DFS Alerts
Taking Advantage of Opportunity
The Suns are a banged up, tanking squad, so we have opportunity here. With both Tyler Johnson and Kelly Oubre confirmed out for tonight, there is plenty of playing time and usage to go around. Bridges makes sense as a potential punt option, and Josh Jackson should also be locked into a 30+ minute role. Jackson seems to have a baseline projection in the 28-30 range with some upside, and his price still seems a bit cheap. The Phoenix value plays are great options on a shorter slate.
Top Play of the Night
This is an absolute potential smash spot for Towns, and he checks in as my favorite play of the night. Both Derrick Rose and Jeff Teague are out for the Wolves, so the offense will run through Towns and Wiggins. We have seen Towns put up massive lines time and again when this team is thin, and the matchup this evening is a great one against a Charlotte team that ranks 27th in our defense vs. archetype tool (FD) and 24th (DK) against versatile bigs. Fire up Towns with confidence.
Value On A Banged Up Team
It’s certainly not sexy, but we have to consider some value from the Wizards tonight. They have been playing short-handed for quite a while now, and Trevor Ariza left Wednesday’s game early due to a groin injury. It would surprise me if Ariza was back for the second half of a back-to-back set, especially since the Wizards are fading out of the playoff race in the East. Give Green and Parker nice bumps as solid mid-range options for a depleted squad, and Parker was great last night.
Other tagged players: Jabari Parker NBA Injury Rundown - Thursday, 3/21
Minnesota Timberwolves – Taj Gibson (Q), Jeff Teague (O), Derrick Rose (O), Luol Deng (O), Robert Covington (O)
Charlotte Hornets – Cody Zeller (D), Michael Kidd-Gilchrist (O)
Dallas Mavericks – Maxi Kleber (TBD)
Phoenix Suns – Richaun Homes (Q), Kelly Oubre (O), Tyler Johnson (O), T.J. Warren (O)
Indiana Pacers – Darren Collison (Q), Victor Oladipo (O)
Nerlens Noel (quad) available to play Wednesday
Noel has officially been upgraded from questionable and will be available to play in Wednesday’s matchup against the Toronto Raptors after being a late scratch prior to Monday’s loss due to a bruised left quad. In his absence, Markieff Morris, Deonte Burton, and Patrick Patterson absorbed a large portion of the vacated reserve frontcourt minutes, but Morris was the only one to see substantial playing time and was pretty irrelevant from a fantasy perspective in 19 minutes of action off the bench. Additionally, Russell Westbrook is set to return from a one-game hiatus because of a league-mandated suspension, and he will reclaim his customary starting point guard role from Dennis Schroder, who was underwhelming in 36 minutes in his most recent spot start.
As reported by: Maddie Lee via Twitter Zach LaVine (thigh) out Wednesday
Despite originally being cleared to play, LaVine has officially been ruled out of Wednesday’s matchup against the Washington Wizards despite due to a right thigh contusion, while Otto Porter was previously ruled out with a strained right rotator cuff that has now forced him to miss two consecutive games. This means that Antonio Blakeney will receive the starting nod alongside Kris Dunn in the backcourt, and he’s managed to log at least 11 minutes in four of the last five games. As for Porter’s absence, Shaquille Harrison surprisingly started at small forward last time out, and he was relatively serviceable from a fantasy perspective in 32 minutes of action in his spot start. Unsurprisingly, Kris Dunn has been the primary beneficiary with Porter off the court since the trade deadline, as he owns a 21.8% usage rate (+4.3%) and is averaging 1.02 DraftKings and 0.99 FanDuel points per minute in a 139.7 minutes sample size.
As reported by: the Chicago Bulls via Twitter Other tagged players: Antonio Blakeney Kenneth Faried (knee) out Wednesday
Faried has officially been downgraded from questionable and won’t play in Wednesday’s matchup against the Memphis Grizzlies due to a sore left knee after logging 21 minutes in his return to the lineup in Tuesday’s win. The Rockets will also be without Eric Gordon and Nene Hilario for rest purposes on the second leg of a back-to-back set, so Iman Shumpert will join the starting lineup alongside James Harden on the wing, and he saw 31 minutes his last time out and should be a significant beneficiary in terms of playing time with Faried unable to suit up, making him a potential pivot from Danuel House Jr. in tournament formats on tonight’s nine-game slate. As for House, he’s been serviceable from a fantasy perspective in an average of 31.9 minutes per game over the previous three contests in both reserve and starting roles, keeping him firmly in consideration for all formats as well.
As reported by: Jonathan Feigen via Twitter Other tagged players: Iman Shumpert Zach LaVine (thigh) will play Wednesday
LaVine has officially been upgraded from probable and will play in Wednesday’s matchup against the Washington Wizards despite dealing with a right thigh contusion, while Otto Porter was previously ruled out due to a strained right rotator cuff that has now forced him to miss two consecutive games. There’s yet to be any report of a potential minute restriction for LaVine, so he’ll presumably be a full-go and start at his customary shooting guard position this evening. In Porter’s absence, Shaquille Harrison surprisingly received the starting nod alongside LaVine on the wing, and Harrison was relatively serviceable from a fantasy perspective in 32 minutes of action in his spot start. Unsurprisingly, Kris Dunn has been the primary beneficiary with Porter off the court since the trade deadline, as he owns a 21.8% usage rate (+4.3%) and is averaging 1.02 DraftKings and 0.99 FanDuel points per minute in a 139.7 minutes sample size.
