Wire to Wire aims to be your waiver wire resource for all of your fantasy basketball needs. It will dive into playing time trends, injury replacements, and even an occasional category specialist—all of which can be found on a typical waiver wire within your fantasy league at any given time.

While the center position has given plenty of owners fits over the last few months, the recent demise of many guards have left owners in a bind.  From Baron Davis and Dwyane Wade to the recent additions of Shaun Livingston and Sam Cassell, it just hasn’t been pretty for point guards as of late.  While I definitely recommend checking out my colleague Ron Chow’s Injury Lowdown, the waiver wire help will be tackled below.  On to this week’s recommendations…

(Statistics as of March 1st)

Shallow Leagues:

Jason Williams, PG, Miami Heat
37 G; 28.5 MPG; 10.4 PPG; 2.4 RPG; 5.0 APG; 1.7 3PM; 40.7 FG%; 93.4 FT%; 0.9 SPG; 0 BPG; 1.4 TO

Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you’re aware of the injury to Miami Heat star, and all-fantasy producer Dwyane Wade.  Last week’s piece focused on the deeper additions that could improve due to Wade’s absence.  However, after scouring some waiver wires, I’m seeing that there are leagues that still have Jason Williams available; which should not be the case in any size or setting.  Yes, J Will has had his share of injuries to battle this year, but with Gary Payton’s age not going down, Williams’ production is forced to increase.  Stop reading this and pick him up if he’s available in your league.

Quentin Richardson, SG/SF, New York Knicks
45 G; 33.5 MPG; 13.1 PPG; 7.3 RPG; 2.3 APG; 2.0 3PM; 42.0 FG%; 68.5 FT%; 0.8 SPG; 0.2 BPG; 1.5 TO

The New York Knicks went from extremely guard-heavy to in the need of guard help in the matter of a few weeks.  With Jamal Crawford likely needing season-ending surgery, Steve Francis’ knee acting up and Nate Robinson’s stomach virus, the shooting guard position will likely be filled by Richardson for the rest of the season.  He can occasionally kill your percentages, but he’ll make up for it with games of 30 points and a ton of help from beyond the arc.  If you can stomach the volatility, Richardson should be an easy fix to your long-distance woes for the rest of this year.

Luke Walton, SF, Los Angeles Lakers
43 G; 33.1 MPG; 11.7 PPG; 4.9 RPG; 4.2 APG; 0.7 3PM; 47.9 FG%; 75.6 FT%; 1.0 SPG; 0.4 BPG; 2.0 TO

From two guys getting more time because of injuries to other players to one that will be coming back from an injury of his own.  Walton was a key part of the Lakers when Lamar Odom went down, and has a solid chance of resuming this role once he returns, with Odom playing the power forward slot full time.  He likely won’t give you the lines that he did without Odom, but his ability to contribute across the box score makes him valuable in any format.  He’ll be back within a week or so, and should be in fantasy lineups shortly thereafter.

Standard Leagues:

Tyrus Thomas, SF/PF, Chicago Bulls
51 G; 10.5 MPG; 3.9 PPG; 2.9 RPG; 0.4 APG; 0 3PM; 44.7 FG%; 57.1 FT%; 0.5 SPG; 1.0 BPG; 1.1 TO

I’ve mentioned Chris Duhon in the past as a fill-in for Andres Nocioni.  While his return seems more and more unlikely every day, a recent injury to PJ Brown has opened up the door for Thomas to log more playing time.  This kid is a pure athlete, which can be seen by his ability to produce hustle stats in limited minutes.  If he can log 30+, it’d be no surprise to see at least 2 blocks and a steal per game.  Add in solid scoring potential and glass-cleaning, and Thomas looks like a solid short-term fill with long-term upside.

Bostjan Nachbar, SF, New Jersey Nets
52 G; 18.3 MPG; 8.1 PPG; 3.2 RPG; 0.8 APG; 1.3 3PM; 44.0 FG%; 84.3 FT%; 0.3 SPG; 0.3 BPG; 0.7 TO

Rarely does an injury to Antoine Wright mean so much to another player, but in the case of Nachbar, it has.  Richard Jefferson is still a few weeks away from returning which makes Nachbar the only legitimate small forward option for the Nets.  Half of his shot attempts will likely be from beyond the arc, but he also has the ability to get to the line as well which can be seen by his double-digit attempts against Washington.  Double-digit attempts coupled with an 84% success rate can mean good things for fantasy teams while Nachbar has the chance to play. 

