NBA Fantasy: Postseason Waiver Wire Add, Including Gary Trent, Dalano Banton and Keon Ellis

Hello everyone! We're getting close! Can you feel it? A lot of leagues will crown their champions during Week 23. Pretty much every head-to-head league will be in the playoffs. And roto managers will be in their last desperate hunt for whatever key categories they can still move in. The Fantasy season is nearing its end.

The schedule in Week 23 is busy and imbalanced. Nearly two-thirds of the league – 18 teams – play four games, and everyone else plays three. Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday have small slates of 2-to-4 games, while the other days all have 10 or more. Due to the uneven schedule, the Pelicans and Bucks boast the most favorable schedules for daily lineup leagues. Though both teams play just three times, all of their games are on the small slates. The Hawks and Celtics each have two games on small slates. On the other end, half of the league plays on both Wednesday's and Friday's 12-game slates, meaning some potential contributors are likely to get stuck on Fantasy benches. Meanwhile, the Pelicans and Bucks will easily fit into every lineup.

As always, the players in this article must be rostered in less than two-thirds of CBS leagues. Players are listed in the order that I recommend adding them, assuming they are equally good fits for your team.

Adds for all leagues

Herbert Jones, Pelicans (57% rostered)

Jones should already be rostered everywhere, but that becomes even more true following the news that Brandon Ingram (knee) will miss at least the next two weeks. He's averaging 11-3-3 with 1.5 steals, 1.0 blocks, and 1.7 threes since the All-Star break. Granted, the points are low, but there's enough there that we can focus on his incredible defensive stats. With Ingram out, his minutes and shot attempts should go up, helping address his most glaring deficiency. 

Jones isn't the only beneficiary from the Ingram injury. Trey Murphy (83% rostered) doesn't qualify for this article, but he's still under-rostered and even more widely available on other host platforms. Jordan Hawkins (13% rostered) has seen the biggest minutes boost in Ingram's previous absences, jumping from 17.5 to 29.7 minutes per game. He's listed below in the other recommendations section. Dyson Daniels (knee; 7% rostered) appears to be on the brink of returning from injury, and he would likely become a deep league add if/when he returns.

Vasilije Micic, Hornets (47% rostered)

Though it took a few weeks to earn the promotion, Micic is holding onto his role as starting point guard. He's now up to nine starts, averaging a healthy 16-3-5 with 1.4 threes and 1.0 steals to go with highly efficient shooting. He's no superstar, but that is solidly top-100-level production. The theoretical threat of LaMelo Ball (ankle) returning seems less likely by the day. As long as Ball stays sidelined, Micic should remain a borderline top-100 player.

Jontay Porter, Raptors (7% rostered)

Porter's last week was rough, yet he's still getting promoted from the "deep league special" to the top of the "adds for all leagues" section. His defensive output has been that good. Last week, he followed up two low-scoring games (four points combined, yuck) with an early exit after just three minutes. Nonetheless, he's one of the best pickups available. The early exit stinks for managers who started him, but leaving a game early due to illness has no impact on his future fantasy value. Since Jakob Poeltl (finger) and Chris Boucher (knee) went down, Porter has managed 1.5 steals and 1.8 blocks per game despite averaging just 23.0 minutes (excluding his early exit game). He's shining as a passer, contributing 4.5 assists from the center spot. Even with the abysmal scoring, he's a must-add in almost every format – even if just to prevent your opponent from snagging him.

Gary Trent, Raptors (59% rostered)
With Grayson Allen (finally) back above the 67% threshold, Gary Trent is the new focus of our Fantasy Doesn't Have To Be Hard segment. He's averaging 21.4 points, 4.0 threes, and 1.6 steals over his last seven games. And there is nothing about this that is obviously unsustainable. His shooting splits, 46-42-80, are only slightly above his career averages. His steals per-minute pace is down from what he did for the entire 2022-23 season. The only changes are his minutes and field-goal attempts are up, which are more the result of coaching decisions and surrounding absences than any change in Trent's ability. The Raptors have left the door open for Scottie Barnes (wrist) and RJ Barrett (personal) to return, but given their tanking incentive, I'd bet against either playing more than a game or two the rest of the way – the Raptors, currently seventh in the tankathon, lose their draft pick if it falls outside the top six this June.

Note: Trent won't play Friday against the Thunder due to back soreness, but the team hopes to get him back for Saturday's game against the Wizards.

Simone Fontecchio, Pistons (44% rostered)

Usually, when coming up with stats for this article, I have to do something. Figure out which games to focus on, or when the key players were in or out, or when this trend or that started. It's not always hard, but it's usually more complicated than finding the numbers that would show up on the back of a basketball card. Not this time. We need to look no further than Fontecchio's topline numbers as a Piston to see a clear Fantasy contributor. Since coming to Detroit, he's averaging 15-4-2 with 2.7 threes and 0.9 steals while shooting 48% from the field and 85% from the line. He's actually on a bit of a hot streak lately, but we don't even need to get into that, he should be rostered regardless.

