DFS Alerts
Half of the Battle
Half of the battle this late in the season is finding teams that actually have something to play for. Brooklyn is the only team on Saturday’s slate that is still fighting aggressively for playoff seeding which makes their starters the most reliable source of minutes. Of their starting five, Russell is easily the top option both in terms of floor + ceiling and thus is the de facto top overall play of the slate. Russell’s high price tag would be an annoyance on a normal slate but shouldn’t come into play on Saturday night as plenty of value is expected to open up with either Giannis, Embiid, or both sitting out.
Marcus Morris is expected to play
Brad Stevens said Marcus Morris is now “likely” to play… which… I dunno. The guy has been every possible status today (including “out”) so 25 minutes from lock I guess we assume he is playing? This is a slight downgrade for Tatum, Hayward and Horford and not really much effect on Morris because you weren’t rostering him before the news and you also aren’t rostering him now.
As reported by: Boston Celtics
Wesley Matthews is expected to play
Although Matthews is now available to play with his status previously in question, he does not jump off the page for DFS purposes. You can take a cursory look at Matthews along with Cory Joseph or Tyreke Evans, but prices have mainly adjusted for the Pacers current rotation so there’s not a ton of value to extract here, especially going up against a tough defense like Boston.
As reported by: Indiana Pacers Darren Collison has been ruled out
This was expected, as Collison has been out for a few games and was doubtful going into today. You can take a cursory look at Cory Joseph or Tyreke Evans in place of Collison, but prices have mainly adjusted for the Pacers current rotation so there’s not a ton of value to extract here, especially going up against a tough defense like Boston.
As reported by: Indiana Pacers Donatas Motiejunas is expected to play
Unlikely we will see much more than a handful of minutes form Motiejunas, but if he does gain some traction within the Spurs rotation, his skill set meshes very well with the system coach Popovich runs. Something to keep an eye on for future slates.
As reported by: Tom Orsborn Taj Gibson has been ruled out
Gibson being ruled out shouldn’t surprise anyone, which makes Karl Anthony-Towns the only game in town in terms of a body large enough to guard Bam Adebayo or Hassan Whiteside. This may mean some additional run for Gorgui Dieng, although he has been fairly limited even in Gibson’s absence during previous games.
As reported by: NBA Injury Report Kevin Love has been ruled out
Love continues to be out which will again mean a lot of opportunity for Larry Nance Jr, but with Tristan Thompson in the lineup Ante Zizic loses some of his value. Nance also may not have quite as many rebounds to grab himself, although the Warriors will be without a big man of their own in DeMarcus Cousins. You can certainly consider Nance in Love’s stead, but you may also want to consider the replacement on the other side of this game, Kevon Looney.
As reported by: NBA Injury Report OG Anunoby will play tonight
OG returns tonight. No actual DFS impact on a 13-game slate, and Toronto isn’t a terribly attractive team to target with them being relatively healthy and preparing for the playoffs – they are locked into that 2 seed.
As reported by: Rick Bonnell Richaun Holmes has been ruled out
This is a big deal. Holmes was considered one of the best plays on the slate, and was projected for a boatload of minutes, but will instead join the Suns ever increasing body count of players who are not active. Julius Randle should feast against the Suns without anyone who can stop him, and doesn’t appear to be on any sort of minutes restriction. Dragan Bender and Ray Spalding are both tall, I guess, but given the inefficiency with which Bender has played and the lack of experience for Spalding, it is hard to trust either of them on such a large slate, even given the ample opportunity the lack of available players creates.
As reported by: Kellan Olson Stanley Johnson has been ruled out
In a battle of short benches and tight rotations, the Pelicans will be without Stanley Johnson, which opens up some more minutes for Dairis Bertans and Solomon Hill, but overall might not have ton of DFS impact. Obviously this also takes a decent defender off the floor too, so feel free to ratchet up your Josh Jackson exposure if it wasn’t already extremely high.
As reported by: Pelicans PR Corey Brewer is listed as questionable
Not much DFS impact here, maybe slightly more run for the Bogdan Boganovic/Buddy Hield types but Brewer only played 10 minutes yesterday so overall not much adjustment if Brewer is in fact ruled out.
As reported by: Jason Anderson Seth Curry is listed as questionable
I’ll be honest, if you would have told me at the beginning of the season that a Seth Curry injury might lead to a potential third consecutive Evan Turner triple double, I probably wouldn’t have believed you. And yet, this is the NBA in April, and anything can happen. If Curry does indeed miss, Damion Lillard will get some extended run and it does open up some additional usage for the out-of-nowhere Turner to continue to play out of his mind. For Curry, this is the tibia that he has previously hurt, so the Blazers acting with caution here should not come as a surprise.
As reported by: Casey Holdahl Time to Shine
This is what fantasy dreams are made of – Kosta Koufos against the Utah Jazz. With Harry Giles already shut down for the season and Willie Cauley-Stein ruled out of Friday’s game for personal reasons, Koufos should see plenty of action. While it’s a tough matchup for Koufos and the Kings, the price is right on Sacramento’s big man who has produced around one fantasy point per minute this season. That’s solid production for a player priced as low as him.
Willie Cauley-Stein has been ruled out
With WCS out and a dearth of large bodies set to take on one of the largest bodies (Rudy Gobert), my instinct is to tell you to consider either Marvin Bagley or Kosta Koufos, but the real winner here might be Gobert himself, who will feel no resistance at all against a Kings team that has nothing to play for, while playing for a team still jostling for playoff positioning. Take a good look at Gobert tonight if you’re able to save salary elsewhere.
As reported by: Jason Anderson Chuck It
No Luka. No Powell. No Brunson. Who is going to score for the Mavericks? Trey Burke! Burke has always been an aggressive offensive player throughout his career, posting usage rates north of 27% each of the last two seasons and a 26.5% usage rate this year in limited playing time. The floodgates are opened for Burke to chuck on Friday night against the Grizz and he has a ton of upside on his price tag.