Down the stretch we come in the 2021-2022 Fantasy Basketball season, especially for whoever is playing in head-to-head leagues, your season is on the line over the next few weeks. The Fantasy Basketball Playoffs are getting ready to begin and we must be on top of these team depth charts. Soon enough, we’ll start to see some of the teams who aren’t contending give their younger players more playing time to give them reps to start preparing for next season. Here are a few players to look to pick up or keep an eye on.  

 


Chuma Okeke PF ORL-40% Rostered: We’ve seen the Magic big men get shuffled a bit and Okeke has played 32 minutes in two of his last three games. He can help stretch the floor and he can bang under the boards too. He’s pulled down seven or more rebounds in three of his last five contests and he’ll fight for loose balls. He’s a feisty defender at the elbow and has produced four multi-steal outings in his last five battles. Okeke has been given more shots in the Magic’s offense lately hitting double figures in four straight and in five of his last six contests. He’s even blocked shots in four of his last five games. Throughout the season Okeke has been on and off the waiver wire, but we’ve recently seen Mo Bamba lose out on some of his minutes and we’ve seen his stats drop a bit and Okeke has been taking advantage.
 

 


Deni Avdija SG, F WAS-33% Rostered: We haven’t seen Kristaps Porzingis suit up for the Wizards yet and until he’s ready, Avdija will see more shots and time with the ball. He’s taken ten or more shots in three of his last four battles and he’s hit double figures in scoring in six of his last seven games. Avdija is good at fighting through screens and causing disruptions when teams are on the break and he’s been stealing the ball consistently. He’s even blocked shots in three of his last four outings. He’s been doing a little bit of everything and the Wizards' wings are their best defenders and he should be playing 30-plus minutes for the most part for the rest of the way. He’s even grabbed seven or more rebounds in four of his last five battles. 
 

 


Isaiah Jackson PF IND-40% Rostered: The Magic aren’t the only team shuffling the deck when it comes to their front court as Myles Turner remains out and Jackson just returned and scored 17 points against the Thunder. Goga Bitadze could be on his way to the outside of the rotation and if that happens Jackson has a clear path to Power Forward and Center minutes until Turner returns to the court. He’s been shooting over 55 percent from the floor through 21 games. The Celtics will be a tough matchup for him, but after that, he has a very favorable road schedule against the Magic, Pistons, and Wizards. All three teams have weak front courts. Jackson has blocked multiple shots in three of the last four games he’s played in. He’ll certainly be prioritized over Terry Taylor in the front court and he and Jalen Smith (who we’ll discuss in a bit) will get plenty of run for at least the next few weeks.
 

 


Aaron Holiday PG PHX-13% Rostered: Holiday is dealing with a bit of a sore ankle, but due to the complications surrounding Cameron Payne’s wrist recovery, he’s still in play even for short-term value. The Suns did trade for him and he scored 12 points and dished five dimes in the first game back from the All-Star break and with Chris Paul sidelined for the next month and a half. We don’t know when we’ll see Payne take the floor, but once he does it’s assumed that he’ll handle most of the play making even though we’ve seen Devin Booker succeed when he’s distributing the ball more. Landry Shamet is also available and he will give Holiday competition for playing time, but Holiday should still continue receiving 25-plus minutes as long as Payne is sidelined. If we for whatever reason learn that Holiday’s ankle soreness is more serious, look at Shamet and Elfrid Payton (if desperate). 
 

 


Talen Horton-Tucker SG, SF LAL-11% Rostered: He’s doing enough to warrant a short-term roster spot and he has a pretty good schedule coming up and with limited front court offense happening beyond LeBron James, Horton-Tucker will have to be relied on a bit more. He’s scored 14-plus points in three of his last four battles and he’s grabbed at least five boards in two of those outings. He’ll help bring up the ball and can play multiple positions and has hit the 30-minute mark in two of his last three battles. When it comes to on-the-ball defense, Horton-Tucker can cover a lot of ground on the court and can fight through screens and he’ll fight for loose balls and he’s grabbed steals in five of his last six outings. He grabs just about a steal per game. 
 

 


Maxi Kleber PF, C DAL-33% Rostered: The Mavs have a very light front court when it comes to depth and Kleber will continue to be locked into the rotation and he should play high-20's/low-30's minutes for the rest of the way and he’s grabbed six or more rebounds in five of his last seven contests. He can hit three-pointers and he’s taken ten shots in two of his last three matchups. He’s shooting over 36 percent from beyond the arc and he’s scored 19-plus points in two of his last three games. On the defensive end, he’s been blocking more shots lately and has swatted away 1.1 shots per game and eight shots total in his last three games. He’s posted swipes in three straight games and has the Warriors, Lakers and Kings up next on his schedule and all matchups are certainly beatable from the offensive standpoint. 
 

 


Jalen Smith PF IND-20% Rostered: The Pacers traded for Smith meaning they have him in their future plans and down the stretch we should see him retain 25-30 minutes for the rest of the season. Smith can help out at both Power Forward and Center even when Turner comes back. Smith has scored 11 or more points in four of his last five games and he’s in a much better situation in Indiana than he was in Phoenix when it comes to competition for playing time. Smith has grabbed six or more rebounds in three of his last four games and he’s blocked shots in four of his last five contests. Smith is a floor-stretching big man that operates from the post but then sneaks out to the arc if the guards are stopped while driving the lane. As mentioned before, Goga Bitadze is looking like he’s going to lose minutes and that will benefit the other Pacers big men until Turner comes back. We also don’t know when and if we’ll see T.J. Warren return to action.
 

 


Isaiah Roby C OKC-7% Rostered: The Thunder are very weak up front and Roby has seen his minutes rise in recent games and he should have an easy path to 20-plus for the rest of the season. Roby has posted two double-doubles in his last three games. He can hit long-range shots but most of his production will come from under the basket. Roby has been helpful in turning shots away and picking up loose balls in the lane. He’s blocked shots in three of his last five contests and he’s grabbed swipes in four of his last six battles with three of those games being multi-steal outings. The Thunder have to start looking toward their future as Roby needs more run and Derrick Favors is at the end of his career and without other options, we should continue to see Roby pick up minutes down the stretch. Mike Muscala and Jeremiah Robinson-Earl are still out for Oklahoma City.
 

 


Lonnie Walker IV SG, SF SAS-12% Rostered: With Derrick White traded, more shots have opened up in the Spurs offense and Walker has taken 13 or more shots in five straight contests. He’s hit the 20-point mark in three of his last four outings and he’s even grabbed three or more boards in four straight games. He’s a bit on the scoring-dependent side for now, but if he can continue grabbing long rebounds, we can put even more trust into him. The shot volume he’s received certainly makes him attractive. He’s been scoring 11.6 points per game and even though he’s averaging 23 minutes per game for the year, he’s exceeded his average in five straight battles. He’s also hit multiple three-pointers in four straight games.
 

 


Dwight Howard C LAL-13% Rostered: We saw Howard have a lot of success in his first game back from the break and with Anthony Davis sidelined, Howard should play 25-30 minutes per game and he grabbed 16 rebounds last game. Howard doesn’t need a lot of minutes to succeed and he’s coming off of a three-block game. Howard’s next few matchups are very strong and he should be able to secure a few double-doubles up against teams like the Clippers, Warriors, and Spurs. Howard produces 1.08 fantasy points per minute with Davis off the floor and DeAndre Jordan hasn’t even been playing. The Lakers don’t have true depth behind Howard and for at least the next few weeks, Howard has tremendous fantasy appeal.