Welcome to The Playlist: my weekly column that tells you who and what to play in fantasy basketball in the coming week – when it comes to deciding your lineup or music in my rotation.

Each week you’ll see a breakdown of the pickups you need to make, a quick look at the schedule, and lineup notes (who’s in rotation and who’s not).

Press play and browse through the latest fantasy basketball information.

🏀 Week 9 summary

---

🥇Top players in Week 9

▶️ “Classic Man” – Jidenna feat. Roman Gian Arthur

---

🎧 Who’s in my rotation: Waiver of pickups

Players who should be used under 50% in all leagues:

De’Andre Hunter, Gradey Dick, Rui Hachimura, Alex Sarr, Yves Missi, Malcolm Brogdon, Malik Beasley and Andrew Nembhard.

Players to be added under 40% of the roster this week:

Scotty Pippen Jr. – PG/SG, Memphis Grizzlies (34%)

One of the most valuable backups in fantasy basketball looks set to return to all-league action as Ja Morant struggles day-to-day with a shoulder injury. With Morant off the field, Pippen Jr. is averaging 15 points, 4.5 rebounds, 6.2 assists and 1.7 saves and 34 fantasy points per game this season. He was also efficient as a starter, shooting 53% from the field and 40% from three-point range.

Spencer Dinwiddie – PG/SG, Dallas Mavericks (21%)

With Dončić out for at least a month, Dinwiddie returns to the Mavs’ starting lineup. He has proven to be a streaming option as the workload increases, averaging 17 points, 4.7 boards and 5.7 dimes as a starter this season. For those in 9-cat leagues, his FG percentage might be a slight hindrance, but the counting stats are worth the slight drop in that area. Quentin Grimes (19%) is the next best option if Dinwiddie is unavailable. Grimes also gets a boost as Naji Marshall was suspended for four games for his scuffle with Jusuf Nurkić.

Scoot Henderson – PG, Portland Trail Blazers (30%)

It’s been a rollercoaster ride for the second-year pro, but he’s been fine for the past week. He’s averaging 17/3/6 with nearly 3 steals per game in his last three contests, and while I’ll always prefer Henderson over the 9-Cat in scoring leagues, he’s been effective in both formats – ranking 39th in the 9-Cat and 51st place in the 9-Cat points leagues. The good numbers and efficient shooting are a rarity for Scoot, so fantasy managers should ride the wave while he’s hot.

Top streaming options

Early to mid week, Monday to Thursday:

Derrick Jones Jr. – SF/PF, Los Angeles Clippers (11%)

DJJ has short-term stream appeal as the Clippers play the Pelicans and Spurs back-to-back Monday through Tuesday. The Clippers also play the Thunder in six games on Thursday. That’s three games in one transaction before Kawhi Leonard’s possible return on Saturday. Jones Jr. will be an asset to fantasy managers in need of steals, points and 3s. Kris Dunn (10%) is a deep league option if DJJ were acquired.

Peyton Watson – SF/PF, Denver Nuggets (5%)

The Nuggets face the Jazz on Monday and the Hawks on Wednesday, which is a good opportunity for Watson. Aaron Gordon (calf) will miss at least two more games. Watson’s scoring has been hit or miss lately, but he has been a consistent contributor in 9-cat leagues.

Kelly Oubre Jr. – SG/SF, Philadelphia 76ers (34%)

The Sixers have a good schedule in Week 10, starting with the Trail Blazers on Monday and a back-to-back game against the Warriors and Kings on Wednesday and Thursday. Joel Embiid and Paul George will likely sit out one of those games, so Oubre is another player for whom a deal can cover multiple games. His scoring has slowed as everyone is healthy, but he still gets enough scoring stats to be added in 12-team points and 9-cat leagues.

Mid to late week, Thursday to Sunday:

Dalton Knecht – SG/SF, Los Angeles Lakers (17%)

The Lakers play three games over four nights from Thursday to Sunday, with matchups against the Blazers, Hawks and Rockets. With Russell gone, Knecht could move from the bench to the top option. He has played well in his last two games, averaging 15 points, five boards and 1.5 three-pointers in 29 minutes of play.

