DFS Alerts
Mitchell Robinson (ankle) will start Monday
As expected, Robinson will start in Monday’s matchup against the Chicago Bulls despite continuing to manage a sprained left ankle. Robinson has been an elite fantasy producer on a per-minute basis in his first two games of the season, but he’s yet to crack the 20-minute mark in either start, making him difficult to trust in any formats with Knicks head coach David Fizdale’s fickle rotations. The reason Robinson’s playing time has been sporadic is that Fizdale has opted to utilize the frontcourt duo of Julius Randle and Bobby Portis for extended stretches, and Portis has logged at least 27 minutes in two of the Knicks three games thus far.
As reported by: Steve Popper via Twitter
Reggie Jackson (back) officially out Monday
As expected, Jackson will miss a second straight game and won’t play in Monday’s matchup against the Indiana Pacers due to lower back tightness. Tim Frazier received the start at point guard in Saturday’s loss, but head coach Dwane Casey was noncommittal when asked about his starting lineup for tonight’s contest, which has led to beat writer speculation that Luke Kennard may enter the starting lineup in Frazier’s place while Bruce Brown would be assigned the starting point guard duties. Even if he starts, Frazier sets up as a thin play, at best, on a slate that is not devoid of value options, especially since Derrick Rose has played at least 25 minutes in every game this season and owns a 37.5% usage rate with an average of 1.39 FanDuel and 1.43 DraftKings points per minute off the bench thus far.
As reported by: James Edwards III via Twitter Let's Try This Again
Kevon Looney is already ruled out for tonight’s game, and Marquese Chriss is in line to draw another start for him tonight. He started for Looney on Sunday and picked up 2 fouls in the first five minutes. He still managed to get 18 more minutes before being pulled in garbage time. If he can stay out of foul trouble, we could see around 25 minutes for Chriss tonight. He’s one of my favorite plays on this slate.
Harry Giles III (knee) remains out Monday
Kings head coach Luke Walton confirmed with reporters at shootaround that Giles is getting closer to returning but will not play in Monday’s matchup against the Denver Nuggets due to a sore left knee. The continued absence of Giles means that the minutes void left behind by Marvin Bagley will need to be filled by the other big men on the Kings active roster, and in the one semi-competitive game since Bagley was sidelined, Nemanja Bjelicia recorded 28 minutes as the starting power forward, while Dewayne Dedmon and Richaun Holmes essentially formed a committee at the center position. The other main beneficiary thus far has been De’Aaron Fox, as he owns a 30.5% usage rate and is averaging 1.00 FanDuel and 1.10 DraftKings points per minute with Bagley off the court this season.
As reported by: James Ham via Twitter Large Field Tournament Pivot
I really like Mario Hezonja tonight, but I see him getting a lot of ownership which makes Rodney Hood an interesting tournament pivot. Hood has played at least 30 minutes in each of the first three games this season. His upside is all in how he shoots, and while I don’t typically like shooters on a back-to-back, it’s really just an ownership pivot play.
Patrick McCaw (knee) questionable Monday
McCaw is officially questionable for Monday’s matchup against the Orlando Magic due to a sore left knee that’s already forced him to miss the Raptors’ first three games of the season. Head coach Nick Nurse has continued to utilize a relatively tight eight-man rotation in the early going, but McCaw should on the shortlist to fill that eighth spot when healthy, as long as he can consistently outperform rookies Terence Davis and Matt Thomas, who have each seen meaningful minutes at times through the first three contests.
As reported by: Blake Murphy via Twitter The Gift That Keeps on Giving
Charlotte has been the gift that keeps on giving to opposing big men. In their three games this season they have allowed the following stat lines: Anthony Davis (29/14), KAT (37/15), Lauri Markkanen (35/17). Obviously those three players are a difficult matchup for any team but it’s still notable that Charlotte is allowing the highest offensive rebounding rate (33.8%) in the league. They also rank last in the league allowing 46.8% of their opponent’s shot attempts to come at the rim. That bodes well for Harrell who despite coming off the bench is getting a lot of run early this season, averaging nearly 32 minutes per game.
Alec Burks (ankle) listed out Monday
Burks is listed out on the latest version of the Warriors’ injury report and will remain sidelined for Monday’s matchup against the New Orleans Pelicans due to a sprained right ankle that’s now forced him to miss three straight games. His continued absence will enable Jordan Poole and Jacob Evans to continue absorbing a large portion of the available wing minutes in the second unit, but it’s difficult for either to viable fantasy options in competitive game scripts with so much usage being soaked up by Steph Curry and D’Angelo Russell at the guard positions.
