Feb. 27 Fantasy Basketball Takeaways: Top Rookies and Waiver Wire Options | Max Strus, Naz Reid, Marvin Bagley III, Corey Kispert, Toumani Camara and More

An 11-game NBA schedule provided great entertainment for sports fans on Tuesday. 

Let’s discuss some of the best performances from waiver wire players and rookies from Feb. 27.

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Waiver Wire Options

We have to start things off with Cleveland Cavaliers’ Max Strus. He tallied 21 points, four assists and rebounds and two blocks across 26 minutes in the team’s thrilling win over the Dallas Mavericks. 

Why was it a thrilling win? Strus hit a buzzer beater from beyond half court to help the Cavs win by two.

Strus, rostered in 71% of leagues, hit seven 3-pointers in the contest, which was a nice bounceback from his last game (three points on 0-of-3 shooting). Shooters like Strus tend to go on hot streaks, and Tuesday’s game could certainly be the start of a big stretch for Strus. He’s a streaming option until he cools off a bit.

New Orleans Pelicans’ Trey Murphy III, owned in 60% of leagues, made 9-of-14 shots overall and 6-of-11 from deep to score 26 points in the team’s win over the New York Knicks. He also had seven rebounds, four assists and one steal across 36 minutes.

Murphy continues to fill out the stat sheet pretty well every night, and if Tuesday is a sign of things to come, Murphy is a good fantasy asset in all formats. His scoring is pretty streaky, with four double-digit outings over the past eight games, but because he rebounds well every night (and usually adds steals, assists or blocks), he’s worth considering in all formats even with the streaky scoring.

Minnesota Timberwolves’ Naz Reid, rostered in 70% of leagues, totaled 22 points, six rebounds, two steals and one assist and block across 33 minutes off the bench in the team’s win over the San Antonio Spurs. 

Reid got some extra minutes with Karl-Anthony Towns out of action, and Reid responded with a big outing to help the team win. Reid is a solid fantasy option in all formats despite coming off the bench and averaging around 23 minutes played, but he’s a great streaming option whenever Towns or Rudy Gobert are out, so keep that in mind moving forward.

Washington Wizards’ Marvin Bagley III, owned in 63% of leagues, recorded 20 points, nine rebounds, two assists and blocks and one steal across 33 minutes in the team’s loss to the Golden State Warriors. 

Bagley has been a new player since joining the Wizards, primarily because he’s getting playing time. Across his 15 games with Washington, Bagley is averaging 24.6 minutes, 13.6 points, 8.7 rebounds, 1.5 assists, 0.8 blocks and 0.7 steals per game.

His playing time fluctuates a bit, but he’s gone over 30 minutes in two straight games now, so that could be a sign of things to come in future games. I’m fine adding him for the time being if you have the space to make a move.

Chicago Bulls’ Andre Drummond, rostered in 56% of leagues, totaled 20 points, 11 rebounds and one block across 28 minutes off the bench in the team’s loss to the Detroit Pistons. 

Drummond’s playing time has been up and down of late, but he’s delivered solid numbers regardless of how many minutes he’s played. Until he consistently plays this many minutes, he’s probably better off only being utilized in deeper leagues, or as a streamer in standard leagues when a key rotation player or big is out.

Atlanta Hawks’ De'Andre Hunter, rostered in 69% of leagues, accumulated 20 points, five rebounds and one block across 28 minutes off the bench in the team’s win over the Utah Jazz.

Surprisingly, Hunter’s shot attempts have decreased since Trae Young has been out of the lineup. I expect that to change a bit going forward. Hunter has scored in double figures in eight straight games, with five over 20 points. That’s enough to roster/play him in all formats, at least until he cools off, or Young returns.

Washington’s Corey Kispert, rostered in 20% of leagues, started and played 33 minutes on Tuesday, tallying 20 points, five assists, three rebounds and two blocks.

It was his second straight 20-point outing and third time in four games he’s hit that mark. He added some other stats on Tuesday too, which was one of the biggest reasons against adding him in all formats. For the time being, he could be added in all formats, but will probably only stick as an asset in deeper leagues.

New York’s Nojan Bogdanovic, owned in 75% of leagues, recorded 20 points, five assists, four rebounds and one steal across 29 minutes off the bench in the team’s loss.

Bogdanovic has had two pretty well-rounded games in a row, and is probably worth streaming until those numbers end. Watch his defensive matchups and stream him accordingly.

Top Rookies

Several rookies did some nice things on Tuesday.

Portland Trail Blazers’ Toumani Camara, owned in just 6% of leagues, finished with 17 points, 10 rebounds and three assists in a loss to the Miami Heat.

Camara has started five straight games for Portland, with Tuesday easily being his most minutes over that span. He tends to pull down enough rebounds to complement his points, but his scoring has been inconsistent of late. Camara is worth watching closely in deeper leagues and dynasties in case Tuesday was the start of a hot streak for him.

Philadelphia 76ers’ Ricky Council IV, rostered in 2% of leagues, tallied 16 points, four rebounds and one assist across 19 minutes off the bench in the team’s loss to the Boston Celtics.

The scoring output was good to see from the rookie, but his inconsistent playing time over the past couple weeks makes it tough to add him in any leagues. He’s worth keeping an eye on in deep leagues/dynasties, but more than likely, he should stay on waiver wires for the rest of the season (unless there’s a big injury to a guard on the team).

Utah’s Keyonte George, owned in 56% of leagues, recorded 14 points, six assists and one rebounds across 34 minutes in the team’s loss. 

George got back in double figures after missing the mark in the previous game. He’s a solid source for assists every night, and if he could score like this consistently, he’s a decent option in all formats. For now though, I think his own percentage should stick around 60%.

Detroit’s Ausar Thompson, rostered in 69% of leagues, totaled 13 points, eight rebounds, three assists and one block across 35 minutes in the team’s win.

Thompson usually doesn’t get a ton of field goal attempts, but if he can be efficient like this, he’s capable of putting together really solid fantasy outings. His own percentage will probably stick around 70% unless his scoring average goes up a good bit.

Utah’s Taylor Hendricks posted another solid game on Tuesday. He’s owned in 6% of leagues and finished the night with eight points and rebounds, two steals and one assist across 29 minutes. 

Hendricks has made this article a couple times of late for some well-rounded efforts. I like the idea of adding him in deep leagues and possibly deeper dynasties too. If his playing time falls off, then you can look elsewhere for fantasy help.

Dallas rookie Dereck Lively II, owned in 62% of leagues, totaled nine points, six rebounds and two blocks across 22 minutes in the team’s loss.

Lively’s playing time had been pretty low after returning from a seven-game absence, but maybe Tuesday was the start of him returning to his old role. He averages 25.1 minutes per game this season, and if he can reach that mark consistently, he’s got a much better chance to provide you with fantasy points.

Keep a close eye on him, as a lot of fantasy owners might drop him after the past few games of low minute totals.