DFS Alerts
Kelly Olynyk (knee) will play Tuesday; Tyler Herro (ankle) ruled out
Head coach Erik Spoelstra confirmed with reporters that Olynyk will play in Tuesday’s matchup against the Detroit Pistons despite dealing with a sore right knee, while Herro and James Johnson have been ruled out with their respective ailments. Johnson has only appeared in four games and is averaging just 14.4 minutes, so his absence won’t have a substantial effect on the remainder of the rotation. However, with Justise Winslow and Derrick Jones Jr. also unavailable, the absence of Herro will definitely alter Spoelstra’s minute allotments, as he has logged a minimum of 23 minutes in each of the Heat’s previous two games. There’s only a 75-minute sample size with all of the aforementioned players off the court this season, but in that time, Kendrick Nunn owns a 31.2% usage rate and is averaging 1.00 DraftKings and 0.99 FanDuel points per minute
As reported by: Ira Winderman via Twitter Other tagged players: Tyler Herro
James Johnson (illness) listed out Tuesday
Johnson has been downgraded from questionable on the latest Heat injury report and won’t play in Tuesday’s matchup against the Detroit Pistons due to an illness, while Tyler Herro and Kelly Olynyk remain questionable. Johnson has only appeared in four games and is averaging just 14.4 minutes, so his absence won’t have a substantial effect on the remainder of the rotation. However, with Justise Winslow and Derrick Jones Jr. already ruled out, the unavailability of either Herro or Olynyk would definitely alter head coach Erik Spoelstra’s minute allotments, as both logged a minimum of 24 minutes off the bench in Friday’s loss.
As reported by: NBA Official Injury Report Ben Simmons (shoulder) and Shake Milton (knee) available Tuesday; Trey Burke (calf) ruled out
Simmons and Milton will be both be available to play in Tuesday’s matchup against the Cleveland Cavaliers, while Burke will be held out due to left calf tightness. With Simmons sidelined for the previous two games, Burke had averaged 18.5 minutes over that span as the backup to Raul Neto at point guard, but he may have found himself outside of the rotation entirely anyway if he was healthy enough to play this evening. The Sixers are also resting Al Horford on the front end of a back-to-back set, and unsurprisingly, Joel Embiid sees a massive boost in production with his counterpart off the court this season, as he is averaging 1.90 DraftKings and 1.89 FanDuel points per minute to go along with a 32.5% usage rate.
As reported by: Kyle Neubeck via Twitter Other tagged players: Shake Milton, Trey Burke Rajon Rondo (calf) upgraded to probable Tuesday
Rondo has officially been upgraded from questionable to probable and is on track to make his season debut in Tuesday’s matchup against the Phoenix Suns after missing all nine games with a strained right calf. There’s been no word from head coach Frank Vogel on how he plans to utilize Rondo in the rotation right out of the gate, but with Troy Daniels looking unlikely to play, Rondo should absorb his minutes at the very least, even if the Lakers plan to bring him along slowly. There were rumors a couple of weeks back that Rondo would start over either Avery Bradley or JaVale McGee once healthy, but those notions have appeared to die down for the time being.
As reported by: Tania Ganguli via Twitter Trey Burke (calf) questionable Tuesday; Shake Milton (knee) upgraded to probable
Burke has been added to the Sixers’ injury report and is questionable for Tuesday’s matchup against the Cleveland Cavaliers due to left calf tightness, while Milton is now probable after missing six games with a sprained left knee and bone bruise. Ben Simmons remains questionable and is trending towards a game-time decision, so the impact of Burke and Milton’s statuses, hinges solely on whether Simmons is available for tonight’s contest. With Simmons sidelined for the previous two games, Burke has averaged 18.5 minutes over that span as the backup to Raul Neto at point guard, but he could find himself outside of the rotation entirely if Simmons is cleared to play this evening.
As reported by: Jon Johnson via Twitter Other tagged players: Shake Milton Emmanuel Mudiay (hamstring) probable Tuesday
Mudiay has been listed as probable on the Jazz injury report for Tuesday’s matchup against the Brooklyn Nets after returning from a three-game absence due to left hamstring in Monday’s win. Mudiay has logged greater than 17 minutes in just two of his seven games, so his return to the rotation won’t have too much of an impact on the remaining members of the backcourt. However, his presence did relegate Georges Niang from the rotation and possibly even could continue siphoning away a few minutes from Royce O’Neale and Joe Ingles as secondary ball-handlers when Mike Conley is on the bench.
As reported by: Andy Larsen via Twitter Alex Len (ankle) and Allen Crabbe (knee) upgraded to probable Tuesday
Len and Crabbe have been upgraded from questionable to probable for Tuesday’s matchup against the Denver Nuggets due to their respective ailments, while Cam Reddish remains listed as probable but is fully expected to play considering the Hawks’ propensity for liberal injury reporting. Head coach Lloyd Pierce did confirm with reporters at shootaround that Damian Jones will replace Len as the starting center, and he managed to log 24 minutes in Monday’s overtime loss. Only two of those minutes came in overtime, so it’d be realistic to expect Jones to be allotted around 20-24 minutes as a starter in tonight’s contest.
