DFS Alerts
Taj Gibson (calf) officially out Tuesday
Gibson has officially been downgraded from doubtful and won’t play in Tuesday’s matchup against the Los Angeles Clippers due to a strained left calf that has now forced him to miss three consecutive games, while Derrick Rose, Jeff Teague, and Robert Covington all remain sidelined with their respective ailments and have been shut down for the remainder of the season. Prior to his injury, Gibson had logged at least 21 minutes off the bench in four of his previous five games, so there will certainly continue to be a sizable amount of playing to be had in the second unit for Anthony Tolliver and Keita Bates-Diop, and even Gorgui Dieng managed to record 15 minutes as the backup behind Karl-Anthony Towns at center in each of the previous two contests. The main beneficiary with Gibson and all of the injured Timberwolves off the court continues to be Towns, as he owns a 32.7% usage rate (+3.6%) and is averaging 1.79 DraftKings and 1.73 FanDuel points per minute in this scenario.
As reported by: Timberwolves PR via Twitter
Luka Doncic (knee) expected to play Tuesday
Doncic is still technically listed as questionable on the Mavericks’ injury report, but head coach Rick Carlisle confirmed with reporters that he expects Doncic to play in Tuesday’s matchup against the Sacramento Kings despite dealing with a sore left knee, while Salah Mejri wasn’t included on the injury report after missing one game with an illness. As for Doncic, there’s yet to be any report of a potential minute restriction, but he has averaged just 27.4 minutes over his previous three games largely because of blowouts, which makes him an intriguing tournament target if he’s a full-go in a competitive contest this evening. Doncic has continued to thrive for fantasy purposes following the slew of moves the Mavericks made at the trade deadline, as he has recorded a 34.5% usage rate and is averaging 1.42 DraftKings and 1.35 FanDuel points per minute in a 548.3 minutes sample size over that span
As reported by: Bobby Karalla via Twitter Landry Shamet (ankle) out Tuesday
Shamet has officially been downgraded from questionable and won’t play in Tuesday’s matchup against the Minnesota Timberwolves due to a left ankle impingement he sustained during Sunday’s win. In his absence, head coach Doc Rivers already confirmed that Garrett Temple will receive the starting nod at small forward, and he’s logged at least 17 minutes off the bench in three of the Clippers previous four games, likely giving a solid minute floor in tonight’s contest. This should also enable some combination of Wilson Chandler, Sindarius Thornwell, and Tyrone Wallace to absorb extended minutes in the second unit, though Thornwell and Wallace have either been DNP-CDs or been limited to garbage time of late, making it possible Rivers just shortens his rotation sans Shamet this evening.
As reported by: Kristina Pink via Twitter Anthony Davis (back) officially out Tuesday
Davis has officially been downgraded from doubtful and won’t play in Tuesday’s matchup against the Atlanta Hawks due to lower back spasms, while Elfrid Payton is still expected to suit up despite dealing with a bruised right wrist. The Pelicans’ front office has stayed true to their word in regards to limiting Davis’ playing time, and he’s consistently been held to around 20-22 minutes per game when active. This does minimalize the impact of his absence, but now that he’s unavailable, Jahlil Okafor will likely start and has been the main beneficiary in terms of minutes when Davis is sidelined. However, unsurprisingly, Julius Randle has benefitted the most with Davis, Jrue Holiday, and E’Twaun Moore off the court since the All-Star break, as he owns a 33.2% (+4.7%) usage rate and is averaging 1.32 DraftKings and 1.26 FanDuel points per minute in a 184.6 minutes sample size over that time period.
