DFS Alerts
Boogie Time
Although he no longer has a firm minutes restriction, the fact that Golden State is still holding Cousins in the 30-32 minute range is a bit of a problem. However, his per-minute ability makes up for any drag that the minutes might cause. If we take Kevin Durant off the floor — and it seems logical to assume that Durant is not going to play tonight — we can note that the other big three all see nice spikes in production, but it still seems like Cousins is the best bet on a per dollar basis (particularly on DraftKings). His sample size without Durant is obviously smaller than the other two players, and I would bank on Cousins’ figures to trend upward over the long haul. His size will be needed against the Thunder, and with Draymond Green struggling, I’m putting my dollars on a big night from the Boogie.
Fine Value
For now, this is somewhat of a holding spot. I don’t really LOVE Monte Morris tonight, but he’s one of the more reliable sources of value that we have at the moment with several other injury scenarios still up in the air. Morris is averaging 29 minutes for the Nuggets over the last three contests, and he’s averaging over five assists in those games. He remains priced near the minimum at $4,300 on FD and $4,000 on DK, and the reliable minutes are good news at this point. I am hoping to change this pick later in the afternoon if a more exciting value spot arises, so stay tuned for updates!
Tyler Johnson (knee) and Richaun Holmes (quad) questionable Saturday
Johnson is officially questionable for Saturday’s matchup against the New Orleans Pelicans due to a sore right knee that already forced him to miss one game, while Holmes has also been listed as questionable with a strained right quad he sustained during Friday’s loss. In Johnson’s absence, Tony Daniels ended up receiving the starting nod alongside Devin Booker in the backcourt, but he was still pretty irrelevant from a fantasy perspective in just 15 minutes of action as a member of the starting unit. This lineup decision by head coach Igor Kokoskov did enable Devin Booker and Jamal Crawford to handle most of the point guard responsibilities, and De’Anthony Melton and Elie Okobo were even DNP-CDs despite being on the only other natural point guards on the Suns’ roster with Johnson unavailable. With Johnson off the court, Kelly Oubre actually leads the starting unit with an average of 1.21 DraftKings and 1.21 FanDuel points per minute in a 139.8 minutes sample size.
As reported by: Gina Mizell via Twitter
Kevin Durant (ankle) officially out Saturday
Durant has officially been downgraded from questionable and won’t play in Saturday’s matchup against the Oklahoma City Thunder due to a right ankle contusion that has now forced him to miss two consecutive games. In his absence, Andre Iguodala ended up receiving the starting nod at small forward, but he was relatively ineffective from a fantasy standpoint in just 25 minutes of action in Wednesday’s win. Iguodala appears to still be the likeliest candidate to start in tonight’s contest, but it wouldn’t be surprising if head coach Steve Kerr opts to start Alfonzo McKinnie in that spot to have Iguodala return to his customary sixth man role off the bench. Typically when Durant is sidelined, Stephen Curry would become close to a must-play in all fantasy formats, but ever since DeMarcus Cousins made his Warriors debut, he and Klay Thompson have actually benefitted the most with Durant off the court, as they each own at least a +5.4% usage rate differential and experience a minimum of a +0.05 increase to their per minute fantasy production.
As reported by: Mark Medina via Twitter Larry Nance Jr. (rib) and Tristan Thompson (foot) questionable Saturday
Nance Jr. is officially considered questionable for Saturday’s matchup against the Dallas Mavericks after missing three consecutive games due to a rib contusion, while Thompson also went through shootaround and is questionable to suit up with a sore left foot that’s kept him sidelined nearly two full months. In their absences, Ante Zizic has started the previous three contests at center, and he’s been solid from a fantasy perspective in an average of 30.4 minutes over that span. The Cavaliers are also slated to be without Matthew Dellavedova for a fifth straight contest, so his continued unavailability should allow Jordan Clarkson, Brandon Knight, and Nik Stauskas to still see extended run at their respective positions, though Stauskas could take on a diminished role if head coach Larry Drew opts to play bigger with Marquese Chriss absorbing some power forward minutes.
