DFS Alerts
Andrew Wiggins (illness) out Wednesday
Wiggins has officially been downgraded from questionable and won’t play in Wednesday’s matchup against the Houston Rockets due to an illness that has now forced him to miss two consecutive games, while Tyus Jones remains doubtful and Derrick Rose remains probable and fully expected to play in tonight’s contest. In Wiggins’ absence, Luol Deng drew his first start of the season at small forward and was stellar from a fantasy perspective for his price tag in 38 minutes of action in Monday’s win. Dario Saric also replaced Taj Gibson as the starting power forward in that contest, and he procured a phenomenal fantasy outing in 34 minutes, keeping him firmly in consideration as a value option for tournament formats on tonight’s 11-game slate. There isn’t a tremendous sample size with Wiggins, Jones, and Robert Covington off the court, but in that time, Rose owns a 39.3% usage rate (+11.2%) and is averaging 1.44 DraftKings and 1.46 FanDuel points per minute.
As reported by: Chris Hine via Twitter
Kris Dunn (back) out Wednesday; Ryan Arcidiacano will start
Dunn has officially been downgraded from questionable and won’t play in Wednesday’s matchup against the Memphis Grizzlies due to a bruised back that already forced him to miss Tuesday’s practice. In his absence, Ryan Arcidiacano will receive the starting nod alongside Zach LaVine in the backcourt, and he’ll have plenty of maneuverability for an increase in playing time since he’s logged fewer than 18 minutes off the bench in each of the Bulls previous five games. Shaquille Harrison will also be in line for an uptick in minutes sans Dunn, but he’s averaged just 11.2 minutes over the last three games, making him difficult to trust as a punt option in tournaments. Unsurprisingly, LaVine has been the main beneficiary with Dunn of the court, as he owns a 35.0% usage rate (+3.1%) and is averaging 1.30 DraftKings and 1.28 FanDuel points per minute in this scenario.
As reported by: Cody Westerlund via Twitter Other tagged players: Ryan Arcidiacono Tomas Satoransky (personal) out Wednesday
Satoransky has officially been downgraded from questionable and won’t play in Wednesday’s matchup against the Toronto Raptors due to a personal matter that has now forced him to miss two consecutive games. In his absence, Chasson Randle will draw the start at point guard once again, and he’s coming off of a dismal fantasy performance in 19 minutes of action in his first spot start in Monday’s loss. Instead of extending the minutes of Randle or Jordan McRae in that contest, head coach Scott Brooks opted to utilize Bradley Beal as the primary ball handler for lengthy stretches of the game, and Beal ended up logging 41 minutes total at both guard positions. The sample size for this new-look Wizards squad with Satoransky off the court is still tremendously small, but in that time, Beal, Randle, Trevor Ariza, and Thomas Bryant have all experienced significant increases to their per minute fantasy production.
As reported by: the Washington Wizards via Twitter Emmanuel Mudiay (shoulder) listed out Wednesday
Mudiay has been downgraded from doubtful on the most recent version of the Knicks’ injury report and won’t play in Wednesday’s matchup against the Philadelphia 76ers due to a strained left shoulder that has now forced him to miss 11 consecutive games. Mudiay hasn’t been active in any of the games since Dennis Smith Jr. and DeAndre Jordan were acquired prior to the trade deadline, so his continued absence won’t have an impact on the current state of head coach David Fizdale’s rotation. Smith Jr. has been mostly consistent from a fantasy perspective while flashing occasional upside in his first five games as a member of the Knicks, as he leads the team with a 30.1% usage rate and is averaging 1.08 DraftKings and 1.11 FanDuel points per minute in a 161.8 minutes sample size over that span.
As reported by: NBA Official Injury Report Terry Rozier (illness) and Robert Williams (illness) out Wednesday
Rozier has officially been downgraded from doubtful and won’t play in Wednesday’s matchup against the Detroit Pistons due to an illness, while Robert Williams is a new addition to the injury report and has also been ruled out with an illness. This news combined with Kyrie Irving’s unavailability will leave the Celtics relatively thin at the point guard position since Rozier has started every game Irving has missed this season, so Marcus Smart figures to see more time as the primary playmaker in the first unit, while Jaylen Brown should draw the start alongside him in the backcourt. Brad Wanamaker only logged six minutes off the bench in Tuesday’s win, but he also figures to play a prominent role in the backcourt rotation with two of Brad Stevens’ top options sidelined this evening. With Rozier, Irving and Aron Baynes off the court this season, Jayson Tatum and Gordon Hayward both own at least a +4.9% usage differential and experience a minimum increase of +0.39 to their per minute fantasy production, putting them firmly in consideration for all formats on tonight’s 11-game slate, though Tatum may be the most intriguing of the two, as he leads the Celtics with 33.7% usage rate (+10.1%) in this scenario.
