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The Playlist: Fantasy basketball waiver wire pickups for the final week of the season

Dan Titus
Fantasy analyst
·7 min read
1
Chimezie Metu #4 of the Detroit Pistons
Chimezie Metu has emerged at the perfect time of the fantasy basketball season. (Photo by Jess Rapfogel/Getty Images)

Welcome to The Playlist: my weekly column that lets you know who and what to play — when it comes to music or other things in my rotation — for the upcoming week in fantasy basketball.

Each week, you'll see a compilation of the pickups you need to make, lineup notes (who's in and out of rotations), followed by key takeaways on the schedule.

It's been a great year, and thank you to everyone who tuned in and took home some hardware in the process!

If you're still grindin', I gotchu. Press play and shuffle through the final playlist of the fantasy basketball season!

🏀 Week 23 wrap up

🏆 Top performers

Jalen Brunson was the top scorer in points formats for Week 23, scoring 213.2 fantasy points across four games.

Victor Wembanyama again took the top spot in nine-category formats, finishing the week with what's becoming a routinely dominant output for the generational first-year talent.

🗓️Schedule things you need to know

  • There are no games on Monday (NCAA Men's Championship) or Saturday

  • Wednesday (eight games) and Thursday (five games) are the only days to stream. Unfortunately, no teams will play on both days.

  • The Lakers, Pacers, Sixers and Wizards play on the largest slates: Tuesday Friday, and Sunday. It'll be hard to fit the fringe players into your lineups on those nights, but don't rule them out because, after all, it's silly season, and stars will undoubtedly rest during the final week of the regular season.

  • If your league is still ongoing, you should tell your commish that they are wildin' and to move the playoffs up a couple of weeks to avoid the late-season BS.

The Setup - Obie Trice

🚑 Shut-down risks

Shut Em Down (Instrumental) - Public Enemy (feat. Pete Rock)

🎧 WHO'S IN MY ROTATION: Players to pick up on waivers who are less than 50% rostered in Yahoo leagues.

If a fantasy manager dropped a notable player in haste last week, I'd prioritize picking them up over some of the deeper-league adds listed below. Each team and league is different, so evaluate the best move to improve your roster this week.

Shallow- and deep-league streams for Week 24

Andre Drummond - C, Chicago Bulls (41%)

Drummond remains a bully on the block and is worth streaming with so many injuries plaguing the Bulls. In 12 games playing at least 20 minutes this year, he's posting a noteworthy 12 points with 14 rebounds per game. Drummond has now played over 20 minutes in three straight games, producing an average of 12 points and 15 rebounds. With double-double potential, add 'Dre for Week 24.

On My Block - Scarface

Vasilije Micić - PG, Charlotte Hornets (30%)

Micić will continue to cook as the season winds down and needs to be rostered in all leagues. He's averaging a double-double over his last six games while also contributing threes and steals nightly. The Hornets play four games, so you can start Micić if you're looking for a playmaker in the final week of the regular season.

Jabari Walker - SF/PF, Portland Trail Blazers (18%)

Walker was the unheralded king of Week 23 for fantasy managers. He's dropped three straight double-doubles and is averaging a ridiculous 15 points with 16 rebounds and three assists in his previous four contests.

He needs to be added to all leagues because, similar to teammate Dalano Banton, he's taking advantage of his increase in minutes down the stretch.

Sixteen - Rick Ross feat. Andre 3000

T.J. McConnell - PG/SG, Indiana Pacers (26%)

McConnell is an underrated fantasy playoff performer. In his previous 10 games, he averaged 14 points with six dimes off the bench, and I'd start him over other players, even those on larger slates in category and roto formats.

He's good for FG%, gets steals and doesn't commit many turnovers. He can produce in just 20 minutes a night. And who knows, Tyrese Haliburton could be rested now that he's hit his 65-game limit.

Chimezie Metu - PF/C, Detroit Pistons (13%)

Whether defensively or offensively, Metu has showcased a strong fantasy profile over the past two weeks, ranking 35th in per-game value in nine-category formats. The Pistons have been playing more checkers than chess lately, but Metu is shaping up to be an end-of-the-year winner, seeing close to 30 minutes a night to close out the season.

Checkmate - Cordae feat. Hit-Boy

Noah Clowney - PF, Brooklyn Nets (4%)

Clowney's worth streaming on Wednesday as the Nets are out of playoff contention. He's been the only player producing off the bench lately. Dorian Finney-Smith missed Sunday's contest, and Cam Johnson's been a mess all year, so why not Clowney?

Over his last three outings, he's averaging 15.3 points, 8.7 rebounds, 1.7 blocks and 1.6 threes in 25 minutes per game. Plays like this had me more than convinced he's worth it.

Jordan Goodwin - PG/SG, Memphis Grizzlies (14%)

The Grizzlies are mailing it in, and with just a handful of games left, Goodwin should play at least three of their four games this week. I'd start Goodwin on Wednesday versus the injury-riddled Cavaliers because Goodwin is contributing across categories, averaging 12 points, nine boards and five dimes over his last five games. The game cap shouldn't be an issue, either.

Dante Exum - PG/SG, Dallas Mavericks (3%)

Exum has played over 33 minutes in his last two games, and with his Sunday night heroics, you can see why he's a player you should add in the season's final week. He's averaging 13 points, six rebounds, 4.5 assists and 1.5 triples while shooting over 50% from the field across those two games. He should play more to close the year with the Mavs gearing up for the playoffs.

The Mavs have a back-to-back on Tuesday and Wednesday and then play the Pistons on Friday. Should one of Luka Dončić or Kyrie Irving sit, Exum could do even more work.

Malaki Branham - PG/SG/SF, San Antonio Spurs (8%)

Branham has benefitted from Devin Vassell's absence and has given the Spurs a much-needed scorer alongside Wembanyama. Due to his scoring output and volume, I prefer Branham for points leagues. This week, he has matchups against the Grizzlies, Thunder, Pistons and Nuggets.

No matter the situation, I don't foresee Branham getting benched for any reason.

Javonte Green - SG, Chicago Bulls (2%)

Green came out of nowhere to score 25 points, 13 rebounds and three steals on Friday and 15 points, eight boards with four steals on Sunday. Should Alex Caruso (ankle) miss any games in Week 24, Green is worth starting against the Pistons and Wizards on the Bulls' Thursday and Friday back-to-back sets. Over the past two weeks, he's been a top-90 player.

Other streaming options in Week 22:

Victory Lap - Nipsey Hussle (feat. Stacy Barthe)

Schedule breakdown

Daily Games Played:

  • Monday: 0

  • Tuesday: 14

  • Wednesday: 8

  • Thursday: 5

  • Friday: 15

  • Saturday: 0

  • Sunday: 15

Teams playing four games: ATL, BOS, CHA, CHI, DAL, DEN, DET, GSW, HOU, LAC, MEM, MIA, MIL, MIN, NOP, NYK, OKC, ORL, PHX, POR, SAC, SAS, TOR and UTA

Teams playing three games: BKN, CLE, IND, LAL, PHI and WAS

Teams with back-to-backs

  • Monday/Tuesday: None

  • Tuesday/Wednesday: Bucks, Clippers, Grizzlies, Hawks, Heat, Hornets, Magic, Mavericks, Nuggets, Raptors, Spurs, Suns, Thunder and Timberwolves

  • Wednesday/Thursday: Hawks

  • Thursday/Friday: Bulls, Celtics, Kings, Knicks, Jazz, Pelicans, Pistons, Rockets, Trail Blazers and Warriors

  • Friday/Saturday: None

  • Saturday/Sunday: None