Week 9 NBA Waiver Wire: Top Fantasy Basketball Pickups

Kev Mahserejian offers advice on the Week 9 NBA Waiver Wire and offers his choices for the Top Week 9 Fantasy Basketball Pickups.

(Note: Roster % is as listed for Yahoo! leagues. FAAB bid range is based on a percentage of a fantasy basketball player’s remaining budget.)

Week 9 NBA Waiver Wire: Top Week 9 Fantasy Basketball Pickups

Miles Bridges, SF/PF, Charlotte Hornets (55% rostered)

Miles Bridges is finally playing like Miles Bridges. After a rough start to the season, Bridges has looked a lot better over the past three games and has the productivity to boot. It is very easy to point to LaMelo’s Ball‘s increased presence as a factor but Bridges is the one hitting his threes (5 over the past three games) and rebounding like a maniac with double-digits in each game through that stretch. This is a fantastic bounce-back after arguably his worst game of the season versus Utah last Friday. Expectations were high coming off of a 16-point performance against Philly but he fell flat on his face with 2 points in just 16 minutes.

Wrote about Miles Bridges finally finding his place in the NBA with a little help from LaMelo Ball:https://t.co/z0ZFQkH4Hl

— Ricky O'Donnell (@SBN_Ricky) February 11, 2021

The main reason for this increase in production is likely tied to P.J. Washington‘s foot injury and how that has hampered him since returning from a two-game absence. Washington’s played plenty of minutes but his usage is way down and that has seeped into Bridges’ hands. While Washington’s health could get better soon enough, Bridges might continue to force the issue for more play-time with performances like these. ➕ Miles Bridges FAAB bid range: 10-12% ➕

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Hamidou Diallo, SG/SF, Oklahoma City Thunder (52%)

That’s NBA Dunk Contest CHAMP Hamidou Diallo to you. Diallo is finally putting it together on the court when it matters. He hasn’t scored fewer than double-digit points since mid-January (19th) and is racking up stats across-the-board. Since his 23-point outburst on January 8th, Diallo has averaged 14.3 points, 5.5 rebounds, 2.8 assists, and 1.1 steals on a 52 percent field goal percentage. His free-throw percentage is rough at 66.3 percent on the season given that he attempts just over four per game but with just 1.4 turnovers, he really isn’t much of a killer elsewhere. The lack of threes hurts from a swing-man like Diallo but given that just about everybody in fantasy offers threes, it’s not impossible to make up for elsewhere.

Stepping up 📊

Career-high 10 assists for @hamidoudiallo

Season-high 26 points (10-19 FGs) for @Al_Horford pic.twitter.com/8fujjq7jk9

— OKC THUNDER (@okcthunder) February 6, 2021

Also, while Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is out, Diallo is benefitting with more playtime and ball-handling duties. He cracked 30 minutes for the first time all season in the first game that SGA missed and hasn’t played less since even with SGA returning for a two-game stretch versus Minnesota. There is no word on how long this knee issue will bother SGA, but with how poor the Thunder are, there is a chance the team proceeds with caution on their star player. Theo Maledon‘s return from health protocols will affect Diallo but he is looking like more of a staple moving forward. Diallo’s absolutely a pick-up right now, especially if you can the FT hit. ➕ Hamidou Diallo FAAB bid range: 15-20% ➕

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Dwayne Bacon, SG, Orlando Magic (4%)

Orlando literally does not have active point guards on their roster. Markelle Fultz? Hurt. Michael Carter-Williams? Hurt. Cole Anthony? Hurt. Frank Mason II??? Hurt. You’re up…Dwayne Bacon. The Magic are down so bad that they’re going to have to rely on the closest thing to anyone who can play in a backcourt. The 10 points per game leading up to this role change for Bacon is a nice floor along with the non-nuclear field goal % and solid free throw. He’s actually decent elsewhere with 2.3 threes, 3.6 rebounds and 1.1 steals over the past two weeks. There are worse additions out there? I think? ➕ Dwayne Bacon FAAB bid range: 1-5% ➕

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Sleeper NBA Week 9 Waiver Wire Pickup

Isaiah Stewart, PF/C, Detroit Pistons (4%)

Mason Plumlee is dealing with something called “elbow bursitis" which sounds extremely painful. This injury for Plumlee led to a starting role in Detroit for 16th-overall pick, Isaiah Stewart. Stewart was a top-10 prospect out of high school but has a game that may be a better fit for the older NBA. Nevertheless, we don’t play real-life, we play fantasy. While Stewart is starting, he is someone to roster. He will provide points, rebounds, blocks, steals and a great field goal percentage while simultaneously hurting your free throw. There is no word on how long Plumlee will remain sidelined but with the situation stemming from a late scratch, it may be fair to assume that this is short-term. Stewart is merely a speculative add in-case it is not. He could have legitimate long-term value if Detroit somehow manages to move Plumlee at the deadline or opts to shut him down later on in the season. ➕ Isaiah Stewart FAAB bid range: 1-3% ➕

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Prepare for Week 9 basketball action

After gathering your list of adds for the Week 9 NBA Waiver Wire and your Top Week Fantasy Basketball Pickups, read our full NBA coverage for fantasy basketball and basketball betting tips.