Welcome to your weekly Waiver Wire Fix. This season I am not only simply giving you players to consider adding each week, I am also telling you players that you should be watching but maybe not adding just yet, players who fill needs as specific category specialists, players I feel you should hold tight on even during a slow stretch AND players that have gotten to the point you can drop them for something more beneficial on your waiver wire. I will still only be mentioning players to add that are owned in less than 50% of ESPN leagues. So, let’s get right to it!

Add’em

Will Barton (owned in 44% of ESPN leagues) – Odds are he’s probably already owned in your league if you’re in a league with owners who have an active heartbeat, but somewhere out there he sit on the wire in over 50% of leagues. Barton is balling out as the Nuggets sixth man and top bench scorer this season. Over the last eight games he’s averaged 28 minutes, 15 points, 5.6 rebounds, 2.0 assists, 1.1 steals, 0.8 blocks and 1.6 3-pointers while shooting 52% from the field and 95% from the free throw line. He should be owned in all leagues as there is no sign of this stopping as he’s well implanted in his role.

Avery Bradley (39%) – Since returning from a two game absence, Bradley has been coming off the bench for the Celtics and it’s served the team really well. It keeps Isaiah in with the starters and allows Bradley to come in as a solid offensive but also lock down defensive wing. He’s a great fit for what Brad Stevens is trying to do in Boston, so he’ll continue to see around 25 minutes a night and deliver numbers like he has these past three games of 17.6 points, three rebounds, three assists, two steals and two 3-pointers.

Robert Covington (33%) – While people sit back and wait for Covington to look like he did last year before adding, get in there and take him now before it happens, because let’s face it, once he’s 100% he’s far and away the best wing on the Sixers. His FG% can be tough but his points, threes and steals make up for that. Don’t risk someone else obtaining this guy who finished in the top-70 last season overall for free. Owning him the rest of the season will be well worth him not being great for a week while knocking the rust off.

Jeff Green (16.3%) – I’ve never been a big Jeff Green fan, so this isn’t thrilling for me to write. Green has really shown up nicely though since the Grizzlies inserted him into their starting lineup at SF. He’s played 30+ minutes in all three of his starts and averaged 18.3 points, 4.7 rebounds, 1.3 steals, 1.0 triple and went 20/20 from the foul line. Who knows if this starting gig sticks, but you should add him and hope that it does. If he loses the job, you can just cut him but better to play it safe than regretting it later.

Darren Collison (43%) – Another guy under-owned due to missing time with an injury. I’ve ranted all off-season to you about how difficult it is to find assists compared to rebounds and threes. Well, Collison can dish out dimes and hit a three plus get a steal per, so if he’s available, you should be running to get him right away. The Kings don’t have the greatest of options at SG, so DC will play time there and get a decent bit of minutes backing up Rajon Rondo who can’t survive a season 40+ minutes as he did the last couple weeks while Darren was sidelined.

Category Specialists

Points: Mario Chalmers (15%) – Mario apparently loves his new home with the Memphis Grizzlies. They are letting Rio do his thing with the second unit, and it’s been rewarding for all those involved — that’s why we need to also get involved. While only playing 20 minutes a night in his three games on his new team, Chalmers has been super aggressive with the rock and not wasting time with mid-range jumpers. He’s either taken open looks from distance or taken the ball to the rack and drawing contact, going 25/27(!!) from the charity stripe in those games. So, not only will Chalmers be a nice scoring boost for you, he’ll also drive up your FT% nicely. This hot streak may self-destruct soon, but no harm in holding this hot hand until it falls off.

Rebounds: Joakim Noah (45%) – Noah doesn’t score much, at all. He does however go hard in the paint for rebounds and he’s a really good passer for a big man. With 9.4 boards and 4.8 assists over his last  five games, I have no issues with rostering him just for boosts in those areas.

Assists: Dennis Schroder (43%) – Schroder has gotten at least three assists in 11 straight games for the Hawks, and yeah his season APG is a tad inflated from the few games Teague has missed, but Dennis is getting PT even when Teague is active. Also, after hitting just three treys in the Hawks first five games, Schroder has netted 15 from distance in the past nine games. His FG% leaves something to be desired, but we’ll take what we get from the German guard, and really enjoy the nights Teague takes off.