As reported by: Tom Westerholm via Twitter Other tagged players: Robert Williams III Kawhi Leonard (knee) out Wednesday
Leonard has officially been downgraded from questionable and won’t play in Wednesday’s matchup against the Washington Wizards due to a sore left knee, while Fred VanVleet remains sidelined with a partially torn ligament in his left thumb and is expected to miss at least another five weeks. However, his absence in the second unit will be somewhat nullified by the signing of Jeremy Lin, who will make his Raptors debut in tonight’s contest. With Leonard unable to suit up, head coach Nick Nurse could opt to go in several different directions with his starting lineup sans VanVleet, though Norman Powell or OG Anunoby would appear to be the likeliest candidates to receive the starting nod alongside Danny Green on the wing. The presence of Marc Gasol could alter the Raptors current usage allocations in both the first and second units but with Leonard and VanVleet off the court this season, Serge Ibaka and Kyle Lowry each own at least a +3.3% usage rate differential and experience a minimum of a +0.20 increase to their per minute production, making them logical players to target in tournament formats.
As reported by: Josh Lewenberg via Twitter Treveon Graham (personal) out Wednesday
Graham is a late addition to the Nets’ injury report and won’t play in Wednesday’s matchup against the Cleveland Cavaliers due to a personal matter, while Rodions Kurucs was already ruled out with a sprained right ankle, leaving Brooklyn down two starters for tonight’s contest. The Nets are also still without Jared Dudley and Spencer Dinwiddie, so Rondae Hollis-Jefferson appears to be the likeliest candidate to the receive the starting nod at power forward, and he’s typically been seeing minutes in the low-20s off the bench in recent games. Caris LeVert and Shabazz Napier are also in consideration to join the starting lineup, though head coach Kenny Atkinson seems to prefer bringing LeVert off the bench to fill Dinwiddie’s vacated sixth-man role and Napier has been serving as the backup point guard in his absence, which could lead to Allen Crabbe drawing the start alongside Joe Harris on the wing. Additionally, Kurucs has played 17 or fewer minutes in two of the last three games, so his absence shouldn’t be expected to drastically alter Atkinson’s frontcourt rotation as a whole this evening.
As reported by: Brian Lewis via Twitter Increased Opportunity for this Salary Saver
Marcus Morris has been producing at a rather consistent level lately, and has not always had the same level of responsibility in the offense that he may carry tonight vs. the Pistons. The lightest expectation I have seen on minutes for him is 31, and I think 33 minutes is more than fair. The projection starts to look great in a hurry if you put his efficiency slightly over 1 point per minute, which is also fair given the absence of both Kyrie Irving (at 28% projected USG) and Terry Rozier (at 18% projected USG). That puts him into big time plus value (+5.72 RGval on FD / +6.15 DK) territory despite a somewhat challenging matchup with the Pistons front court. He is exceptionally unlikely to sink your lineup with his projected playing time, and the situation presents upside if the shooting percentage falls on the high side. Capitalize on the increased opportunity here and save some salary in the process.
GPP Thrilla
Barton enters a favorable matchup with the Sacramento Kings priced as a +1.47 RGval on DK and +.34 value on Fanduel. Looking at Barton for a median output is a mistake, though. Per Kevin Cole’s 90th percentile ceiling projections, he has an outlier upside as high as 53 fantasy points. We are looking for the upside well beyond median when we click his name in GPP. He’s been cold shooting the basketball with games of 3/12, 6/16, 1/6, 3/9, and 7/17 in his last 5 games. He will eventually get hot shooting, and I want to be there when it happens. The Kings allow a 4% bump in FG% over average to scoring wings, and facilitate ancillary stats for ball handling scorers as well. At this price tag and on an 11 game slate, I will be attempting to catch a peak performance without the ownership % a player projected like this would normally carry.
Andre Iguodala (rest) questionable Wednesday
Iguodala has been added to the Warriors’ injury report and is officially questionable to play in Wednesday’s matchup against the Portland Trail Blazers due to rest purposes on the second leg of a back-to-back set, while DeMarcus Cousins and Shaun Livingston have already been ruled out and will be rested for tonight’s contest. Iguodala returned from a one-game absence because of a tight left hamstring and logged 28 minutes off the bench in Tuesday’s win, so it would be far from shocking to see the Warriors hold him out this evening, and his potential absence should theoretically allow Alfonzo McKinnie to take on a larger role in the wing rotation, especially with Livingston unavailable. Ever since Cousins made his Warriors debut nearly a month ago, Stephen Curry has been the main beneficiary with him and Livingston off the court, as he owns a 36.6% usage rate (+7.3%) and is averaging 1.51 DraftKings and 1.46 FanDuel points per minute in a 161.5 minutes sample size.
