DFS Alerts

NBA Injury Rundown - Monday, 1/14

Boston Celtics – Kyrie Irving (Q), Aron Baynes (O)

Brooklyn Nets – Rondae Hollis-Jefferson (Q), Jared Dudley (O), Allen Crabbe (O), Caris LeVert (O), Dzanan Musa (O)

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

San Antonio Spurs – Rudy Gay (O), Dejounte Murray (O)

Detroit Pistons – Ish Smith (P), Zaza Pachulia (D), Henry Ellenson (O)

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

Gary Harris (hamstring) and Trey Lyles (wrist) out Sunday

Harris has officially been downgraded from questionable and won’t play in Sunday’s matchup against the Portland Trail Blazers due to a tight left hamstring that will force him to miss a fourth consecutive game, while Trey Lyles will remain sidelined for a second straight game with a sprained right wrist. Additionally, Will Barton wasn’t included on the injury report and appears ready to go after logging 16 minutes in his return from a strained left hip and core muscle injury yesterday evening. With Harris unable to suit up, Malik Beasley should draw a fourth consecutive start at shooting guard alongside Jamal Murray in the backcourt, and he was serviceable from a fantasy perspective in a whopping 40 minutes in yesterday’s contest. However, the main beneficiary with Harris off the court continues to be Jamal Murray, as he owns a 30.2% usage rate (+3.0%) and is averaging 1.11 DraftKings and 1.08 FanDuel points per minute in this scenario.

Gary Harris (hamstring) not expected to play Sunday

Harris is technically still questionable and isn’t expected to play in Sunday’s matchup against the Portland Trail Blazers due to a tight left hamstring that will likely force him to miss his fourth consecutive game, while Trey Lyles remains questionable with a sprained right wrist that already forced him to miss the first leg of the Nuggets current back-to-back set. Additionally, Will Barton wasn’t included on the injury report and appears ready to go after logging 16 minutes in his return from a strained left hip and core muscle injury yesterday evening. With Harris unlikely to suit up, Malik Beasley should draw a fourth consecutive start at shooting guard alongside Jamal Murray in the backcourt, and he was serviceable from a fantasy perspective in a whopping 40 minutes in yesterday’s contest. However, the main beneficiary with Harris off the court continues to be Jamal Murray, as he owns a 30.2% usage rate (+3.0%) and is averaging 1.11 DraftKings and 1.08 FanDuel points per minute in this scenario.

Dennis Smith Jr. (back) out Sunday

Smith Jr. has officially been downgraded from questionable and won’t play in Sunday’s matchup against the Golden State Warriors due to mid-back tightness that has now forced him to miss three consecutive games, while head coach Rick Carlisle also confirmed with reporters that J.J. Barea will undergo surgery on his torn Achilles tomorrow, effectively ending his season. The absence of Barea should create more playing time for Jalen Brunson as the de facto sixth man in the Mavericks’ rotation, and Smith Jr. should have a higher minute floor than normal once he’s cleared for game action as well. The absence of Smith Jr. also opens the door for Maxi Kleber to start a third straight game at power forward following his two strong fantasy performances in an average of 32 minutes per start, which will enable Luka Doncic to continue serving as the primary facilitator in the offense.

Brandon Knight (knee) and Nene Hilario (rest) out Sunday

Knight has officially been downgraded from questionable and won’t play in Sunday’s matchup against the Orlando Magic due to a sore left knee, while Nene will be rested on the front end of the Rockets current back-to-back set and should be good to go for Monday’s contest versus the Memphis Grizzlies tomorrow evening. Knight and Nene have both been at the tail-end of head coach Mike D’Antoni’s rotation of late, and Knight rarely sees more than 10 minutes of action in competitive games while Nene’s playing time typically depends solely on the opposing frontcourt matchup. Their absences will leave Houston with just nine available bodies since Vincent Edwards and Isaiah Hartenstein are in the G-League, but D’Antoni has consistently proven that he’s perfectly content utilizing a primary rotation of seven players when shorthanded.

