This article is part of our NBA Waiver Wire series.
Welcome back! Merry Christmas! Happy NBA Season!
The season has finally arrived after the weirdest, shortest offseason in NBA history. And with the start of games, it's time to start paying attention to the waiver wire.
Every team has now played one game. While it's important not to overreact, there are some situations where we've already learned some important information. For example, in most leagues, I'm already willing to cut bait on Chris Boucher (53% rostered) after he played just 15 minutes off the bench, behind Aron Baynes' 28 minutes, on Wednesday.
If you're ready to make a move – whether because you drafted Boucher, moved a player into an IR spot, or are just feeling antsy – here are the players who've already begun to separate themselves.
The players below are listed in the order I'd recommend adding them.
This article will focus on players available in at least 50 percent of leagues. That said, especially this early in the season, there are a lot of very valuable players who are widely available but miss that cut-off. I won't go into depth on those guys, but I'll include them below in the appropriate order.
Some under-rostered names who might be available in your league: Josh Richardson, Mavericks (69% rostered); Joe Harris, Nets (57% rostered); Jeff Teague, Celtics (59% rostered); Will Barton, Nuggets (59% rostered); Darius Garland, Cavaliers (54% rostered); Paul Millsap, Nuggets (51% rostered)
Keldon Johnson, Spurs (31% rostered)
Wednesday's biggest