Note: Fontecchio will miss his third game with a toe injury Friday; the team ruled him out more than 24 hours before tipoff, which implies at least another game or two on the sidelines, but they are treating the injury as game-to-game. Only add Fontecchio if you can put him into an IR spot and make another pickup.

Dalano Banton, Trail Blazers (49% rostered)

I still don't trust it, but I have to acknowledge that Banton has averaged 17-5-3 with 2.3 threes and 1.5 stocks over the last 12 games. That's a ton of production over a meaningful sample size. The minutes are all over the place – four games below 23 minutes, four games above 37 – but the net effect is that of a clear Fantasy contributor. Ride him as long as you can, just don't get overly attached.

Taylor Hendricks, Jazz (31% rostered)

Hendricks has now started 10 games. Excluding the two games where his minutes were limited due to injury, he's averaging 10-7-1 with 0.8 steals, 0.7 blocks and 1.4 threes in his new role. None of his stats are exceptional, but he's helping basically everywhere, and there is still some room for the rookie's minutes to increase – he's playing just 27.8 per game. Also, he had logged only 250 minutes before getting named a starter, and there are constant signs of improvement, so his stats should continue to trend upward even if the minutes remain steady. He's not a must-add in standard leagues, but he's a great pickup in deeper settings or for managers whose leagues extend through the end of the season.

Kyle Anderson, Timberwolves (32% rostered) and other statistical weirdos

Anderson replaces Matisse Thybulle as the avatar for specialists this week. Anderson has started each of his last six games, averaging 8-4-6 with 0.7 steals and 0.7 blocks. For most of the season, that is way below the threshold of rosterability. But it's crunch time now, and managers should know their own strengths and weaknesses. If you need assists without taking a defensive hit – a common enough conundrum – then Anderson is far better than what you can usually find to fill that need. Out-of-position assists plus 1.5 stocks? While the majority of managers might not care, that's a divine gift for some.

Whether you need Anderson's weird collection, or Rui Hachimura's (37% rostered) offense (17.8 pts plus good threes and efficiency over his last six), or Alex Caruso's (55% rostered) steals (2.5 since the All-Star break), or Sam Hauser's (9% rostered) threes (5.5 over his last four), embrace the specialists that will get you over the hump.

Other recommendations: Tre Mann, Hornets (48% rostered); Duncan Robinson, Heat (50% rostered); Gregory Jackson, Grizzlies (57% rostered); Corey Kispert, Wizards (32% rostered); Rui Hachimura, Lakers (37% rostered); Georges Niang, Cavaliers (11% rostered); Jordan Hawkins, Pelicans (13% rostered); Onyeka Okongwu, Hawks (53% rostered); De'Andre Hunter, Hawks (64% rostered); Aaron Nesmith, Pacers (52% rostered); Alex Caruso, Bulls (55% rostered); Santi Aldama, Grizzlies (57% rostered); Harrison Barnes, Kings (48% rostered); Trayce Jackson-Davis, Warriors (31% rostered)

Player to watch

Justin Champagnie, Wizards (8% rostered)

Based on his production over three games from Saturday to Tuesday, Champagnie had a legitimate argument to be this week's top add. He averaged 14-8-2 with 1.7 steals, 1.0 blocks, and 2.3 threes – that's shockingly good for a player this widely available. However, all of the two-way 22-year-old's surge came from Washington's wave of injuries, all of which were apparently more legitimate than your classic cases of March Tankitis. The most relevant absences were Deni Avdija (knee) and Kyle Kuzma (back), both of whom returned Thursday. Bilal Coulibaly (wrist) is out for the season. Tyus Jones (back) has a semi-suspicious injury that kept him out of the last four, but typically we think of Tankitis as impacting more credentialed players (i.e. Jerami Grant) than Jones. With Kuzma and Avdija back Thursday, Champagnie's workload tanked, playing just nine off the bench. The Wizards are in a competitive race with the Pistons for the NBA's worst record, so more absences could be ahead for Kuzma and Avdija – arguably the Wizards' two best players, both of whom are on long-term contracts. If that happens, scoop up Champagnie immediately. For now, though, Champagnie is not rosterable.

Deep league special

Keon Ellis, Kings (4% rostered)

There are some obvious flaws in Ellis' game – he barely scores or assists and his FT% is dreadful, albeit on low attempts. But his defensive production has been stellar, and his minutes are trending up. He's got at least one steal in each of the last six games, averaging 2.3 during that stretch. He's also chipped in eight blocks during that stretch. With Kevin Huerter (shoulder) out for at least two weeks, Ellis' expanded role should stick.

Other recommendations: Sam Hauser, Celtics (9% rostered); Nickeil Alexander-Walker, Timberwolves (13% rostered)