DFS Alerts
Rudy Gay (illness) out Sunday
Gay has officially been downgraded from questionable and won’t play in Sunday’s matchup against the Milwaukee Bucks due to an illness, while Jakob Poeltl wasn’t included on the injury report and is set to return from a one-game absence stemming from a sore left hamstring. There’s yet to be any confirmation on who will replace Gay in the starting lineup, but Poeltl has started alongside LaMarcus Aldridge in the frontcourt recently when the opposing matchup has permitted and managed to record at least 26 minutes in his two most recent starts prior to his aforementioned injury hiatus. Unsurprisingly, DeMar DeRozan and Derrick White have been the primary beneficiaries with Gay off the court this season, as they each own at least a +2.0% usage rate differential and experience a minimum of a +0.11 increase to their per minute fantasy production in this scenario.
As reported by: Paul Garcia via Twitter
Anthony Davis (back) will start Sunday
Davis has officially been upgraded from questionable and will start in Sunday’s matchup against the Atlanta Hawks after missing one game due to lower back spasms, while there’s yet to be an official update on Jahlil Okafor, who remains listed as questionable with a sprained right ankle, but with Davis active, his role in the frontcourt rotation will be drastically diminished. The Pelicans are still without Jrue Holiday and E’Twaun Moore, so Frank Jackson will receive a second straight start alongside Elfrid Payton in the backcourt, and he was serviceable from a fantasy perspective in 37 minutes of action in Friday’s blowout loss. Additionally, Ian Clark should absorb a substantial role off the bench once again, and he could be worth a look in large-field tournament formats considering he owns a 22.4% usage rate (+4.4%) and is averaging 0.84 DraftKings and 0.86 FanDuel points per minute with Holiday, Moore, and all of the departed former Pelicans off the court this season.
As reported by: the New Orleans Pelicans via Twitter Avery Bradley (ankle) and C.J. Miles (knee) available to play Sunday
Bradley and Miles have both officially been upgraded from probable and will be available to play in Sunday’s matchup against the Orlando Magic despite dealing with a sore left ankle and a sore right knee, respectively, while Kyle Anderson and Jaren Jackson Jr. each remain sidelined. Despite consistently seeing close to starters’ minutes as a member of the starting lineup, Justin Holiday has been brutal from a fantasy perspective, as he owns just a 15.8% usage rate and is averaging 0.51 DraftKings and 0.54 FanDuel points per minute with the aforementioned players and all the departed former Grizzlies off the court. On the other hand, Bradley has flashed some significant upside relative to his price tag of late and owns a 23.4% usage rate with an average of 0.99 DraftKings and 0.97 FanDuel points per minute in this same scenario.
As reported by: Grizzlies PR via Twitter Other tagged players: C.J. Miles Maxi Kleber (knee) available to play Sunday
Kleber has officially been upgraded from questionable and will be available to play in Sunday’s matchup against the Houston Rockets after missing two consecutive games due to a left knee effusion. In Kleber’s absence, Dorian Finney-Smith replaced Dirk Nowitzki at power forward in the starting lineup and has averaged 26.5 minutes, despite being underwhelming from a fantasy perspective, in his two latest spot starts. This also allowed Justin Jackson to log at least 21 minutes off the bench in each of the aforementioned contests, but his status in the rotation will be in question moving forward, assuming Kleber is afforded his typical role in the frontcourt pecking order upon his return. It seems unlikely that head coach Rick Carlisle would make a change to his starting lineup given the matchup with Houston, so Kleber, Nowitzki, and Jackson could end up battling for the same frontcourt minutes with the second unit this evening.
As reported by: Jonathan Feigen via Twitter Dewayne Dedmon (knee) will play off the bench with a limit of 20 minutes on Sunday
Dedmon has gone from questionable to probable and will now play in Sunday’s matchup against the New Orleans Pelicans after missing two consecutive games due to a bruised right knee. However, head coach Lloyd Pierce already confirmed that Dedmon will come off the bench and be limited to 20 minutes of action in his first game back. In his absence, Alex Len had started alongside John Collins in the frontcourt in each of the previous two games, but he was relatively underwhelming from a fantasy perspective in an average of 29 minutes per game in those spot starts. Collins has reportedly been on a minute restriction over this same time span, but he still managed to log 30 minutes in Saturday’s loss and it remains unclear if he’ll be subject to a similar limitation in tonight’s second leg of a back-to-back set.