As reported by: Andrew Lopez via Twitter Kris Dunn (back) officially out Tuesday
Dunn has officially been downgraded from doubtful and won’t play in Tuesday’s matchup against the Toronto Raptors due to a mid-back strain, while Zach LaVine and Otto Porter each remain sidelined with their respective ailments. In Dunn’s absence, Ryan Arcidiacano will receive the starting nod at point guard and join Shaquille Harrison in the backcourt, and Harrison has been relatively serviceable from a fantasy perspective in an average of 36.9 minutes over the previous three games. Additionally, Wayne Selden will start ahead of Antonio Blakeney on the wing, and he’s managed to log at least 20 minutes in four of the Bulls previous five games off the bench, which should give him a solid minute floor and put him in position to be a viable punt option in tournaments this evening. The main beneficiary with the aforementioned players off the court since the trade deadline has been Arcidiacono, as he owns a 19.3% usage rate (+7.0%) and is averaging 0.99 DraftKings and 0.96 FanDuel points in a 123.7 minutes sample size over this span.
As reported by: the Chicago Bulls via Twitter Justise Winslow (thigh) out Tuesday
Winslow has officially been downgraded from questionable and won’t play in Tuesday’s matchup against the Orlando Magic due to a bruised right thigh and an illness that has now forced him to miss six consecutive games, while Rodney McGruder also remains sidelined and will miss a fifth straight contest with a sore left knee. In Winslow’s absence, Derrick Jones Jr. has started each of the previous five games at small forward and has logged at least 24 minutes in three of those contests, while Josh Richardson has continued to absorb massive minutes as the starting point guard with Goran Dragic still partially limited. However, with Winslow and McGruder off the court since the trade deadline, Hassan Whiteside actually owns a 23.7% usage rate and is averaging 1.47 DraftKings and 1.51 FanDuel points per minute in a 160.9 minutes sample size despite an extremely volatile minute floor in recent weeks.
As reported by: Ira Winderman via Twitter Al Horford (knee) and Jayson Tatum (back) will play Tuesday
Horford and Tatum have officially been upgraded from probable and will play in Tuesday’s matchup against the Cleveland Cavaliers after missing time due to their respective ailments, while Kyrie Irving was already been ruled out for rest purposes. The returns of Horford and Tatum will likely send Aron Baynes and Gordon Hayward back to the bench to resume reserve roles, and Hayward still managed to log 34 minutes in his spot start despite returning from a three-game injury absence in that contest. As for Irving’s absence, Terry Rozier will almost certainly receive the starting nod at point guard, but his upside may be limited since daily fantasy sites had time to adjust his salary prior to the release of tonight’s 10-game slate. As expected, nearly every Celtics starter sees some kind of increase in usage with Irving off the court since the All-Star break, but Horford may be the most intriguing tournament target of the bunch if he isn’t limited, as he is averaging 1.26 DraftKings and 1.24 FanDuel points per minute in a 98.2 minutes sample size over that period.
As reported by: Steve Bulpett via Twitter Other tagged players: Jayson Tatum Nicolas Batum (illness) officially out Tuesday
Batum has officially been downgraded from questionable and won’t play in Tuesday’s matchup against the San Antonio Spurs due to an illness that has now forced him to miss three consecutive games, while Michael Kidd-Gilchrist will be available following a three-game hiatus because of a concussion. Batum was moved to the bench in favor of Dwayne Bacon prior to his injury, but head coach James Borrego continues to be noncommittal about his plans for the rotation moving forward, and even though Bacon will likely start once again, it makes it difficult to trust most Hornets players in any daily fantasy formats for the time being. However, Miles Bridges appears to be locked into a solid minute floor with Charlotte turning their attention to player development in the final stretch of the season, and he’s logged at least 29 minutes in each of the previous four contests while averaging 1.07 DraftKings and 1.07 FanDuel points per minute over this span, which makes him an appealing tournament target on tonight’s slate.
As reported by: Charlotte Hornets PR via Twitter Minutes and Production is up
Kentavious Caldwell-Pope is averaging 32 minutes in his last four games, and 28.4 fantasy points per game in that span. That’s 8.4 minutes over his season average and 11.1 fantasy points over his season average. I hope he continues to come off the bench tonight with Bullock out, but either way, this is a great spot for him. The minutes will be there for KCP, and with all the value opening up, I could see him being under 10% tonight.
