March 13 Fantasy Basketball Takeaways: Top Rookies and Waiver Wire Options | Alex Caruso, Bruce Brown, Scotty Pippen Jr., Jontay Porter, GG Jackson II and More

Taking a look at some of the top performances from waiver wire options across NBA games played March 13.

There was a nine-game slate of NBA action on Wednesday, March 13. 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

We’ll open the conversation by talking about Chicago Bulls’ Alex Caruso, who is rostered in 73% of leagues. He was 9-of-13 overall and 5-of-6 from 3-point land to score 23 points in the team’s overtime win over the Indiana Pacers. He also had seven rebounds and assists and one steal across his 37 minutes on the court.

Caruso isn’t usually much of a scorer (averaging 9.7 points for the season), but an efficient shooting night allowed him to go off for a season high. It was his first time in double figures in the past five games.

Caruso usually stuffs the stat sheet pretty well, but until he can score a few more points, his own percentage should stay around the mark it currently is. If you wanted to stream him for the next game to see if he can stay hot from the floor, I’d be on board with that.

Sacramento Kings’ Harrison Barnes, owned in 46% of leagues, finished with 23 points and two rebounds and assists across 38 minutes in the team’s win over the Los Angeles Lakers. He made seven 3-pointers among his eight total field goals.

It was his second straight game in double figures and sixth time in the past seven contests that he’s topped 10 points. Barnes should be utilized in deep leagues, at least until he cools off a bit.

Lakers’ Rui Hachimura, rostered in 47% of leagues, had 20 points, three rebounds and one assist across 36 minutes in the team’s loss.

Hachimura has scored in double figures in four straight games, topping 20 points twice. He doesn’t do a ton else when on the court, but until his points take a dip, I’d consider him a streaming option in deeper leagues.

Charlotte Hornets’ Grant Williams, owned in 36% of leagues, accumulated 18 points, six rebounds, three assists and one steal and block across 28 minutes off the bench in the team’s win over the Memphis Grizzlies.

Even when Williams isn’t starting, he’s capable of putting together pretty well-rounded fantasy outings. He’s scored 40 points over the past two games and is another deep league streaming option, at least until he cools off a bit offensively.

Toronto Raptors’ Bruce Brown, owned in 47% of leagues, tallied 17 points, five assists, four rebounds, two steals and one block across 33 minutes in the team’s loss to the Detroit Pistons.

After missing four games, Brown has totaled 30 points, 14 rebounds, eight assists, two steals and one block in his first two games back. That’s pretty solid fantasy production and makes him a streaming option in all formats. He should be owned in all deep leagues.

Memphis’ John Konchar, owned in just 8% of leagues, went for 13 points, nine rebounds, four assists and three steals across 34 minutes in the team’s loss.

Konchar hadn’t scored in double figures since late January, so Wednesday’s outing was hopefully a sign of things to come. He fills the stat sheet fairly well most nights, so even if he’s a couple points shy of double digits, he’s a decent deep league option.

Memphis’ Scotty Pippen Jr., owned in 5% of leagues, totaled nine points, 10 assists, four rebounds, two steals and one block across 27 minutes on Wednesday.

Pippen hadn’t played in a game since mid-February, but started and turned in a well-rounded effort in his first game back. If he continues to get starts or plays a similar amount of minutes, Pippen is a deep league and dynasty option.

Cleveland Cavaliers’ Sam Merrill, owned in 2% of leagues, had 15 points, nine assists and two rebounds across 28 minutes off the bench in the team’s win over the New Orleans Pelicans.

Donovan Mitchell was back in the rotation, but Max Strus was inactive, which opened up some extra minutes for Merrill. He’s a streaky 3-point shooter, so he might be worth an add in deeper leagues to see if he can remain hot from deep.

Detroit’s Jaden Ivey, owned in 79% of leagues, finished with 14 points, seven assists, three rebounds, two steals and one block across 37 minutes in the team’s win.

Ivey has scored in double figures in nine straight contests, averaging 16.7 points per game. He’s also averaging 3.7 assists, 2.8 rebounds, 1.1 steals and 0.7 blocks over that span. He'll likely either need to score closer to 20 points or fill the stat sheet a little more otherwise in order to see his own percentage go up.

Toronto’s Jontay Porter, rostered in 4% of leagues, recorded 10 points, six rebounds and assists, four blocks and one steal across 21 minutes off the bench in the team’s loss.

It was his second straight game in double figures. Porter got 20+ minutes in both games, so if that keeps up, he’s a deep league option.

Top Rookies

Memphis’ GG Jackson II, owned in 48% of leagues, went for 26 points and four rebounds across 37 minutes on Thursday.

Jackson has between 19-30 points over his past three games. He doesn’t fill the stat sheet super well, but until he cools off offensively, he’s a solid streaming option in most leagues.

Charlottes’ Vasilije Micic, rostered in 51% of leagues, had 25 points, eight assists and two steals across 30 minutes. He was 9-of-10 from the floor and 5-of-6 from deep.

Micic isn’t going to be this efficient every night, but he’s now scored in double figures in seven straight. He’s averaging 15.4 points, 6.4 assists, 2.9 rebounds and 1.3 steals per game over that span, which makes him a decent streaming option in deep and standard leagues.

Memphis’ Trey Jemison, owned in 4% of leagues, recorded 14 points, six rebounds, two blocks and one assist and steal across 32 minutes in the team’s loss.

Jemison has 38 points, 12 rebounds and four blocks over the past two outings. It may not last forever, but he’s worth streaming in deep leagues and dynasties to see if he can stay hot.

Dallas Mavericks’ Dereck Lively II, rostered in 54% of leagues, capped the evening with 12 points, eight rebounds and two blocks across 20 minutes off the bench.

Lively has been extremely efficient this season, and especially the past two games (17-of-20). His fantasy ceiling is capped by only playing 20 or so minutes, but he still makes a good fantasy option in deep leagues and dynasties.

Golden State Warriors’ Brandin Podziemski, owned in 48% of leagues, accumulated 11 points, six assists, five rebounds and four steals across 28 minutes off the bench in the team’s loss to the Mavericks.

Podziemski has come off the bench in two straight games, but is averaging 12.5 points, 6.5 rebounds, 5 assists, 2.5 steals and 0.5 blocks over 31.1 minutes in those games. That’s enough production to continue playing him in deeper leagues and dynasties.

Golden State’s Trayce Jackson-Davis, rostered in 32% of leagues, finished with 10 points, nine rebounds and one block and assist in 25 minutes.

Jackson-Davis started with Stephen Curry and Draymond Green both inactive. TJD has been playing well over the past couple weeks, so don’t let who was inactive sway your opinion on him. Jackson-Davis is a good deep league and dynasty option simply being a double-double threat every night.

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