DFS Alerts

Lineup update: Dario Saric will start in place of Deandre Ayton (knee) Thursday

Saric will get the start in place of Ayton Thursday, and will be a great value. Frank Kaminsky will come off the bench, and his a riskier play, but Saric is the best value of the team.

Deandre Ayton (knee) ruled out Thursday

Ayton was downgraded from questionable with a knee injury to out, and will miss his first game of the year against the Portland Trail Blazers. Frank Kaminsky will likely get the start, but Dario Saric is the other option to fill in. Ayton has averaged 32 minutes over the last six games, so Kaminsky and Saric will certainly see a bump up, regardless of who gets the start. From a production standpoint, Mikal Bridges sees the largest bump in production; his FPM goes from 0.81 to 0.95 per CourtIQ. Devin Booker also sees some usage bumps, but Kaminsky and Saric will be the best winners with no Ayton.

Lineup update: Thad Young will start for Daniel Theis (hip) Thursday

Lineup update: Raptors will start Flynn, Harris, Johnson, Watanabe, and Birch Thursday

The Raptors seemingly two best value plays (Trent and Boucher) both aren’t starting, making them both incredibly risky plays. Jalen Harris and Flynn will start at guard, and both will be tremendously popular. Yuta gets the start at forward, and may pay off a cheap price tag as well. Boucher and Trent become incredibly risky as a result.

Lineup update: Nuggets will start Campazzo, Rivers, Gordon, McGee and Jokic Thursday

Jokic is officially available for the Nuggets, as he gets the start despite the probable tag. However, the Nuggets electing to start JaVale McGee next to Jokic is a huge surprise, as McGee usually plays backup center. JaMycal Green and Paul Millsap will both come off the bench, but they both may play more minutes than McGee, as this could be coach Malone trying new things out for short stints as he has in the past.

Chris Boucher (injury recovery) available to play Thursday; Aron Baynes upgraded to probable

Boucher was upgraded from out to questionable earlier in the day, and was upgraded to available today as the Raptors prepare to play the Chicago Bulls. Baynes was also listed as probable, but likely won’t play as he hasn’t played in over a month. Boucher should start at PF, alongside Khem Birch. Boucher produces great per minute, and will certainly be viable since the Raptors will be without Siakam, Lowry, and VanVleet. Boucher’s return does cap the upside of Khem Birch, Stanley Johnson, and Freddie Gillepsie.

Lineup update: Hawks will start Young, Bogdanovic, Hill, Collins, and Capela Thursday

Solomon Hill hops into the starting lineup over Kevin Huerter, a mild surprise. Hill rarely produces well per minute and is tough to prioritize, now that De’Andre Hunter is back as well. Kevin Huerter will come off the bench and has a lower ceiling as a result, so he’s tough to play as well with all the Hawks healthy.

Jimmy Butler will start Thursday

Butler was upgraded from questionable with an eye injury to available, and will play against the Philadelphia 76ers. Butler will be the top option for the team, and will certainly go low-owned due to the uncertainty surrounding his status. It is a tough matchup, but Miami would like to keep winning to get to the 4/5 matchup, so he may play heavy minutes and be viable.

Jonas Valančiūnas (back) will start Thursday

JoVal was upgraded from questionable to available and will start against the Sacramento Kings. JoVal is one of the best per minute players in DFS, but his minutes are always relatively capped, and may be today. He has averaged 32 minutes in the last three games he played, so if he does approach that, he could be a great play. This makes Xavier Tillman and Jaren Jackson Jr. slightly worse plays as a result.

Mo Bamba (illness) ruled out Thursday

Bamba was downgraded from questionable with an illness to out and will miss the Magic’s game against the Atlanta Hawks. Carter should play around 30-33 minutes, as he played 31 last game that Bamba missed. Donta Hall should take the backup center minutes, but Carter is certainly the biggest winner, as he’ll get more minutes as a result.

Joel Embiid (illness), Furkan Korkmaz (ankle), and Shake Milton (knee) will play Thursday; Matisse Thybulle (hand) ruled out

Embiid will start for the 76ers as they play the Miami Heat. Korkmaz and Milton were cleared to play, while Thybulle was ruled out. This will likely mean that the 76ers as a whole are tough to prioritize on tonight’s slate; they’re in a tough matchup, and with Embiid playing, the fringe players other than the Philly big 3 are tough to prioritize. Embiid may be a sneaky play as his ownership will likely be low due to his uncertain status.

Lineup update: Pacers will start McConnell, Justin Holiday, McDermott, Brissett, and Sabonis Thursday

TJ McConnell will get the start Thursday; there was a chance that they would’ve kept him off the bench in his usual role, but he’ll get the start and will have a secure minutes floor. He averages great splits with all the injured players off and should be one of the most popular plays on the entire slate.

Trae Young, Clint Capela, Bogdan Bogdanovic and Danilo Gallinari are all available to play Thursday

Despite the scare from the Hawks, all of their injured players (other than Tony Snell, who was ruled out earlier) will all play against the Orlando Magic. Trae should be the top option, while Bogdanovic, Capela, and John Collins will all be ancillary options.

Derrick Rose (ankle) ruled out Thursday; Reggie Bullock (ankle), Immanuel Quickley (ankle), and Alec Burks (knee) all available to play

Despite the upgrade to probable earlier in the day, Rose was ruled out and won’t play against the San Antonio Spurs. Quickley, Bullock, and Burks were all cleared to play, so the Knicks will have most of their rotation back, but will be missing Rose. This should lead for more minutes for Elfrid Payton, and Quickley himself. There aren’t major splits with Rose off the floor, but his usage should flow to Julius Randle, RJ Barrett, and Payton.

Jonas Valanciunas (back) a game-time decision Thursday

JoVal will have his status determined during warmups as the Grizzlies prepare to play the Sacramento Kings. Both JoVal and Jaren Jackson Jr. sat last game for the Grizzlies, but the game turned into a blowout, so minutes were wonky. With Jaren Jackson back, he’ll be a great play if JoVal sits, while if he plays, he’ll still be valuable. Xavier Tillman and Brandon Clarke would both see more minutes if JoVal does end up sitting.