DFS Alerts
Patrick Beverley (personal) will start but remains on minute restriction Saturday
Head coach Doc Rivers disclosed to reporters during his pregame media availability that Beverley will assume his usual role as the Clippers starting point guard in Saturday’s matchup against the New Orleans Pelicans, which will send Reggie Jackson back to the bench to resume a reserve role. However, Rivers confirmed that Beverley would still be on a minute restriction after joining the team late in the Orlando bubble, which means Jackson will still likely see the lions share of minutes at point guard and makes him a stellar value option on tonight’s daily fantasy slates.
As reported by: Tomer Azarly via Twitter
Jamal Murray (hamstring) out Saturday
Murray has been downgraded from questionable and won’t play in Saturday’s restart opener against the Miami Heat due to left hamstring tightness, and he’ll join Gary Harris and Will Barton among the other notable Nuggets’ inactive for today’s contest. In his absence, Monte Morris will more than likely receive the starting nod at point guard, but there are some concerns about his conditioning level after joining the team late in the Orlando bubble, which forced Troy Daniels to assume a large portion of the point responsibilities during their scrimmages. With Denver, down three starters, Michael Porter Jr. and Torrey Craig have become the leading candidates to start at the wing positions, though Porter is easily the better daily fantasy option given his scoring and playmaking ability.
As reported by: the Denver Nuggets via Twitter Will the Training Wheels Come Off?
Michael Porter Jr. has had to overcome a great deal to begin his NBA career. Now that the injury seems to be in the rear view mirror he is primed to show why he would’ve been the #1 overall pick. In addition to his health back in tact, the Nuggets will be without key personnel tonight with Gary Harris, and Will Barton already ruled out. Just with those two guys off the court this season he has a 21.1% usage rate and is averaging 1.04 ftps per minute. I think Porter Jr. will reach the 25 minute mark this game and should easily surpass value as his price is pretty much the minimum across all sites.
Patty Mills (coach's decision) out Friday
Spurs head coach Gregg Popovich disclosed to reporters during his pregame media availability that he plans to hold Mills out of Friday’s restart opener against the Sacramento Kings even though Mills was never listed on the injury report and is apparently healthy. The Spurs are also without Bryn Forbes for tonight’s contest, so Dejounte Murray, Derrick White, and DeMar DeRozan figure to handle all of the ballhandling and offensive playmaking responsibilities, increasing their projected fantasy value for all daily fantasy formats this evening. With White assuming more of a backcourt role, there are a plethora of extra minutes available for Lonnie Walker IV and Keldon Johnson at the wing positions, while Marco Belinelli should join the rotation to provide some depth and shooting off the bench.
As reported by: Paul Garcia via Twitter Marvin Williams (groin) officially out Friday
As expected, Williams had been downgraded from doubtful and won’t play in Friday’s restart opener against the Boston Celtics due to a strained groin. During his pregame media availability, head coach Mike Budenholzer downplayed the severity of Williams’ injury, calling it just a “moderate” strain, and he hopes that the veteran can return to game action soon. In his absence, Ersan Ilyasova should assume the primary backup power forward duties behind Giannis Antetokounmpo, but barring multiple frontcourt injuries, Ilyasova remains irrelevant for daily fantasy formats moving forward.
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D.J. Augustin will start ahead of Markelle Fultz on Friday
Head coach Steve Clifford disclosed to reporters at his pregame media availability that Augustin will receive the start at point guard over Fultz in Friday’s restart opener against the Brooklyn Nets after he was limited to fewer than nine minutes in the Magic’s final scrimmage due to re-conditioning upon rejoining the team in the Orlando bubble. Clifford also reiterated that he intends to play Fultz and Jonathan Isaac off the bench in this afternoon’s contest, and while Clifford expects them to play more than they did in the previous game, it appears that the Magic are taking the cautious approach and will have both players on a minute restriction in today’s contest.
Other tagged players: Markelle Fultz Expecting Big Things In the Bubble From This Guard
The Spurs will be without LaMarcus Aldridge and Trey Lyles in the bubble which will leave them with no choice other than to play small-ball lineups with three guards on the court at a time. In their last scrimmage, Murray, Derrick White, and Lonnie Walker all got between a team leading 28-to-29 minutes. All three could be solid DFS plays, but my favorite of the trio is Murray. I fully believe in the talent and he’s had a tough go of it this season, but someone I expect can shine in the bubble. He just has so many ways to fill up the stat sheet, as he will be running the offense, very capable of attacking the rim, and is a great defender utilizing his wingspan to rack up steals and blocks. He also he grabs the second-most rebounds among point guards per 100 possessions (11.1 rebounds) in the league, only behind Luka Doncic (13.5 rebounds) and there should be more boards up for grabs without LMA and Lyles. There is always concern about his minutes, but getting 28 in the last scrimmage was a positive sign and he had several over 30 minute games this season.