Omari Spellman will start in place of Dewayne Dedmon (ankle) on Sunday

Dedmon was previously downgraded from questionable and won’t play in Sunday’s matchup against the due to a sprained left ankle, while Taurean Prince and Jeremy Lin are both available to play despite dealing with their respective ailments. Prince is set to return from an 18-game absence stemming from a sprained right ankle, and head coach Lloyd Pierce already confirmed with reporters during his pregame media availability that Prince will be limited to around 12 minutes in his first game back. This means that DeAndre Bembry will start at least one more time at small forward, and Spellman will join him in the starting lineup in Dedmon’s place. Alex Len typically enters the starting unit whenever Dedmon is sidelined, but he’s played fewer than 20 minutes in three of the previous four games with John Collins occupying more of the backup center minutes in Pierce’s current rotation than he had in the past.

Continue to Buy With Surpressed Pricing

DeAndre Jordan has been pretty consistent over the course of the season, and while he does not have upside games as regularly as some of his counterparts, he has still been a great spend night in and night out because of the rebounding. In his last 10 games he’s been above 10 rebounds in all but 2, and most at least half have been 15 or more. With the price continuing to be barely in the mid 6k to low 7k range I think he is a superb spend and has a shot to really do some damage against the Golden State Warriors tonight.

Gary Harris (hamstring) and Trey Lyles (wrist) questionable Sunday

Harris and Lyles have both officially been listed as questionable for Sunday’s matchup against the Portland Trail Blazers due to a tight left hamstring and a sprained right wrist, respectively, that already forced them to miss Saturday’s loss, the first leg of the Nuggets current back-to-back set. Meanwhile, Will Barton wasn’t included on the injury report and appears ready to go after logging 16 minutes in his return from a strained left hip and core muscle injury yesterday evening. If Harris isn’t cleared to play, Malik Beasley will more than likely draw a fourth consecutive start at shooting guard alongside Jamal Murray in the backcourt, and he was serviceable from a fantasy perspective in a whopping 40 minutes in yesterday’s contest. The main beneficiary with Harris off the court continues to be Jamal Murray, as he owns a 30.2% usage rate (+3.0%) and is averaging 1.11 DraftKings and 1.08 FanDuel points per minute in this scenario.

Giannis Antetokounmpo (quad, hip) and Eric Bledsoe (hamstring) available to play Sunday

Antetokounmpo has officially been upgraded from probable and will be available to play in Sunday’s matchup against the Atlanta Hawks after missing one game with a sore right quad and left hip contusion, respectively, while Eric Bledsoe has also been cleared to play despite dealing with a sore left hamstring. With Antetokounmpo sidelined, Ersan Ilyasova ended up receiving the starting nod at power forward and was more than solid from a fantasy perspective in 27 minutes of action in his spot start. However, he’ll head back to the bench to resume a reserve role in favor Antetokounmpo and has seen fewer than 17 minutes in three of the last four games both he and Antetokounmpo have been active. Obviously, Antetokounmpo remains in consideration for daily fantasy formats any time he takes the court, and he continues to lead the Bucks with a 31.3% usage rate with an average of 1.67 DraftKings and 1.70 FanDuel points per minute on the season.

Jeremy Lin (bicep) available to play Sunday

Lin has officially been upgraded from probable and will be available to play in Sunday’s matchup against the Milwaukee Bucks despite dealing with a bruised right bicep, while Taurean Prince has also been cleared to play and Dewayne Dedmon has been ruled out because of a sprained left ankle. Prince is set to return from an 18-game absence stemming from a sprained right ankle, and head coach Lloyd Pierce already confirmed with reporters during his pregame media availability that Prince will be limited to around 12 minutes in his first game back. This news makes it likely that DeAndre Bembry will start at least one more time at small forward, and Alex Len appears to be the likeliest candidate to enter the starting lineup at center in Dedmon’s place, though he’s played fewer than 20 minutes in three of the previous four games with John Collins occupying more of the backup center minutes in Pierce’s current rotation than he had in the past.

