DFS Alerts
Nerlens Noel (groin) ruled out Sunday; Reggie Bullock (neck) available to play
Noel was never listed on the Knicks’ injury report, but he is now a late scratch and won’t play in Sunday’s matchup against the Los Angeles Clippers due to a sore left groin, while Reggie Bullock was already cleared to play after missing the previous three games with a sore neck. Typically, when Noel has been sidelined in the past, Julius Randle has taken on more of the backup center minutes when Mitchell Robinson off the court, which should allow Obi Toppin to see additional playing time with the second unit at the power forward position. It’s also possible that head coach Tom Thibodeau dusts off the corpse of Taj Gibson to play a few minutes in today’s contest, but Gibson has totaled fewer than one minute of game action since signing with the Knicks several weeks ago.
As reported by: NY_KnicksPR via Twitter Other tagged players: Reggie Bullock
Donovan Mitchell (concussion) and Derrick Favors (back) upgraded to probable Sunday
Mitchell has officially been upgraded from questionable to probable for Sunday’s matchup against the Denver Nuggets after missing two consecutive games due to a concussion, while Favors is also now listed as probable following his two-game absence because of a lower back contusion. There hasn’t been any indication from the Jazz that Mitchell might be subject to a minute restriction, so he should be fine to assume his usual place in the starting lineup and handle a somewhat normal minute workload. This means that Joe Ingles will head back to the bench to resume a reserve role if Mitchell is cleared to play, and with Favors on track to return as well, Georges Niang figures to see a reduction in playing time as he was helping to fill the vacant backup center minutes along with Juwan Morgan and Udoka Azubuike.
As reported by: Ryan Miller via Twitter Other tagged players: Derrick Favors James Harden (thigh) ruled out Sunday
Harden has officially been downgraded from questionable and won’t play in Sunday’s matchup against the Washington Wizards due to a left thigh contusion, while Kevin Durant was excluded from the Nets’ injury report and will be good to go after being held out for injury recovery maintenance in the previous contest. In Harden’s absence, Bruce Brown could remain in the starting lineup for another game, and he was phenomenal for fantasy purposes in just over 24 minutes of action in Friday’s blowout win. There isn’t really a significant sample size with Harden off the court since he made his Nets debut, but both Durant and Kyrie Irving have recorded usage rates over 34% in this time, and they’ll obviously be fine options in daily fantasy formats across the industry this evening.
As reported by: Billy Reinhardt via Twitter Nicolas Batum (groin) ruled out Sunday
Batum was a late addition to the Clippers’ injury report, and head coach Tyronn Lue confirmed with reporters that Batum won’t play in Sunday’s matchup against the New York Knicks due to a left groin contusion. In his absence, Patrick Patterson will receive the starting nod at power forward likely in an effort to keep Marcus Morris in his usual role off the bench since Patterson has rarely ever eclipsed the 20-minute mark when given the chance to start in the past. This means that there may also be additional playing time available in the second unit for the likes of Luke Kennard and Terance Mann, but with Patterson now in the rotation, it’s improbably either of them accumulates enough minutes to become relevant for daily fantasy formats this afternoon.
As reported by: Ohm Youngmisuk via Twitter Other tagged players: Patrick Patterson Anthony Davis (quad) will start Saturday
Davis has officially been upgraded from questionable and will start in Saturday’s matchup against the Boston Celtics after missing one game due to a right quad contusion. There hasn’t been any indication from the Lakers that Davis’ absence from Thursday’s loss was for anything other than injury maintenance purposes, so Davis should be fine to handle his usual allotment of minutes barring a report suggesting otherwise closer to tipoff. His return to the starting lineup will also send Kyle Kuzma back to the bench to resume his normal reserve role following an outstanding fantasy performance in 30 minutes of action as a spot starter.
