Just six games across the league Thursday with all attention firmly on the 3 pm trade deadline. With a number of potential moves yet to be made, picking up any player could come with an element of risk. Marc Gasol is a realistic chance to be moved making Ivan Rabb a strong speculative pickup. JaMychal Green is also questionable which will open up even more opportunity. I will breakdown a number of players who could have value, keeping in mind the rosters could look very different come game time.
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Fantasy Basketball Fringe
Players to add
- Jerryd Bayless
- Ivan Rabb
- Davis Bertans
Players to stream
- Avery Bradley
- Ivica Zubac
- Nerlens Noel
- Bryn Forbes
- Patty Mills
- Marco Belinelli
- Jake Layman
Los Angeles Clippers @ Indiana Pacers
Clippers
- Avery Bradley (36%) – Stream: The Clippers traded away Tobias Harris, Mike Scott, and Boban Marjanovic and will, therefore, be very thin heading into Thursday. Danilo Gallinari is a chance to return, however, Bradley should still see plenty of minutes with the new recruits already ruled out.
- Marcin Gortat (30%) – Drop
- Landry Shamet (17%) – Drop: Shamet figures to move into a similar role on his new team but will not play Thursday making him irrelevant as a streaming option just now.
- Wilson Chandler (17%) – Drop
- Mike Muscala (14%) – Drop
Pacers
- Cory Joseph (26%) – Watch: Joseph has been in and out of the starting lineup recently, although his production has remained relatively mediocre. At best he is a steal and assists streamer but chances are there is someone with more upside floating around.
- Aaron Holiday (18%) – Watch
- Kyle O’Quinn (11%) – Drop
- Doug McDermott (10%) – Drop
- TJ Leaf (7%) – Drop
Minnesota Timberwolves @ Orlando Magic
Timberwolves
- Jerryd Bayless (32%) – Add: Bayless had his worst game in over two weeks Tuesday, however, did still manage eight assists. As long as Jeff Teague and Tyus Jones are out, Bayless should be rostered in all competitive leagues.
- Josh Okogie (19%) – Watch: Okogie scored in double-digits Tuesday but had been struggling prior to that. Outside of his steals, the supporting numbers have been lacking over the past few weeks and he remains more of a deep league player despite starting most nights.
- Gorgui Dieng (14%) – Drop
- Luol Deng (4%) – Drop
Magic
- Jonathon Simmons (18%) – Drop
- Jerian Grant (17%) – Drop
- Wes Iwundu (5%) – Drop
- Khem Birch (4%) – Drop: Mo Bamba is a chance of missing the rest of the season with a stress fracture in his leg, meaning Birch could remain the backup to Nikola Vucevic moving forward. Birch has upside but his role will be too small to warrant any consideration in competitive leagues.
Toronto Raptors @ Atlanta Hawks
Raptors
- OG Anunoby (30%) – Drop
- Delon Wright (17%) – Drop: Kyle Lowry returned in the last game which hurt Wright and makes him droppable in most scenarios. He possesses the ability to produce across the board but would need in excess of 20 minutes to hold any significant value.
- Greg Monroe (12%) – Drop
- Norman Powell (11%) – Watch
- C.J. Miles (8%) – Drop
Hawks
- Alex Len (45%) – Watch: Len has struggled over the past week and certainly deserves to be left on waivers everywhere. Owners should keep an eye on the situation, however, with Dewayne Dedmon a chance to be moved before the deadline. If that is the case, Len could theoretically move into the starting lineup.
- Jeremy Lin (44%) – Watch: A lot of uncertainty surrounds a number of the Hawks players right now, Lin included. He is a tough player to stream until his role becomes clear, although that should be within the next 24 hours.
- DeAndre Bembry (34%) – Watch
- Omari Spellman (17%) – Watch: Much like Alex Len, Spellman is a chance to move into the starting lineup should Dewayne Dedmon be traded. The Hawks will likely want to prioritize the development of Spellman if that is the case which would make him an intriguing target.
