DFS Alerts
Karl-Anthony Towns (concussion) questionable Saturday; Gorgui Dieng (personal) remains out
Towns has officially been listed as questionable for Saturday’s matchup against the Milwaukee Bucks due to a concussion, while Dieng remains away from the team dealing with a personal matter and will miss his second consecutive games. In their absences, Taj Gibson received the starting nod at center, and he was stellar from a fantasy perspective in 31 minutes of action in Friday’s win. On the other hand, Dario Saric was limited to 24 minutes or fewer in favor of Luol Deng for a second straight contest, despite starting on both occasions, though he continues to be efficient when on the court and has exceeded his salary-based expectations over that same span. Towns has only missed one game all season, so there isn’t a tremendous sample size with him off the court. However, in that time, Derrick Rose and Andrew Wiggins have been the clear beneficiaries, as they each own at least a +5.6% usage rate differential and experience a minimum of a +0.26 increase to their per minute fantasy production in the aforementioned scenario.
As reported by: Timberwolves PR via Twitter Other tagged players: Gorgui Dieng
Anthony Davis (rest) and E'Twaun Moore (rest) out Saturday; Darius Miller (ankle) doubtful
Davis and Moore have both officially been ruled out of Friday’s matchup against the Los Angeles Lakers due to rest purposes on the second leg of a back-to-back set, while Miller is listed as doubtful with a sprained right ankle that has already forced him to miss one game. Davis was limited to just 20 minutes in Friday’s loss, which allowed Cheick Diallo to greatly exceed his salary-based expectations in 26 minutes off the bench. Jahlil Okafor was only allotted 17 minutes with the second unit in that contest, but he’s still the likeliest candidate to replace Davis in the starting lineup at center and should enable him to see a significant uptick in playing time this evening. There’s obviously not a tremendous sample size with Davis, Moore, and the departed Nikola Mirotic off the court this season, but in that time, Julius Randle owns a 32.7% usage rate (+4.9%) and is averaging 1.74 DraftKings and 1.71 FanDuel points per minute.
As reported by: Pelicans PR via Twitter Other tagged players: E'Twaun Moore, Darius Miller Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot (oblique) listed as probable Saturday
Luwawu-Cabarrot has been listed as probable on the most recent version of the Bulls’ injury report for Saturday’s matchup against the Boston Celtics due to a right oblique contusion, despite managing to log six minutes in Friday’s win. There were no reports of a potential minute restriction for Luwawu-Cabarrot, so it remains to be seen if the drastic reduction in playing time was injury-related or if it signaled a shift in head coach Jim Boylen’s rotation on the second half. If it was injury-related, Luwawu-Cabarrot will presumably resume his typical role off the bench that had enabled him to average 16.7 minutes as a member of the Bulls over his previous five games before the All-Star break.
As reported by: NBA Official Injury Report Myles Turner (hip) and Tyreke Evans (ankle) listed as questionable Saturday
Turner has been listed as questionable on the most recent version of the Pacers’ injury report for Saturday’s matchup against the Washington Wizards due to a bruised left hip that has already forced him to miss one game, while Evans is also listed as questionable with a sore left ankle, despite logging 19 minutes in Friday’s win. In Turner’s absence, head coach Nate McMillan opted to start Kyle O’Quinn at center in order to keep his second unit intact, and O’Quinn was stellar from a fantasy perspective in just 20 minutes of action. If Turner is unable to suit up once again, Domantas Sabonis will still be an excellent option for daily fantasy formats on tonight’s 11-game slate, despite coming off the bench, as he’s been stellar from a fantasy perspective in the six games Turner has been sidelined. In fact, Sabonis owns a 24.5% usage rate and is averaging 1.38 fantasy points per minute with Turner and Victor Oladipo off the court this season.
