DFS Alerts

Aaron Gordon (ribs) will play Wednesday

Gordon has officially been upgraded from questionable and will play in Wednesday’s matchup against the Washington Wizards despite dealing with sore ribs, while Wes Iwundu is fully expected to play after missing Tuesday’s practice due to a toe injury. Gordon hasn’t exactly been great for fantasy purposes since the All-Star break, as he’s exceeded his salary based expectations on just two occasions over that span, but he and the other members of the Magic frontcourt do draw a fantastic matchup with a Wizards squad that ranks 27th in defensive rating and 29th in rebounding percentage on the year. However, Nikola Vucevic may be the better player target to take advantage of those aforementioned metrics since he owns a 27.6% usage rate and is averaging 1.47 DraftKings and 1.47 FanDuel points per minute in what’s been an All-Star season for the Swiss big man.

Minutes Continue To Be Up

I don’t think there is a ton of value on FanDuel tonight, but Jeff Green continues to stand out to me. Green has played at least 28 minutes in four straight games, and at least 27 minutes in six of the last seven games. If you’re not paying up for Paul George, I think it makes a lot of sense to pay down at small forward on FanDuel. Green has 25 FanDuel points in three of the last seven games.

Different Role With This Team

What a huge difference a team can make for a player, and we continue to see that for Avery Bradley. Avery Bradley has taken double-digit shot attempts in eight of his last ten games, after averaging 8.57 attempts per game with the Clippers. He’s averaging 35 minutes and 31.2 fantasy points per game over his last five games. Atlanta has really struggled with high usage shooting guards this season, and with the recent increase in shots and usage, I really love this matchup for Avery Bradley. Plus, Atlanta allows the most fantasy points per game to opposing shooting guards.

Chasing The Upside

We’re getting to the point of the season where some games matter more than others. Both of these teams are fighting to make the playoffs in the East, and this game matters more than others. Parker has an eight-point floor but has 50-point upside in any matchup. Parker has at least 29 fantasy points in four of the last five games and has gotten into a nice rhythm off the bench. I really like chasing the upside in this matchup, and I think he receives a nice boost in what should be a really close game.

NBA Injury Rundown - Wednesday, 3/13

Orlando Magic – Aaron Gordon (Q), Mohamed Bamba (O), Isaiah Briscoe (O), Markelle Fultz (O), Timofey Mozgov (O)

Brooklyn Nets – DeMarre Carroll (O), Treveon Graham (O)

Oklahoma City Thunder – Markieff Morris (Q), Andre Roberson (O)

Atlanta Hawks – Omari Spellman (O), Alex Poythress (O), Miles Plumlee (O)

Miami Heat – Josh Richardson (Q)

Golden State Warriors – Kevin Durant (O), Andrew Bogut (O), Damian Jones (O)

Utah Jazz – Ricky Rubio (P), Raul Neto (P), Tony Bradley (O)

Andrew Wiggins (quad) out Tuesday; Karl-Anthony Towns available to play

Despite previously being expected play, Wiggins has officially been ruled out of Tuesday’s matchup against the Denver Nuggets due to a bruised left quad that has now forced him to miss three consecutive games, and he’ll join Jeff Teague and Derrick Rose on the Timberwolves’ inactive list for tonight’s contest, while Towns has been cleared to return from a one-game absence stemming from right knee inflammation. The Timberwolves are still without Luol Deng and Robert Covington, so Keita Bates-Diop will start at small forward once again, and he logged at least 35 minutes and exceeded his salary-based expectations in both of his previous starts. On the other hand, with Teague and Rose unavailable isn’t limited, he’ll be an intriguing tournament targets considering he owns a 42.4% usage rate (+12.1%) and is averaging 1.97 DraftKings and 1.88 FanDuel points per minute with Wiggins, Teague, Rose, and Robert Covington off the court this season, albeit a small sample size thus far.

