Jan. 24 Fantasy Basketball Takeaways: Top Rookies and Waiver Wire Options | Jonathan Kuminga, Aaron Wiggins, Scotty Pippen Jr., GG Jackson II, Cason Wallace and More

Eight NBA games were played on Wednesday night, so there is no shortage of notable performances to dive into.

Let’s focus in on performances from waiver wire options and widely-available rookies from Jan. 24.

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Waiver Wire Options

Let’s begin by discussing Golden State Warriors’ Jonathan Kuminga. He was perfect on his 11 field goals and added three free throws on his way to a 25-point showing against the Atlanta Hawks. He also had nine rebounds and two assists, steals and blocks across 29 minutes.

Kuminga, who is currently owned in 77% of leagues, scored over 20 points for a fourth straight contest. He’s averaging 24.3 points, 7 rebounds, 1.3 assists, 1 steal and 0.8 blocks across 28 minutes over that span. That’s more than enough production to add him to your fantasy team if he’s still available.

Oklahoma City Thunder’s Aaron Wiggins tallied 22 points, three rebounds and one assist and block across just 19 minutes in the team’s win over the San Antonio Spurs. Wiggins is only owned in a few leagues.

Wiggins isn’t a big fantasy asset because he rarely tops 20 minutes in games. He’s hot from the floor right now, making 15 of his 19 shots over the past two games, so he might be worth streaming in deeper leagues until he cools off. He doesn’t do much else consistently on the court, so once his scoring dips, drop him back to the waiver wire.

Charlotte Hornets’ Nick Richards, owned in 57% of leagues, made 9-of-13 shots on his way to a 21-point showing in the team’s loss to the Detroit Pistons. He also tallied 10 rebounds and one block.

It was the eighth double-double of the season for Richards, who was playing for the first time in three games. He’s scored in double figures every other game pretty much dating back to late December, so until he proves to be a double-digit scorer every night, he probably should stay on the waiver wire.

Atlanta’s Saddiq Bey totaled 18 points, seven rebounds, three assists and one steal across 27 minutes in the team’s loss to Golden State. Bey is currently owned in 55% of leagues.

Bey was struggling to hit shots a couple games ago, but has made 10-of-23 field goals over the past two games, including a 5-for-13 mark from deep. He’s a pretty consistent rebounder too, so he needs to be owned in all deeper leagues and a good amount of standard leagues too. More showings like Wednesday should push him closer to the 70% own mark.

Washington Wizards’ Marvin Bagley III had 17 points, 15 rebounds and one steal across 26 minutes in the team’s loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves. He’s owned in 77% of leagues.

Bagley has scored in double figures in all four of his games for the Wizards - he’s reached double-digit rebounds in three of the four contests. Even though he’s come off the bench the past two games, he’s still delivered. I wouldn’t immediately try to clear a roster spot for Bagley, but I’d definitely add him if I had a spot to play with.

Dallas Mavericks’ Tim Hardaway Jr., owned in 81% of leagues, recorded 17 points, five rebounds and two assists and steals across 34 minutes in the team’s loss to the Phoenix Suns.

Hardaway continued to put up plenty of points, so I’m surprised to see his own percentage still near 80%. Sure, he doesn’t always stuff the stat sheet with anything other than points, but he’s scoring enough most nights to be a fine fantasy asset already. Add him before it’s too late.

Memphis Grizzlies’ Scotty Pippen Jr., owned in just 3% of leagues, went for 15 points and six rebounds and assists during the team’s win over the Miami Heat.

Pippen has only played in two games this season, and Wednesday was easily his best showing. Of course, Memphis is playing without Desmond Bane, Ja Morant and Marcus Smart for an extended period, but Luke Kennard was also out Wednesday, which opened up some extra minutes for Pippen. The strong outing could get Pippen some extra run going forward, so he’s one to keep an eye on in deeper leagues.

Miami’s Caleb Martin tallied 15 points, four rebounds, two steals and one assist across 29 minutes against the Grizzlies. He’s owned in just 25% of leagues.

Martin scored in double figures for a fourth straight game, even though he only started two of those games. He’s averaging 11.5 points, 4.8 rebounds, 2.8 assists and 0.5 steals and blocks across 28.1 minutes over that span. Martin is a guy to add in deeper leagues and a guy to keep an eye on in standard leagues in case he continues to score at a good clip.

Detroit’s Alec Burks finished with 15 points and one assist in the team’s win. Burks, who is owned in 68% of leagues, played 26 minutes.

The points definitely should catch fantasy owner’s eyes, but the lack of much else on the court is what keeps Burks from a higher own percentage. I’d prefer to save my roster spot in standard leagues for a bit more well-rounded player, even if they can’t score as well as Burks.

Cleveland Cavaliers’ Georges Niang totaled 14 points, four rebounds and two assists across 21 minutes in the team’s loss to the Milwaukee Bucks on Wednesday. Niang is owned in 13% of leagues.

Niang has scored in double figures in four straight games - the streak started with a 33-point outing against the Bucks. If Niang can keep scoring in double figures, he probably does enough else on the court to get added in all formats. He needs to be added in deeper leagues at the very least.

Memphis’ John Konchar contributed 11 points, 10 rebounds, two assists and one steal and block across 31 minutes in the team’s win. He’s owned in 10% of leagues.

I wrote the other day that Konchar was one to keep an eye on, as he’s getting starts and was filling the stat sheet despite some low-scoring outings. With Konchar hitting double figures, he’s worth an add until his role decreases.

Detroit’s Isaiah Stewart and Killian Hayes each had solid outings in the team’s win. Stewart is owned in 72% of leagues, while Hayes is at 26%. 

Stewart tallied 11 points, eight rebounds, two assists and a steal across 34 minutes. He’s scored in double figures in five straight games now, and does enough else on the court to add him in pretty much all leagues.

Hayes tallied six points, seven rebounds and eight assists across 27 minutes. His scoring continues to leave plenty to be desired, but he’s pretty consistent with his assist numbers. If he can add rebounds to the mix, he’s worth an add in deeper leagues, even while scoring under 10 points almost every night.

Top Rookies

A couple rookies stood out on Wednesday.

OKC’s Cason Wallace, owned in 8% of leagues, tallied 13 points, four assists, three rebounds and one steal across 23 minutes played. 

Wallace got some extra minutes with the Thunder rolling to a win. He delivered another big outing, just like he has several times before with extended minutes. The problem is that the Thunder are loaded, so there’s not many minutes available for the rookie. In deeper leagues and dynasties, Wallace could be worth stashing if you have the space, but just don’t expect outings consistent with what he did Wednesday unless a key rotation player or two is out for an extended period.

Houston Rockets’ Cam Whitmore recorded 12 points and four rebounds in 14 minutes during the team’s loss to the Portland Trail Blazers. Whitmore is owned in 12% of leagues.

After playing 26 or 27 minutes the past two contests, Whitmore had that just about cut in half this game. Without more playing time, Whitmore isn’t much more than a stash option in dynasty leagues.

GG Jackson II put together a solid outing in the team’s win over Miami. He had 17 points, four rebounds and two assists across 26 minutes. He’s owned in 17% of leagues.

Jackson has gotten some more playing time of late with all the injuries to Grizzlies’ players, and he’s averaging 13 points, 4.2 rebounds, 0.8 assists and blocks and 0.5 steals across 22 minutes over the past six games. That's enough to get added in most deep leagues.