DFS Alerts
Ricky Rubio (ankle) upgraded to probable Tuesday
Rubio has officially been upgraded from questionable and is now probable for Tuesday’s matchup against the Dallas Mavericks due to a right ankle injury, while Aron Baynes, Cameron Johnson, and Frank Kaminsky all remain out with their respective ailments. There haven’t been any reports of a potential minute restriction for Rubio, so he’ll more than likely be fine to handle his usual minute workload in tonight’s contest, and he’s logged at least 35 minutes of action in four of the Suns’ previous six games. Rubio has struggled a bit for fantasy purposes in recent contests, but his price is now reduced to reflect the aforementioned slump, and he’s consistently flashed tournament upside this season, as he owns a 20.1% usage rate, a 37.4% assist rate, and is averaging 1.07 DraftKings and 1.05 FanDuel points per minute on the year thus far.
As reported by: Gina Mizell via Twitter
Wizard Value
Troy Brown has the highest “smash” probability in LineupHQ on DraftKings today, as he is only $4,500 and is locked into a solid role with this Wizards team right now. The last game against Atlanta was a blowout (19-point loss) and Brown played 31+ minutes. With another blowout a real possibility, he is set to have a big role for a small price in tonight’s game.
Mining for Nuggets
Nikola Jokic is starting to assert himself in this Nuggets offense now that Jamal Murray has been sidelined with an injury. Over the last two games he has averaged 25.5/12/9, and tonight he gets a great matchup for his skill set in Memphis. Jokic saves us a good chunk of money off of Luka Doncic (who is on a back to back with travel) and Giannis Antetokounmpo (major blowout risk), and those are the only two guys that project definitively higher than the big man tonight.
North of the Border Cash Lock
Pascal Siakam has slowly worked his way back into the upper echelon of fantasy players since his return from injury. He played 37 minutes in his last game and dropped 35 real life points on the Spurs. Siakam is still priced well below his talent level on FanDuel, where we also need to lock in two small forwards. Siakam becomes an easy plug and play in cash games on that site for me.
Clint Capela (heel) officially out Monday
As expected, Capela has officially been downgraded from doubtful and won’t play in Monday’s matchup against the Utah Jazz due to a right heel contusion, while James Harden and Russell Westbrook were already ruled out for their respective reasons on the second leg of a back-to-back set. With Harden sidelined for Sunday’s loss, Eric Gordon ended up receiving the start alongside Westbrook in the backcourt, and he was relatively productive for fantasy purposes in just over 35 minutes of action, making him a likely candidate to remain the starting lineup with Harden sidelined this evening. As for Capela’s absence, Isaiah Hartenstein will more than likely receive a large portion of the playing time at the center position, despite not starting, after he averaged 30.4 minutes in his two most recent starts with Capela sidelined, which makes him an elite value option on tonight’s six-game slate since he is averaging 1.08 DraftKings and 1.11 FanDuel points per minute on the season thus far.
As reported by: Kelly Iko via Twitter James Harden (thigh) officially out Monday
As expected, Harden has officially been downgraded from questionable and won’t play in Monday’s matchup against the Utah Jazz due to a left thigh contusion, while Clint Capela remains doubtful and Russell Westbrook was already ruled out for rest purposes on the second leg of a back-to-back set. With Harden sidelined for Sunday’s loss, Eric Gordon ended up receiving the start alongside Westbrook in the backcourt, and he was relatively productive for fantasy purposes in just over 35 minutes of action, making him a likely candidate to remain the starting lineup with Harden sidelined this evening. As for Capela’s absence, Isaiah Hartenstein will more than likely receive the starting nod at the center position after he averaged 30.4 minutes in his two most recent starts with Capela sidelined, which makes him an elite value option on tonight’s six-game slate since he is averaging 1.08 DraftKings and 1.11 FanDuel points per minute on the season thus far.
As reported by: Tim MacMahon via Twitter Jimmy Butler (ankle) will start Monday
Butler has officially been upgraded from questionable and will start in Monday’s matchup against the Orlando Magic despite dealing with a sprained right ankle, while Kendrick Nunn was already ruled out due to bilateral Achilles soreness that has now forced him to miss two games, With Nunn and Goran Dragic sidelined for Friday’s loss, Tyler Herro ended up receiving the starting alongside Duncan Robinson on the wing, and he was relatively solid for fantasy purposes in a massive 40 minutes of action, making him the likeliest candidate to start once again, but his minute floor won’t be quite as robust with Dragic back in the fold to siphon away vacant backcourt minutes. It comes as no surprise that Butler has benefitted the most with Nunn and Justise Winslow off the court this season, as he owns a 28.9% usage rate, a 29.6% assist rate, and is averaging 1.35 DraftKings and 1.35 FanDuel points per minute in a 376.1 minutes sample size.
As reported by: Anthony Chiang via Twitter Luka Doncic (ankle) will play Monday
As expected, Doncic has officially been upgraded from probable and will play in Monday’s matchup against the Oklahoma City Thunder despite dealing with a sore right ankle, while Ryan Broekhoff remains probable to return from an extended injury layoff recovering from a fractured left fibula. Doncic has received an injury designation for his troublesome ankle several times this season, so it seems highly unlikely he would be subject to a minute restriction in tonight’s contest, and they’re currently have been any reports suggesting otherwise. Doncic continues to play at an MVP-level for Dallas this season, and he continues to lead the team with a 37.3% usage rate, a 46.3% assist rate, a 15.2% rebound rate and is averaging 1.69 DraftKings and 1.61 FanDuel points per minute on the year thus far.