As reported by: K.C. Johnson via Twitter Kadeem Allen (illness) out Wednesday
Allen is another late addition to the Knicks’ injury report and won’t play in Wednesday’s matchup against the Utah Jazz due to an illness, while Allonzo Trier, Noah Vonleh and Frank Ntilikina were previously ruled out with their respective ailments, marking the third straight contest Vonleh will be sidelined. With Vonleh and Dennis Smith Jr. unavailable, Mario Hezonja and Emmanuel Mudiay have joined the starting lineup, and Hezonja has logged at least 27 minutes in each of his two most recent starts since returning from an extended injury absence. This news also leaves the Knicks extremely shorthanded in the backcourt, and John Jenkins is essentially the only natural guard available in the second unit, though Hezonja could possibly absorb some playing time at the two-guard spot as well. There’s an extremely limited sample size with all of the injured Knicks off the court since the trade deadline, but in that time, Mudiay owns a 29.3% usage rate (+3.8%) and is averaging 1.26 DraftKings and 1.16 FanDuel points per minute in this scenario.
As reported by: NY_KnicksPR via Twitter Allonzo Trier (groin) out Wednesday
Trier is a late addition to the Knicks’ injury report and won’t play in Wednesday’s matchup against the Utah Jazz due to a strained left calf, while Noah Vonleh and Frank Ntilikina were previously ruled out with their respective ailments, marking the third straight contest Vonleh will be sidelined. With Vonleh and Dennis Smith Jr. unavailable, Mario Hezonja and Emmanuel Mudiay have joined the starting lineup, and Hezonja has logged at least 27 minutes in each of his two most recent starts since returning from an extended injury absence. There’s an extremely limited sample size with all of the injured Knicks off the court since the trade deadline, but in that time, Mudiay owns a 29.3% usage rate (+3.8%) and is averaging 1.26 DraftKings and 1.16 FanDuel points per minute in this scenario.
As reported by: Steve Popper via Twitter Giannis Antetokounmpo (ankle) out Wednesday; Ersan Ilyasova (illness) available to play
Antetokounmpo has officially been downgraded from questionable and won’t play in Wednesday’s matchup against the Cleveland Cavaliers due to a sprained right ankle that has now forced him to miss two consecutive games, while Nikola Mirotic and George Hill previously ruled out with their respective ailments, and Mirotic is expected to miss at least two-to-four weeks because of a fractured thumb. Additionally, Ilyasova has been cleared to return from a one-game hiatus due to an illness, so as long as he isn’t limited, he and Tony Snell will be the leading candidates to start in the frontcourt. However, even with the Bucks shorthanded from Tuesday’s win, Snell was limited to just 15 minutes of action as a starter, eliminating his viability on a nine-game slate that already has a plethora of better value options available.
As reported by: Matt Velazquez via Twitter Other tagged players: Ersan Ilyasova Noah Vonleh (ankle) and Frank Ntilikina (groin) listed out Wednesday
Vonleh has been listed out on the most recent version of the Knicks’ injury report and won’t play in Wednesday’s matchup against the Utah Jazz due to a sprained right ankle that has now forced him to miss three consecutive games, while Ntilikina will remain sidelined with a sore groin despite initially being upgraded to questionable. With Vonleh and Dennis Smith Jr. unavailable, Mario Hezonja and Emmanuel Mudiay have joined the starting lineup, and Hezonja has logged at least 27 minutes in each of his two most recent starts since returning from an extended injury absence. There’s an extremely limited sample size with all of the injured Knicks off the court since the trade deadline, but in that time, Mudiay owns a 29.3% usage rate (+3.8%) and is averaging 1.26 DraftKings and 1.16 FanDuel points per minute in this scenario.
As reported by: NBA Official Injury Report Other tagged players: Frank Ntilikina Kevin Love (back), Tristan Thompson (foot), and Larry Nance Jr. (rib) available to play Wednesday
Love and Nance Jr. have officially been upgraded from questionable and will be available to play in Wednesday’s matchup against the Milwaukee Bucks despite dealing with their respective ailments, while Thompson has finally been cleared to play after missing the better part of two months with a sore left foot. Head coach Larry Drew already confirmed with reporters that Thompson will be subject to a minute restriction in his first game back and will be brought along slowly, so it’s likely he’ll assume a reserve role for the foreseeable future. Prior to their injury absences, Love and Nance had been starting alongside each other in the frontcourt, and as long as they aren’t limited, it seems plausible that they would reclaim those starting spots from Ante Zizic and David Nwaba this evening.
As reported by: Spencer Davies via Twitter Other tagged players: Tristan Thompson, Larry Nance Jr. Large Field Tournament Pivot
We’re starting to see a lot of value open up on this slate, which means we will have some chalkier options. If you’re playing large field tournaments, I think Pat Connaughton is a really interesting pivot option. With Brogdon and Mirotic ruled out, Connaughton should see 28-32 minutes tonight. He played 36 minutes against the Lakers last night, and now has over 23 fantasy points in three of his last four games.
Look At The Difference In Price
The Heat will be without Winslow and McGruder tonight against the Spurs. Wade has played 28 and 33 minutes in the last two games without Winslow and should continue to see an increase in minutes tonight. With the battle in the East so tight (six teams fighting for three spots), I’d expect to see Wade a lot more down the stretch. He’s one of my favorite value plays on DraftKings and FantasyDraft tonight.