3-Pointers: Jerryd Bayless (21%) – Who knew that Jerryd Bayless would start the season with a good role in the Bucks rotation, never mind that he’d be so fire hot with the playing time given. Bayless has been shooting a sizzling 51.4% from behind the arc over the last seven games. In those games he’s averaged 2.3 triples a night while shooting 44.6% from the field and 91% from the line. His 13.3 points, 4.4 dimes and 1.4 steals aren’t anything to shrug off either. Now, we don’t know how his minutes will be affected when O.J. Mayo comes back and Jabari is playing more consistently, but we do know he’s done enough to maintain a spot in the rotation. Another use it while you can option.

Steals: Marcus Smart (39%) – Smart is a really physical and good defender. He gave the unstoppable Russell Westbrook a tough time a few nights ago. Yet another option who is a thorn in the side of your FG-percentage, but Marcus has snatched 2.0 steals per game over the last seven games, and he’ll continue to be one of the league’s top ball thieves in this tenacious defensive system.

Blocks: Steven Adams (10%) – The man who has been pimping the mustache before we even got close to ‘Movember’ is a great target for those in need of specifically blocks. His rebounds are down a bit from his typical rates, but those can come, but Adams is really helping out fantasy owners with 1.9 blocks on the season. Expect him to continue to start for defensive purposes and get 25 minutes a night, so the blocks should remain solid any time you want to add him or even stream him as needed in a close H2H matchup.

Watch’em

Cory Joseph (14%) – This kid is really, really good. Many laughed at the contract he got this off-season from Toronto, but in the end, it may turn out to be a bargain or at least fair. CoJo is already racking up minutes both backing up Kyle Lowry and playing alongside Lowry for stints, too. Over the Raptors last nine games, Joseph has gotten 26.6 minutes a night and putting up decent fantasy numbers with 11.6 points, 3.2 rebounds and 3.4 assists with great percentages.  His lack of threes and steals hold him from being a must add, but if Lowry were to get injured as he has done more often than ideal in the past, CoJo would be an absolute beast.

Hold’em

(Warning: The two players I listed here last week, Myles Turner and Meyers Leonard, were both injured this past week and will miss at least a month each. So maybe while this section reads “Hold’em” you should actually fold’em? We’ll hope for better luck this time)

Danny Green (68%) – I was going to talk in depth about how Green is simply just missing his shots right now, but my man Moczy already covered that in last week’s Buy Low/Sell High. Danny has gotten off to slow starts before like last year and turned it around in a big way, so don’t lose hope on him. He’s one of the few players in the league who can average 1+ block, steal and three, so be patient.

Nikola Mirotic (83%) – I know this is probably a surprise to see from me, because I was a bit lower on him than most this pre-season simply because I didn’t think he’d see enough minutes to hold big fantasy value as some were dreaming of. I did however move him up from around 110 to 80 in my rankings after he was announced as a starter, which was against my better judgement, but when so many writers you respect are pro-Miro, and he’s named starter, it’s hard to be too against it. Well, as I originally expected, he’s now coming off the bench and not getting the minutes needed to produce quality fantasy numbers. The reason this is what I expected is that when the Bulls are healthy, they need Noah and Taj’s defense more than Miro’s offense, because Rose, Butler and Pau is enough and having Nikola and Pau on the defensive end simply isn’t ideal.

The reason I say to hold though, is Noah is bound to breakdown sooner or later and when he does, Miro should see closer to 30 minutes again. It’s ok to stash a guy on your bench awhile as long as you have a solid team elsewhere. You don’t need a roster full of top-100 players, you can be strong and have Mirotic ready to blow up when the opportunity presents itself.

Drop’em

David Lee (43%) – Why? Why is he still owned in that many leagues? I mean, I was as hopeful as anyone when he was first traded to Boston, but it’s simply not happening. We will not be seeing the double-double stud we once knew, let it go.

Marcus Thornton (40%) – Well, that was fun while it last, huh? We were all pessimistic that Thornton could continue to start for the Rockets and remain fantasy relevant, well, that hot stretch is over. After still starting for a couple of games with Terrence Jones out, Thornton returned to his bench role. He’s played 18 minutes or less the last three games and scored a combined 14 points in those games.

For more fantasy hoops analysis and to have any questions answered, follow Zack on Twitter @BigZack44