FanDuel Punt Option
I think it’s a day I’ll end up with at least three guys under $4,000 on FanDuel. With Reggie Bullock ruled out for tonight’s game, Lance Stephenson is another “funt” I’m adding to my player pool. He played 25 minutes in his first game back from injury, and should see around the same amount of minutes tonight with all of the injuries.
Low Owned Value Play
We have a lot of great value options on this slate, and I hope that means Josh Okogie is going to fly under the radar. We have him projected for 1.9% ownership right now. He’s played at least 30 minutes in four straight games, and with all the injuries, I don’t see him playing under 30 minutes tonight. He’s scored over 30 fantasy points in three of those four games.
LeBron James (knee) available to play Tuesday; Reggie Bullock (foot) ruled out
James has officially been upgraded from probable and will be available to play in Tuesday’s matchup against the Washington Wizards despite dealing with a bruised left knee, while Bullock will join Josh Hart on the Lakers’ inactive list due to right foot plantar fasciitis that has now forced him to miss two consecutive games. Tyson Chandler and Mike Muscala are questionable with their respective ailments, and even though both have had inconsistent roles in the rotation over the last several weeks, Chandler has managed to log at least 13 minutes off the bench in each of the previous two contests. In Bullock and Hart’s absences, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope is essentially the last man standing to start alongside James on the wing, and he’s managed to record at least 33 minutes in each of the last three games in both starting and reserve roles. Head coach Luke Walton essentially utilized just an eight-man rotation once again in Sunday’s win, but he’s been extremely unpredictable with the backup two-guard and small forward minutes, as Lance Stephenson rejoined the rotation and siphoned away a large portion of Alex Caruso’s previously-stable minute floor.
As reported by: Kyle Goon via Twitter Other tagged players: Reggie Bullock Anthony Davis (back) listed doubtful Tuesday; Elfrid Payton (wrist) listed probable
Davis has been downgraded to doubtful on the most recent version of the Pelicans’ injury report for Tuesday’s matchup against the Atlanta Hawks due to lower back spasms, while Payton has been upgraded to probable despite dealing with a bruised right wrist. The Pelicans’ front office has stayed true to their word in regards to limiting Davis’ playing time, and he’s consistently been held to around 20-22 minutes per game when active. This does minimalize the impact of his likely absence, but if he is unable to suit, Jahlil Okafor has typically started and been the main beneficiary in terms of minutes when he is sidelined. However, unsurprisingly, Julius Randle has benefitted the most with Davis, Jrue Holiday, and E’Twaun Moore off the court since the All-Star break, as he owns a 33.2% (+4.7%) usage rate and is averaging 1.32 DraftKings and 1.26 FanDuel points per minute in a 184.6 minutes sample size over that time period.
As reported by: NBA Official Injury Report Other tagged players: Elfrid Payton Kenneth Faried (knee) out Tuesday: Eric Gordon (ankle) upgraded to probable
Faried has officially been added to the Rockets’ injury report and won’t play in Tuesday’s matchup against the Milwaukee Bucks due to a sore left knee, while Gordon has been upgraded to probable despite dealing with a sprained right ankle he sustained during Sunday’s win. The Rockets are also expected to be without Gerald Green for the next 7-10 days because of a strained left adductor, so his and Faried’s absences, should up a plethora of playing time for Danuel House Jr., who has already logged at least 30 minutes in four of the previous six games in both reserve and starting roles. However, as usual, James Harden is the catalyst of this Houston team, and even though he is coming off of an uncharacteristic fantasy performance last time out, he still owns a 42.5% usage rate and is averaging 1.61 DraftKings and 1.56 FanDuel points per minute since the conclusion of the All-Star break.
As reported by: Jonathan Feigen via Twitter Other tagged players: Eric Gordon Top Play of the Night
This is another spot where we could see Towns absolutely dominate. He put up a 33 point, 23 rebound performance in the last game over the weekend, and he draws a great matchup here against a Clippers team that currently offers little resistance on the interior. Give him a long look to start all your rosters this evening, as the upside is as great as any player on this slate.
