DFS Alerts
Cash Game Lineup Construction
Cash game lineup construction varies quite a bit depending on which site you’re playing on Saturday night. This is evident at the Point Guard position where Damian Lillard remains underpriced on DraftKings while Trae Young seems to be the most reasonable option to spend up on at PG1 on FanDuel. The one constant at the PG position, however, is Jeff Teague who is simply priced a tad too low across the industry for his matchup.
Noah Vonleh (hip) out Saturday
Vonleh is a late addition to the Knicks’ injury report and won’t play in Saturday’s matchup against the Sacramento Kings due to a bruised right hip, while Mario Hezonja remains listed as questionable with a left leg contusion that’s already forced him to miss eight consecutive games, though he’s been on the rotation bubble for a majority of the season. In Vonleh’s absence, Lance Thomas will more than likely receive the starting nod at power forward, and he’s logged a minimum of 14 minutes in four of the previous five games in both bench and starting roles. Clearly, Thomas doesn’t possess a reliable minute floor or ceiling, so he can be pretty easily ignored for daily fantasy formats considering he owns just 13.3% usage rate and is averaging only 0.58 DraftKings and 0.59 FanDuel points per minute on the year.
As reported by: NY_KnicksPR via Twitter
More Comfortable If Ingram Out
Hart is going to need injuries to break his way to become a viable cash game play. If Brandon Ingram is inactive for the Lakers, Hart should once again find himself in the starting lineup and be in line for heavy minutes. There is a path for high 20’s minutes even if Ingram is active but I would feel much more comfortable playing Hart if Ingram is confirmed out.
Bounce Back
Towns’ unreal post All-Star Game stretch came to an end on Wednesday as he fouled out in a difficult matchup against the Pistons. This is a great bounce back spot for KAT as the Timberwolves host a terrible Wizards team on the second leg of a back-to-back. Washington is allowing the second highest effective field goal percentage (55%) and the third highest offensive rebounding rate (29.1%) in the league. Towns makes for an easy cash game play on any site where rostering multiple Center eligible players is possible (DraftKings/FantasyDraft) whereas the decision will be a bit more difficult on FanDuel where rostering Towns means having to fade Alex Len who is shaping up to be one of the top value plays of the night.
Wilson Chandler (quad) will play Friday
Chandler has officially been upgraded from questionable and will play in Friday’s matchup against the Oklahoma City Thunder after missing 13 consecutive games due to a strained right quad, while Luc Mbah a Moute remains sidelined with a sore left knee, though head coach Doc Rivers continues to reiterate he is nearing a return in the not-so-distant future. This will be the first time Chandler will be on the active roster as a member of the Clippers, so it’s a bit unclear what exactly his role will be in this already deep rotation. There’s been no confirmation but Chandler will likely be subject to a minute restriction in his first game back, so the minute floors of JaMychal Green and Garrett Temple appear to be safe for at least one additional contest, though Chandler’s presence could relegate Tyrone Wallace from the rotation entirely.
As reported by: Jovan Buha via Twitter Anthony Davis (back) out Friday; Jahlil Okafor (ankle) will start
Davis is a late scratch from the Pelicans starting lineup and won’t play in Friday’s matchup against the Toronto Raptors due to lower back spasms, while Okafor has officially been upgraded from questionable and will replace Davis as the starting center in tonight’s contest. The Pelicans are also without Jrue Holiday and E’Twaun Moore, so Frank Jackson will receive the starting nod alongside Elfrid Payton in the backcourt, and Jackson has already logged at least 25 minutes off the bench in six of the previous eight games when New Orleans was closer to full strength. This means that Jackson can realistically be projected to surpass the 30-minute mark, which elevates him into consideration as a punt option in tournaments on tonight’s nine-game slate. Additionally, Stanley Johnson and Ian Clark could absorb substantial roles off the bench, but neither are likely to see enough playing time to become relevant in daily fantasy formats given the plethora of other value options to choose from this evening.
As reported by: Daniel Sallerson via Twitter Other tagged players: Jahlil Okafor Justin Holiday (neck) and Avery Bradley (ankle) available to play Friday
Holiday and Bradley have both officially been upgraded from probable and will be available to play in Friday’s matchup against the Utah Jazz despite dealing with a sore neck and a sore left ankle, respectively, while Kyle Anderson and Jaren Jackson Jr. each remain sidelined with their respective ailments. Despite consistently seeing close to starters’ minutes as a member of the starting lineup, 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: Avery Bradley Ante Zizic (concussion) available to play Friday
Zizic has officially been upgraded from questionable and will be available to play in Friday’s matchup against the Miami Heat after missing three consecutive games due to concussion-like symptoms, while Tristan Thompson continues to be sidelined by a sore left foot. In Zizic’s absence, Larry Nance was a bit inconsistent from a fantasy perspective but did log at least 32 minutes in two of his most recent spot starts. Now that Zizic is available, it’s possible Nance heads back to resume a reserve role, though it’s unlikely he sees a drastic reduction in playing time since he rarely logs fewer than 25 minutes regardless of anchoring the first or second units in head coach Larry Drew’s frontcourt rotation.