Luguentz Dort – SG/SF, Oklahoma City Thunder (22%)

There it will be an option in 12-team leagues, as one transaction can bring three games in the backend of the week. The Thunder have a tough time getting ahead of the Clippers, Knicks and Celtics, but Dort is always a steal threat and has been a top-100 player this season.

Kentavious Caldwell-Pope – SG/SF, Orlando Magic (26%)

The Magic play three games this week on Wednesday, Friday and Sunday against the Pistons, Raptors and Jazz. Caldwell-Pope is a better option for 9-cat leagues, but he’s worth streaming since the Magic are missing several key players. Caldwell-Pope has been a good source of threes and stocks over the past two weeks. With Jalen Suggs leaving Sunday’s game with a wrist injury, we saw an increase in scoring.

▶️ “Cheers” – Anderson Paak feat. Q-Tip

---

🗓️ Schedule highlights

Week 10 is a favorable week to stream waiver wires as there is no slate of more than nine games pending. Set your lineups early on New Year’s Eve (December 31) as games begin as early as 3:00 p.m. ET.

Here is the list of total games played this week:

• Daily schedule: Monday (7), Tuesday (6), Wednesday (8), Thursday (6), Friday (9), Saturday (9) and Sunday (6)

One team I would avoid streaming players from is the Phoenix Suns. They only play two games on Tuesday and Saturday. Looking ahead to Week 11, if you still have transactions at the end of Week 10, get players like Royce O’Neale because the Suns are the only team playing five games next week.

Here is the team’s remaining number of games played:

• 13 teams play four games: 4 games: 76ers, Cavaliers, Celtics, Clippers, Jazz, Kings, Knicks, Lakers, Nuggets, Pelicans, Thunder, Warriors and Wizards

• 16 teams play three games: Bulls, Grizzlies, Hawks, Heat, Hornets, Magic, Mavericks, Nets, Pacers, Pistons, Raptors, Rockets, Spurs, Timberwolves and Trail Blazers

• 1 team plays two games: Suns

The sequential schedule can be found below:

• Monday/Tuesday: Cavs and Clippers

• Tuesday/Wednesday: Raptors

• Wednesday/Thursday: 76ers, Heat and Nets

• Thursday/Friday: Celtics, Lakers and Thunder

• Friday/Saturday: Grizzlies, Hawks, Knicks, Nuggets, Pistons and Spurs

• Saturday/Sunday: Jazz and warriors

---

---

🚑 Injury status

Latest injury reports for all NBA teams

NBA Injury Report – Monday, December 30th

▶️ “Blessings” – Big Sean feat. drake

---

🔄 Rotation Notes

• Brooklyn Nets: The Nets don’t play until Wednesday, giving D’Lo three days to return to his former team. Keon Johnson (13%) was a popular streaming option in Week 9, but that could be short-lived after this trade and the return of Cam Thomas on Sunday. Look for Noah Clowney (17%) as one of the options to take over Finney-Smith’s minutes.

• Charlotte Hornets: Vasilije Micić’s stock (6%) is rising on Monday as the Hornets are missing two of their best players, LaMelo Ball and Brandon Miller. However, it will likely be a one-game stream as the Hornets have three days off before playing the Pistons again on Friday.

• Golden State Warriors: With a roster share of 65%, Trayce Jackson-Davis has played exceptionally well for fantasy managers since the Warriors acquired Dennis Schröder. In his last five games, the big man averaged 14 points, 9 boards, 3 assists and 3 steals, with a high FG percentage. Add him to leagues with 10 or fewer teams.

• New Orleans Pelicans: Zion Williamson is doing light contact drills in practice, which is good news for fantasy managers who have had him on the shelf since November 6th. He still doesn’t have a timetable, but a return seems imminent.

• Orlando magic: The official NBA injury report lists Paolo Banchero as “returning to competition, reconditioning,” so he is likely close to a return to the lineup. If a Banchero manager is struggling on the chart, get these trade offers before he returns.

• Washington Wizards: Justin Champagnie (21%) is an interesting player because while he matched his career-high with 31 points on Saturday, Kuzma’s return to the lineup is likely to weaken his streaming potential.

▶️ “Ball Drop” – Fabulous performance. French Montana