DFS Alerts
Rudy Gay (foot) ruled out Wednesday
Gay has officially been downgraded from questionable and won’t play in Wednesday’s matchup against the Los Angeles Clippers due to a sore left foot, while Lonnie Walker IV was already ruled out because of right wrist soreness. This will leave the Spurs without two pivotal bench pieces, so it should solidify the minute floors of players like Derrick White and Keldon Johnson in the first unit whereas Patty Mills and Devin Vassell could step into larger roles off the bench. Unless head coach Gregg Popovich runs with an eight-man rotation, which seems unlikely, there will be room for one of Trey Lyles or Luka Samanic to step into some of the available power forward minutes in the second unit, though it isn’t really plausible they’ll see enough playing time to become relevant in daily fantasy formats across the industry this evening.
As reported by: Tom Osborn via Twitter
James Harden (neck) will start Tuesday
Harden has officially been upgraded from questionable and has been cleared to play in Tuesday’s matchup against the Portland Trail Blazers after a blow to the jaw in the Net’s previous game that resulted in neck soreness. There haven’t been any reports of a potential minute restriction for Harden, so he should be fine to handle his usual allotment of minutes as the starting point guard with Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant unavailable for tonight’s contest. In Irving’s absence, Bruce Brown will step into the starting lineup alongside Harden in the backcourt, and while his role in the rotation has been diminished of late with the addition of Blake Griffin, head coach Steve Kerr has never shied away from giving Brown big minutes when two of his three All-Stars are unavailable on a given night.
As reported by: Billy Reinhardt via Twitter Terrence Ross (knee) and Chasson Randle (groin) ruled out Tuesday
Ross and Randle have officially been downgraded from questionable and won’t play in Tuesday’s matchup against the Denver Nuggets due to their respective ailments, while James Ennis is set to return from an extended injury absence and will at least provide added depth at the forward positions in tonight’s contest. In Randle’s absence, some combination of Evan Fournier and Aaron Gordon will likely serve as the primary ball-handlers when Michael Carter-Williams is off the court, and Fournier, in particular, has logged at least 34 minutes in each of the previous three games. Any additional time Fournier and Gordon spend at the point will likely be absorbed by Ennis on the wing, so it’ll be difficult to expect players like Dwayne Bacon or Chuma Okeke to see a bump in playing time this evening.
As reported by: Orlando Magic PR via Twitter Other tagged players: Chasson Randle Goran Dragic (back), Avery Bradley (calf), and KZ Okpala (protocols) ruled out Tuesday
Dragic and Bradley have officially been downgraded from questionable and won’t play in Tuesday’s matchup against the Phoenix Suns due to their respective ailments, while Okpala has been placed in the NBA’s health and safety protocols and may be required to self-isolate for a currently undetermined period of time pending testing and contact tracing. This will be the second straight game Dragic has missed, and in his absence, Tyler Herro ended up logging 36 minutes off the bench in an overtime loss whereas Gabe Vincent was thrust back into the rotation and saw just over 17 minutes with the second unit. Precious Achiuwa did have a three-minute stint in the first quarter of Sunday’s contest, but head coach Erik Spoelstra essentially deployed a nine-man rotation, which bodes well for tertiary players like Herro and Duncan Robinson this evening.
As reported by: Tim Reynolds via Twitter Other tagged players: Avery Bradley, KZ Okpala James Wiseman (protocols) and Eric Paschall (protocols) available to play Tuesday
As expected, Wiseman and Paschall have officially been upgraded from probable and will be available to play in Tuesday’s matchup against the Philadelphia 76ers after missing several games because of the NBA’s health and safety protocols, while Steph Curry remains sidelined for a third straight game with a tailbone contusion. The Warriors will also have Kevon Looney back from an extended absence, so Golden State is suddenly fully healthy in the frontcourt, and as long as Looney, Wiseman, and Paschall aren’t subject to severe minute restrictions, and there currently aren’t any indications to suggest they will be at this point, making it difficult to target any of them in daily fantasy formats across the industry this evening.
As reported by: Anthony Slater via Twitter Other tagged players: Eric Paschall Jayson Tatum (illness) ruled out Monday
Tatum is a late addition to the Celtics’ injury report and won’t play in Monday’s matchup against the Memphis Grizzlies due to an illness. This will leave the Celtics without three regular starters as Kemba Walker is being held out for rest purposes on the second leg of a back-to-back set and Tristan Thompson remains in the NBA’s health and safety protocols and is still without a timetable for a return. In Walkers’ absence, Jeff Teague will step in to the starting lineup at the point guard spot despite being a DNP-CD in each of the previous two games. However, the fact that Teague has recently out of the rotation gives him a volatile minute floor in tonight’s contest, even as a starter, since head coach Brad Stevens can deploy several different players as the primary ballhandler and Payton Pritchard is always lurking to siphon away playing time at the guard positions as well.
As reported by: Taylor Snow via Twitter Darius Garland (quad) available to play Monday
Garland has officially been upgraded from questionable and will be available to play in Monday’s matchup against the Sacramento Kings despite dealing with a right quad contusion, while Kevin Love, Taurean Prince, and Matthew Dellavedova all remain sidelined with their respective ailments on the second leg of a back-to-back set. This will allow Larry Nance Jr. to continue starting at the power forward position, and he continues to be a viable fantasy option in all formats given the upside he’s flashed for his price in recent games. As for Garland, there haven’t been any reports of a potential minute restriction, so he should be fine to handle his typical minute allotment as the Cavaliers’ starting point guard this evening.
