March 19 Fantasy Basketball Takeaways: Top Rookies and Waiver Wire Options | Jaden McDaniels, Jalen Suggs, Justin Champagnie, Larry Nance Jr., Amen Thompson and More

Taking a look at some of the top performances from waiver wire options across NBA games played March 19.

Just five NBA games were played on Tuesday, March 19, but there still were several impressive individual performances. As we do every weekday, let’s take a look at the best games from waiver wire options and rookies.

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Waiver Wire Options

We’ll open today’s conversation by discussing Minnesota Timberwolves’ Jaden McDaniels, who is rostered in 37% of leagues. McDaniels made 9-of-13 shots and 4-of-6 from 3-point land to score 26 points in the team’s loss to the Denver Nuggets. He also tallied six rebounds, two blocks and one steal across his 38 minutes played.

Minnesota, of course, continues to play games without Karl-Anthony Towns, and Naz Reid and Rudy Gobert were also out on Tuesday, so McDaniels took on a bit bigger role. The Wolves only played nine players in total.

It was the first time McDaniels scored in double figures in the past five games. Even if he isn’t scoring a ton, he usually does enough else on the court to at least own/play in deeper leagues. Now we also know that when the team is down a couple key rotation members that McDaniels is a possible streaming option in standard leagues, so keep a close eye on the team’s injury report as the season progresses.

Orlando Magic’s Cole Anthony, owned in 39% of leagues, tallied 21 points, six rebounds, three assists and one steal and block across 21 minutes off the bench in the team’s win over the Charlotte Hornets. Anthony was 9-of-12 from the floor and 3-of-5 from 3-point land.

Anthony usually plays at least 20 minutes a game, which limits his fantasy ceiling, but also is enough time to still be a decent fantasy asset. What’s holding him back isn’t his minutes, but his point production. He’s scored in double figures in half of the past six games.

Until that production is a bit more consistent, I would try to look elsewhere for fantasy help in deeper leagues. He doesn’t usually do enough else to make up for some low-scoring games.

Orlando’s Jalen Suggs, rostered in 66% of leagues, went for 16 points, six assists, four rebounds, three steals and two blocks across 25 minutes played on Tuesday. He was 6-of-9 from the floor and made a couple 3-point shots.

Suggs usually plays closer to 30 minutes, but a lopsided game allowed the team to rest Suggs a bit. He’s now scored in double figures in five straight games - he’s averaging 15 points, 3.4 assists and rebounds, 1.8 steals and 0.6 blocks across 27.4 minutes in that span.

His scoring is enough to consider him in standard leagues, but you’d also like to see him averaging more in other areas. He’s definitely a standard league option, and might be worth swapping out with another player at the end of your bench, but I’d also have to imagine that there are better fantasy options out there to take over Suggs.

Washington Wizards’ Justin Champagnie, rostered in 18% of leagues, played 31 minutes off the bench in the team’s loss to the Houston Rockets, tallying 16 points, eight rebounds and two assists and steals.

Champagnie has played over 25 minutes in three straight games, and responded with three games in double figures, along with a healthy amount of boards each night. That makes him a solid streaming option in deeper leagues for the time being. His playing time could dry up when the team’s closer to full health, so also keep a close eye on that if you add Champagnie to your team.

New Orleans Pelicans’ Larry Nance Jr., owned in 18% of leagues, went for 13 points, 10 rebounds, two assists and one steal across 28 minutes off the bench in the team’s win over the Brooklyn Nets.

Nance usually plays around this many minutes a game, and is certainly capable of scoring in double figures, but rarely ever rebounds this well. In fact, this was just his second double-double of the season.

You could stream Nance in deeper leagues to see if he can get hot for a little while, but I’m betting that you could also find a few other waiver wire options that are a bit more consistent than Nance.

San Antonio Spurs’ Jeremy Sochan, rostered in 74% of leagues, totaled 13 points, 10 rebounds and six assists across 30 minutes in the team’s loss to the Dallas Mavericks on Tuesday.

It was a nice bounceback game for Sochan, who scored just four points in the previous game. Outside of that contest, Sochan has scored at least nine points in every game since Feb. 29, averaging 14.3 points, 7.9 rebounds, 3.3 assists, 1 block and 0.5 steals per game in that span. The points and boards alone are enough to heavily consider him for the time being in standard leagues.

Brooklyn’s Day'Ron Sharpe, owned in 8% of leagues, recorded eight points, 17 rebounds, three assists and two blocks across 24 minutes off the bench.

Sharpe got a few more minutes than normal on Tuesday and responded by grabbing a season high in rebounds. He’s only scored in double figures in two games since mid-February, but typically can provide at least a few rebounds. Sharpe is a guy to keep an eye on in deeper leagues to see if he can maybe provide a little fantasy value for an extended period.

Houston’s Jock Landale, rostered in 17% of leagues, finished the night with 10 points, seven blocks and three rebounds across 20 minutes off the bench.

Landale has gotten some extra minutes of late with Alperen Sengun and others out of action, and has delivered some solid fantasy outings. He’s scored in double figures in three of the past four games, and usually adds in a few other stats. He’s worth streaming until the team is closer to full health.

Top Rookies

Houston’s Amen Thompson, rostered in 79% of leagues, accumulated 25 points, 10 rebounds, two assists and one block across 32 minutes.

Thompson has now scored in double figures in three straight games, with two of those at 20 or more points. He’s typically a good source of rebounds too, and until the Rockets have more bodies available, I like the idea of streaming Thompson in all league formats.

Charlotte’s Vasilije Micic, rostered in 49% of leagues, tallied 20 points and one rebound, assist and steal across 27 minutes on Tuesday.

Micic was 8-of-10 from the floor and added a couple 3-pointers and free throws. He’s usually a better source for more stats, but until he proves he can consistently be a better all-around player, he remains only a good asset in deeper leagues.

Washington’s Jules Bernard, owned in barely any leagues, totaled 16 points, four assists and two rebounds across 19 minutes off the bench.

Bernard has only played in 12 games this season, but has scored in double figures in two straight contests now. Until the team is back closer to full health, Bernard is a streaming option in deeper leagues.

Dallas’ Dereck Lively II, rostered in 51% of leagues, finished the evening with 12 points, five rebounds and one assist and block across 16 minutes off the bench.

Lively’s fantasy ceiling is limited by playing close to, or below, 20 minutes in games, but he’s still a guy I’d hold on to in deeper leagues and dynasties. He’s a pretty efficient scorer, so even with only a few attempts a game, he has the chance to reach double figures, and Lively usually adds in some boards and other stats to be a worthwhile fantasy asset.

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