As reported by: Kevin Chouinard via Twitter Joel Embiid (knee) will play Sunday
Embiid has officially been upgraded from questionable and will play in Sunday’s matchup against the Indiana Pacers after missing eight consecutive games due to left knee tendinitis, while Boban Marjanovic was already ruled out for a seventh straight contest with a right knee bone bruise. There’s been no report of a concrete minute restriction for Embiid, but head coach Brett Brown did disclose to reporters that Embiid will likely play in short bursts of four or five minutes, which would make it difficult for him to see much more than 24-28 minutes of action this afternoon. However, his return will still send Amir Johnson and Jonah Bolden back to the bench to resume reserve roles after they absorbed a majority of the traditional center minutes following the injuries to Embiid and Marjanovic just after the All-Star break. Over that span, Jimmy Butler led the way with a 25.3% usage rate and Ben Simmons averaged 1.31 fantasy points per minute, though they both can be removed from cash game consideration with Embiid now back in the fold.
As reported by: Kyle Neubeck via Twitter Domantas Sabonis (ankle) will play Sunday; Tyreke Evans (illness) ruled out
Sabonis has officially been upgraded from questionable and will play in Sunday’s matchup against the Philadelphia 76ers after missing five consecutive games due to a sprained left ankle, while Evans has been ruled out because of an illness. In Sabonis’ absence, Kyle O’Quinn entered the rotation as the primary backup center and averaged 13.4 minutes off the bench in the previous five contests, while TJ Leaf averaged 13.2 minutes as the backup four over the same timespan. However, with Sabonis back in the fold and presumably not hindered by a minute restriction, both big men are in danger of being on the receiving end of a DNP-CD on a nightly basis, but Leaf did manage to record meaningful minutes in the three games prior to Sabonis’ injury hiatus, giving him a decent chance of sticking in the frontcourt rotation moving forward.
As reported by: Scott Agness via Twitter Other tagged players: Tyreke Evans Karl-Anthony Towns (knee) and Andrew Wiggins (quad) questionable Sunday
Towns and Wiggins have both officially been listed as questionable on Timberwolves’ injury report for Sunday’s matchup against the New York Knicks due to their respective ailments, while Luol Deng is listed as doubtful with a sore left Achilles that has already forced him to miss five consecutive games. Without Wiggins available for Saturday’s win, Keita Bates-Diop ended up receiving the starting nod at small forward, but he was relatively underwhelming from a fantasy perspective considering he managed to record 37 minutes of action in his spot start. Unsurprisingly, there isn’t a tremendous sample size with Towns, Wiggins, Deng, and Robert Covington all off the court together, but Derrick Rose, Taj Gibson, and Josh Okogie have seen the most playing time in this scenario and own at least a +7.1% usage rate differential while experiencing a minimum of a +0.21 increase to their per minute fantasy production.
As reported by: Timberwolves PR via Twitter Other tagged players: Andrew Wiggins Noah Vonleh (hip) listed as probable Sunday; Mario Hezonja (leg) listed out
Vonleh has been listed as probable on the most recent version of the Knicks’ injury report for Sunday’s matchup against the Minnesota Timberwolves after missing one game due to a right hip contusion, while Hezonja has been listed out and is set to miss a 10th straight contest with a left leg contusion. In his absence, Lance Thomas received the starting nod at power forward but was underwhelming from a fantasy perspective, per usual, in 25 minutes of action in Saturday’s loss. Clearly, Thomas doesn’t possess a reliable minute floor or ceiling, especially with Vonleh likely back in the fold, so he can be pretty easily ignored for daily fantasy formats considering he owns just 13.5% usage rate and is averaging only 0.59 DraftKings and 0.60 FanDuel points per minute on the year.
As reported by: NBA Official Injury Report Other tagged players: Mario Hezonja Dewayne Dedmon (knee) questionable Sunday
Dedmon has officially been listed as questionable on the Hawks’ injury report for Sunday’s matchup against the New Orleans Pelicans after missing two consecutive games due to a bruised right knee. In his absence, Alex Len has started alongside John Collins in the frontcourt in each of the previous two games, but he was relatively underwhelming from a fantasy perspective in an average of 29 minutes per game in those spot starts. Collins has reportedly been on a minute restriction over this same span, but he still managed to log 30 minutes in Saturday’s loss and it remains unclear if he’ll be subject to a similar limitation in tonight’s second leg of a back-to-back set. If Dedmon is unable to suit up, Len still possesses massive upside at his price tag, as he owns a respectable 20.1% usage rate and is averaging 1.10 DraftKings and 1.11 FanDuel points per minute with Dedmon, Poythress, Omari Spellman, and Miles Plumlee off the court this season.
