Now is the time to add Wayne Ellington

The following is a list of my top 10 waiver wire pickups of the week using owned percentages from standard Yahoo leagues. There will also be a list of fantasy players worth monitoring in most leagues and worth picking up in deep leagues. Any players I list on here must be owned in less than 50 percent of leagues. With that said, here are the top waiver pickups after the break:

Top 10 Waiver Wire Pickups of the Week

1. Wayne Ellington – SG – Los Angeles Lakers (owned: 25%)
Wayne Ellington has been a regular low-to-mid double-digits scorer since taking over for the injured Kobe Bryant (shoulder). He has also averaged close to two three-pointers per game, has shot over 45 percent from the field and has shot well over 80 percent from the line since taking over as the team’s regular shooting guard. If you haven’t picked him up yet, now is the time to do so before owners start adding him at a higher percentage.

2. Jordan Clarkson (rookie) – PG – Los Angeles Lakers (owned: 25%)
Jordan Clarkson has been pretty inconsistent since taking over as the team’s starting point guard over Jeremy Lin in late January, but he should have the job all to himself for the rest of the season. He has averaged 13.4 points and 3.8 assists per game in his past 10 contests. He has room to grow and has potential to put up even better numbers in the second half. He’s not a must-own fantasy player just yet, but get him now before he turns into one.

3. Donatas Motiejunas– SF, PF, C – Houston Rockets (owned: 45%)
Donatas Motiejunas has continually made the most of his new-found opportunities filling up minutes for a couple of his team’s usual starters who have been hurt, or slowly progressing after returning from injury (namely Dwight Howard and Terrence Jones). He has averaged (per game) the following statistics since mid-January: 28.1 minutes, 13.6 points, 6.2 rebounds and 0.6 three-pointers. He has also put up the following percentages since that time: a 53.2 field goal percentage and a 63.6 free throw percentage. Minus the free throw percentage, there isn’t much not to like about Motiejunas’ overall game. As long as he is averaging close to 30 minutes per game, he is a solid starter in most fantasy leagues. Pick him up if you haven’t already.

4. Jusuf Nurkic (rookie) – C – Denver Nuggets (owned: 30%)
Jusuf Nurkic continues to shoot himself in the foot by getting into foul trouble in most games he starts. He puts up very solid per-minute statistics, but as long as he continues to foul at a high rate, that won’t matter. He has double-digit scoring ability and is a solid rebounder and shot blocker who really needs to figure out how to overcome this foul problem. He is widely available in most fantasy leagues, so if you’re in need of a center who has tremendous upside in rebounding and shot blocking, he is your guy to get.

5. Mo Williams – PG, SG – Charlotte Hornets (owned: 38%)
The newly acquired (via trade from the Minnesota Timberwolves) Mo Williams is the Hornets’ new starting point guard. He was averaging 28 minutes, 12.2 points, 6.4 assists and 1.4 three-pointers per game in his stint with Minnesota and should put up numbers similar to that, if not better, in Charlotte. He won’t help your field goal percentage, but he is an excellent free throw shooter and can catch fire at times on the offensive end. If you’re in need a decent point guard, you could do a lot worse than picking up Williams right now.

6. Spencer Hawes – PF, C – Los Angeles Clippers (owned: 44%)
Spencer Hawes hasn’t done much yet, even with Clippers starting power forward Blake Griffin (elbow) out with an injury. He should be able to pick it up soon though, since he has shown ability in the past to be a productive player as a starter. With Griffin expected to be out for at least another three weeks, Hawes has ample time to show what he can do again with big minutes at his disposal. Expecting double-digit points, close to double-digit rebounds and at least one-three pointer per game from Hawes is within the realm of possibility for fantasy owners. Acquire him right now if those numbers sound good to you.

7. Alex Len – C – Phoenix Suns (owned: 15%)
Alex Len (ankle) is currently dealing with an ankle injury, but might be back at the start of the second half of the season. He has shown a lot of promise in his second NBA season and will be the team’s starting center for the rest of the season with Plumlee gone. Expect him to average close to double-digit points and rebounds, and anywhere between 1.5-to-2 blocks per game for the rest of the season. He is a sneaky solid pickup at the moment in most fantasy leagues.

8. Marcus Smart (rookie) – PG – Boston Celtics (owned: 43%)
Since mid-January, rookie Marcus Smart has averaged 7.3 points, 4.9 assists, 1.2 steals and 1.5 three-pointers per game, while shooting 33 percent from the field and 64.3 percent from the line. He has yet to really get it going for Boston, but he is the team’s future and should have plenty of time to show the Celtics what he has to offer for the franchise. It’s hard to guess as to whether or not he’ll step it up in the second half of the season, but if you’re desperate for help at the point guard position, he is an option.

9. Kelly Olynyk – PF, C – Boston Celtics (owned: 40%)
The second-year player has been bothered by an ankle injury since mid-to-late January, but could be back in action on Friday against the Kings. Consider him questionable for now, but once he does return he should continue to put up double-digit points, close to one three-pointer and at least five rebounds per game. He also typically puts up solid field goal (currently at 50.6) and free throw percentages (68.2, but shot 81.1 percent last year). If he fills a need on your fantasy team, pick him up right away.

10. John Henson – PF, C – Milwaukee Bucks (owned: 40%)
It’s always a head-scratcher trying to predict the type of playing time John Henson will get from one week to the next. He got solid minutes when Bucks center Zaza Pachulia was out of action with a calf injury, but fantasy owners can expect him to log in anywhere between 20-to-25 minutes per game, at best. In that time you may get you close to double-digit points, five-plus rebounds and two-to-three blocks per game when Pachulia is healthy and playing. Henson has solid upside, but as long as his minutes are capped he’s really only a viable option for fantasy teams who need an extra shot blocker.

Players Worth Monitoring

O.J. Mayo – PG, SG – Milwaukee Bucks (owned: 49%)

Langston Galloway (rookie) – PG, SG – New York Knicks (owned: 25%)

Tim Hardaway Jr. – SG, SF – New York Knicks (owned: 20%)

Corey Brewer – SG, SF – Houston Rockets (owned: 31%)

Matt Barnes – SF – Los Angeles Clippers (owned: 46%)

Tristan Thompson – PF, C –Cleveland Cavaliers (owned: 45%)

Dante Exum (rookie) – PG – Utah Jazz (owned: 14%)

Ben McLemore – SG – Sacramento Kings (owned: 24%)

Hollis Thompson – SG, SF, PF – Philadelphia 76ers (owned: 13%)

Gerald Henderson – SG, SF – Charlotte Hornets (owned: 33%)

Kentavious Caldwell-Pope – SG – Detroit Pistons (owned: 18%)

Amare Stoudemire – PF, C – Dallas Mavericks (owned: 31%)

Patrick Patterson –PF, C – Toronto Raptors (owned: 31%)

Jason Smith – PF, C – New York Knicks (owned: 11%)

CD Hill is a correspondent at FantasyPros. To read more from CD, check out his archive.