As reported by: Jamie Hudson via Twitter Cedi Osman (ankle) and Ante Zizic (back) listed as available Wednesday
Osman and Zizic have both been upgraded from questionable on the most recent version of the Cavaliers’ injury report and are listed as available to play in Wednesday’s matchup against the Brooklyn Nets, while Kevin Love has already been ruled out for rest purposes as part of his return from injury management plan. Love has played in two games since returning from a foot injury that kept him sidelined for 50 games, but he’s yet to log more than 16 minutes in either contest, making his absence a bit less meaningful this evening. The last time Love was rested, Marquese Chriss drew the start alongside Larry Nance in the frontcourt, and he’s been serviceable from a fantasy perspective in an average of 23.1 minutes over the previous three games. There’s been no word of a potential minute restriction for Osman, so he’ll presumably replace Brandon Knight, who logged 16 minutes in his first spot start, in the starting lineup, assuming head coach Larry Drew rolls with Chriss at center once again.
As reported by: NBA Official Injury Report Other tagged players: Ante Zizic Isaiah Thomas (hip) will play Wednesday
ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski is reporting that Thomas will be available to make his Nuggets and season debut in Wednesday’s matchup against the Sacramento Kings after originally being listed as questionable due to right hip surgery that has forced him to miss the entire regular season up until this point. Since Gary Harris is still sidelined with a groin injury, there will be some minutes available for Thomas for the duration of his absence, but once Harris returns, there appears to be quite a logjam in the Nuggets backcourt, as Malik Beasley and Monte Morris have both proven that they deserve as much playing time as possible in the second unit behind Harris and Jamal Murray at the guard positions. There’s been no confirmation of a minute restriction for Thomas in his first game back, but the Nuggets will almost certainly ease him back into action, making it realistic he’ll see anywhere between 5-15 minutes this evening.
As reported by: Adrian Wojnarowski via Twitter Terry Rozier (illness) doubtful Wednesday; Kyrie Irving (knee) remains out
Rozier has officially been listed as doubtful on the Celtics’ injury report for Wednesday’s matchup against the Detroit Pistons due to an illness, while Kyrie Irving will miss a second consecutive game with a sprained right knee after originally being classified as day-to-day. This news will leave the Celtics relatively thin at the point guard position since Rozier has started every game Irving has missed this season, so Marcus Smart figures to see more time as the primary playmaker in the first unit, while Jaylen Brown should draw the start alongside him in the backcourt. Brad Wanamaker only logged six minutes off the bench in Tuesday’s win, but he also figures to play a prominent role in the backcourt rotation with two of Brad Stevens’ top options likely sidelined this evening. With Rozier, Irving and Aron Baynes off the court this season, Jayson Tatum and Gordon Hayward both own at least a +4.9% usage differential and experience a minimum increase of +0.39 to their per minute fantasy production, putting them firmly in consideration for all formats on tonight’s 11-game slate, though Tatum may be the most intriguing of the two, as he leads the Celtics with 33.7% usage rate (+10.1%) in this scenario.
As reported by: Tom Westerholm via Twitter Other tagged players: Kyrie Irving Dwyane Wade (illness) questionable Wednesday
Wade has been added to the Heat’s injury report and is officially questionable for Wednesday’s matchup against the Dallas Mavericks due to an illness. Even following the departure of Tyler Johnson to Phoenix via trade, Wade has been consistently capping out in the high-20s in terms of minutes, which certainly keeps him in consideration for tournament formats on most slates. His potential absence would certainly be a boon to the minute floors of Rodney McGruder and Dion Waiters, though Waiters has already logged at least 30 minutes in each of the Heat’s previous three games, so it remains to be seen how much head coach Erik Spoelstra would be willing to increase his minute workload. This could lead to substantially more run in the second unit for McGruder, who’s played a minimum of 20 minutes off the bench in the last two contests, while Duncan Robinson could be relied upon to soak up meaningful minutes for realistically the first time all season should Wade be unable to suit up.
As reported by: Barry Jackson via Twitter Kawhi Leonard (knee) questionable Wednesday
Leonard has been added to the Raptors’ injury report and is officially questionable for Wednesday’s matchup against the Washington Wizards due to a sore left knee, while Fred VanVleet remains sidelined with a partially torn ligament in his left thumb and is expected to miss at least another three weeks. However, his absence in the second unit will be somewhat nullified by the signing of Jeremy Lin, who will make his Raptors debut in tonight’s contest. If Leonard is unable to suit up, head coach Nick Nurse could opt to go in several different directions with his starting lineup sans VanVleet, though Norman Powell or OG Anunoby would appear to be the likeliest candidates to receive the starting nod alongside Danny Green on the wing. The presence of Marc Gasol could alter the Raptors current usage allocations in both the first and second units but with Leonard and VanVleet off the court this season, Serge Ibaka and Kyle Lowry each own at least a +3.3% usage rate differential and experience a minimum of a +0.20 increase to their per minute production.
As reported by: Blake Murphy via Twitter