February 7 Fantasy Basketball Waiver Wire: Dalton Knecht, Moussa Diabate, Max Christie, Jusuf Nurkic, Bub Carrington and More

With a bunch of trades still impacting how NBA teams look, we'll continue to use the FantasySP Fantasy Basketball Waiver Wire Pickups page to power our articles.

Let's dive right in!

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Dalton Knecht Fantasy Outlook

Knecht is the top waiver wire addition at the time of this publication. He's up 16.44% and sitting at 41.13% overall.

I discussed Knecht on Thursday, but will go over things quickly again.

He got traded to the Hornets as part of the Mark Williams trade. Knecht will now likely take on a larger role, playing more minutes and increasing his averages across the board. 

I'd add Knecht in all deep leagues, and he already needed to be a dynasty keeper. He could move into standard league own territory with a big game or two in Charlotte, so keep a very close eye on him in his first games with the team.

Moussa Diabate Fantasy Outlook

Diabate was the top waiver wire guy on Thursday, and he's up another 12.01% and sitting at 36.95% now.

The Hornets traded away Nick Richards a couple weeks ago, and then Williams in that Knecht deal already referenced. That didn't leave many big men in Charlotte, so it's easy to see why Diabate is surging up.

The problem is that Charlotte traded for Jusuf Nurkic on Thursday. Nurkic could be bought out of his contract, but I think Charlotte brought him in out of necessity. Diabate might still start and play more minutes, but just having Nurkic around likely means Diabate plays a few less minutes, and it will hurt his fantasy outlook.

I still think Diabate is worth an add in some deeper leagues, but he might top out as a deep-league option now. I thought there was a chance he could be a standard league option, but I think he'll be held back from reaching that potential.

Max Christie Fantasy Outlook

Christie is another player we discussed on Thursday. He's up another 10.03% and owned in 40.89% of leagues now.

He was sent to the Mavericks as part of the Anthony Davis and Luka Doncic trade. He looked good in his first game with Dallas, and went for 15 points, four assists, six rebounds and one block in last night's game.

Christie needs to be owned in every deeper fantasy league at this point. He looks like he's going to be a big part of the Mavs' rotation moving forward, and I at least want to roster him until he cools off.

He might top out as a deep-league option, but he's worth keeping a very close eye on for the near future, as more well-rounded play could make him at least a streamer.

Jusuf Nurkic Fantasy Outlook

Nurkic is up 9.81% and is rostered in 55% of leagues now.

He's a double-double threat any time he takes the court, and because we don't know what his role might be in Charlotte, fantasy owners are adding him in case he explodes.

I'd think the Hornets would prioritize the younger Diabate, but there's a chance Nurkic plays more and is the better fantasy asset. He's a safer bet given he's done it before.

I'm not sure I'd be adding Nurkic in standard leagues yet, but I'd definitely want him in all deeper leagues. If you have a roster spot to work with in a standard league and need some post help, stashing Nurkic isn't a terrible idea.

Bub Carrington Fantasy Outlook

Carrington was added in 7.86% of leagues and is rostered in 16.75% overall now.

Washington made several trades at the deadline, and there's a chance Carrington takes on a larger role after the moves. I think he's still going to retain a similar role to what he's had all season because Jordan Poole and Bilal Coulibaly are around, not to mention Malcolm Brogdon, Marcus Smart, Corey Kispert and Khris Middleton now.

I actually think it's more likely that Carrington loses some minutes. He could retain his bigger role if Washington decides to buy out any of the other players I just mentioned.

Still, I don't mind fantasy owners adding him. I was a bit surprised to see him at just 16.75% rostered, especially after the big boost today. He probably deserved to be rostered in that many leagues already, so this is more righting a wrong than anything.

Washington will be a fascinating team to watch over the next few games to see how this all shakes out after the deadline.

Other Notable Waiver Additions

Golden State has four players inside the top-25 waiver pickups today. Brandin Podziemski (53.45% overall), Buddy Hield (52.46%), Kevon Looney (16.75%) and Draymond Green (79%) are all on the rise.

Podziemski didn't play that well on Thursday, but he should get plenty of minutes per game, even in a reserve role, to be a decent fantasy asset.

Hield is still starting and playing a ton of minutes, but it's possible the addition of Jimmy Butler changes that. Hield still probably will remain a good deep-league option, at worst.

Looney only played 12 minutes on Thursday, so I'm not sure I'm understanding his inclusion on the waiver wire pickups page. He's not owned in many leagues, but probably shouldn't be rising after barely producing in a short amount of time on the court.

Green recently returned from an absence, so that explains why his own percentage is moving up. Depending on how he performs when Butler joins the mix, Green should continue to see his own percentage rise a bit.

Karlo Matkovic is up 5.8% and rostered in 9.75% of leagues now. He's played 27 and 29 minutes the past two games and has a chance to retain a big role the rest of the season after the trade of Brandon Ingram. 

I wouldn't mind adding Matkovic in some deep leagues to see if he can keep things up. If he does, he'll continue to be added in more and more leagues.

Naji Marshall is another Maverick who is on the rise. He's up 7.35% and sitting at 24.88% overall.

He's scored a bit more of late, and his improved numbers are the biggest reason behind him being a waiver wire pickup. Things might not last after the Mavs get Davis back, but I still think Marshall could be a decent deep-league option all season.

Keon Johnson is up 4.66% and owned in 45.5% of leagues now. He's taking advantage of extra playing time, and is already in standard league streamer territory. His own percentage will only continue to rise with more strong play.

Bobby Portis is rostered in 81.25% of leagues after a 4.52% increase. He recently returned from an absence and surprisingly wasn't dealt at the deadline. He should retain a big role off the bench for the Bucks. Portis is a streaming option when the Bucks are missing Giannis Antetokounmpo, but otherwise is too streaky to continuously roster in standard leagues.

Other Waiver Options

There's several other players trending up at the end of this fantasy week.

Reed Sheppard, Kyshawn George and Aaron Wiggins are three options rostered in less than 20% of leagues right now.

Mike Conley, T.J. McConnell and Bogdan Bogdanovic are between 30-50% owned. Isaiah Collier and Ausar Thompson are rostered in just over 50% of leagues.

Aaron Gordon, Bilal Coulibaly, Scoot Henderson and Toumani Camara are a few more options, with Henderson being the most rostered at 85% and Gordon the least at 67%.