DFS Alerts

Entire Starting Lineup In Play On This Squad

The Golden State Warriors have an extremely high 124-point projected point total tonight, and while the team is on the second night of a back-to-back, the starters played reasonable limits last night so they should be able to play regular minutes tonight. That puts the entire starting lineup in play as possible GPP options. Steph Curry and Kevin Durant are clear choices as the two leading scorers on the team, with Curry ranking second in the league in scoring with 29.5 ppg and Durant ranking 4th at 28.2 ppg. Klay Thompson is particularly appealing on DraftKings, where he is only $6,500 and receives the bonus half-point for three pointers, but as an explosive scorer averaging 27.7 points over the month of January, he is playable on any site. Finally Draymond Green and Kevon Looney are names to consider matching up against a Pelicans team that ranks 20th in the league in points in the paint allowed.

Minutes Are Coming Back Up

After missing three games, Hood has returned and played 18 and 24 minutes in the last two games. He was playing around 25-30 minutes per night before he got hurt, and at his price, 25 minutes gives him enough upside to hit value. If they extend his minutes a little more, then he has the upside to hit 30+ fantasy points. I don’t expect him to be very high owned in this spot tonight.

Damian Lillard (hand) questionable Wednesday

Lillard has been added to the Trail Blazers’ injury report and is questionable for Wednesday’s matchup against the Cleveland Cavaliers due to a strained right hand, while Maurice Harkless remains questionable with a sore left knee that’s forced him to miss five of the last six games. Jake Layman and Evan Turner have split the starts at small forward in the Trail Blazers previous five games, but Layman has started the last three and has been underwhelming from a fantasy perspective in an average of 22.5 minutes per contest. If Lillard is unable to suit up, either Seth Curry or Nik Stauskas would likely enter the starting lineup alongside C.J. McCollum in the backcourt, and Turner could see more minutes with the starters on top of his usual role as the primary distributor in the second unit. Unsurprisingly, McCollum leads the Blazers with a 37.3% usage rate and is averaging 1.04 DraftKings and 1.00 FanDuel points per minute with Lillard off the court this season.

Marco Belinelli (knee) available to play Wednesday

Belinelli has officially been upgraded from questionable and will be available to play in Wednesday’s matchup against the Dallas Mavericks after missing one game due to a left knee contusion, while Rudy Gay confirmed with reporters at shootaround that he will make his return from a five-game absence because of a sprained left wrist. When Gay was unavailable, Jakob Poeltl and Pau Gasol split the starts at center alongside LaMarcus Aldridge in the frontcourt, though Gasol had started the last three despite averaging just 13.6 minutes over that span. There’s been no word if Gay will be subject to a minute restriction in his return, but given the nature of his injury, he should be close to a full-go and will likely displace Gasol from the starting lineup this evening. The presence of Gay in the rotation will also affect the minute floor of Davis Bertans off the bench after he logged at least 25 minutes in four of the Spurs last five games, making him a far less appealing option for daily formats on tonight’s eight-game slate.

George Hill (ribs) listed as probable Wednesday

Hill is a new addition to the Bucks’ injury report and is listed as probable for Wednesday’s matchup against the Memphis Grizzlies due to bruised ribs. The Bucks are likely just assigning Hill an injury designation as a precaution, and there’s been no indication that he is in danger of missing tonight’s contest. Hill has really settled into a consistent role in head coach Mike Budenholzer’s rotation of late, logging at least 23 minutes in four of the last six games, but he’s still been irrelevant from a fantasy standpoint given how much usage Giannis Antetokounmpo, Eric Bledsoe, and Khris Middleton absorb on a nightly basis.

Marcus Smart (illness) and Aron Baynes (hand) expected to be available to play Wednesday

Smart is still technically listed as questionable on the Celtics’ injury report, but head coach Brad Stevens expects him to be available to play in Wednesday’s matchup against the Toronto Raptors after missing one game due to an illness, while Baynes is also expected to return from a 13-game absence stemming a fractured left hand. With Smart on track to play, Jaylen Brown will head back to the bench to resume a reserve role following a phenomenal fantasy outing in 32 minutes of action in Monday’s loss, and he’ll join Terry Rozier in the second unit after his own disappointing performance in 25 minutes in a spot for Kyrie Irving at point guard. Since the Celtics appear likely to be full strength for the first time in a quite a while, Brown, Rozier, and the other tertiary members of the rotation will lose most of their viability in daily fantasy formats, while Irving is probably better reserved as a tournament option given the difficult spot versus a stingy Raptors defense.