As reported by: Mike Trudell via Twitter Kristaps Porzingis (injury recovery) ruled out Saturday
Porzingis has officially been downgraded from questionable and won’t play in Saturday’s matchup against the Phoenix Suns as the Mavericks attempt to manage his recovery from right knee surgery on the second leg of a back-to-back set. The Mavericks are still without Maxi Kleber because of the NBA’s health and safety protocols, so in Porzingis’ absence, Willie Cauley-Stein will receive the starting nod at the center positions, but he’ll likely have a volatile minute floor this time around with Dwight Powell and Boban Marjanovic both available off the bench to absorb vacated center minutes. Powell was unavailable the last time Porzingis was rested, so he could be an intriguing tournament target since Marjanovic managed to log 19 minutes as the backup center in that aforementioned contest.
As reported by: Bobby Karalla via Twitter Jimmy Butler (protocols) and Tyler Herro (neck) available to play Saturday; Avery Bradley (knee) ruled out
Butler and Herro have officially been upgraded from questionable and will be available to play in Saturday’s matchup against the Sacramento Kings, while Bradley will be held out with a right knee contusion. Butler was sidelined for over three weeks following his COVID-19 diagnosis, but according to Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra, he won’t be subject to a minute restriction in tonight’s contest. While that seems hard to believe, the presence of Butler in the starting lineup will at least send Kendrick Nunn back to the bench to resume a reserve role following a tumultuous stretch as the starting point guard while Goran Dragic has been out of the lineup with a strained left groin. Additionally, Andre Iguodala and Gabe Vincent will be available to play following their original questionable designations on the injury report, but Miami is still without Maurice Harkless, Meyers Leonard, and Chris Silva this evening.
As reported by: Anthony Chiang via Twitter Other tagged players: Tyler Herro, Avery Bradley Robert Covington (concussion) available to play Saturday
Covington has officially been upgraded from questionable and will be available to play in Saturday’s matchup against the Chicago Bulls after missing two games due to a concussion. There haven’t been any reports of a potential minute restriction for Covington, so he should be able to assume his usual place in the starting lineup, which should help bolster the first unit with Derrick Jones Jr. sidelined with a sprained left foot. Head coach Terry Stotts already confirmed with reporters that Gary Trent Jr. will remain in the starting lineup for the injured C.J. McCollum and that Nassir Little will receive the start alongside Covington at the forward positions, which means Carmelo Anthony will head back to the bench to resume a reserve role, albeit, an increased one with Little unlikely to see typical starters’ minutes this evening.
As reported by: Casey Holdahl via Twitter Derrick Favors (back) ruled out Friday
Favors has officially been downgraded from questionable and won’t play in Friday’s matchup against the Dallas Mavericks due to a sore lower back that has now forced him to miss two consecutive games, while Donovan Mitchell will also be unavailable for a second straight contest as he remains in the NBA’s concussion protocol. With Favors unable to suit up, some combination of Juwan Morgan and rookie Udoka Azubuike will likely continue to absorb the available backup center minutes behind Rudy Gobert in tonight’s contest. As for Mitchell’s absence, it should enable Joe Ingles to remain in the starting lineup for the second straight game, and over the past two years with Mitchell off the court, Ingles has seen his assist rate skyrocket to 27.3%, whereas Bojan Bogdanovic and Jordan Clarkson have led the way with 28.7% and 29.3% usage rates over this sample size.
As reported by: Andy Larsen via Twitter Larry Nance Jr. (wrist) will start Friday
Nance Jr. has officially been upgraded from questionable and will start in Friday’s matchup against the New York Knicks after missing two consecutive games due to a sprained right wrist, while Lamar Stevens remains listed as questionable with a right abdominal strain. There haven’t been any reports of a potential minute restriction for Nance, so he’ll assume his usual place in the starting lineup at power forward and should be fine to handle somewhere close to his typical minute allotment in tonight’s contest. The return of Nance also means that the Cavaliers are back at full strength for the first time in quite a while, and that depth will relegate Cedi Osman and Taurean Prince to the bench to become internal parts of the second unit moving forward.
