DFS Alerts

Terrance Ferguson (illness) questionable Monday; Alex Abrines (personal) ruled out

Ferguson has officially been listed as questionable for Monday’s matchup against the Dallas Mavericks due to an illness that forced him to be an active scratch in Sunday’s loss, while Abrines will miss his fourth consecutive game due to personal reasons after battling an illness that kept him sidelined for the Thunder’s previous three contests. Neither Ferguson or Abrines are high usage players in the Oklahoma City offense, so their absences wouldn’t have a major impact on usage distribution and fantasy production, but if Ferguson is unable to suit up, Abdel Nader would likely draw another start alongside Paul George on the wing following an underwhelming performance in 16 minutes of action in his first spot start. This news would also enable Dennis Schroder to maintain an increased role off the bench, and he’s logged at least 33 minutes in each of the last three games with Abrines unavailable, making him an appealing option for all formats at his mid-range salary across the industry.

Rudy Gay (wrist) out Monday

Gay has officially been downgraded from questionable and won’t play in Monday’s matchup against the Boston Celtics due to a sore left wrist. In his absence, either Davis Bertans or Dante Cunningham will likely enter the starting lineup at power forward, though Cunningham has totaled just 10 minutes over the Spurs last five games while accruing two DNP-CDs over that same span. Pau Gasol was cleared to return from a lengthy injury absence recently, but he’s been a DNP-CD in both games since, and head coach Gregg Popovich has reiterated that’s he’s still unsure what Gasol’s role in the rotation will be moving forward with Jakob Poeltl firmly entrenched as the backup behind LaMarcus Aldridge at center. With Gay off the court this season, DeMar DeRozan has been the primary beneficiary, as he owns a 35.2% usage rate (+3.6%) and is averaging 1.34 DraftKings and 1.35 FanDuel points per minute in this scenario.

Derrick Rose (ankle) and Jeff Teague (ankle) doubtful Monday

Rose has officially been listed as doubtful for Monday’s matchup against the New Orleans Pelicans due to a sprained right ankle that has already forced him to miss one game, while Teague is also listed as doubtful and is on track to miss his eighth consecutive game with left ankle inflammation. In their absences, Tyus Jones and Jerryd Bayless will likely continue to handle all of the point guard minutes, just as they did the last two times Rose and Teague were unavailable, and Jones should draw another spot start following his stellar fantasy performance in 36 minutes of action in Sunday’s win. However, the clear beneficiary with Rose and Teague off the court has typically been Andrew Wiggins, as he owns a 39.3% usage rate (+4.0%) and is averaging 1.07 DraftKings and 1.06 FanDuel points per minute in a 127.8 minutes sample size elapsing the post-Jimmy Butler era in Minnesota.

Wesley Matthews (foot) and Dirk Nowitzki (rest) listed as questionable Monday

Matthews has officially been listed as questionable for Monday’s matchup against the Oklahoma City Thunder due to a sore right foot that’s already forced him to miss two consecutive games, while Nowitzki is also listed as questionable as part of his workload management plan on the second leg of a back-to-back set. With Matthews sidelined, Maxi Kleber drew his third straight start at power forward in Sunday’s win and has logged more than 24 minutes on each occasion while being mostly serviceable from a fantasy perspective. However, if Matthews remains sidelined and Nowitzki is rested, Kleber’s minute floor would drastically increase, and he could easily creep into the low-30s in terms of playing time. There aren’t any substantial usage beneficiaries with Matthews off the court this season, but Harrison Barnes does own a 27.3% usage rate (+1.4%) and is averaging 0.96 DraftKings and 0.94 FanDuel points per minute in this scenario.

Devin Booker (back) available to play Monday

Booker has officially been upgraded from questionable and will be available to play in Monday’s matchup against the Golden State Warriors despite dealing with a bruised lower back he sustained during the first half of Saturday’s loss. Head coach Igor Kokoskov dramatically tightened his rotation in that contest, as Deandre Ayton, T.J. Warren, and Mikal Bridges all logged at least 39 minutes, while Josh Jackson led the second unit with just 16 minutes off the bench. This rotation situation will certainly be something monitor moving forward since Ayton and Warren would become much more appealing options in daily fantasy formats if they are consistently seeing minutes in the high-30s on a nightly basis. On the other hand, Booker has been outstanding ever since Trevor Ariza was traded to the Washington Wizards, and he owns a 35.3% usage rate with an average of 1.34 DraftKings and 1.32 FanDuel points per minute in the Suns last six games.

Hate Trusting This Team

I hate trusting anyone from the Spurs, but the minutes have been really consistent for Derrick White recently. I like Forbes as well, but I think White has more upside for tournaments. White has played over 27 minutes in four straight games and five of the last six. Over the last four games, he’s averaging 6.1 minutes more than his season average, and he’s averaging 12.8 more fantasy points than his average this season. I think this is one of the closest games on the slate, and while it’s not the best overall matchup, it should stay close enough for White to see his 28-32 minutes.

High Minute Floor

If you’re playing on FanDuel, it’s really hard not to play Austin Rivers at his price. On DraftKings and FantasyDraft he’s in play, but he’s more of a cash game play than anything else. I could see him having really high ownership tonight, and I don’t mind a fade in large field tournaments on DraftKings and FantasyDraft. With Paul and Gordon out tonight, Rivers will move into the starting lineup, and should continue to play 30+ minutes. It’s not an ideal matchup with Memphis, but the minutes and usage will be there with all the injuries to this team.