Danilo Gallinari (rest) out Tuesday

Gallinari is an extremely late addition to the Clippers’ injury report and won’t play in Tuesday’s matchup against the Portland Trail Blazers due to rest purposes, while Luc Mbah a Moute remains sidelined with a sore left knee, and head coach Doc Rivers disclosed to reporters that he believes it’s unlikely Mbah a Moute will play this season. There’s yet to be any confirmation on who will replace Gallinari in the starting lineup for tonight’s contest, but JaMychal Green appears to be the likeliest candidate considering Rivers prefers to keep Montrezl Harrell in a reserve role and Wilson Chandler was limited to just 10 minutes in his first game action in over a month’s time in Monday’s win. Since the All-Star break, Lou Williams has been the main beneficiary with Gallinari off the court, as he owns a 37.3% usage rate (+2.9%) and is averaging 1.55 DraftKings and 1.55 FanDuel points per minute in a 148.2 minutes sample size.

Rodney Hood (hip) out Tuesday; Evan Turner (knee) available to play

Hood has officially been downgraded from questionable and won’t play in Tuesday’s matchup against the Los Angeles Clippers due to a sore right hip, while Turner has been cleared to return after missing seven of the previous eight games with a left knee injury. There’s yet to be any reports of a potential minute restriction for Turner, but given the length of his absence and the lingering nature of his injury, it seems unlikely he’d be thrust into a substantial minute workload just because Hood is unavailable. This will afford Seth Curry and Jake Layman additional playing time at the wing positions, while Zach Collins could stick in the rotation following a solid performance in 17 minutes of action in Saturday’s win.

Jeff Teague (foot) and Derrick Rose (elbow) out Tuesday; Andrew Wiggins (quad) expected to play

Teague and Rose have officially been downgraded from questionable and won’t play in Tuesday’s matchup against the Denver Nuggets due to left foot inflammation and a sore right elbow, respectively, while Wiggins and Karl-Anthony Towns are going through pregame warmups and are fully expected to play. The Timberwolves are still without Luol Deng and Robert Covington, so Keita Bates-Diop will likely remain a key cog in the rotation for at least one additional game, and he logged at least 35 minutes and exceeded his salary-based expectations in both of his starts. On the other hand, with Teague and Rose unavailable, Tyus Jones will almost certainly join the starting lineup at point guard and becomes one of the top value options on tonight’s seven-game slate given his projected minute workload this evening. Assuming Wiggins and Towns aren’t limited, they’ll be intriguing tournament targets considering they each own at least a +3.8% usage rate differential and experience a minimum of a +0.12 increase to their per minute fantasy production with Teague, Rose, and Robert Covington off the court this season.

Dirk Nowitzki will start ahead of Tim Hardaway Jr. on Tuesday

Head coach Rick Carlisle has opted to make a change to his starting lineup for Tuesday’s matchup against the San Antonio Spurs, and he’ll go with a big frontcourt by inserting Dirk Nowitzki at the power forward position, which will slide Dorian Finney-Smith over to small forward and send Tim Hardaway Jr. to the bench to assume a reserve role for at least one game. As of now, there’s been no report of a potential minute restriction for Luka Doncic, and he’ll slot into his typical starting position alongside Jalen Brunson in the backcourt, and Doncic has averaged 35.2 minutes over the Mavericks previous three games, flashing significant upside in two of those aforementioned contests. Doncic has continued to thrive from a fantasy perspective following the slew of moves the Mavericks made at the trade deadline, as he has recorded a 34.9% usage rate and is averaging 1.42 DraftKings and 1.38 FanDuel points per minute in a 393.3 minutes sample size over that span.

Luka Doncic (knee) will play Tuesday

Doncic has officially been upgraded from questionable and will play in Tuesday’s matchup against the San Antonio Spurs, according to head coach Rick Carlisle, despite dealing with a strained left knee. As of now, there’s been no report of a potential minute restriction for Doncic, so he’ll presumably slot into his typical starting role alongside Jalen Brunson in the backcourt, and Doncic has averaged 35.2 minutes over the Mavericks previous three games, flashing significant upside in two of those aforementioned contests. Doncic has continued to thrive from a fantasy perspective following the slew of moves the Mavericks made at the trade deadline, as he has recorded a 34.9% usage rate and is averaging 1.42 DraftKings and 1.38 FanDuel points per minute in a 393.3 minutes sample size over that span.