As reported by: Chris Fedor via Twitter Norman Powell (quad) ruled out Friday
Powell was briefly listed as questionable on the Raptors’ injury report, but he’s now been downgraded and won’t play in Friday’s matchup against the Sacramento Kings due to a bruised quad, while OG Anunoby will also be held out with strained left calf that has now forced him to miss two consecutive games. Powell has started several games in a row with Toronto’s recent rash of injuries in their starting lineup, and since he’s unable to suit up, one of Stanley Johnson or Terence Davis will likely join the starting lineup alongside Fred VanVleet on the wing. This would allow Yuta Watanabe and possibly one of Paul Watson, DeAndre’ Bembry, or Malachi Flynn to see substantial playing time with the second unit this evening.
As reported by: Eric Smith via Twitter D'Angelo Russell (quad) will play Friday; Naz Reid (wrist) ruled out
Russell has officially been upgraded from questionable and will play in Friday’s matchup against the Philadelphia 76ers after missing three consecutive games due to a right quad contusion, while Reid is a late scratch because of a sprained right wrist despite never being listed on the Timberwolves’ injury report. Reid has been starting at the center position ever since Karl-Anthony Towns has been sidelined with COVID-19, so his absence will leave a major void in the frontcourt rotation and will allow Ed Davis to receive the starting nod at the five in tonight’s contest. As for Russell, there haven’t been any reports of a potential minute restriction in his first game back, so he should be fine to assume his usual minute workload as a member of the first unit this evening.
As reported by: Alan Horton via Twitter Other tagged players: Naz Reid Rajon Rondo (ankle) available to play Friday
Rondo has officially been upgraded from questionable and will be available to play in Friday’s matchup against the Washington Wizards after missing one game due to a sprained right ankle, while Clint Capela, Cam Reddish, and Onyeka Okongwu have all also been cleared to play following their original designations on the Hawks’ injury report. There haven’t been any reports of potential minute restrictions for the aforementioned Hawks’ players, so they should be fine to handle their usual minute workloads in tonight’s contest. As for Rondo, he’ll continue to compete with Brandon Goodwin for the backup point guard minutes behind Trae Young on a nightly basis.
As reported by: Sarah K. Spencer via Twitter OG Anunoby (calf) ruled out Friday
Anunoby has officially been downgraded from questionable and won’t play in Friday’s matchup against the Sacramento Kings due to a strained left calf that has now forced him to miss two consecutive games, while Norman Powell is a late addition to the Raptors’ injury report and is listed as questionable with a bruised quad. Powell has started several games in a row with Toronto’s recent rash of injuries, but if he’s unable to suit up, one of Stanley Johnson or Terence Davis will likely join the starting lineup alongside Fred VanVleet on the wing. This would allow Yuta Watanabe and possibly one of Paul Watson, DeAndre’ Bembry, or Malachi Flynn to see substantial playing time with the second unit this evening.
As reported by: Blake Murphy via Twitter Donovan Mitchell (concussion) ruled out Friday
Mitchell has officially been downgraded from questionable and won’t play in Friday’s matchup against the Dallas Mavericks due to a concussion that has now forced him to miss two consecutive games, while Derrick Favors remains questionable with a sore lower back that forced him to sit out Wednesday’s second leg of a back-to-back set. If Favors is unable to suit up, some combination of Juwan Morgan and rookie Udoka Azubuike will likely continue to absorb the available backup center minutes behind Rudy Gobert in tonight’s contest. As for Mitchell’s absence, it should enable Joe Ingles to remain in the starting lineup for the second straight game, and over the past two years with Mitchell off the court, Ingles has seen his assist rate skyrocket to 27.3%, whereas Bojan Bogdanovic and Jordan Clarkson have led the way with 28.7% and 29.3% usage rates over this sample size.
As reported by: Eric Walden via Twitter