As reported by: Joe Mussatto via Twitter Nerlens Noel (cheek) available to play Monday
Noel has officially been upgraded from questionable and will be available to play in Monday’s matchup against the Dallas Mavericks despite dealing with a left Zygomatic arch injury, while Chris Paul was already ruled out and is currently not with the team due to personal reasons. There haven’t been any reports on who will replace Paul in the starting lineup, but with Terrance Ferguson still away from the team because of a personal matter, either Dennis Schroder or Hamidou Diallo will more than likely receive the starting nod alongside Shai Gilgeous-Alexander in the backcourt depending on how head coach Billy Donovan prefers to stagger the minutes of Schroder and Gilgeous-Alexander this evening. Somewhat surprisingly, Schroder has benefitted the most with Paul off the court this season, as he owns a 30.2% usage rate, a 29.0% assist rate, and is averaging 1.07 DraftKings and 1.00 FanDuel points per minute in a 466.3 minutes sample size.
As reported by: Erik Horne via Twitter Kendrick Nunn (Achilles) out Monday; Goran Dragic (calf) and Bam Adebayo (ankle) available
Nunn has officially been downgraded from questionable and won’t play in Monday’s matchup against the Orlando Magic due to bilateral Achilles soreness that has now forced him to miss two games, while Dragic and Adebayo will be available to play despite their original designations on the injury report. With Nunn and Dragic sidelined for Friday’s loss, Tyler Herro ended up receiving the starting alongside Duncan Robinson on the wing, and he was relatively solid for fantasy purposes in a massive 40 minutes of action. Regardless of the final determination of Jimmy Butler’s status, Herro will likely start once again, but his minute floor won’t be quite as robust with Dragic back in the fold to siphon away vacant backcourt minutes. It comes as no surprise that Butler has benefitted the most with Nunn and Justise Winslow off the court this season, as he owns a 28.9% usage rate, a 29.6% assist rate, and is averaging 1.35 DraftKings and 1.35 FanDuel points per minute in a 376.1 minutes sample size.
As reported by: the Miami Heat via Twitter Other tagged players: Goran Dragic, Bam Adebayo Kevin Porter Jr. (knee) will play Monday
As expected, Porter Jr. has officially been upgraded from probable and will play in Monday’s matchup against the Detroit Pistons after missing 10 games due to a sprained left knee, while Brandon Knight remains sidelined with a sore left knee and is still without a firm timetable for a return. Head coach John Beilein already confirmed with reporters at his pregame presser that Porter will be eased back into action and the plan is for him play 15 minutes off the bench in his first game back from an extended layoff this evening. That type of a minute workload won’t have too much of an effect on remaining members of the wing rotation in tonight’s contest, but moving forward, Porter will likely cut into the minute floors of Larry Nance Jr., Cedi Osman, and possibly even the Cavaliers starting backcourt duo of Darius Garland and Collin Sexton.
As reported by: Spencer Davies via Twitter Chris Paul (personal) listed out Monday
Paul has been added to the latest Thunder injury report and won’t play in Monday’s matchup against the Dallas Mavericks due to personal reasons, while Nerlens Noel remains questionable with a left Zygomatic arch injury. There haven’t been any reports on who will replace Paul in the starting lineup, but with Terrance Ferguson still away from the team, either Dennis Schroder or Hamidou Diallo will more than likely receive the start alongside Shai Gilgeous-Alexander in the backcourt depending on how head coach Billy Donovan prefers to stagger the minutes of Schroder and Gilgeous-Alexander this evening. Somewhat surprisingly, Schroder has benefitted the most with Paul off the court this season, as he owns a 30.2% usage rate, a 29.0% assist rate, and is averaging 1.07 DraftKings and 1.00 FanDuel points per minute in a 466.3 minutes sample size.
As reported by: NBA Official Injury Report James Harden (thigh) unlikely to play Monday
Despite being listed as questionable on the Rockets injury report, Tim MacMahon of ESPN is reporting that Harden is not expected to play in Monday’s matchup against the Utah Jazz, while Clint Capela is listed as doubtful and Russell Westbrook was already ruled out for rest purposes on the second leg of a back-to-back set. With Harden sidelined for Sunday’s loss, Eric Gordon ended up receiving the start alongside Westbrook in the backcourt, and he was relatively productive for fantasy purposes in just over 35 minutes of action, making him a likely candidate to remain the starting lineup with Harden sidelined this evening. As for Capela’s absence, Isaiah Hartenstein will more than likely receive the starting nod at the center position after he averaged 30.4 minutes in his two most recent starts with Capela sidelined, which makes him an elite value option on tonight’s six-game slate since he is averaging 1.08 DraftKings and 1.11 FanDuel points per minute on the season thus far.
As reported by: Tim MacMahon via Twitter High Floor Value Option
With Aldridge now ruled out for tonight, Poeltl becomes my favorite value play on this slate. He played 41 and 26 minutes in the last two games without Aldridge and scored 47.5 and 27.5 fantasy points in those games. He’s not a high usage player, but he’s averaging over a fantasy point per minute with LMA off the floor. He’s too cheap across the industry and should be one of the best point-per-dollar plays tonight.
Luka Doncic (ankle) listed probable Monday
Doncic has been listed as probable on the latest Mavericks injury report for Monday’s matchup against the Oklahoma City Thunder due to a sore right ankle, while Ryan Broekhoff remains probable to return from an extended injury layoff recovering from a fractured left fibula. Doncic has received an injury designation for his troublesome ankle several times this season, so it’d be surprising to see his status downgraded later in the day with the Mavericks likely just taking the cautious approach in including on the injury report. Doncic continues to play at an MVP-level for Dallas this season, and he continues to lead the team with a 37.3% usage rate, a 46.3% assist rate, a 15.2% rebound rate and is averaging 1.69 DraftKings and 1.61 FanDuel points per minute on the year thus far.
As reported by: NBA Official Injury Report