Fantasy Basketball: Week 23 Planner

Rankings: Top 150 for Week 23 | Season

At this point in the season, the waiver wire is pretty much dead. If you play in a Head-to-Head format, most of the league has been eliminated, and even in Rotisserie, the league has likely been reduced to the handful of teams still alive for the title, so there just isn't much competition for the few key pickups you might want to make.

That's great news, because the last month of the season is also a time when hidden gems pop up out of nowhere. With teams turning the reins over to the stars of the future or shutting starters down with nagging injuries, now is the time when value seems to be most plentiful around the league. Of course, if your star is one of those players shut down, it's also the most painful time of the year.

The point is, the last few weeks of the season are defined by a great contradiction; they are the most important weeks of the season, and they elevate some of the least important players in the league to huge roles. You have to be willing to take advantage of that, which is why my Week 23 (March 28-April 3) recommendations are all off-the-wall picks. You won't find any obvious options here -- yes, you should start Devin Booker!

What you will find are five players who might not have been on your Fantasy radar two months ago, but who could be the difference between a championship and that long walk home. The question is, are you willing to take the risk?

Toney Douglas has been on the Pelicans roster all season, but he was a total nonfactor for the first four months of the season even as they dealt with injury after injury. However, with Eric Gordon and Tyreke Evans out for the season and Norris Cole missing significant time with a back injury, Douglas has been pressed into significant minutes of late, averaging 31.0 over his last eight games entering play Friday -- all starts. He has averaged 13.0 points, 5.4 rebounds, 5.0 assists and 1.9 steals per game, and looks like exactly the kind of late-season pickup who can provide a boost. The key moving forward into Week 23 will be whether he can sustain this role, and the main thing to keep an eye on there is Cole's health; If Cole is able to return to action this week, just swap him into Douglas' spot and expect the same production. The Pelicans are playing for pride, and Douglas and Cole are two guys who might have enough to prove to show out in the last few weeks.

Gary Harris

ORL • SG • #14

STARTED43%

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When Danilo Gallinari went down, the assumption was that Will Barton would emerge as one of the Nuggets' go-to scorers, but he just cannot seem to pull out of this slide. After looking like a breakout star early in the season, Barton has been pretty pedestrian of late, averaging just 11.4 points per game over the 13 Gallinari has missed, while shooting 40.9 percent from the field and posting pretty mediocre peripheral stats. The biggest beneficiary of Gallo's absence has actually been Gary Harris, who has emerged as the team's No. 2 option on offense, averaging 15.8 points per game on 49.7 percent shooting, despite going cold from 3-point range (31.0 percent, 1.5, makes per game). Harris has stepped up his playmaking a bit, and is filling out the box score with 3.4 rebounds, 2.0 assists and 1.4 steals per game over the last 13. He is the least widely available of this group, but is still out there in 35 percent of CBSSports.com leagues,

Rondae Hollis-Jefferson

POR • SG • #2

STARTED9%

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It's not clear if Hollis-Jefferson's minutes are going to reach the point where he is a clear Fantasy starter, but his first two games might be evidence that they don't need to. Hollis-Jefferson logged just 32 minutes over the course of two games since returning from his ankle injury, and racked up 15 points, 10 rebounds, four assists and four steals. That isn't terribly impressive production, until you remember the Nets play five times in Week 23, a massive advantage that puts most of their rotation into play for this pivotal week. It might be tough to justify starting Hollis-Jefferson in points leagues, but his ability to fill up the box score without turnovers or hurting your percentages could be a key in Rotisserie leagues as you try to close out the season.

The Suns are yet another team whose season has been effectively over for months, which means they will have little-to-no incentive to push anyone if they aren't 100-percent healthy. That could be good news for Leuer, who has logged 73 minutes over the last two games with Tyson Chandler dealing with a back injury. With Chandler's age and the Suns' place in the standings, it wouldn't be terribly surprising if we didn't see Chandler again this season, though he is officially day-to-day at this point. Leuer has responded to his increased role with massive production, racking up 35 points, 27 rebounds, three 3-pointers and four blocks in these two games. As long as Chandler remains out, Leuer will be an intriguing play in both H2H and Rotisserie, where his 3-point shooting from a big position can be key. With a strong four-game schedule on the way, Leuer could be a big help.

With Chandler Parsons out for the year following another knee surgery and Zaza Pachulia's role drastically limited -- he caught a DNP - CD Wednesday -- the Mavericks are desperate for options in the frontcourt, and Mejri has helped provide a big boost lately. Mejri has played sparingly this season, appearing in just 25 games, but has come up huge over the last few games, logging 61 minutes in a pair of games against the Blazers and coming up with 27 points, 26 rebounds and seven blocks. His track record is extremely limited, but with one of the best schedules in the league on the way and an opportunity to remain in the rotation, Mejri might be worth the risk -- especially if you need a boost in blocks or field goal percentage.