DFS Alerts

Right Back To The Well

Ivica Zubac and pretty much all the Lakers were an extreme let down the other night, but as long as he’s back in the starting lineup, I’m willing to go right back to the well on him. The Clippers continue to struggle with post big men, and this could be a huge advantage for Zubac tonight. If I’m playing on FanDuel, I’m looking to play Embiid, but on DraftKings and FantasyDraft, I really like the idea of taking a shot on Zubac in tournaments.

My Risky Play Of The Day

I like a lot of studs on this slate, so I’m willing to roll the dice on some risky value options. Maxi Kleber is really standing out to me tonight, and with Dallas on a back-to-back, I could see a guy like Kleber getting a few extra minutes. Detroit isn’t typically a team that plays small, and Kleber played 21 minutes against them six days ago. He played seven fourth quarter minutes in that game. He’s very risky but I really like the upside with the limited value options on this slate.

Production Is Moving In The Right Direction

Dallas has struggled with guards all season, and Reggie Jackson continues to be cheap across the industry. Jackson has put together three straight games over 25 fantasy points and has played over 30 minutes. His usage hasn’t gone up in the last three games, but he’s been taking much higher percentage shots. Jackson has taken double-digit shots in eight of the last ten games, and I really like his value in this spot.

Upside Play At Point Guard

Rondo has never been a huge scorer, but he generally does just enough to give himself that triple-double upside. We haven’t seen him put up huge games since his return, but the good news is that the minutes are there, and he has posted double figure assists in all three of those games. I expect a triple-double line to come soon, and it could come tonight in an up tempo, high scoring game against the Clippers. Give Rondo a look as an elite mid-range GPP option tonight.

Risk/Reward GPP Value

There is certainly risk here because Bogdanovic has a low floor whenever his shot is not falling. However, it is clear that the Pacers need his scoring ability with Victor Oladipo and Tyreke Evans sidelined. The Pacers scored just 89 points against a bad Wizards defense last night, so Bogdanovic should be counted on to step up on the offensive end tonight. This is a reasonably good matchup against the Magic, and I expect a better game in this one.

An Elite Point Per Dollar Play

The game logs have been a little quieter for Durant of late, and there is some concern that he will lose some productivity with DeMarcus Cousins back in the mix. However, two of the last four games have been blowouts to where Durant was not needed for major minutes, and the recent dip in production is now priced into his salary. A $9,400 tag on FD and $9,100 tag on DK is as cheap as we have seen him in quite some time, giving Durant a lot of appeal in what should be a high scoring game against the Sixers. Golden State has an implied team total of 125 points tonight, and I like the upside here.

Continuing To Show Upside

He is under-appreciated in the fantasy world as a whole, but don’t sleep on Nikola Vucevic for DFS purposes. He has been a steady machine all year long, and that has continued to be personified with his 27/11/5 and 19/17/5 lines over the last two games. He draws a solid matchup against a scuffling Pacers team tonight, and there is no reason to expect him to slow down anytime soon. He double-doubled in the last meeting between these two teams and should be good for a nice floor/upside game once again.

NBA Injury Rundown - Thursday, 1/31

Indiana Pacers – Tyreke Evans (TBD), Victor Oladipo (O)

Orlando Magic – Jonathon Simmons (Q), Timofey Mozgov (O)

Detroit Pistons – Reggie Bullock (Q), Ish Smith (O)

Milwaukee Bucks – Eric Bledsoe (P), Malcolm Brogdon (P), Sterling Brown (P)

San Antonio Spurs – DeMar DeRozan (P), Dejounte Murray (O)

Los Angeles Lakers – Kyle Kuzma (Q), Josh Hart (Q), LeBron James (O), Lonzo Ball (O)

Los Angeles Clippers – Avery Bradley (Q), Danilo Gallinari (O), Luc Mbah a Moute (O)

Philadelphia 76ers – Jonah Bolden (Q), Markelle Fultz (O), Zhaire Smith (O), Justin Patton (O)

Jusuf Nurkic (knee) out Wednesday

Nurkic has officially been downgraded from questionable and won’t play in Wednesday’s matchup against the Utah Jazz due to a sore right knee, while Nik Stauskas was previously ruled out with a left knee injury. Nurkic had popped up on the injury report several times this season for various reasons but was yet to miss a game, so that does make it a bit difficult to project who will replace him in the starting lineup. However, Zach Collins and Meyers Leonard will both almost certainly see a sizable uptick in playing time regardless of head coach Terry Stott’s decision at center. Despite playing a different position, Damian Lillard has still been a substantial beneficiary with Nurkic off the court, as he owns a 39.1% usage rate (+7.2%) and is averaging 1.35 DraftKings and 1.31 FanDuel points per minute, making him an interesting tournament option on tonight’s eight-game slate.