Dewayne Dedmon (ankle) out Sunday; Taurean Prince (ankle) will be limited to around 12 minutes

Dedmon has officially been downgraded from questionable and won’t play in Sunday’s matchup against the due to a sprained left ankle, while Prince and Jeremy Lin are both available to play despite dealing with their respective ailments. Prince is set to return from an 18-game absence stemming from a sprained right ankle, and head coach Lloyd Pierce already confirmed with reporters during his pregame media availability that Prince will be limited to around 12 minutes in his first game back. This news makes it likely that DeAndre Bembry will start at least one more time at small forward, and Alex Len appears to be the likeliest candidate to enter the starting lineup at center in Dedmon’s place, though he’s played fewer than 20 minutes in three of the previous four games with John Collins occupying more of the backup center minutes in Pierce’s current rotation than he had in the past.

Tim Hardaway Jr. (hamstring) available to play off the bench Sunday

Hardaway Jr. has officially been upgraded from probable and will be available to play off the bench in Sunday’s matchup against the Philadelphia 76ers despite dealing with a left hamstring issue, while Enes Kanter will miss his second consecutive game with flu-like symptoms. Hardaway Jr.‘s move to the bench is a bit odd, so he should be avoided in daily fantasy formats given the increased likelihood he’s an active scratch from the lineup. In his place, head coach David Fizdale has opted to start Damyean Dotson, while Lance Thomas will start at power forward in an effort to better defend the Joel Embiid and the Sixers starting unit. Even with Kanter and Mitchell Robinson sidelined for Friday’s loss, Luke Kornet was still limited to only 21 minutes, and Mario Hezonja shockingly led the Knicks with 30 minutes off the bench as Fizdale continues to utilize inconsistent rotations on a game-to-game basis. Noah Vonleh logged just 19 minutes in that contest as well, but he does still lead the Knicks with an average 1.24 DraftKings and 1.27 FanDuel points per minute with Kanter off the court this season.

Joel Embiid (ankle) will play Sunday

Embiid has officially been upgraded from questionable and will play in Sunday’s matchup against the New York Knicks after missing one game due to a sore right ankle, while Jimmy Butler has also been cleared to play despite dealing with a bruised rib. With both Embiid and Amir Johnson unavailable for Friday’s loss, Mike Muscala ended up receiving the starting nod at center and was more than solid from a fantasy perspective in 27 minutes of action in his spot start. However, with Embiid cleared to return following his successful pregame warmups, Muscala will head back to the bench to resume a reserve role, and Embiid will be in a fantastic spot for tournaments versus a Knicks frontcourt that ranks 27th in defensive rating against opposing centers this season. On top of that, Embiid unsurprisingly leads the Sixers with a 34.6% usage rate and is averaging 1.60 DraftKings and 1.59 FanDuel points per minute since Butler joined the team in mid-November.

Jimmy Butler (rib) will play Sunday

Butler has officially been upgraded from questionable and will play in Sunday’s matchup against the New York Knicks despite dealing with a bruised rib, while Joel Embiid remains a game-time decision with a sore right ankle that has already forced him to miss one game. With both Embiid and Amir Johnson unavailable for Friday’s loss, Mike Muscala ended up receiving the starting nod at center and was more than solid from a fantasy perspective in 27 minutes of action in his spot start. However, if Embiid is cleared to return following his pregame warmups, Muscala would head back to the bench to resume a reserve role, and Embiid would be in a fantastic spot for tournaments versus a Knicks frontcourt that ranks 27th in defensive rating against opposing centers this season. On top of that, Embiid unsurprisingly leads the Sixers with a 34.6% usage rate and is averaging 1.60 DraftKings and 1.59 FanDuel points per minute since Butler joined the team in mid-November.

Consistency of Late

Ross has shown some consistency of late tallying 20+ fantasy points in each of his last four games and scoring into the mid-30’s on one occasion. That’s solid production for his current price tag and Ross could have some minutes upside in this contest if the Magic opt to run a smaller lineup against the Rockets. Ross has 12+ shot attempts in each of his last three games and isn’t someone who is afraid to shoot which gives him a solid floor and ceiling combination for his price.