As reported by: NBA Official Injury Report Other tagged players: Tyreke Evans Luka Doncic (ankle) listed as questionable Saturday
Doncic has been included on the most recent version of the Mavericks’ injury report and is listed as questionable for Saturday’s matchup against the Utah Jazz due to a sore right ankle that’s already forced him to miss one game, while J.J. Barea and Kristaps Porzingis remain sidelined with their respective ailments and neither are expected to be available for the remainder of the season. Doncic has been an excellent source of fantasy value following the departure of Dennis Smith Jr. to the New York Knicks via trade, as he’s exceeded salary-based expectations in five of his previous six games while averaging 33.5 minutes per contest over that span. If Doncic is unable to suit up, Jalen Brunson would be the likeliest candidate to draw the start at point guard once again, and he’d certainly be in play as a viable punt option in all fantasy formats in this scenario. In fact, Brunson owns a 26.0% usage rate (+6.3%) and is averaging 1.11 DraftKings and 1.08 FanDuel points per minute with Doncic and all of the departed Mavericks off the court this season.
As reported by: NBA Official Injury Report Jonas Valanciunas (personal) questionable Saturday
Valanciunas has officially been listed as questionable for Saturday’s matchup against the Cleveland Cavaliers as he continues to deal with a personal matter, while Jaren Jackson Jr. will be sidelined indefinitely due to a right quad contusion. In their absences, Bruno Caboclo received the starting nod at power forward, but he was limited to just 11 minutes with Ivan Rabb and Joakim Noah recording 25 and 30 minutes, respectively. Chandler Parsons also returned to the rotation and recorded 20 minutes off the bench in Friday’s loss, and he’s been excluded from the latest Grizzlies’ injury report, clearing the path for him to play in his first back-to-back situation all season. Noah’s viability in daily fantasy formats will likely depend on the status of Valanciunas, but with him, Jackson Jr., and all the departed Grizzlies off the court this season, Noah owns a 21.2% usage rate and is averaging 1.30 DraftKings and 1.36 FanDuel points per minute in a 90.7 minutes sample size.
As reported by: Grizzlies PR via Twitter He Will Be Hard to Overlook Tonight
Coming into the afternoon, James Harden is listed as questionable with a cervical strain. With all the studs to pay up for on this slate and the fact that Harden has somewhat underperformed with Chris Paul back, he should easily see low ownership tonight. I think in this matchup, if he is healthy, he should play close to 40 minutes and jack up a ton of shots. Hopefully, we can get an update on Harden’s status before lock of the first games.
Underpriced for Starting Role
Kevin Huerter is listed as doubtful for Saturday night’s contest which should mean another start for Kent Bazemore. Bazemore was a little disappointing as chalk in last night’s game against the Pistons but he did see 34 minutes of action and barely saw an increase in his price tag. Bazemore owns a modest 23.8% usage rate this season and is capable of filling out the stat sheet – he’s simply underpriced for a starting role.
Run Big Man, Run
Ayton is in a great spot tonight against a Hawks team that is on its second half of a back to back. Ayton has played 30 or more minutes in six of his last seven games. Having him going up against this fast-paced Hawks team that struggles to defend the center position should bode well for him. What I love the most about Ayton is how he runs the floor, as that could really benefit his fantasy production tonight.
Ideal Big Man Matchup
If you’re a big man, you can’t ask for a much better matchup than the Washington Wizards. The Wiz allow the third highest offensive rebounding rate (29.2%), the third highest frequency of shot attempts (38.8%) at the rim and the fourth highest effective field goal percentage at the rim (66.4%) in the league. Myles Turner is listed as questionable for Saturday’s game and if he’s unable to suit up, Sabonis becomes a core play while Kyle O’Quinn would be one of the top value options on the slate. If Turner suits up, I still like Sabonis as a secondary cash option while KOQ would be unplayable.
