November 28 Fantasy Basketball Drop Candidates: Jeremiah Fears, Ajay Mitchell, Dillon Brooks and More

After looking at some possible fantasy basketball waiver wire pickups, let's go over some drop candidates in the sixth week of the NBA regular season.

Here is the first drop story we did this week. We have some big names in today's story, so we will cover five more players.

More drops can be found daily on the FantasySP waiver trends most dropped tab, which can be found on any fantasy basketball page on the site. 

Explore the best in-season tool to manage lineup/start decisions including waiver pickups, projections, trade suggestions, trade value charts, rest of season rankings, power rankings, and tons more with Fantasy Assistant. Use our fantasy basketball trade analyzer and the Trade Value Chart to break down trade scenarios.

Should You Drop Jeremiah Fears?

Fears is currently rostered in 61% of fantasy basketball leagues. He is down 1.9% today.

He continues to start for the Pelicans, but he's only logged 24 and 26 minutes over the past two games, and the one game went to overtime.

Fears has scored in double figures in all but one game this season. Over 19 contests (17 starts), Fears is averaging 15.1 points, 3.2 rebounds, 2.7 assists, 1.5 steals and 0.2 blocks over 26.7 minutes. He's shooting 45.3% overall and he's 36.5% on his 3-point shots.

He's played a pretty big role for the Pelicans in his rookie season. Some of that is out of necessity with Jordan Poole and Dejounte Murray out with injuries.

While he's starting most nights, his minutes per night still lacks a bit. He is playing enough for standard league fantasy ownership though.

I still love owning Fears in deeper leagues, but there's probably some better options out there in standard leagues. Those who can afford to wait on Fears expecting bigger things might be better off going that route.

It's also possible his role decreases as the Pelicans get healthier, so don't be afraid to move off Fears if you have the urge to.

Should You Drop Harrison Barnes?

Barnes is down 1.6% and sits at 44% overall.

He was on the rise about a week or so ago when Victor Wembanyama went down with an injury and he recorded back-to-back 20+ point nights. He has 16, 11 and 13 points in the three games since, so it makes sense to see him dropped after he was added.

He's started all 17 games for the Spurs, so Wemby's presence shouldn't affect that. Barnes is averaging 12.9 points, 3.2 points, 2.1 assists, 1.1 steals and 0.2 blocks over 30.8 minutes a game. He's shooting 52.4% overall and is 44.9% from deep.

Barnes has worse numbers than Fears, so if he wasn't worth owning in some standard leagues, Barnes is definitely not. I still like holding Barnes in some deeper leagues, so I wouldn't want his own percentage to fall too much more.

He's likely going to stick as a pretty solid deep-league option all year, and will have times where he is worth streaming in standard leagues, so don't write him off for good if you decide to drop Barnes today.

Should You Drop Ajay Mitchell?

Mitchell is way up at 90%, but he's been let go in 1.4% of leagues.

Mitchell had been one of the bigger fantasy surprises early in the season, and he's still posting pretty solid numbers. However, his minutes have dipped the past three games, and with OKC getting Jalen Williams back, it's fair to expect a bigger dropoff from Mitchell going forward.

Mitchell is averaging 15.9 points, 3.8 assists, 3.6 rebounds, 1.7 steals and 0.3 blocks per game, while shooting 46.4% overall and 33.3% from deep, so it's easy to see why his own percentage is so high.

With his good start to the season, I'd try to trade him away before outright dropping him. I too expect his fantasy production to fall going forward, but he's also likely going to get you a better return than you can find on the waiver wire, so you might as well flip him.

Maybe there's a fantasy owner who still believes in Mitchell, or is a big OKC fan. You can identify a similar-level fantasy player on their team and attempt to make the trade today. Again, Mitchell's value is starting to drop, so you might get back less than where he currently ranks.

If you are inclined to drop him, I'd wait another game or two to see if his role keeps dropping, or his production drops off. He's been doing enough for some fantasy value yet, so it's not like he's useless in standard leagues.

Even at full strength, Mitchell could still be worth deep-league fantasy ownership all season, so definitely do not drop him in deeper setups. Now might be the time to buy lower on him in those leagues though.

Should You Drop Jakob Poeltl?

Poeltl is also down 1.4%, and he sits at 90% owned as well.

He has been in and out of the lineup so far this season, and has had streaky results. In 14 games (all starts), Poeltl has scored in double figures seven times. He has two double-doubles, and has been in double figures as a rebounder three times.

He averaged 14.5 points and 9.6 rebounds a season ago, so he was a much bigger double-double threat then. That makes the start to Poeltl's season in 2025 really underwhelming.

So far, he's averaging just 10.7 points and 8.1 rebounds across 26 minutes (which is over three less per game than last season). Poeltl is also averaging 1.9 assists, 0.7 steals and 0.6 blocks so far this season, while shooting 73.3% overall.

With less minutes this season, his fantasy value has dropped. He's still a solid fantasy asset on his points and rebounds, but he's trending down right now, so it's fair to see him being dropped.

With an own percentage that high, I'd look to trade him before dropping him outright. There's likely a fantasy owner out there who is desperate for fantasy big man help, and would be willing to take a gamble on Poeltl bouncing back.

The return won't be nearly what it cost to draft him at the beginning of the season, but a player who is better than a waiver wire option is better than nothing.

If he gets dropped in your league, consider adding him. If he is unowned, keep eyes on him in case his role or production picks up.

Should You Drop Dillon Brooks?

Brooks is rostered in 92% of leagues after a 1.3% dropoff today.

Brooks has been another early-season fantasy surprise. In 13 games (all starts), he's scored 20+ points on seven occasions. He's been in double figures for every contest, but only had 13 points, three rebounds and nothing else in 33 minutes in his last appearance.

Brooks is averaging 21.3 points, 3.2 rebounds, 1.8 steals, 1.7 assists and 0.2 blocks over 30.9 minutes for the season. He is shooting 45.2% overall and is 33% from deep.

Phoenix is still down Grayson Allen, Ryan Dunn and Jalen Green, so Brooks still will be a big part of the offensive plan for the Suns. I honestly think last game was an outlier, as he still got up 12 shots - he just made less than usual, so his fantasy production was down.

I'm not a huge fan of dropping Brooks today, and would think you definitely could trade him if you were considering letting him go. I think Brooks will remain a very good fantasy asset all season, so look into buying him if someone is selling, or scoop him up if he indeed gets dropped by someone else.

He might not stuff the stat sheet every night, but a nightly double-digit scorer is a great thing, and with 20+ point upside on scoring alone, Brooks is probably better than a lot of your fantasy assets at the end of your bench.

Don't bail on him yet.