Rudy Gay (wrist) will play Wednesday

Gay is still technically listed as probable on the Spurs’ injury report, but he confirmed with reporters at shootaround that he will play in Wednesday’s matchup against the Dallas Mavericks after missing five consecutive games due to a sprained left wrist, while Marco Belinelli remains listed as questionable with a left knee contusion that’s already kept him sidelined for one game. While Gay was unavailable, Jakob Poeltl and Pau Gasol split the starts at center alongside LaMarcus Aldridge in the frontcourt, though Gasol had started the last three despite averaging just 13.6 minutes over that span. There’s been no word if Gay will be subject to a minute restriction in his return, but given the nature of his injury, he should be close to a full-go and will likely displace Gasol from the starting lineup this evening. The presence of Gay in the rotation will also affect the minute floor of Davis Bertans off the bench after he logged at least 25 minutes in four of the Spurs last five games, making him a far less appealing option for daily formats on tonight’s eight-game slate.

Eric Gordon (knee) likely to play Wednesday

Gordon technically remains listed as questionable on the Rockets’ injury report, but he is reportedly likely to play in Wednesday’s matchup against the Brooklyn Nets after missing eight consecutive games due to a bruised right knee. There’s been no word if Gordon will be subject to a minute restriction in his potential return, so he’ll likely take over the spot vacated by Danuel House in the starting lineup, as the Rockets failed to reach an agreement with him on a guaranteed contract prior to the expiration of his two-way contract. In a corresponding move, Houston signed James Nunnally to a 10-day contract this morning to temporarily take House’s place on the active roster, and he is expected to be available to play off the bench with Brandon Knight already ruled out this evening. There’s not a tremendous sample size with Knight, Clint Capela, and Chris Paul off the court, but in that time, James Harden owns a ridiculous 53.4% usage rate (+10.6%) and is averaging a whopping 2.13 DraftKings and 2.06 FanDuel points per minute.

NBA Injury Rundown - Wednesday, 1/16

Orlando Magic – Mo Bamba (D), Timofey Mozgov (O)

Detroit Pistons – Zaza Pachulia (Q), Henry Ellenson (O)

Memphis Grizzlies – Kyle Anderson (O), Dillon Brooks (O)

Toronto Raptors – C.J. Miles (Q), OG Anunoby (O), Jonas Valanciunas (O)

Boston Celtics – Marcus Smart (Q), Aron Baynes (Q)

Brooklyn Nets – Rondae Hollis-Jefferson (P), Shabazz Napier (Q), Jared Dudley (O), Allen Crabbe (O), Caris LeVert (O)

Houston Rockets – Eric Gordon (Q), Clint Capela (O), Brandon Knight (O), Chris Paul (O)

San Antonio Spurs – Rudy Gay (P), Marco Belinelli (Q), Dejounte Murray (O)

Dallas Mavericks – Dennis Smith Jr. (Q), J.J. Barea (O)

Cleveland Cavaliers – Larry Nance (O), David Nwaba (O), Kevin Love (O), John Henson (O)

Portland Trail Blazers – Maurice Harkless (Q)

Utah Jazz – Ricky Rubio (O), Dante Exum (O), Raul Neto (O), Thabo Sefolosha (O), Tony Bradley (O)

Trey Lyles (wrist) available to play Tuesday

Lyles has officially been upgraded from questionable and will be available to play in Tuesday’s matchup against the Golden State Warriors after missing two consecutive games due to a sprained right wrist, while Gary Harris will remain sidelined with a tight left hamstring that has now forced him to miss five consecutive games. Additionally, Will Barton wasn’t included on the injury report and appears ready to go after averaging 15 minutes in his first two games back from an extended layoff because of a strained left hip and core muscle injury. With Harris unable to suit up, Malik Beasley should draw a fifth consecutive start at shooting guard alongside Jamal Murray in the backcourt, and he was serviceable from a fantasy perspective yet again in 37 minutes in Sunday’s win. However, the main beneficiary with Harris off the court continues to be Nikola Jokic, as he owns a 30.4% usage rate (+2.5%) and is averaging 1.57 DraftKings and 1.56 FanDuel points per minute in this scenario.

