Week 11 Fantasy Basketball Drop Candidates: Jaime Jaquez, Alec Burks, Buddy Hield and More

A new fantasy basketball week is underway! It’s week 11 already, but the fantasy season should really heat up now that fantasy football leagues are wrapping up.

After taking a look at some of the top waiver wire performers, let’s look at some of the top drop candidates.

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Jaime Jaquez Jr. Fantasy Outlook

Jaquez is the top-dropped player according to the FantasySP waiver trends most dropped tab. His 10.5% decrease has him at 40% overall.

Jaquez is averaging 8.9 points, 2.1 assists, 4.7 rebounds, 1.2 steals and 0.1 blocks across 21.4 minutes this season. He has 37 turnovers across 536 minutes played.

There’s a few different guesses for why he’s being dropped, but they are all related to his play or time on the court. Over the past three games, he’s seen his minutes per game drop from 30 to 21 to 16. His production as a fantasy player has also dipped significantly over that time.

Jaquez was a pretty solid fantasy asset in his rookie season, but he’s seen his playing time and production tail off this season. He was owned in all deep leagues and dynasties as a rookie, and was a standard league option for a good chunk of that season. 

With his decreased averages and playing time, Jaquez is now just a deep-league option for those of you in redraft leagues. I still like the idea of hanging on to Jaquez in dynasty leagues, but his value is definitely on a decline right now.

With a little more NBA success to his name already, Jaquez is a player to keep tabs on throughout the season. An injury or roster shakeup could thrust Jaquez right back into a bigger role, and more playing time could help him return to the player he was a season ago. 

For now though, Jaquez can be dropped in all standard league redraft leagues, and a few deeper leagues.

Larry Nance Jr. Fantasy Outlook

Nance is dealing with an injury, so his 7.6% drop (24% rostered overall) makes sense.

He’s averaging 9.5 points, 1.6 assists, 4.3 rebounds, 1.1 steals and 0.7 blocks across 18.8 minutes a game for the season. Nance had been especially good of late, scoring in double figures in four of the past six contests, and playing over 20 minutes in his past six outings.

Nance needs surgery on his hand, and while a timetable hasn’t been announced yet, he’s probably going to miss a few weeks at the very least.

He was barely owned in fantasy leagues just 10 days ago, and now that he will be out for a bit, at least, fantasy owners are moving on to other options. That’s the right choice. Only in the deepest leagues with unlimited IR spots should Nance maybe be kept on fantasy rosters.

Nance is one to keep an eye on once he returns from injury, and he is also in trade talks, so he could become a much better fantasy asset down the line.

Alec Burks Fantasy Outlook

Burks is rostered in just 8% of leagues after a 6.2% decrease.

He’s averaging 6.9 points, 1.2 assists, 2.1 rebounds, 0.7 steals and 0.2 blocks across 16.8 minutes a game this season. He has five turnovers across 252 minutes played this season.

The drop in Burks’ own percentages look to be the result of his most recent game, in which he had four points and two turnovers across 17 minutes played. In the previous three games, Burks scored between 10-17 points and added at least a few other assists, steals, rebounds or blocks - he also only had one turnover during that span.

This is a prime example of fantasy owners reacting to the most recent fantasy outing for a player. He was just a deep-league option anyway, and after a nice little stretch of play, I’d prefer to hang on to him a little while longer instead of moving on prematurely.

I get if your fantasy team is fighting and scrapping to be the best it can be, but at a pretty early portion of the season still, I’d like to hang on to Burks in deeper leagues for just a bit longer (even if that’s just a game or two).

Brandin Podziemski Fantasy Outlook

Podziemski is dealing with an injury, but has also struggled a bit this season as a fantasy player, so his recent 5.5% drop mark makes sense on two fronts. He is still rostered in 24% of leagues overall.

Podziemski is averaging 8 points, 3.2 assists, 4.5 rebounds, 1 steal and 0.2 blocks across 23.7 minutes a game. He has 30 turnovers across 710 total minutes played.

Podziemski isn’t playing on Monday, but I haven’t seen anything saying it’s going to be a long-term absence. It feels like the vast majority of fantasy owners who were holding out hope on Podziemski are using his injury to cut bait.

I still think he has value in deeper redraft leagues (and dynasties, of course), but with how he’s played this season, it’s probably worth seeing if there’s a better option available to you. If he does get dropped in your league, Podziemski is worth watching in case he heats up after returning to the court.

Royce O'Neale Fantasy Outlook

O’Neale is another player dealing with an injury. He’s been dropped in 5.3% of leagues, bringing his overall number down to 45%.

He is averaging 10.5 points, 2.4 assists, 5.5 rebounds, 1 steal and 0.6 blocks across 25.9 minutes a game. O’Neale has 30 turnovers across 777 total minutes played.

O’Neale is dealing with an ankle sprain, so his absence isn’t likely to be too lengthy. He might miss a few games before returning.

At his current averages, O’Neale is a good fantasy option in deeper leagues - his own percentage reflects that. As long as news doesn’t come out that he’s going to miss extended time, I’d want to keep O’Neale on my fantasy roster. Ideally, you have an IR spot to throw him in, but if not, I’d just stash him on my bench.

He’s a bit too valuable a fantasy asset to move on from him because of a short-term injury. I’d scoop him up if he became available in my league.

Maybe some of the drop percentage comes from those in standard leagues. I’d be on board with that move - just not in deeper leagues.

Buddy Hield Fantasy Outlook

Hield has been dropped in 5.1% of leagues and is now rostered in 61% of leagues overall.

He’s averaging 12.9 points, 1.3 assists, 3.4 rebounds, 0.8 steals and 0.3 blocks across 22.5 minutes a game. Hield has 39 turnovers across 697 minutes played.

Hield’s playing time has taken a dip of late, and his fantasy production has suffered as a result. After a 27-point showing on December 8 and then a 15-point outing on December 11, Hield has scored in double figures just twice. 

Hield played in 26 minutes on December 15, but has been at or below 20 minutes in six straight. Less playing time is not a good recipe for a fantasy player, and it makes sense to see fantasy owners dropping him.

I honestly think Hield’s own percentage is a bit high right now, and I think he should be sitting closer to 50% owned. Maybe Hield’s cold streak will get him to that point.

Whatever ends up happening, Hield is not worth a standard league roster spot right now. I’d hold out hope for Hield in deeper leagues, however.