Larry Nance Jr. (rib) and Matthew Dellavedova (concussion) listed out Tuesday

Nance Jr. and Dellavedova have both been listed out on the most recent version of the Cavaliers’ injury report and won’t play in Tuesday’s matchup against the Philadelphia 76ers due to a rib contusion and a concussion, respectively, while Tristan Thompson continues to be sidelined with a sore left foot. Additionally, Chriss was suspended one game by the NBA for his involvement in Monday’s altercation with Serge Ibaka and will serve the suspension in tonight’s contest, so with Kevin Love already deemed unavailable for rest purposes, the Cavaliers will find themselves extremely shorthanded in the frontcourt and will have just nine players active and available this evening. This means Ante Zizic will be needed to absorb a large portion of the available center minutes, and he’ll be a fine value option on tonight’s slate as long as he can avoid foul trouble against Joel Embiid, as he is averaging 1.13 DraftKings and 1.13 FanDuel points per minute with Love off the court since the All-Star break.

Tyreke Evans (personal) out Tuesday

Evans is a late addition to the Pacers’ injury report and won’t play in Tuesday’s matchup against the New York Knicks due to personal reasons, marking the second consecutive game he has missed, though the prior contest was because of an illness. Even when he’s been healthy, Evans hasn’t had a significant role in the rotation following the arrival of Wesley Matthews, and he’s played fewer than 14 minutes off the bench in each of his previous three games. Additionally, Domantas Sabonis returned from a five-game injury absence in Sunday’s loss but was limited to just 20 minutes off the bench, which enabled Kyle O’Quinn to surprisingly remain in the rotation and log eight minutes of action with the second unit. However, assuming Sabonis and Myles Turner sees closer to their usual minute allotments in tonight’s contest, O’Quinn should go back to being a DNP-CD candidate on a nightly basis.

Kyle Kuzma (ankle) available to play Tuesday; Lance Stephenson (toe) and Tyson Chandler (neck) ruled out

Kuzma has officially been upgraded from questionable and will be available to play in Tuesday’s matchup against the Chicago Bulls after missing two consecutive games due to a sprained right ankle, while Stephenson and Chandler will remain sidelined with their respective ailments, though their statuses in this new-look Lakers rotation is in doubt even once they’re cleared to return. As of now, there’s been no report of a potential minute restriction for Kuzma, so he’ll presumably reclaim his normal spot alongside LeBron James in the starting frontcourt, which would send Moritz Wagner back to the bench to resume a reserve role following a phenomenal fantasy performance relative to his price point in 34 minutes of action in Saturday’s loss. However, Wagner should still see substantial minutes with the second unit, especially with JaVale McGee eclipsing the 20-minute mark on just two occasions since the All-Star break, and will remain in consideration as a punt option in tournament formats this evening.

Marquese Chriss (suspension) out Tuesday

Chriss has been suspended one game by the NBA for his involvement in Monday’s altercation with Serge Ibaka and will serve the suspension in Tuesday’s matchup against the Philadelphia 76ers, effectively ruling him out of tonight’s contest. There still hasn’t been an official update on the status of Larry Nance Jr. and Matthew Dellavedova, so with Kevin Love already deemed unavailable for rest purposes, the Cavaliers could find themselves extremely shorthanded in the frontcourt if Nance remains sidelined. Either way, Ante Zizic will be needed to absorb a large portion of the available center minutes, and he’ll be a fine value option on tonight’s slate as long as he can avoid foul trouble against Joel Embiid, as he is averaging 1.13 DraftKings and 1.13 FanDuel points per minute with Love off the court since the All-Star break.