January 13 Fantasy Basketball Waiver Wire: Nikola Jovic, Donte DiVincenzo, Tim Hardaway Jr., Lonzo Ball, Spencer Dinwiddie and More

A new week of fantasy basketball is here, which means it’s time to look at a new batch of waiver wire options.

The five players we’ll talk about today were pulled from the FantasySP Waiver Wire Pickups page, which is updated daily.

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Nikola Jovic Fantasy Outlook

Jovic got another 7.77% increase and sits at 54.99% overall now.

Jovic has taken on a bigger role of late, and it’s led to better production, so it’s no surprise to see his own percentage keep rising. He was rostered in 42.99% of leagues on January 7, so you can see his surge upward.

Across 28 games and 10 starts this season, Jovic is averaging 9.9 points, 3.9 rebounds, 2.3 assists, 0.9 steals and 0.3 blocks across 22.1 minutes. Over the past eight games, he’s averaging 14.4 points, 5 rebounds, 4.3 assists, 0.8 steals and 0.6 blocks across 28.4 minutes.

He’s only started one of those eight games, but Jovic is playing enough off the bench to be a fantasy asset in all formats. He should be rostered in all deeper leagues and dynasties, and now he’s working his way into standard leagues. 

It seems unlikely his role would ever decrease, especially with a trade or two likely coming in Miami. I like the idea of adding Jovic in a standard league if you have a roster spot to play with, or some end-of-the-bench guys who aren’t performing as well as him right now. I think Jovic is here to stay, but I’d definitely take advantage of things now. Waiting too long might lead to you missing out on him.

Donte DiVincenzo Fantasy Outlook

DiVincenzo is rostered in 77.73% of leagues after a 6.67% bump.

DiVincenzo hasn’t performed as well in his first season with Minnesota as he did with New York last season. He’s started four straight games though, and scored in double figures each game. His overall numbers in that stretch are also pretty solid, so it makes sense to see his own percentage going back up.

On the season, DiVincenzo is averaging 10.5 points, 3.6 rebounds and assists, 1.2 steals and 0.2 blocks across 26 minutes in 38 games and six starts. Over the past four games, DiVincenzo is averaging 16 points, and has 23 rebounds, 19 assists and seven steals as well. He’s played between 24-36 minutes in those games.

Minnesota isn’t dealing with any major injuries, but instead inserted DiVincenzo into the starting lineup over Mike Conley. DiVincenzo has taken advantage of the opportunity so far, and the Timberwolves are 3-1 in those games, so I’d expect him to remain in the starting lineup.

DiVincenzo was rostered in most leagues at the start of the season, and could get back to those marks with another week of good showings. He’s worth adding in all leagues right now, and I wouldn’t wait too long if you wanted to add him. DiVincenzo probably will remain in the waiver wire article all week, and you don’t want to miss out.

Tim Hardaway Jr. Fantasy Outlook

Hardaway is up to 18.56% overall after a 5.6% increase.

Hardaway has had a couple 20+ point showings of late, and that has helped his own percentage rise a bit.

In 35 games (all starts) this season, Hardaway is averaging 10.9 points, 2 rebounds, 1.5 assists and 0.4 steals across 27.9 minutes. He’s averaged 31.1 minutes over the past six games, also tallying 15.5 points, 2 rebounds, 1.5 assists and 0.7 steals over that span.

You can see that Hardaway’s fantasy value comes mostly from his scoring, so it makes sense to see it rise after a couple nice outings. He doesn’t do much else when on the court, so his own percentage isn’t likely to get over 25, unless he’s averaging 20 points a game or something.

I view him as a streaming option in deeper leagues for the time being. Take advantage of things while he’s in a shooting groove.

Lonzo Ball Fantasy Outlook

Ball is owned in 42% of leagues after a 4.96% bump up.

Ball had a pretty solid fantasy showing in his last game, and that’s my guess as to why his own percentage has gone up a bit. He had 12 points, six assists, three steals and one rebound and block across 22 minutes in that contest.

In 19 games (no starts) this season, Ball is averaging 5.8 points, 3.2 rebounds, 3.7 assists, 1.6 steals and 0.5 blocks across 19.4 minutes.

I was actually surprised to see his own percentage be that high after looking at his season averages. I get he’s a big name, but he’s really not providing a ton for fantasy teams.

There’s enough there to roster and play him in some deeper leagues, but I’d have guessed him around 25% rostered, not over 40%. He’s already an injury-prone player, and not playing a ton of minutes, so I’m not a big fan of adding him - I’d actually want to see his own percentage fall.

If he can deliver like he did in his last game, then we can revisit things, but for now, I think Ball is a bit overrated.

Spencer Dinwiddie Fantasy Outlook

Dinwiddie is up 4.28% and sitting at 46.87% overall.

He had back-to-back nice fantasy outings, which explains his own percentage rising. Dinwiddie combined for 36 points, 11 rebounds, 13 assists and two steals across 70 minutes.

He’s averaging 9.5 points, 2.3 rebounds, 3.5 assists, 0.8 steals and 0.2 blocks across 23.6 minutes in 36 games (eight starts) this season. He’s been more involved lately because of injuries to Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving.

Irving is expected back shortly, while Doncic is expected back in a couple weeks. Until the Mavs are at full health though, Dinwiddie is a decent fantasy option. I’d want to roster him in most deeper leagues, and also wouldn’t mind streaming him in standard leagues. Take advantage of things while you can.

Other Waiver Options

For you standard league fantasy owners out there, Aaron Gordon, Nicolas Claxton, Buddy Hield, Andrew Wiggins, Klay Thompson, Dennis Schroder, Bilal Coulibaly, Trayce Jackson-Davis and Devin Vassell are more waiver wire options.

Gordon got a 3.48% bump and sits at 74.01% overall now. Claxton is at 88.4% overall after a 1.83% increase.

After a 1.76% bump, Hield is rostered in 59.63% of leagues. Wiggins is owned in 87.47% of leagues after a 1.59% bump.

Thompson is up 1.58% and at 84.45% overall. Schroder is up 1.33% and at 74.48% overall. 

Coulibaly got a 1.32% increase and sits at 70.53% now. Jackson-Davis is rostered in 74.25% of leagues after a 1.16% increase. Vassell is up to 93.5% rostered after a 1.14% increase.

In deeper leagues, Ben Simmons, Cole Anthony, Haywood Highsmith, Nick Richards, Jonathan Isaac, Jared Butler, Jaden McDaniels, Keldon Johnson, Aaron Wiggins, Harrison Barnes and Chris Boucher are some other options.

Simmons was added in 3.35% of leagues and is up to 43.16% overall. Anthony sits at 47.56% after a 2.88% bump.

Highsmith is rostered in 7.66% of leagues after a 2.8% increase. Richards is up 2.37% and at 25.52% overall.

Isaac is owned in 15.08% of leagues after a 2.12% increase. Butler got a 2.12% increase as well and sits at 17.63% overall.

McDaniels is rostered in 45.94% of leagues after a 1.96% bump. Johnson is up 1.72% and at 42.92% overall.

Wiggins got a 1.66% bump and is up to 10.69% now. Barnes is rostered in 21.35% of leagues after a 1.44% increase. Boucher is up 1.18% and owned in 12.06% of leagues.