and start him when the team is missing some key pieces, or just play him every day, because he’s a pretty consistent piece to the Mavs’ offense.

Detroit Pistons’ Alec Burks made eight 3-pointers on his way to a 34-point showing in the team’s win over the Washington Wizards. Burks also had two rebounds and assists.

Burks is being shown as owned in just 44% of leagues. He’s mostly a fantasy asset because of his scoring ability, but he’s scored in double figures in 11 straight games, averaging 18.7 points over that span. Add him only if you have an open roster spot, as more well-rounded players should remain your priority.

Detroit’s Jaden Ivey continues to pop up in these stories. He went for 24 points, seven rebounds, six assists and three blocks in the team’s win.

Ivey, owned in 73% of leagues, has now scored in double figures in 10 straight games. He’s averaged 17.2 points, 5.2 rebounds, 4.7 assists, 0.8 blocks and 0.6 steals across that span. That’s enough production to be on my fantasy team.

Memphis Grizzlies Vince Williams Jr. enjoyed his best game this season, scoring 24 points in the team’s win over the Golden State Warriors. Williams also tallied seven rebounds, four assists, two steals and a block across nearly 38 minutes played.

Williams, who has rocketed up to 63% owned, is taking advantage of extra playing time because of the injuries to Desmond Bane, Ja Morant and Marcus Smart. He fills the stat sheet nicely, and if he consistently scores like he has the last couple games, he’s a pretty good fantasy asset.

Memphis’ GG Jackson II put together another 20-point outing in the team’s win. He finished Monday’s game with 23 points, six rebounds, two steals and blocks and one assist across 29 minutes played.

Jackson tallied 20 points, six boards and two blocks in the team’s previous game across 27 minutes. With so many players out for Memphis, guys like Williams and Jackson are going to take on much larger roles for the foreseeable future. Most of the guys out will be out for several weeks, so why not take a chance on Williams or Jackson? The fantasy production might not be consistent every night, but they have the potential for big games given the amount of minutes they will play.

Sunday’s Best Performers

Portland Trail Blazers rookie Scoot Henderson had his best scoring night of the season in a loss to the Phoenix Suns. Henderson scored 33 points (although he shot 11-of-31 overall) and also posted nine assists, seven rebounds and three steals.

Henderson is down to 58% owned in fantasy leagues after some inconsistent showings over the past few weeks. Sunday’s game wasn’t a good shooting night, but on a bad Portland team, he’s going to get plenty of chances to put up games like this. He needs to be rostered in deeper leagues and dynasty leagues, and considered for standard leagues.

Sacramento Kings’ Kevin Huerter had a nice showing in the team’s overtime loss to the Milwaukee Bucks. Huerter finished with 26 points, 10 rebounds, three assists and one steal across nearly 39 minutes played.

The points and rebounds were good signs for Huerter, but his playing time alone was a great sign. He’s seen his production drop way off this season, but showed he’s still capable of big nights if given some playing time. He’s owned in 53% of leagues - I’d personally like to see another solid game or two before I added him to my team.

Milwaukee’s Malik Beasley accumulated 23 points, five assists, four rebounds and a steal across 45 minutes played in the OT win. He’s owned in 56% of leagues right now.

Beasley has primarily been a 3-point specialist for the Bucks, and while he hit five triples in the game, it was his two other field goals and four free throws that helped him to one of his better scoring games of the season. He’s made at least three 3-pointers in four straight games, so it might make sense to simply add him now until he cools off.

Los Angeles Clippers’ Norman Powell went for 24 points, two blocks and a rebound in the team’s loss to the Minnesota Timerbwolves. He’s owned in 58% of leagues.

Powell has scored in double figures in nine straight games now, but he’s not doing much else on the court. He’d probably have to bump his scoring average up closer to 20 points (instead of 15.2, like he has in the past nine games) in order to see his own percentage go up.

Los Angeles’ Russell Westbrook, owned in 75% of leagues, went for 12 points, 13 assists, eight rebounds and two steals in the team’s loss.

Westbrook isn’t the player he once was, but he showed he’s still capable of some big fantasy outings. His numbers haven’t really been consistent across the board, but he has filled up the stat sheet most nights, so he should still be owned in more leagues.

Players that Stood Out Saturday

Charlotte’s Jordan Hawkins went off for 34 points, five rebounds, four assists and two steals across 36 minutes of action on Saturday in a win over the Mavericks. He’s owned in just 6% of leagues.

The reason his own percentage is so low is because he’s gotten sporadic playing time all season. He followed up Saturday’s big showing with nine points and one rebound and assist across only 20 minutes. I’d want to see an extended run of solid outings before adding Hawkins.

Dallas’ Derrick Jones Jr. recorded 24 points, four rebounds and one assist in the team’s loss. He’s owned in 29% of leagues.

Jones missed Monday’s game with a calf strain, so that’s something to keep an eye on. The 24-point outing was one of his best of the season, but he’s also failed to reach double figures in 19 games, so I’d hold off on adding him for now.

Golden State’s Brandin Podziemski, owned in 38% of leagues, tallied 23 points, 10 rebounds, three assists and two steals in the team’s loss to the Bucks.

Being a rookie, Podziemski is going to be a bit inconsistent with his performances. He needs to be owned in deeper leagues and dynasty leagues, but can probably be avoided in standard leagues for the time being.

Friday Standouts

Miami Heat’s Duncan Robinson knocked down four 3-pointers and finished with 23 points, four rebounds, three assists and one steal across 41 minutes in a win over the Orlando Magic.

Robinson, who is owned in 61% of leagues, is more than capable of those kinds of games, but it really all comes down to how he shoots from deep. He’s been inconsistent, and until he can get in a better groove, I’d avoid adding him to my team.

Portland’s Jabari Walker returned to the court after missing four games and tallied 17 points, 13 rebounds, three assists and one steal across 32 minutes on Friday. He had 11 points, eight boards and one assist across 28 minutes on Sunday.

Walker is owned in 38% of leagues now, and will continue to up the percentage if he keeps up this level of play. I’d personally like to wait another couple games before adding him.

Utah Jazz’s Kelly Olynyk posted 11 points, 10 rebounds, five assists and one steal across 21 minutes played in a lopsided win over the Toronto Raptors.

It was Olynyk’s most playing time since the end of December, and the lopsided score allowed him to contribute a bit more than usual. He’d be a better fantasy asset if a key rotation player were to miss extended time. Until then, Olynyk should remain around his current 50% own mark.