As reported by: Chris Fedor via Twitter Other tagged players: Tristan Thompson Fantasy Goodness
Phoenix Suns @ New Orleans Pelicans is set up to have all of the fantasy goodness on Saturday night as two fast paced teams with poor defenses get together to play in a game with a total set north of 232 points. This is also a good defensive matchup for Oubre who recorded a total of 7 blocks + steals in last night’s matchup against Houston. Tyler Johnson sat out last night’s game with a knee injury which helped pad minutes and usage for the Suns other starters and Johnson is listed as questionable for Saturday’s contest against New Orleans. I like Oubre regardless of Johnson’s status but think he’s a slam dunk play with TJ out.
Pump the Breaks
There are mixed reports on Durant’s availability Saturday night but it seems like Durant is leaning more toward the doubtful side of his questionable tag. No Durant has meant all-in on Stephen Curry in the past but the addition of DeMarcus Cousins to the Warriors lineup should have us tempering our expectations a bit. Curry’s usage rate with Kevin Durant and DeMarcus Cousins off the court this season is 38.5% while Curry’s usage rate with Durant off but Cousins on is 26.8%. The latter is still a small sample, and I would expect Curry’s usage to stabilize closer to 30%, but it’s notable that Curry isn’t a slam dunk play if Durant is declared out. With that said, I’m still likely to roster Curry in cash games if Durant is declared out, I just know who to blame (cough, Boogie, cough, cough) if it doesn’t work out.
Encore
//Update: Coach Gentry said pre-game to expect Diallo to get closing minutes tonight while Randle will be closer to 30 minutes. Randle is still playable at 30 minutes but both his floor and ceiling drop a bit with less expected court time. // Randle won’t get the benefit of playing without Anthony Davis on Saturday night but he still gets a favorable matchup to follow up his monster 45/11 performance he posted on Friday night. The Suns are terrible defensively as they allow the second most points per 100 possessions (114.4) and the second highest effective field goal percentage (54.8%) in the league. They specifically struggle with opposing bigs, allowing the highest offensive rebounding rate (29.6%) and highest frequency of shot attempts at the rim (41.3%) in the league.
Danilo Gallinari (ankle) will play Friday
Gallinari has officially been upgraded from questionable and will play in Friday’s matchup against the Chicago Bulls after missing one game to rest a sore right ankle, while Luc Mbah a Moute remains sidelined with a knee issue and appears unlikely to suit up at any point in the stretch of the season. As of now, there’s been no report of a potential minute restriction for Gallinari, so he’ll presumably reclaim his customary starting power forward from JaMychal Green, who was more than serviceable from a fantasy perspective in 32 minutes of action as a starter in Tuesday’s loss. Ever since the trade deadline, Gallinari has led the Clippers starters with a 27.3% usage rate and is averaging 1.23 DraftKings and 1.18 FanDuel points per minute over that span, making him an intriguing tournament target if he is isn’t hampered by the aforementioned ankle ailment.
As reported by: Tomer Azarly via Twitter Troy Daniels will start in place of Tyler Johnson (knee) on Friday
Johnson was previously downgraded from questionable and won’t play in Friday’s matchup against the Houston Rockets due to a sore right knee, while T.J. Warren remains sidelined with a sore right ankle. The Suns did recently recall Elie Okobo from the G-League, so he’ll presumably be available for tonight’s contest to provide depth at the point guard position, but De’Anthony Melton figures to be ahead of him in the guard rotation despite being a DNP-CD in each of the previous two games. However, head coach Igor Kokoskov has opted to move Devin Booker over to the point and insert Troy Daniels alongside Kelly Oubre on the wing, and Daniels has managed to record more than 14 minutes off the bench in two of the last four games.