Gary Harris (groin) available to play Wednesday

Harris has officially been upgraded from questionable and will be available to play in Wednesday’s matchup against the New Orleans Pelicans despite dealing with a sore right groin, while Jamal Murray will miss a third straight contest with a sprained right ankle. In Murray’s absence, Torrey Craig has started each of the last two games at small forward, and he’s actually been productive from a fantasy standpoint in an average of 27.6 minutes over that span. This has allowed Will Barton to serve as the de facto point guard in the starting unit, and he finally eclipsed the 30-minute mark for the first time since returning from injury in Monday’s win. However, Monte Morris will join the starting lineup at point guard for tonight’s contest, sending Craig to the bench to resume a reserve role, and Morris will be an intriguing value option for tournaments considering he typically plays minutes in the mid-20s in a bench role, giving him a sizable minute floor and high minute ceiling as a starter this evening.

Derrick Rose (ankle) is active but won't play Wednesday

Rose will be active but won’t actually play in Wednesday’s matchup against the Memphis Grizzlies due to a sore right ankle that has now forced him to miss three consecutive games. He’ll join Jeff Teague, Tyus Jones, and Robert Covington on the inactive list for tonight’s contest, which will allow Jerryd Bayless to draw a third straight start at point guard after exceeding his salary-based expectations and averaging 38.4 minutes as a starter over the previous two contests. Without Rose available for two and a half games, Jared Terrell and Andrew Wiggins have served as the backup point guards, though head coach Ryan Saunders does plan to have Isaiah Canaan take over Terrell’s spot in the rotation for the time being. Still, this makes Wiggins an intriguing tournament target on tonight’s slate, as he owns a 33.0% usage rate (+6.6%) and is averaging 1.16 DraftKings and 1.15 FanDuel points per minute with Rose, Teague, Jones, and Covington off the court this season.

Jaren Jackson Jr. (illness) will play Wednesday

Jackson Jr. is still technically listed as questionable on the Grizzlies’ injury report, but he confirmed with reporters that he will play in Wednesday’s matchup against the Minnesota Timberwolves after missing shootaround due to an illness, while JaMychal Green is expected to be available to play following a one-game absence because of a sore left knee. The Grizzlies continue to be without Garrett Temple and Omri Casspi, so with Green unavailable for Monday’s loss, Bruno Caboclo and Joakim Noah each played at least 23 minutes off the bench behind Jackson Jr. and Marc Gasol in the frontcourt. Those minute floors are likely to be much lower with Green back in the fold, but Caboclo could be carving out a consistent role in the rotation after averaging 25.8 minutes over the last two games with Casspi and Temple sidelined.

Zach LaVine (ankle) out Wednesday

LaVine has officially been downgraded from questionable and won’t play in Wednesday’s matchup against the Miami Heat due to a sprained right ankle, while Chandler Hutchison and Wendell Carter Jr. remain sidelined with their respective ailments. With LaVine unable to suit up, Ryan Arcidiacano appears to be the likeliest candidate to enter the starting lineup alongside Kris Dunn in the backcourt since he’s typically started whenever LaVine or Dunn have been sidelined this season. Wayne Selden and Shaquille Harrison are both also likely to see increased playing time with LaVine now unavailable, but Dunn has been the clear beneficiary with LaVine off the court this season, as he owns a 28.0% usage rate and is averaging 1.31 DraftKings and 1.32 FanDuel points per minute in this scenario.

Tony Parker (ankle) out Wednesday

Parker is a late addition to the Hornets’ injury report and won’t play in Wednesday’s matchup against the Boston Celtics due to a sore right ankle. Parker has missed six games to this point in the season, and in those contests, Devonte’ Graham has typically stepped into the backup role behind Kemba Walker at point guard. Unfortunately, with Graham largely out of the rotation, he should absorb most, if not, all of Parker’s vacated minutes in the second unit, which leaves very little else for anyone else in the rotation to benefit. To make matters worse, Graham can’t be realistically considered in any daily fantasy formats on an eight-game slate considering his capped minutes ceilings in the high-teens or low-20s in a mostly healthy Hornets rotation.

Dwyane Wade (knee) out Wednesday; Tyler Johnson (calf) will attempt to play

Wade has officially been downgraded from questionable and won’t play in Wednesday’s matchup against the Chicago Bulls due to a sore right knee, while Johnson will go through pregame warmups and attempt to play after missing one game with a sore left calf. In his absence, Wayne Ellington ended up drawing the start at the shooting guard position and was serviceable from a fantasy perspective in 31 minutes of action in Sunday’s win, but he’ll likely head back to the bench to resume a reserve role with Johnson on track to make a return to the starting lineup this evening. Dion Waiters figures to fill a prominent role in the second unit with Wade unable to suit up, and he had logged at least 22 minutes in three straight contests prior to his one-game injury hiatus last week. On top of that, Waiters leads the Heat with a 28.3% usage rate (+3.0%) and is averaging 0.93 DraftKings and 0.91 FanDuel points per minute with Wade and Goran Dragic off the court this season, albeit a limited sample size thus far.