Gary Harris (hamstring) out Tuesday

Harris has officially been downgraded from questionable and won’t play in Tuesday’s matchup against the Golden State Warriors due to a tight left hamstring that has now forced him to miss five consecutive games, while Trey Lyles remains questionable with a sprained right wrist that’s already kept him sidelined for two straight contests. Additionally, Will Barton wasn’t included on the injury report and appears ready to go after averaging 15 minutes in his first two games back from an extended layoff because of a strained left hip and core muscle injury. With Harris unable to suit up, Malik Beasley should draw a fifth consecutive start at shooting guard alongside Jamal Murray in the backcourt, and he was serviceable from a fantasy perspective yet again in 37 minutes in Sunday’s win. However, the main beneficiary with Harris off the court continues to be Nikola Jokic, as he owns a 30.4% usage rate (+2.5%) and is averaging 1.57 DraftKings and 1.56 FanDuel points per minute in this scenario.

Giannis Antetokounmpo (quad, hip) will play Tuesday

Antetokounmpo has officially been upgraded from probable and will play in Tuesday’s matchup against the Miami Heat despite continuing to deal with a sore right quad and left hip contusion that recently forced him to miss one game. Meanwhile, Donte DiVincenzo remains listed as probable with a heel issue, but he’s been far removed from head coach Mike Budenholzer’s rotation for a majority of the season even when active. Antetokounmpo didn’t show too many ill effects from his aforementioned ailments in Sunday’s win, logging 31 minutes and recording 53.00 DraftKings and 54.20 FanDuel points in the blowout. Obviously, Antetokounmpo remains in consideration for daily fantasy formats any time he takes the court, and he continues to lead the Bucks with a 31.5% usage rate with an average of 1.68 DraftKings and 1.70 FanDuel points per minute on the season.

Derrick Rose (ankle) and Jeff Teague (ankle) available to play Tuesday

Rose has officially been upgraded from questionable and will be available to play in Wednesday’s matchup against the Philadelphia 76ers after missing six of the last seven games due to a sprained right ankle. Meanwhile, Jeff Teague participated in practice on Monday and shootaround this morning, and he will start in tonight’s contest despite dealing with a sprained left ankle he sustained in Saturday’s win. Rose was limited to just 28 minutes in his first game under interim head coach Ryan Saunders, but he owns a 27.6% usage rate and is averaging 1.06 DraftKings and 1.05 FanDuel points per minute in 590.3 minutes played since Jimmy Butler was traded to Philadelphia in mid-November, which likely limits the upside of the Timberwolves’ starting unit if Rose is able to play this evening.

Jeff Teague (ankle) expected to play Tuesday

Teague participated in practice on Monday and shootaround Tuesday morning, so he is expected to play in Tuesday’s matchup against the Philadelphia 76ers despite dealing with a sprained left ankle he sustained in Saturday’s win. Meanwhile, Derrick Rose is also still technically listed as questionable, but he confirmed with reporters that he’s feeling good and expects to play after missing six of the last seven games with a sprained right ankle. Rose was limited to just 28 minutes in his first game under interim head coach Ryan Saunders, but he owns a 27.6% usage rate and is averaging 1.06 DraftKings and 1.05 FanDuel points per minute in 590.3 minutes played since Jimmy Butler was traded to Philadelphia in mid-November, which likely limits the upside of the Timberwolves’ starting unit if Rose is able to play this evening.

Jeremy Lin (illness) and Dewayne Dedmon (ankle) out Tuesday; John Collins (ankle) and Taurean Prince (illness) available to play

Lin has officially been downgraded from doubtful and won’t play in Tuesday’s matchup against the Oklahoma City Thunder due to flu-like symptoms, while Collins and Prince have both been upgraded from probable despite dealing with their respective ailments. With Dedmon also out because of a sprained left ankle, Omari Spellman is on track to draw a second consecutive start at center following a stellar fantasy performance in 30 minutes of action in Sunday’s loss, though Alex Len still remains a candidate to start despite logging just 17 minutes off the bench in that contest. Since Lin is now unavailable, DeAndre Bembry should have a safer minute floor as the starter alongside Kevin Huerter on the wing, especially with Prince recording just 11 minutes in his return from an extended injury hiatus stemming from a sprained right ankle in the Hawks previous contest.