Hakim Warrick, PF, Memphis Grizzlies
56 G; 24.5 MPG; 12.4 PPG; 4.5 RPG; 0.9 APG; 0 3PM; 52.5 FG%; 77.7 FT%; 0.5 SPG; 0.4 BPG; 1.9 TO

Warrick’s minutes have been up and down all season – sometimes due to rotation issues, and other times due to foul trouble.  Regardless, the last few games have seen the second-year forward getting near 30 minutes a night and scoring in the double-digits.  He won’t help out much anywhere else, but it’s hard to turn down 20 point potential on a team usually looking to catch up.  If he can stay on the court, Warrick deserves a spot on fantasy rosters.

Deep Leagues:

Anthony Johnson, PG, Atlanta Hawks
3 G; 29.3 MPG; 11.3 PPG; 3.0 RPG; 3.0 APG; 1.3 3PM; 53.6 FG%; 0 FT%; 0 SPG; 0 BPG; 1.3 TO (accumulated since trade to ATL)

The above stat line is obviously from a small sample size, but it may provide a lot of light for the future.  It’s no secret that the Atlanta point guard situation is a mess.  While I can always turn back to them passing up on Chris Paul, it doesn’t help fantasy owners out much.  What will help would be to add Johnson in deep leagues for his ability to score efficiently and dish the rock in limited minutes.  While Johnson will have competition from Speedy Claxton and Tyronn Lue, he’ll likely be the starter for the remainder of the season for the lowly Hawks.

Johns Salmons, SG/SF, Sacramento Kings
54 G; 27.2 MPG; 8.4 PPG; 3.7 RPG; 3.1 APG; 0.5 3PM; 45.6 FG%; 74.7 FT%; 0.9 SPG; 0.5 BPG; 1.6 TO

Ron Artest has missed a few games lately, and the biggest beneficiary has been Salmons.  While there’s no telling how long Artest will be out with his sore knee, but any game he does find himself on the pine will mean better things for Salmons.  I’d consider him a deep, deep league addition at this point, but he does have the ability to fill up the box score when given the minutes.  Keep an eye on this situation.

Daniel Ewing, PG/SG, Los Angeles Clippers
39 G; 10.2 MPG; 2.8 PPG; 1.0 RPG; 1.1 APG; 0.2 3PM; 43.2 FG%; 74.3 FT%; 0.4 SPG; 0.1 BPG; 0.7 TO

You can blame me for mentioning Shaun Livingston last week thus landing him out for the season, and possibly his career.  What I won’t take blame for is the groin injury to Sam Cassell, simply because I’m not going there.  Either way, both of these injuries should open up more minutes to Daniel Ewing to run the show for the Clippers.  He won’t be much of an offensive threat with Brand, Maggette and Mobley out there, but his assists and steals will likely help any deep team – especially those that have lost Livingston or Dwyane Wade in the last few weeks. 

Jarvis Hayes, SF, Washington Wizards
56 G; 18.2 MPG; 6.3 PPG; 2.5 RPG; 0.8 APG; 0.7 3PM; 38.8 FG%; 83.1 FT%; 0.5 SPG; 0.2 BPG; 0.6 TO

Another team that has been recently plagued by injuries has been the Washington Wizards.  Most recently, the back injury to Caron Butler has opened up a ton of playing time for players like Hayes.  While Jarvis’ field goal percentage leaves a lot to be desired, there’s no doubting his offensive potential on the scoring end – especially from long-range.  He’s strung together a few solid games, and will likely continue to do so while Butler is out.

Bonus Recommendation:

Roger Mason, PG, Washington Wizards
40 G; 6.3 MPG; 2.6 PPG; 0.6 RPG; 0.5 APG; 0.6 3PM; 37.0 FG%; 77.8 FT%; 0.2 SPG; 0 BPG; 0.2 TO

Typically, I like to keep my recommendations to about three or four per league setting.  However, Mason’s per minute stats, along with his recent increase in playing time has become very intriguing.  If any position on the Wizards has been locked down for this season, it’s been the point guard slot.  With the recent injuries to the other Wizards, and the not-so-great field goal percentage from Gilbert Arenas, Mason has gotten some extra burn and has lit it up from long range.  He’s converted 10 three point field goals in the last three games, while barely cracking 20 minutes a game.  If you need help in the 3PM category, Mason may be a very, very cheap option.