Fantasy Basketball Waiver Wire Pickups: Russell Westbrook, Rui Hachimura, Brice Sensabaugh and More

Some of you haven't drafted your fantasy basketball team yet this year (good luck if you have one scheduled soon), while others have drafted and are waiting for the regular season to start.

For those who have drafted already, I wanted to put together a list of possible waiver wire pickups before the season even kicks off.

Fantasy basketball waiver wire options can be found all season on FantasySP! 

Should You Add Russell Westbrook?

Westbrook was recently signed by the Kings, so it makes sense to see him being added in some leagues as the regular season nears. 

Westbrook might be 36 years old (37 soon), but he's still got some gas in the tank. He averaged 13.3 points, 6.1 assists, 4.9 rebounds, 1.4 steals and 0.5 blocks across 27.9 minutes in 75 games with Denver last season. 

There's a lot of guards in Sacramento, but Westbrook should get enough minutes to be a pretty useful fantasy asset. He's owned in 62% of leagues right now, and that should continue rising before the season hits.

Depending on his role in the early season, Westbrook could continue to be added in leagues until he nears 100%, or he could plateau. Keep an eye on him in the early going.

Should You Add Reed Sheppard?

Sheppard is rostered in about 84% of leagues right now. 

His role and usage will increase in his second year in the league after the season-ending injury to Fred VanVleet. He could start alongside the likes of Amen Thompson, Kevin Durant, Jabari Smith Jr. and Alperen Sengun, which is a favorable fantasy spot for Reed to be in.

This could be his big breakout NBA season, after a bit underwhelming rookie year. I think he'll be rostered in all fantasy leagues by the end of the season, but his own percentage is pretty solid to kick off the season.

Should You Add Brice Sensabaugh?

Sensabaugh is on the rise as the season nears. He's at 41% rostered. There's some injury concerns on the team, so that's probably playing a role in his uptick in own percentage.

Over 71 games and 20.2 minutes a game last season, he averaged 10.9 points, 3 rebounds, 1.5 assists, 0.6 steals and 0.1 blocks. He offered some decent fantasy value, and could do the same again in 2025-26.

He's at least worth adding and utilizing in deeper leagues, and he could eventually work into standard leagues if his minutes and averages go up. Expect him to be around 50% owned when the season kicks off, then go up or down depending on his fantasy production and minutes early on.

Should You Add Moussa Diabate?

Diabate is owned in about 24% of fantasy leagues right now. 

He's expected to start at center for the Hornets, and could be a solid fantasy asset, especially if his role increases from last season. Diabate averaged 5.7 points, 6.2 rebounds, 0.8 assists and 0.6 blocks and steals over 17.5 minutes in 71 contests played.

If he takes a step forward, being a nightly double-double guy isn't a far-fetched idea. If that comes true, his own percentage will explode.

For now, he's worth some ownership in deeper leagues. We'll track his stats and usage early on and let you know if he's worth adding in more deeper leagues, or even standard leagues.

Should You Add Rui Hachimura?

Hachimura is sitting around 46% rostered right now. He's getting a late-preseason boost after the injury news to LeBron James.

He could take on more in the early going with LeBron out, so his fantasy outlook will be up for at least a couple weeks. Hachimura averaged 13.1 points, 5 rebounds, 1.4 assists, 0.8 steals and 0.4 blocks over 31.7 minutes in his 59 games played last season.

Hachimura has really never improved his numbers since coming into the league, and it's not likely on a pretty stacked Lakers' team. When stars like LeBron are out though, his outlook is up, which makes it a good time to utilize him.

Scoop him up in deeper leagues for the beginning of the season. I'm not sure if he'll be worth a standard league add, but we'll track that in the early going.

Should You Add Kyshawn George?

George is owned in about 51% of fantasy leagues right now, but I expect that to change as the season nears and gets started.

He should be in line for a starting role until Bilal Coulibaly returns from his injury, at least. There's a chance George sticks as a starter for most of the season depending on how he looks early on.

George started 38 of the 68 games he appeared in last season. He averaged 26.5 minutes, 8.7 points, 4.2 rebounds, 2.5 assists, 1 steal and 0.7 blocks.

That was his rookie season, and I think the team will want to see what he does with even more minutes and a bigger role in 2025-26. George could be a really good fantasy asset if he breaks out, and there's definitely room to do that on this Washington team.

I'd keep a very close eye on George early on. Right now, I'd add him in all deeper leagues at least. If you have an open roster spot in a standard league, I'd be happy to stash him there in case he excels right away this season.

Should You Add Neemias Queta?

Queta is rostered in 54% of fantasy leagues today.

He's never had a huge role in the NBA, but that appears to be coming this year for the new-look Celtics. He looks like he'll be the starting center to kick off the season, and with Jayson Tatum out for the season, there's opportunities to take on a lot.

Queta played in 62 games for the Celtics last season, averaging 13.9 minutes, 5 points, 3.8 rebounds, 0.7 assists and blocks and 0.3 steals a game. With a bigger role and more minutes, we could be talking about a nightly double-double threat.

That's why he's already rostered in over 50% of fantasy leagues, and that could improve as the season kicks off if he starts the season well. I'd keep a very close eye on him if you aren't comfortable adding him in standard leagues now.

I'd definitely want to roster him in deeper leagues, and he's already worth stashing in a standard league, in my eyes, just like George is. We'll see if Queta can live up to some preseason hype.

Should You Add Jerami Grant?

Grant is owned in about 49% of fantasy leagues at the moment. That's a low percentage from past years, but it's also warranted.

He only played 47 games last season, and hasn't been over 63 games since the 2019-20 season. Grant averaged 14.4 points, 3.5 rebounds, 2.1 assists, 1 block and 0.9 assists over 32.4 minutes when he was healthy last season.

Grant appears healthy to kick off this season, and he should help a Trail Blazers' team down a couple players early in the season. Really, it all comes down to availability for Grant.

If he's out there most of the season, and producing at similar levels to last season, his own percentage should be higher than its current mark. Last season was always a pretty steep dropoff in production, and a healthy season could mean far better averages, which would make him rosterable in all leagues.

He's a name to keep an eye on early. If his numbers are up, add and utilize him for as long as he sticks on the court.