As reported by: Jonathan Feigen via Twitter Seth Curry (illness) available to play Friday
Curry has officially been upgraded from probable and will be available to play in Friday’s matchup against the New Orleans Pelicans despite battling an upper respiratory infection, while Maurice Harkless was already ruled out with a left knee injury. The wing minutes in head coach Terry Stotts’ rotations can be very volatile, but Harkless seems to have settled into a consistent role in the mid-20s in terms of minutes as the starting small forward. In his absence, Rodney Hood will start at small forward instead of Jake Layman, who’s logged at least 25 minutes off the bench in the previous two games with Hood and Evan Turner each unavailable in one of the aforementioned contests. However, Layman will be a difficult player to trust in daily fantasy formats regardless of role considering he owns just a 16.5% usage rate and is averaging 0.82 DraftKings and 0.82 FanDuel points per minute with Hood off the court.
As reported by: Jamie Hudson via Twitter Bruce Brown (ankle) will start Friday
Brown has officially been upgraded from probable and will start in Friday’s matchup against the Los Angeles Lakers despite continuing to deal with a bruised left foot, while Reggie Jackson was already cleared to play through right knee discomfort after an MRI from earlier this afternoon came back negative. There’s yet to be any report of a potential minute restriction for Jackson, so he’ll presumably assume his customary starting point guard role alongside Wayne Ellington in the backcourt, but he’s been limited to fewer than 25 minutes in each of the previous five games, limiting his reliability for daily fantasy formats on tonight’s value loaded eight-game slate.
As reported by: James Edwards III via Twitter Rudy Gay (illness) will play Friday
Gay has officially been upgraded from probable and will play in Friday’s matchup against the New York Knicks after missing two consecutive games due to an illness. Head coach Gregg Popovich didn’t confirm if Gay would come off the bench or reclaim his spot in the starting lineup, but he did disclose that Gay will “probably play a little”, making it likely Jakob Poeltl remains in the starting lineup for at least one more game, and he was solid from a fantasy standpoint in an average of 27.8 minutes over the span of the Spurs previous two games.
As reported by: Tom Orsborn via Twitter Josh Hart (knee) and Lance Stephenson (toe) out Friday; Reggie Bullock (foot) available to play
Hart and Stephenson have officially been ruled out of Friday’s matchup against the Detroit Pistons due to right knee tendinitis and a sprained left toe, respectively, and they’ll join LeBron James, Tyson Chandler, Lonzo Ball, and Brandon Ingram on the Lakers’ inactive list for tonight’s contest. Bullock was cleared to play despite dealing with a bruised left foot, but there’s yet to be any confirmation of who will start alongside him on the wing, though Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Moritz Wagner, or Mike Muscala appears to be the leading candidates, depending on how head coach Luke Walton prefers to match up with the Andre Drummond and Blake Griffin frontcourt duo this evening. Kyle Kuzma has a minuscule sample size with all of James, Brandon Ingram, Lonzo Ball, and Tyson Chander off the court this season, but he’s still a decent bet to lead the Lakers in usage in tonight’s contest. However, in this scenario, Rajon Rondo and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope each own at least a +4.7% usage rate differential and experience a minimum of a +0.26 increase to their per minute production, making them intriguing tournament targets on tonight’s eight-game slate.
As reported by: Mike Trudell via Twitter Other tagged players: Lance Stephenson, Reggie Bullock Dwyane Wade (elbow) will play Friday
Wade has officially been upgraded from questionable and will play in Friday’s matchup against the Milwaukee Bucks despite dealing with a bruised right elbow. Wade and most of the key Miami rotation players have seen a reduction in playing time over the previous three games due to blowouts, but prior to this span, he had logged at least 30 minutes in two straight contests, which can also be partly contributed to the absence of Goran Dragic in those aforementioned games. Dragic has continued to come off the bench over the last three games, playing fewer than 21 minutes in both contests, so that should clear the way for Justise Winslow to continue serving as the Heat’s point guard in the starting unit. Winslow has thrived in the role for a majority of the season, and he owns a 20.5% usage rate and is averaging 1.07 DraftKings and 1.04 FanDuel points per minute since the All-Star break.
As reported by: Ira Winderman via Twitter