With the trade deadline behind us, the beginning of silly season has arrived, and with it comes all of the madness surrounding teams shamelessly tanking for higher draft odds. For those not familiar with the term, silly season is the time of year where tank candidates begin digging deep into their rosters (sometimes even the G League, shoutout 21-22 OKC) in order to lose as many games as possible. This time of year gives us a ton of waiver wire adds.
It serves as a bit of a waiver wire Renaissance of sorts, and has gifted many league winners capable of grabbing gaudy statlines while soaking up 35 minutes a night. Previous league winners include players like Dalano Banton, Drew Eubanks, and Trendon Watford (a lot of Portland alumni now that I think of it), who all were capable of putting up stretches inside the top 50 to close out their respective years.
Part of gauging potential silly season value stems from knowledge of depth charts (all the way to the bottom in this case), and this list looks to highlight one notable player from ten of the worst teams in the league, all of whom have intriguing fantasy profiles or a path to heavy minutes (or both).
Keep in mind that some on the list have already begun to reap the rewards of extra playtime and might be less available, while others still are waiting in the wings ready to make their mark on the league.
The list is ranked based on my opinion of who has the most potential, with the ones at the beginning being players with the lowest ceiling (nearly all should be top 100 candidates with opportunity regardless), and ending with some of the high profile names some already associate with silly season.
THIS LIST FEATURES THE FIRST 5 NAMES ONLY, PART 2 COMES TOMORROW
10. Jonathan Mogbo
(Toronto Raptors)
Perhaps the biggest reach at being able to provide consistent high level value, Jonathan Mogbo is a rookie who has flashed some solid performances following the absence of Jakob Poeltl over the last week. Mogbo as a player is one who projects to be a decent role guy going forward, and has an interesting profile as a very undersized center replacement (he is 6’6”) for a Raptors team in love with retooling wings into whatever they need.
His recent performances have been a bit of a mixed bag, although the rookie does look like a solid points league addition if nothing else. From a fantasy perspective, Mogbo has only managed to rank 163rd in the four recent games that he has started, but there are positives that might help boost him further. He is a great source of assists from a big, averaging 3.8 in his recent time as a starter.
Mogbo also has some slight stock upside, averaging 2 per night in that same span. The rookie does struggle to shoot efficiently (not surprising for an undersized center without an elite jump shot), but outside of his scoring, he can more or less hover as a neutral asset in nearly every category.
While the positives have been limited, it is important to keep in mind that the Raptors have played elite defensive units such as Houston, Oklahoma City, and Cleveland in three of their last four games, and the entire team has been outclassed (not just Mogbo). Should the Raptors truly embrace the tank, he projects to be one of the many rookies the franchise would elect to develop, with a more balanced fantasy profile than his peers (perhaps bar Jamal Shead).
9. Damion Baugh
(Charlotte Hornets)
This pick is going to be a bit of a stretch, and Damion Baugh is a player who may never play double digits in the NBA. However, the undrafted guard has just recently signed a two-way contract with the Charlotte Hornets, filling in for a franchise riddled with injuries. He was extremely impressive in his debut, and flashes the ability to do what many of the young guards in Charlotte cannot (pass).
When LaMelo Ball inevitably misses time at the end of the season, Baugh could easily step up as a developmental prospect capable of making his teammates around him look better. Baugh has flashed great upside to provide balanced fantasy value right off the bat, dropping 16/5/3 on 63% shooting in his debut.
His scoring will certainly not hold up at this level (no guard is averaging 63% FG), but he has definitely proven that he has the ability to score at an NBA level. He traditionally has been an elite passer as well, averaging 9.6 assists a night for the Westchester Knicks in 18 games played.
Baugh has already proven that he can make an impact against top defensive units (his debut came against the Magic), and his profile as a lead guard makes him at least as intriguing as Vasilije Micic might have been last year.
The prospect is a long way away from even being a dedicated stash, but should the Hornets elect to use him as a lead guard over tunnel visioned scorers like Nick Smith Jr. and KJ Simpson, he could have a period of time inside the top 120 to end the season.
Unlike his peers listed above (who have proven to be incapable of netting value even with big roles), Baugh actually does project to have standard league value when given the minutes, making him the silly season name to watch in Charlotte.