Potential Increased Role

Rudy Gay is questionable for Monday night’s game against the Celtics. If Gay is unable to suit up, that would mean an increased role for a handful of Spurs players, including DeMar DeRozan who has seen the biggest boost in value with Gay off the court this season. In 587 minutes this year with Gay off the court, DDR has posted a 35.2% usage rate and is averaging an additional five fantasy points per 36 minutes.

I Missed You

“I missed you.” The words Klay Thompson spoke to his shooting hand after making one of his four three-pointers (on five attempts) in Golden State’s last game against the Trailblazers. Thompson’s shooting stroke is back and he gets a strong matchup on Monday against a Phoenix defense that is allowing the fifth highest effective field goal percentage (54.4%) in the league. Thompson is one of the few mid-tier players that can legitimately score 50+ actual points on any given night which makes him an intriguing GPP option for his price.

Dewayne Dedmon (knee) out Monday; Justin Anderson (illness) available to play

Dedmon has officially been downgraded from doubtful and won’t play in Monday’s matchup against the Indiana Pacers due to a sore left knee that’s now forced him to miss two consecutive games, while Justin Anderson has been cleared to play despite battling an illness. With Dedmon unavailable, Len will likely remain in the starting lineup at center following a serviceable fantasy performance in just 24 minutes of action in his first spot start. The Hawks will also be without Kent Bazemore for at least the next two weeks because of a sprained right ankle, so DeAndre Bembry is expected to alongside Kevin Huerter on the wing after he logged 30 minutes in relief of Bazemore in Saturday’s win. With Dedmon, Bazemore, Taurean Prince off the court this season, Trae Young has thrived offensively, as he owns a massive 36.4% usage rate (+7.5%) and is averaging 1.25 DraftKings and 1.18 FanDuel points per minute in 108.3 minutes sample size.

Watching The News

This will depend on the status of Alex Abrines, but if he’s out again tonight, I’m going right back to the well on Dennis Schroder. He’s played over 32 minutes in three straight games with Abrines out. Schroder has one of the highest usage rates among all bench players this season, and its always a plus when we can get a bench player with high usage playing over 30 minutes. This game has the second highest total on the slate, and the Thunder has the third highest implied team total.

Kyrie Is Cooking

Irving has been cooking lately, posting 49+ fantasy points in each of his last three games aided by gaudy assist totals the last couple of games. The Spurs point guards are a revolving door when it comes to defense as new starter Derrick White has a 110 defensive rating this season, combo guard Bryn Forbes has a 114 defensive rating, and backup point guard Patty Mills is the owner of a 113 defensive rating. As a team, the Spurs rank in the bottom third in the league in most major defensive categories this season and they are no longer a team to completely avoid rostering players against.

NBA Injury Rundown - Monday, 12/31

Atlanta Hawks – Justin Anderson (P), Dewayne Dedmon (O), Kent Bazemore (O), Taurean Prince (O)

Orlando Magic – D.J. Augustin (Q), Jonathon Simmons (Q), Timofey Mozgov (O)

Boston Celtics – Robert Williams (O), Aron Baynes (O)

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

Memphis Grizzlies – Garrett Temple (P), Joakim Noah (P), Chandler Parsons (O)

Houston Rockets – James Ennis (Q), Eric Gordon (O), Chris Paul (O)

Dallas Mavericks – Wesley Matthews (TBD)

Oklahoma City Thunder – Terrance Ferguson (TBD), Alex Abrines (TBD), Andre Roberson (O)

Minnesota Timberwolves – Derrick Rose (TBD), Jeff Teague (TBD), Keita Bates-Diop (TBD)

New Orleans Pelicans – Elfrid Payton (P), Darius Miller (P), Cheick Diallo (Q), Nikola Mirotic (O)

Phoenix Suns – Devin Booker (Q)

Maurice Harkless (knee) out Sunday

Harkless has officially been downgraded from probable and won’t play in Sunday’s matchup against the Philadelphia 76ers due to a left knee injury. When Harkless has been sidelined this season, Jake Layman typically receives the starting nod at small forward, but he rarely sees more than 16-18 minutes in those starts, while Evan Turner usually soaks up additional playing time as sixth-man off the bench. Jusuf Nurkic has been stellar for the Trail Blazers in each of the last two games and has averaged 34 minutes in those contests. On top of that, Nurkic should significantly benefit from the absence of Joel Embiid on the other end of the floor, and he owns a 25.6% usage rate while averaging 1.32 DraftKings and 1.35 FanDuel points per minute with Harkless off the court this season as well.

JaVale McGee (illness) will start Sunday, but will have a minute restriction

McGee has officially been upgraded from probable and will start in Sunday’s matchup against the Sacramento Kings after missing seven consecutive games due to an illness, though he will be subject to an unspecified minute restriction in tonight’s contest. McGee managed to participate in shootaround this morning, so he should be able to handle a decent chunk of his typical minute allotment, but his presence will still send Ivica Zubac back to the bench and possibly out the rotation entirely if McGee and Tyson Chandler resume splitting the center minutes right from the outset. On the other hand, Kyle Kuzma continues to be the clear beneficiary with LeBron James and Rajon Rondo sidelined, as he owns a 33.0% usage rate (+8.5%) and is averaging 1.20 DraftKings and 1.15 FanDuel points per minute with them off the court this season.