As reported by: Chris Fedor via Twitter Ricky Rubio (hip) officially out Friday
Rubio has officially been downgraded from doubtful and won’t play in Friday’s matchup against the Memphis Grizzlies due to a tight left hip, while backcourt mates Raul Neto and Dante Exum remain sidelined with their respective ailments. When Rubio was sidelined for an extended period earlier in the year, Donovan Mitchell assumed the point guard responsibilities in the starting unit, which allowed Royce O’Neale to join the starting lineup and average 32 minutes per game over that span. Unsurprisingly, Mitchell has been a phenomenal value with Rubio, Neto, and Exum off the court this season, as he owns a 38.7% usage rate (+5.0%) and is averaging 1.35 DraftKings and 1.31 FanDuel points per minute in a 477.6 minutes sample size.
As reported by: Andy Larsen via Twitter Bismack Biyombo (knee) inactive Friday
Despite originally being listed as probable on the Hornets’ injury report, Biyombo will be inactive for Friday’s matchup against the Washington Wizards due to a sprained left knee. Biyombo has taken on a diminished role in the frontcourt rotation following the return of Cody Zeller, and he’s managed to record more than 12 minutes off the bench just once in the previous seven games. Clearly, his absence won’t have too much of an impact on the remaining Hornets big men, but if Willy Hernangomez doesn’t rejoin the rotation, there could be substantially more playing time for Frank Kaminsky, who has logged at least 23 minutes in each of his last three contests.
As reported by: Rick Bonnell via Twitter Goran Dragic (calf) available to play Friday
Dragic has officially been upgraded from questionable and will be available to play in Friday’s matchup against the Cleveland Cavaliers after missing three consecutive games due to a strained left calf. In his absence, Rodney McGruder has logged at least 26 minutes off the bench in each of the previous three contests but has been relatively ineffective from a fantasy standpoint, and either he or Derrick Jones Jr. could find themselves outside of the rotation if Dragic is able to see anywhere the 25 minutes he recorded in his most recent game action.
As reported by: Tim Reynolds via Twitter Iman Shumpert (calf) will play Friday
Shumpert has officially been upgraded from questionable and will play in Friday’s matchup against the Philadelphia 76ers after missing three consecutive games due to a sore right calf, while Kenneth Faried will miss at least two additional games with a strained left adductor. In Shumpert’s most recent game, he was limited to just 13 minutes off the bench, and while his role in the rotation is still relatively up in the air, his return will almost certainly signal the end Gary Clark’s recent run at the back end of the wing and frontcourt rotations.
As reported by: Ben DuBose via Twitter Maxi Kleber (knee) out Friday
Kleber has officially been downgraded from questionable and won’t play in Friday’s matchup against the Dallas Mavericks due to a left knee effusion that has now forced him to miss two consecutive games. Kleber has assumed a slightly diminished role in his move to the bench in the favor of Dirk Nowitzki, but he has logged at least 18 minutes in each of his previous four games, though the extent of his playing time is largely based on the opposing frontcourt matchup in a particular contest. Nowitzki has absorbed most of Kleber’s vacated playing time and has played at least 20 minutes in five of the last six contests, but Dwight Powell has actually been the one to take a stranglehold on a large portion of the frontcourt minutes, and he’ll draw an exploitable against Nikola Vucevic and the Magic frontcourt.
As reported by: Brad Townsend via Twitter Ben Simmons (illness) will play Friday
Simmons has officially been upgraded from questionable and will play in Friday’s matchup against the Houston Rockets despite dealing with a bout of gastroenteritis, while Joel Embiid and Boban Marjanovic were already ruled out once again with their respective ailments. There’s been no report of a potential minute restriction for Simmons, but if he’s limited in any way, T.J. McConnell would almost certainly see extended run, and he’s managed to record no fewer than 17 minutes off the bench in five of the previous six games. In Embiid’s absence, Amir Johnson has started and logged 20 minutes in two straight contests, but given the matchup with Clint Capela, it’s certainly plausible that Jonah Bolden and Mike Scott take on a larger portion of the available center minutes this evening.
As reported by: Keith Pompey via Twitter Kevon Looney (groin) and Shaun Livingston (neck) listed as available Friday
Looney and Livingston have both been listed as available to play in Friday’s matchup against the Denver Nuggets after previously being questionable due to their respective ailments, while Klay Thompson confirmed with reporters that he will return from a two-game absence stemming from a sore right knee. There’s been no report of a potential minute restriction for Thompson, so he’ll presumably absorb his typical playing time allotment as the starting shooting guard, which will send Alfonzo McKinnie back to the bench to resume a reserve role following a couple of dismal fantasy performances in an average of just 12.2 minutes per spot start. McKinnie did exit one of those contests early because of an injury, but Damion Lee still logged at least 26 minutes off the bench on both occasions, so it’ll be interesting to see if he remains in the rotation ahead of McKinnie with the Warriors now back at full strength.
As reported by: NBA Official Injury Report Other tagged players: Shaun Livingston