Los Angeles Lakers @ Boston Celtics
Lakers
- Ivica Zubac (42%) – Stream: Zubac is listed as probable Thursday, and owners could look to stream him in if you need points and rebounds. His playing time has been wildly inconsistent over the past three weeks, meaning there is certainly an element risk involved.
- Reggie Bullock (37%) – Watch: Bullock will make his Lakers debut Sunday meaning he will not suit up Thursday. His role, much like the rest of the roster, remains unclear at this stage making him a tough player to pick up. Even if he carves out a 30-minute role, he will likely be a three-point streamer at best.
- Lance Stephenson (19%) – Drop: Stephenson has scored in double-figures in four of his past five games, one of his better stretches of the season. The Lakers are quite the dysfunctional team right now, making basically the entire roster tough to own in many leagues.
- Michael Beasley (11%) – Drop
Celtics
- Aron Baynes (12%) – Drop
- Daniel Theis (10%) – Drop
Memphis Grizzlies @ Oklahoma City Thunder
Grizzlies
- Ivan Rabb (23%) – Add: Rabb finished with 19 points and 11 rebounds in his last game, arguably the best performance of his career. JaMychal Green continues to struggle with a knee injury and Marc Gasol could be traded prior to the deadline. Of course, that is just speculative right now but Rabb is worth picking up in competitive leagues if you have a streaming spot available.
- Garrett Temple (22%) – Drop
- Shelvin Mack (17%) – Drop
- Bruno Caboclo (10%) – Drop
- Joakim Noah (9%) – Drop
- Jevon Carter (9%) – Watch
Thunder
- Nerlens Noel (33%) – Stream: Noel has struggled over the past three games, however, he continues to provide blocked shots on a nightly basis. The Thunder come up against what could be a vastly understrength Grizzlies team meaning Noel is a chance to see additional playing time.
- Terrance Ferguson (16%) – Watch: Ferguson has been better over the past two games but his production is still mediocre at best. He appears to have the starting role locked up and will likely move in and out of streaming territory as the season continues.
- Patrick Patterson (8%) – Drop
San Antonio Spurs @ Portland Trail Blazers
Spurs
- Bryn Forbes (41%) – Stream: Forbes moved to the bench Wednesday, ending with 10 points including two triples. Forbes is about as boring a streaming option as you will find and his lack of supporting numbers, along with a relatively low ceiling, meaning he is a fringe stream at best. Both Patty Mills and Marco Belinelli are more attractive options if you need perimeter scoring.
- Pau Gasol (36%) – Drop
- Jakob Poeltl (34%) – Drop
- Patty Mills (29%) – Stream: Mills moved into the starting lineup Wednesday, with the Spurs resting a number of regular starters. He ended with double-digits for the sixth straight game despite laying just 17 minutes in the blowout loss. Mills has drained multiple three-pointers in eight consecutive games and with the ability to rack up assists, should be a streaming target in many leagues.
- Marco Belinelli (29%) – Stream: Belinelli replaced Bryn Forbes in the starting lineup Wednesday, a move that may have been situational. Much like Forbes, Belinelli provides very little outside of his three-point shooting but does have a slightly higher ceiling.
- Davis Bertans (25%) – Add: Bertans remained in the starting lineup, finishing with 12 points in 23 minutes. The low playing time was as a result of the blowout and nothing to do with his efforts on the court. He is a chance to stick in the starting lineup until Derrick White returns, and could be a sneaky low-end pickup in competitive leagues.
Trail Blazers
- Zach Collins (29%) – Drop
- Evan Turner (25%) – Drop
- Moe Harkless (23%) – Watch
- Seth Curry (15%) – Drop
- Jake Layman (13%) – Stream: Layman scored a career-high 25 points Tuesday, adding eight rebounds and two triples. Owners in standard leagues need to start paying attention here, although the addition of Rodney Hood could complicate matters. Layman has played at least 25 minutes in six of his past eight games, topping 20 points in three of those. If you have a streaming spot available, Layman could be worth adding to see if his production can continue.
- Meyers Leonard (9%) – Drop
Got a question about today’s fantasy basketball fringe report? Hit Adam up on twitter @adamking91 or give a shout out to @Fantrax
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