DFS Alerts

Jimmy Butler (toe) and Caleb Martin (Achilles) available to play Saturday; Max Strus (quad) ruled out

Jimmy Butler (toe) and Caleb Martin (Achilles) will both be available to play Saturday, while Max Strus (quad) has been ruled out. Butler was expected to play after being listed probable on the injury report last night and should see his normal run and usage. With Strus ruled out, Caleb Martin should play an even bigger role for the Heat and will likely see minutes in the low to mid 20s. We are still waiting to hear about P.J. Tucker as he remains questionable. If he were to be ruled out, Martin would see another bump and would have a good shot at entering the starting lineup, he would need to be considered as a value option in DFS contests at that point.

Eric Bledsoe, Justise Winslow, and Keon Johnson (trade) now questionable to make Portland debut Saturday

Eric Bledsoe, Justise Winslow, and Keon Johnson (trade) are now questionable to make their Portland debut Saturday against the Milwaukee Bucks. Originally all players involved in the trade with the Clippers were listed as out but they have been now upgraded to questionable. It is unknown how much Bledsoe or Winslow would play if deemed available but they would likely fit into the rotation somewhere for the Trail Blazers. We will need to stay tuned to see if we get anymore updates regarding their status as the day progresses but currently they are listed as “not with team” on the official NBA injury report.

Status Update: LeBron James (knee) officially upgraded to questionable Saturday

LeBron James has been upgraded to questionable and will go through a pregame warmup Saturday to determine if he is ready to return against the New York Knicks. LeBron’s potential return would limit the upside of Russell Westbrook and Anthony Davis who see a massive FPM increase with James off the floor. The Laker wings and forwards tasked with covering LeBron’s minutes (like Stanley Johnson, Trevor Ariza, Avery Bradley, and Austin Reaves) would all see a minutes dip. James would be expected to slot back into his normal role as part of the Los Angeles big three and would likely play heavy minutes barring a restriction (that we likely wouldn’t find out about until closer to tip).

Ja Morant (foot) available to play Saturday

Ja Morant (foot) will be available to play Saturday against the Orlando magic. Morant should play his normal role as the main component of the Memphis offense and should be in line to see his usual heavy run. His availability will limit the usage and/or minutes that could have been enjoyed by other Grizzlies players like Desmond Bane, Jaren Jackson, De’Anthony Melton, and John Konchar had Morant been ruled out. These players should remain in their usual roles.

Lu Dort (face) listed out Saturday

Lu Dort (face) has been listed out for Saturday’s game against the Sacramento Kings. With Dort out, Josh Giddey and the rest of the usual OKC starters will be called upon to carry more of the Thunder offense making them better plays tonight. Ty Jerome seems like a possible candidate to join the starting lineup while Kenrich Williams, Theo Maledon, and Aleksej Pokusevski should cover the rest of Dort’s vacated minutes. Jerome and Williams enter value play consideration.

Larry Nance Jr. (knee) listed out Saturday

Larry Nance Jr. (knee) has been listed out for Saturday’s game against the Milwaukee Bucks. Nance Jr. will once again be out with a knee injury likely meaning a second straight start for CJ Elleby. The Trail Blazers remain relatively thin with players tied up in a pending trade with the Los Angeles Clippers (all players involved have already been ruled out for tonight’s contest) so we will likely see heavy minutes for Elleby and Tony Snell in the starting lineup and Greg Brown remaining a part of the rotation. Elleby can be considered as a value option and comes in at the minimum once again on DK.

LeBron James (knee) will go through a pregame warmup Saturday to determine if he is ready to return

LeBron James (currently listed doubtful) will go through a pregame warmup Saturday to determine if he is ready to return against the New York Knicks. LeBron’s potential return would limit the upside of Rusell Westbrook and Anthony Davis who see a massive FPM increase with James off the floor. The Laker wings and forwards tasked with covering LeBron’s minutes (like Stanley Johnson, Trevor Ariza, Avery Bradley, and Austin Reaves) would all see a minutes dip. James would be expected to slot back into his normal role as part of the Los Angeles big three and would likely play heavy minutes barring a restriction (that we likely wouldn’t find out about until closer to tip).

Caleb Martin (Achilles) expects to play Saturday

Caleb Martin (Achilles) expects to play Saturday against the Charlotte Hornets. Martin said he believes he will be able to make his return after a one game absence against his former team. Martin is currently expected to see minutes in the low to mid teens but this could change as we await the status of Max Strus and PJ Tucker (both questionable). As of now, Martin is not worthy of consideration in DFS contests.

Lineup Update: Mavs will start Doncic, Brunson, Bullock, Finney-Smith, Powell on Friday. Bullock will join the starting lineup with Kleber a late scratch shifting Finney-Smith to the four. Bullock and Finney-Smith should see their normal heavy run with Marquese Chriss and Moses Brown picking up the extra big man minutes on the bench.

Seth Curry (back) will play Friday

Seth Curry (back) will play Friday against the Dallas Mavericks. Curry will likely return to his spot in the starting lineup and see somewhere close to his normal run of low 30s minutes. His return will limit the minutes that could have been enjoyed by Danny Green and Isaiah Joe had Curry missed again.

Maxi Kleber (knee) ruled out Friday

Maxi Kleber (knee) has been ruled out for Friday’s game against the Philadelphia 76ers. The Mavericks will be extremely thin at the center position and will rely on Dwight Powell, Marquese Chriss, and Moses Brown to eat up the bulk of the big man minutes. Josh Green and Frank Ntilikina might be asked to play a few more minutes as Dorian Finney-Smith could be flexed to the four.

Lineup Update: Nuggets will start Morris, Reed, Barton, Jeff Green, Jokic on Friday. Reed will enter the starting lineup while Aaron Gordon misses his second straight game. There are value options that project better on tonight’s slate than Reed.

Lineup Update: Nets will start Irving, Mills, Edwards, Johnson, Claxton on Friday. Johnson will enter the starting lineup with Harden out rather than Bembry. Johnson will likely see a few more minutes while Bembry will see a few less.

Lineup Update: Blazers will start Simons, McCollum, Elleby, Snell, Nurkic on Friday. Elleby and Snell will enter the starting lineup for the Trail Blazers, with Elleby a very viable value option at the minimum price on DK.

Rudy Gay (knee) available to play Friday

Rudy Gay (knee) will be available to play Friday against the Brooklyn Nets. Gay should see somewhere around 20 minutes off the bench for the Jazz as they remain somewhat shorthanded. Gay remains outside of DFS consideration at his 4.4K price on DK.