Other tagged players: Kyle O'Quinn The Flash Back in Miami Tonight
Wade has been rounding into form over the last several weeks, and it has definitely shown in his play. The veteran has taken double-digit shot attempts in eight of his last 10 games. With the news of Justise Winslow being out, I feel like Wade will be the primary ball handler and we might even see him hit closer to 30 minutes. Even with Dragic being back I don’t see them running him out for a ton of minutes, so I think Wade will have to be extra aggressive.
Justise Winslow (knee) and James Johnson (shoulder) out Saturday; Goran Dragic (knee) probable
Winslow and Johnson have both officially been ruled out of Saturday’s matchup against the Detroit Pistons due to a sprained knee and a sprained left shoulder, respectively, while Dragic has been upgraded to probable as he continues to recover from a right knee procedure. However, head coach Erik Spoelstra already confirmed that Dragic will come off the bench if he’s cleared to play, which means that Josh Richardson would likely assume the primary ballhandling responsibilities in the starting unit and Rodney McGruder would be the leading candidate to start alongside Dion Waiters on the wing. McGruder recently rejoined the rotation following the departure of Tyler Johnson to Phoenix via trade, and he’s logged a minimum of 20 minutes in four of the previous five games. Dwyane Wade can also be expected to see starter minutes off the bench, and he leads the Heat with a 28.0% usage rate while averaging 1.07 DraftKings and 1.05 FanDuel points per minute on the season.
As reported by: Tim Reynolds via Twitter Other tagged players: James Johnson, Goran Dragic Don't Make a Habit
I don’t typically make a habit of playing the second most expensive player on the slate on the second leg of a back-to-back after the first game went to double OT but Russell Westbrook is the rare exception. To be fair, RWB did foul out early which allowed him to log only 43 minutes of action and it’s certainly in his favor that both legs of the b2b are home games. All of that to say, I’m not overly concerned about Westbrook’s legs tonight after getting plenty of rest over the All-Star Break and even if you dock him slightly he still rates as the top high-priced spend of the slate. SAC @ OKC owns the highest total of the 11-game slate and I won’t exposure to Westy who seems to have finally found his shot.
Luka Doncic (ankle) out Friday
Doncic has officially been downgraded from questionable and won’t play in Friday’s matchup against the Denver Nuggets due to a sore right ankle, while J.J. Barea and Kristaps Porzingis remain sidelined with their respective ailments and neither are expected to be available for the remainder of the season. Doncic has been an excellent source of fantasy value following the departure of Dennis Smith Jr. to the New York Knicks via trade, as he’s exceeded his salary-based expectations in five of the previous six games while averaging 33.5 minutes per contest over that span. With Doncic unable to suit up, Jalen Brunson is the likeliest candidate to draw the start at point guard, and he’ll certainly be in consideration as a viable punt option in all daily fantasy formats in this scenario. In fact, Brunson owns a 25.6% usage rate (+6.2%) and is averaging 1.10 DraftKings and 1.08 FanDuel points per minute with Doncic and all of the departed Mavericks off the court this season.
As reported by: Brad Townsend via Twitter Joakim Noah (heel), Jevon Carter (knee), and Tyler Dorsey (knee) available to play Friday
Noah, Carter, and Dorsey have all officially been upgraded from probable and will be available to play in Friday’s matchup against the Los Angeles Clippers despite dealing with their respective ailments, though Carter and Corsey don’t project to have significant, if any, roles in the rotation with Chandler Parsons and Mike Conley making their returns to the lineup this evening. In Jaren Jackson’s absence, Bruno Caboclo will receive the starting nod at power forward, and his playing time had been sporadic of late, as he logged 10 minutes or fewer in two of the previous three games prior to the All-Star break. However, with Jonas Valanciunas also unavailable, Caboclo, Noah, and Ivan Rabb all project to have substantial minute floors in a depleted Grizzlies frontcourt, while Parsons should see nominal minutes at the forward positions in what will be just his fourth game of the season.
As reported by: Grizzlies PR via Twitter Other tagged players: Jevon Carter, Tyler Dorsey