Wes Iwundu (neck) officially out Friday
As expected, Iwundu has been downgraded from doubtful and won’t play in Friday’s restart opener against the Brooklyn Nets due to neck stiffness he began experiencing following a concussion he sustained in Saturday’s scrimmage. However, Iwundu was never a lock for significant playing time in the Magic’s rotation with the return of Jonathan Isaac, and it should still be expected for Terrence Ross and Michael Carter-Williams to handle a majority of the reserve wing minutes off the bench in this afternoon’s contest.
As reported by: Orlando Magic PR via Twitter Bench Spark Clarke
Anticipate low ownership on this one, and perhaps for good reason, but Brandon Clarke should get good run for the Grizzlies today after performing well in the Bubble scrimmages. He averaged over a fantasy point per minute for the Grizzlies before the suspension of the season, and should see his role continue to grow for this team. He makes sense from a matchup perspective against the Blazers as well. There is some bust potential here, but he’s cheap and has proven he’s capable of big performances.
Top Scorers Sitting for High-Paced Team in Orlando
Four of the Wizards top-5 scorers on the season – Bradley Beal, Davis Bertans, Jordan McRae, and Isaiah Thomas – are either not in Orlando or no longer with the team. The only player in the team’s top-5 who will play today is Rui Hachimura, who ranks 3rd with 13.4ppg, and while Hachimura, Troy Brown, and Shabazz Napier are all worth a look, for value plays I’ll be targeting some of the Wizards bench players. Ish Smith, Moe Wagner, and Jerome Robinson can all put up offensive points off the bench, while Isaac Bonga may draw the start and has plus defensive abilities that can result in both blocks and steals.
Other tagged players: Moe Wagner, Isaac Bonga, Jerome Robinson
Skinny Melo?
If you haven’t been paying attention to NBA Twitter, perhaps you’ve missed the transformation of Carmelo Anthony, who has dropped a ton of weight in anticipation of playing more small forward for the Blazers during the restart. This is a trip down narrative street, but Melo has a huge smile on his face in every picture you can find of the NBA Bubble, and I could see him potentially playing a bigger role on this Blazers team than we’ve seen in the past. Certainly the matchup against the Grizzlies is not one to fear, and while he’ll have to share the offensive load with Dame and CJ McCollum, I have a hunch Carmelo Anthony is going to give us a good run of play in Orlando.
Birthday Narrative?
Thomas Bryant turns 23 today and what better way to celebrate it than with the NBA’s return and a matchup against the Suns an specifically Deandre Ayton. The Suns’ center is skilled offensively but is one of the worst defensive centers in the league and we should see Bryant thrive here. It’s not clear exactly how many minutes he’ll see but we’ve seen a big workload from him in the past and if he gets rolling 30+ is in play. He’s a high upside play that does come with some risk, but that will be reflected in his ownership and he’s a great dice roll today.
Wizards Gunner
With Bradley Beal opted out of the NBA bubble, we should see the Wizards lean heavily on the scoring prowess of Troy Brown, Jr. as the Wiz open up against the Phoenix Suns. Brown played 28 minutes in a recent Wizards’ scrimmage and got up 14 shots, and we can expect him to be a primary offensive option on a team lacking scorers. He should see some Devin Booker defense in this one as well. He’ll be a somewhat popular play, but has a great chance to deliver value at $4,700 on DK with plenty of upside to be in an optimal GPP lineup build.
Sneaky Triple Double?
We’ve seen it before from Ricky Rubio. He’ll fly way under the radar at times and post huge games seemingly out of nowhere. As a long time Rubio fan who has found good success on predicting when to play him and when to fade him, the biggest factor surrounding that question is his health. Rubio breaks down quickly, often multiple times in a season. He’s just not the athlete that many of his peers are and his play ebbs and flows as much as anybody. But when he’s on, he’s capable of huge fantasy performances. He’s looked good in the scrimmages leading up to the restart and gets a premier matchup against the Wizards. Projected at just 2% ownership he’s absolutely worth taking a look at.
Patrick Beverley (personal) will play Thursday
Beverley wasn’t an active participant in the Clippers’ shootaround this morning, but head coach Doc Rivers confirmed that the veteran point guard is available and will play in Thursday’s restart opener against the Los Angeles Clippers after self-isolating upon his return to the Orlando bubble. However, Rivers wasn’t willing to concede how many minutes he expected Beverley to play in the team’s first seeding game, but considering the Clippers position in the standings, it would seem unlikely Beverley sees extended run without going through any practices or scrimmages. With Beverley likely somewhat limited and Lou Williams still in isolation following his excursion outside the bubble, Reggie Jackson figures to take on a much larger role in the second unit and is even a candidate to finish the game with the starting unit in Williams’ place.
As reported by: Kyle Goon via Twitter