As reported by: the Cleveland Cavaliers via Twitter Al Horford (rest) and Lu Dort (toe) listed out Monday
Horford has been included on the Thunder’s initial injury report and won’t play in Monday’s matchup against the Minnesota Timberwolves due to rest purposes despite already being held out of yesterday’s game on the front leg of a back-to-back for the same reason, while Dort has also been ruled out with left Great toe soreness. In their absences, Moses Brown should receive a second straight start at the center position following another serviceable fantasy performance in 28 minutes of action in Sunday’s loss. On the other hand, the Thunder will have the services of Shai Gilgeous-Alexander in tonight’s contest after a one-game absence, and he’ll more than likely just replace Dort in the first unit with Theo Maledon remaining the starter alongside him in the backcourt this evening.
As reported by: NBA Official Injury Report Other tagged players: Lu Dort Marc Gasol (conditioning) out Sunday
Coach Frank Vogel mentioned pre-game that Gasol’s conditioning is not up to speed, and won’t be able to play tonight against the Phoenix Suns. Coach Vogel mentioned that it may be a few more games before Gasol is at game speed, since he has missed so much time. With Gasol, Anthony Davis, Lebron James, and Damian Jones not able to play tonight, the Lakers will be severely shorthanded in the frontcourt. Montrezl Harrell will likely start at center and get the bulk of the minutes, while Markieff Morris should play some small-ball center as well. With the Lakers shorthanded, Harrell should take advantage the most; per CourtIQ, he averages 1.34 FPM with Davis, Gasol, and James off the floor. Dennis Schroder also will benefit, as he averages 1.11 FPM in the scenario, up from his 0.90 average.
As reported by: Kyle Goon via Twitter
Cam Johnson (protocols) available to play Sunday
Coach Monty Williams announced that Cam Johnson has cleared protocols and is available to play Sunday against the Los Angeles Lakers. Johnson has missed six games since undergoing the protocols, but is not guaranteed to re-enter the rotation. Coach Williams said “there’s always a chance he could play”, so it seems like even if he enters the rotation, he won’t be playing too many minutes. Jae Crowder and Frank Kaminsky would possibly lose minutes if Johnson played.
As reported by: Gerald Bourguet via Twitter Immanuel Quickley (ankle) and Mitchell Robinson (hand) available Sunday; Elfrid Payton (hamstring) ruled out
Robinson is officially available as expected, while Quickley was upgraded from questionable and will be available to play against the Philadelphia 76ers. Payton being ruled out for his fifth straight game should mean Quickley gets the bulk of the point guard minutes, as he’s averaged 30 minutes while Payton and Rose have been out. Robinson meanwhile will come off the bench, so Noel should start again as Robinson gets his conditioning back.
As reported by: the New York Knicks via Twitter Other tagged players: Mitchell Robinson, Elfrid Payton Matthew Dellavedova (abdominal) ruled out Sunday
Dellavedova hasn’t been able to make his season debut all year, and although he was listed as questionable earlier, he was ultimately ruled out due to the abdominal injury that’s cost him the whole season. Darius Garland and Colin Sexton should continue to play their heavy minutes as they have all year.
As reported by: Chris Fedor via Twitter Ben Simmons (knee) will play Sunday
Simmons will be be able to return to the lineup after only missing one game with a knee injury, and he will rejoin the team as they face off against the New York Knicks. Joel Embiid and Seth Curry both remain out. Simmons played 40 minutes in regulation the last time he was healthy, and may have to do the same with Embiid and Curry both out. Per CourtIQ, Simmons averages 1.23 FPM with Embiid and Curry off the floor. Tobias Harris should also take advantage of the usage that opens up, while Shake Milton and Furkan Korkhmaz should help fill in for Curry’s spot in the rotation.
As reported by: Tim Bontemps via Twitter Status update: Mitchell Robinson (hand) likely to play Sunday; Immanuel Quickley and Elfrid Payton game-time decisions
Coach Tom Thibodeau mentioned pre-game that Robinson is “pretty much good to go”, and should be ready to play against the Philadelphia 76ers. Thibodeau did mention that Robinson would come off the bench, so Nerlens Noel should get the start again, while Taj Gibson’s minutes likely get phased out of the rotation. Quickley and Payton are still game-time decisions however. If both were to miss, Alec Burks and Frank Ntilikina would likely get the bulk of the point guard minutes, while Randle would be in line for an even greater usage percentage than he normally has.
As reported by: Tim Bontemps via Twitter Other tagged players: Immanuel Quickley, Elfrid Payton JaVale McGee (illness) expected to play Sunday
After missing the last game due to an illness, McGee is expected to be available to play against the Toronto Raptors. McGee should play in his role of backup center behind Jarrett Allen, and play his 14-16 minute role. If he were to miss, Lamar Stevens and Dean Wade would likely pick up his minutes as the Cavs would play smaller.
As reported by: Blake Murphy via Twitter