As reported by: NBA Official Injury Report Jeremy Lamb (hip) out Monday; Edmond Sumner will start
Lamb has officially been downgraded from questionable and will sit for a second straight game in Monday’s matchup against the Detroit Pistons due to a hip pointer. In his absence, Edmond Sumner will receive the starting nod at the shooting guard spot once again, but he was strangely limited to just 17 minutes and barely played in the second half of Saturday’s loss. Instead, it was T.J. McConnell and Justin Holiday who soaked up the lion share of the available playing time at the guard positions, and Holiday, in particular, logged 24 minutes while closing the game alongside the usual Pacers’ starters.
As reported by: Jeremiah Johnson via Twitter Other tagged players: Edmond Sumner Bruno Fernando (ankle) available available to play Monday
Hawks head coach Lloyd Pierce confirmed with reporters at shootaround that Fernando will be ready to go for Monday’s matchup against the Philadelphia 76ers after sustaining a sprained right ankle in the third quarter of Saturday’s win. There has yet to be any report of a potential minute restriction for Fernando, but he’s played fewer than 15 minutes in both games this season, so it seems unlikely the team would formally announce any kind of limitation. Either way, Fernando and remaining members of the Atlanta frontcourt draw a brutal offensive matchup versus Joel Embiid and Al Horford, making them fringe fantasy options, at best, on a massive 11-game main slate.
As reported by: Kevin Chouinard via Twitter Derrick Jones Jr. (groin) officially out Sunday
As expected, Jones Jr. won’t play in Sunday’s matchup against the Timberwolves after exiting Saturday’s win early with a strained left groin. Bam Adebayo ended up checking back into the game following Jones’ injury, playing 38 minutes including overtime, and he should have a higher minute floor than normal with one less reliable body soaking up frontcourt minutes in head coach Erik Spoelstra’s deep rotation. If Spoelstra opts to extend his bench in the absence of Jones, look for rookie Chris Silva to see some run with the second after he was extremely effective in just 11 minutes of action in the Heat’s season opener.
As reported by: Anthony Chiang via Twitter Alec Burks (ankle) out Sunday
Burks was briefly listed as questionable, but he’ll remain sidelined for Sunday’s matchup against the Oklahoma City Thunder due to a sprained right ankle that’s now forced him to miss two straight games. His continued absence will enable Jordan Poole and Jacob Evans to continue absorbing a large portion of the available wing minutes in the second unit, but it’s difficult for either to viable fantasy options in competitive game scripts with so much usage being soaked up by Steph Curry and D’Angelo Russell at the guard positions. Additionally, Marquese Chriss will draw the start at center with Kevon Looney unavailable, but Eric Paschall ended up being an integral part of the frontcourt rotation in the Warriors season opener, logging nearly 32 minutes off the bench.
As reported by: Connor Letourneau via Twitter Rajon Rondo (calf) remains out Sunday
Rondo has once again been downgraded from questionable and will be held out of Sunday’s matchup against the Charlotte Hornets due to a sore right calf that’s now forced him to miss three consecutive games. His absence won’t have an impact on the Lakers’ starting five that consists of LeBron James, Avery Bradley, Danny Green, Anthony Davis, and JaVale McGee, but it should enable Alex Caruso, Troy Daniels, and Quinn Cook to continue seeing time at the guard positions in the second unit. Even though each of the aforementioned players logged at least 20 minutes in Friday’s win, Daniels was the most productive of the trio and his phenomenal three-point shooting could begin to separate him from the pack moving forward.
As reported by: Bill Oram via Twitter Hamidou Diallo (ankle) available to play Sunday
Head coach Billy Donovan confirmed with reporters during his pregame media availability that Diallo will be available to play in Sunday’s matchup against the Golden State Warriors despite dealing with a sprained left ankle. Diallo has managed to record at least 18 minutes in each of the Thunder’s first two games, so even if he’s limited in some fashion, there won’t be enough minutes available for the likes of Terrance Ferguson and Darius Bazley to become fantasy viable on the single-game slates across the industry this afternoon.
As reported by: Maddie Lee via Twitter Top Option at Thin Position
Karl-Anthony Towns has been another level posting massive 36/14 and 37/15 lines to start the season. Towns’ usage rate is at 31.5% through two games as he’s clearly the focal point of Minnesota’s offense. Sunday’s matchup against the Heat is the toughest he’s seen yet but KAT still rates as the clear top option at a thin center position on a short slate.