As reported by: Kevin Chouinard via Twitter Reggie Jackson (thumb) will start Sunday
Jackson has officially been upgraded from questionable and will start in Sunday’s matchup against the Chicago Bulls despite dealing with a sprained right thumb, while there’s yet to be an official update on Zaza Pachulia, though he appears to at least be active considering Bruce Brown and Svi Mykhailiuk are the only players listed as inactive for today’s contest. In Brown’s absence, Glenn Robinson III will receive the starting nod at small forward since head coach Dwane Casey seems to prefer to keep Luke Kennard in his typical sixth-man role off the bench. Still, Robinson has consistently been at the backend of the rotation and has yet to play more than 15 minutes in any game since the calendar flipped over to 2019, which means that Kennard should be expected to see close to starters’ minutes and is the preferred target of two in all daily fantasy formats this afternoon.
As reported by: Rod Beard via Twitter Zach LaVine (knee) out Sunday; Ryan Arcidiacono will start
Despite being listed as probable on the Bulls’ injury report, LaVine has officially been ruled out and won’t play in Sunday’s matchup against the Detroit Pistons due to a strained right patellar tendon. In his absence, Arcidiacano will receive the starting nod alongside Kris Dunn in the backcourt, and he’s continued to lead the second unit following the All-Star break and has logged at least 22 minutes off the bench in three of the previous four games. The unavailability of LaVine should also theoretically allow Wayne Selden to see extended minutes on the wing with the second unit, and he, Dunn, and Otto Porter all own at least a +6.9% usage rate differential with LaVine off the court since the All-Star break. However, Porter has led the way from a fantasy production standpoint, as he is averaging 1.09 DraftKings and 1.03 FanDuel points per minute in the aforementioned scenario.
As reported by: the Chicago Bulls via Twitter Other tagged players: Ryan Arcidiacono Bruce Brown (ankle) out Sunday
Despite being listed as probable on the Pistons’ injury report, Brown has officially been ruled out and won’t play in Sunday’s matchup against the Chicago Bulls due to a sprained right ankle, while there’s yet to be an official update on Reggie Jackson and Zaza Pachulia, though they both appear to at least be active considering Brown and Svi Mykhailiuk are the only players listed as inactive for today’s contest. In Brown’s absence, Glenn Robinson III will receive the starting nod at small forward since head coach Dwane Casey seems to prefer to keep Luke Kennard in his typical sixth-man role off the bench. Still, Robinson has consistently been at the backend of the rotation and has yet to play more than 15 minutes in any game since the calendar flipped over to 2019, which means that Kennard should be expected to see close to starters’ minutes and is the preferred target of two in all daily fantasy formats this afternoon.
As reported by: Rod Beard via Twitter To Pay or Not To Pay
The thought of paying up for either Steph Curry or Kevin Durant in a game where they are 16-point home favorites doesn’t feel right but Sunday’s slate may call for it. If Towns is unable to suit up for the Timberwolves, that means we have plenty of value available to fit in a couple of high-priced plays but the crop to pick from isn’t exactly strong. That means we may be forced to roster a player or two that is flawed and that we typically wouldn’t roster on a slate of a bigger size. Enter Steph Curry and Kevin Durant. If choosing between the two I would side with Durant simply because of positional scarcity – the mid-priced PG options (Elf Payton, Jeff Teague) are stronger than the mid-priced SF options.
Other tagged players: Kevin Durant
Life Without Jrue
Elfrid Payton remains underpriced for life without Jrue Holiday. Even prior to Holiday’s absence, Payton had been a steady source of fantasy production as he’s topped 27-fantasy points in 8-of-9 games since returning from injury. That’s a strong floor for someone in Payton’s price range and this is a favorable spot for a ceiling game as the Pelicans take on an Atlanta Hawks team that is poor defensively and that plays at the fastest pace in the league.