March 12 Fantasy Basketball Takeaways: Top Rookies and Waiver Wire Options | Nickeil Alexander-Walker, Corey Kispert, Luguentz Dort, Harrison Barnes, Keyonte George and More

Taking a look at some of the top performances from waiver wire options across NBA games played March 12.

There were seven NBA games played on Tuesday, March 12. Let’s take a look at some of the night’s best outings from waiver wire players and rookies.

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Waiver Wire Options

Minnesota Timberwolves’ Nickeil Alexander-Walker, owned in 9% of leagues, recorded 28 points, three rebounds and one assist and block in 28 minutes off the bench in the team’s win over the Los Angeles Clippers. Alexander-Walker was 9-of-10 from the floor.

He plays a healthy amount of minutes each night, but obviously isn’t usually this efficient. Alexander-Walker has scored in double figures in four of the past five games though, so he’s a streaming option in deeper leagues until he cools off.

Washington Wizards’ Corey Kispert, rostered in 38% of leagues, finished with 22 points, two rebounds and one steal across 36 minutes in the team’s loss to the Memphis Grizzlies.

That’s back-to-back games where Kispert has scored 22 points and three straight games in double figures. He doesn’t fill the stat sheet enough to roster in standard leagues, but he’s another deep league option until he cools off.

San Antonio Spurs’ Jeremy Sochan, owned in 69% of leagues, went for 21 points, eight rebounds, two assists and one steal and block across 32 minutes in the team’s loss to the Houston Rockets.

Sochan has scored in double figures in five of the past seven games, missing the mark by a point on both occasions. He adds in a decent amount of rebounds and other stats most nights, so he needs to be utilized in deeper leagues. As far as when I’d stream him in standard leagues, I’d try to play him in favorable matchups.

Oklahoma City Thunder’s Luguentz Dort, rostered in 43% of leagues, accumulated 18 points, three assists, two rebounds and one steal across 35 minutes in the team’s loss to the Indiana Pacers.

Dort isn’t a very consistent scorer, and his minutes also fluctuate, so it’s hard to trust him outside of deep leagues. I’d stream him in deeper leagues, especially in favorable matchups, or if a couple regular rotation members are out.

Memphis’ Jake LaRavia, owned in 43% of leagues, went for 16 points, four rebounds, two steals and one assist across 24 minutes in the team’s win.

LaRavia has scored in double figures in five straight games, while also filling the stat sheet pretty well otherwise over that span. He’s a deep league option for the time being, but until he plays closer to 30 minutes, you should probably avoid him in standard leagues.

Sacramento Kings’ Harrison Barnes, rostered in 44% of leagues, tallied 16 points, six rebounds, two assists and one steal across 32 minutes in the team’s win over the Milwaukee Bucks.

It was a nice bounceback game for Barnes, who failed to score in double figures the previous game, which was the only time that happened over the past six games now.  Most nights, he doesn’t add a ton of other stats (outside points), so while he remains a solid deep league option, I’d look elsewhere for help in standard leagues.

Memphis’ Jordan Goodwin, owned in 4% of leagues, recorded eight points, 12 rebounds, seven assists and one steal and block across 32 minutes.

He’s gotten over 30 minutes in four of the past five games he’s played in, but also didn’t play in three games during that time frame. When he’s playing, he’s a pretty solid streaming option in deeper leagues. Keep a close eye on the status of the team’s somewhat healthy players, and utilize Goodwin if the team is lacking bodies.

Boston Celtics’ Luke Kornet, rostered in 6% of leagues, finished with 12 points, nine rebounds, six assists and one block across 28 minutes in the team’s win over the Utah Jazz.

Kornet started with Jaylen Brown, Al Horford and Kristaps Porzingis all inactive. The all-around outing shows that Kornet could be a streaming option if several teammates are out in a future game.

Memphis’ Luke Kennard, owned in 19% of leagues, had 13 points, eight assists, four rebounds and one steal across 26 minutes on Tuesday.

His own percentage is fairly low because he’s missed several games over the past month, but because so many teammates are out, he’s always a pretty solid fantasy option when he’s on the court. Add him in deeper leagues if you have a roster spot to play with and can get by if he were to miss games here and there.

Top Rookies

Utah’s Keyonte George, rostered in 73% of leagues, was 9-of-17 shooting and 5-of-10 from 3-point land to finish with 26 points across 35 minutes in the team’s loss. George also had six assists, two blocks and one rebound.

George continues to deliver some high-scoring games, and usually adds in several assists. He’s a solid fantasy asset in all formats, and probably should see his own percentage rise quite a bit. I’d at least add George until his scoring or minutes fade, but that doesn’t look like it’ll happen based on what he’s been able to do this season.

Memphis’ Trey Jemison, owned in just 1% of leagues, started and played 31 minutes on Tuesday, recording 24 points, six rebounds and two blocks along the way.

Jemison had been pretty quiet over the past couple weeks (being inactive for several games), but broke out in a big way on Tuesday. He was 11-of-13 from the floor. Jemison isn’t likely going to score like this every night, but you should at least keep a close eye on him in deeper leagues and dynasties, as he’s getting plenty of playing time to be a pretty solid fantasy asset.

GG Jackson II was another Memphis player that stepped up on Tuesday. He totaled 19 points, two rebounds and one assist and block across 27 minutes off the bench. Jackson is owned in 52% of leagues. 

Jackson scored 30 points in the previous game, so he could be at the beginning of a hot streak. He’s probably owned in most deep leagues and dynasties (scoop him up now if he isn’t), but likely needs another showing similar to the past two games before fantasy owners seriously consider him in standard leagues.

Washington’s Bilal Coulibaly, rostered in 23% of leagues, recorded 11 points, five rebounds, four assists, two steals and one block across 32 minutes.

Coulibaly has been starting and playing over 27 minutes for five straight games now. He’s averaging 9.4 points, 4.2 rebounds, 1.4 assists and 1.2 steals and blocks over that span. Those are solid enough averages to at least consider him in deeper leagues/dynasties.

Oklahoma City rookie Cason Wallace, owned in 11% of leagues, ended the night with 11 points, three rebounds and one block across 23 minutes off the bench.

Wallace has scored in double figures in two straight games now. He usually plays under 24 minutes, which caps his fantasy ceiling. I’m not so sure this level of production continues, so I’d personally wait at least one more game before seriously considering adding Wallace. He could be used in a pinch as a streaming option however.

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