As reported by: Brad Rowland via Twitter Other tagged players: Allen Crabbe Blake Griffin (rest) and Derrick Rose (rest) listed out Tuesday; Bruce Brown (knee) listed questionable
Griffin and Rose were included in the most recent version of the Pistons’ injury report and won’t play in Tuesday’s matchup against the Miami Heat due to injury recovery, the NBA’s new accepted terminology for load management and rest. Meanwhile, Bruce Brown is questionable with a right knee contusion, and if he is unable to suit up, it would likely clear the path for Tim Frazier to see 30-plus minutes as the starting point guard, as G-Leaguer Jordan Bone would be the only other natural point guard on the Pistons active roster. Frazier has only played 94.7 minutes with Griffin and Rose off the court this season, but in that time, he has a 36.7% assist rate and is averaging 0.82 DraftKings and 0.82 FanDuel points per minute.
As reported by: NBA Official Injury Report Other tagged players: Derrick Rose, Bruce Brown Pair of Inside Scorers Could Benefit Facing Size-Deficient Team
The Atlanta Hawks are already missing a big inside presence in John Collins, and now center Alex Len is banged up as well, leaving the team with Damian Jones and rookie Bruno Fernando as the only totally healthy big men on the roster. That could be a major problem facing a Nuggets team that starts Paul Millsap and Nikola Jokic. The Hawks already rank 20th in the league in rebounding differential, and they could have problem with both rebounding and interior defense facing Jokic (16.7 ppg, 9.3 rpg) and Millsap (12.1 ppg, 6.1 rpg). On the other side of the court, Jones and Fernando are in play as value fill-ins for GPPs if either draws the start in place of Len.
Other tagged players: Paul Millsap, Damian Jones
Let's Hit Some Shots
Coby White has taken double-digit shot attempts in three straight games and has played at least 27 minutes in back-to-back games. He has shot 2 for 18 from behind the arch in those three games. If he can knock down some shots, he has a lot of upside at this price point. With guard having a lot of the value tonight, we could see lower ownership on a guy like White.
Nice Pivot Option For Tournaments
With LeVert already ruled out for tonight, Garrett Temple is in line to play extra minutes in this game. Temple is averaging .84 fantasy points per minute this season, and if he ends up playing 30 minutes, then he should have no problem paying off his low price point across the industry. He’s not going to fill up the stat sheet so he’s not as safe as some other options, but he’s a nice tournament pivot off the chalky value plays.
Steven Adams (knee) will play Tuesday; Terrance Ferguson (personal) ruled out
Head coach Billy Donovan confirmed with reporters at shootaround that Adams will play in Tuesday’s matchup against the Indiana Pacers after missing one game due to a left knee contusion. With Ferguson unavailable for personal reasons, Donovan did decline to disclose his plans for the starting lineup in tonight’s contest, but Hamidou Diallo appears the likeliest candidate to enter the fray since he’s seen his playing time spike over the last five games and is typically the most common direct substitution for Ferguson on a nightly basis. Diallo’s usage could take a hit moving into the starting lineup, but he may still be an interesting tournament flier at his salary considering he is averaging 0.88 DraftKings and 0.91 FanDuel points per minute on the season.
As reported by: Maddie Lee via Twitter Other tagged players: Terrance Ferguson Dennis Smith Jr. (personal) available to play Tuesday
Smith Jr. will be available to play in Tuesday’s matchup against the Chicago Bulls after missing seven games due to personal reasons. Head coach David Fizdale wouldn’t confirm his starting lineup with reporters at Knicks shootaround, but he did hint that he will likely stick with the same unit as in Monday’s loss. Fizdale also didn’t disclose exactly what Smith’s role in the rotation will be moving forward, but given the stellar play of Frank Ntilikina, a best-case scenario for him would be to leapfrog either Allonzo Trier or Damyean Dotson the rotation pecking order, which may result in just a mid-teens minutes role off the bench. Ntilikina has still been a low-usage player as the starting point guard, but he has seen an increase in his assist rate (18.4%) and is averaging 0.89 DraftKings and 0.95 FanDuel points per minutes over his last three games.
As reported by: Mike Vorkunov via Twitter James Johnson (illness) questionable Tuesday
Johnson has been added to the Heat’s injury report and is questionable for Tuesday’s matchup against the Detroit Pistons due to an illness, joining Tyler Herro and Kelly Olynyk among the players whose statuses are undetermined for tonight’s contest. Johnson has only appeared in four games and is averaging just 14.4 minutes, so his potential absence won’t have a substantial effect on the remainder of the rotation. However, with Justise Winslow and Derrick Jones Jr. already ruled out, the unavailability of either Herro or Olynyk would alter head coach Erik Spoelstra’s minute allotments, as both logged a minimum of 24 minutes in Friday’s loss.
As reported by: Anthony Chiang via Twitter Good Game Brewing Out West
With all the good cheap value on tonight’s slate, I think it would behoove you to get one of the Lakers studs in your lineup for cash games. It is basically a two-man show (LBJ and Unibrow) and tonight’s game features a matchup with a solid young Phoenix team. The current line has the Lakers only favored by 2.5 points playing in a game with a high 217 total. Vegas expects this to be a competitive game. I lean toward LBJ as the Laker I want due to the injury that Davis is currently struggling with. In addition to that, his tendency to head to the locker room mid-game doesn’t sit well with my cash team.