8. Jared Butler
(Philadelphia 76ers)
It was definitely an internal debate that I had to even include Philadelphia on the list, as at a first glance, they are most definitely not trying to tank. However the team has been completely run off course by injury woes, and they have entered the All-Star Break on a five game losing streak, level in record with a shamelessly tanking Brooklyn roster.
Philadelphia owns their pick this year if it falls inside the top 6, and it is entirely possible the team eats the loss this year in hopes of finding a young star to pair alongside Joel Embiid and Tyrese Maxey. This might open up an opportunity for journeyman guard Jared Butler, a 4th year player who has recently proven to pack a punch in limited minutes.
Butler has recently evolved into a high usage guard who is often tasked with leading backup units. He has an amazing per 36 statline, averaging about 22/4/8.5 on league average shooting over the course of this season. While it would no doubt be an obvious sign Philly has thrown in the towel should he receive these minutes, fantasy managers need not worry, as he would be able to buoy your assist category very similarly to what Isaiah Collier is currently doing on the Jazz.
He also has great scoring upside, and had a stretch this season where he averaged almost 19 points in games he played over 20 minutes. Should he receive the minutes, Butler is one of the clearest adds you will find on the wire. He is currently backing up Maxey, and any injury would see him promoted to fill the starting role (unless Nick Nurse rolls out the corpse of Kyle Lowry).
While certainly limited by the fact that his team might not even elect to tank, Butler does flash some of the highest potential on the list, and would almost certainly be able to crest inside the top 70 should he get starter minutes.
7. Mo Gueye
(Atlanta Hawks)
Another player from a team not overtly tanking, Mo Gueye’s appearance on this list stems from another team with major injury concerns. The Atlanta Hawks have struggled to field a consistent starting lineup all season, and the extended losses of Jalen Johnson, Vit Krejci, and Larry Nance have forced the franchise to dig deeper and deeper for power forward eligible players.
Enter Gueye, who has started the last two games for the Hawks, and has turned out some amazingly impressive value despite only playing about 18 minutes a night for the team. Fantasy wise, Gueye has already flashed enough upside to justify a flier in many leagues. He absolutely farms stocks when playing (averaging 3.7 in the last week despite limited minutes), and has been compared to defensive anchors like Giannis Antetokounmpo by many watching him play.
He has also shown a willingness to draw contact through the finish, and is a relatively high volume free throw shooter who shoots roughly 78%. Combine these factors with his raw athleticism, and he projects to be a rim runner for star guard Trae Young. While he is held back by limited minutes, any injury to Georges Niang would likely force the second round pick into at least a 24 minute role.
The upside with Gueye is readily apparent. He is ranked 88th in the last week, with plenty of room to improve his volume should he receive increased minutes. He has not only contributed empty numbers either, and was vital for the team in securing a win over a competitive Milwaukee team earlier this week.
While his team is unlikely to just give up and play for development only (the Hawks do not own their 2025 pick), the Hoxpital is still in business to close out the year, and Gueye is the brightest potential benefactor should he get a few more minutes thrown his way.
6. Kyshawn George
(Washington Wizards)
There are a ton of names of potential breakout stars on the Washington Wizards, yet one that has not been talked about as much is the rookie wing Kyshawn George. While he certainly does not have star potential, he does project to be a great role guy in the league, and operates doing the dirty work for a Washington team that struggles in that regard.
He has seemingly locked up his starting role for the team (Khris Middleton notwithstanding), and could have some intriguing 3/D value for fantasy managers down the stretch. As mentioned above, George is called upon for defense and threes, with the rest of his lines often looking rather light. Over the last two weeks, George has been up to the task, totaling 2.8 three's a night in his last 6 games.
Additionally, he has been pesky on the defensive end, averaging 1.7 steals per game since the loss of Kyle Kuzma at the deadline. While this will likely end up being close to his cap for the season, he is still projected to remain a long term starter being fed as many minutes as he can. The extra minutes as the starting power forward has also increased his rebounding ceiling, and the rookie has averaged 7 a night since the deadline.
The Wizards have a ton of young, volatile assets from a fantasy perspective. Getting one of them to consistently flash excellence is like catching lightning in a bottle, but they all should be able to provide back end value just due to volume to end the season. Even though George has the lowest ceiling of his peers, he is also the least rostered (clocking in at 14% on Yahoo).
This makes him the most likely to be available for a quick pickup in your league, and any further front court losses to a Washington team desperate to lose will only increase his ceiling.