DFS Alerts
Josh Richardson (shoulder) and Tyler Johnson (hip) now probable Monday; Wayne Ellington (personal) will play
Richardson has officially been upgraded from questionable to probable for Monday’s matchup against the Los Angeles Lakers due to a right shoulder impingement that forced him to be a late scratch from Saturday’s win, while Tyler Johnson is also probable with a bruised left hip and Wayne Ellington is back with the team following a two-game absence because of a personal matter. This means the Heat’s starting lineup is on track to be nearly intact for tonight’s contest, as Hassan Whiteside is the only usual starter that will be unavailable. In his absence, Bam Adebayo has started at center and has been fantastic from a fantasy perspective in an average of nearly 31 minutes per game. The other beneficiary with Whiteside off the court has been Goran Dragic, who owns a 28.1% usage rate (+2.9%) and is averaging 1.18 fantasy points per minute, though Dragic was limited to just 21 minutes in his first game back and is something to be wary if considering rostering him this evening.
As reported by: Anthony Chiang via Twitter Other tagged players: Tyler Johnson, Wayne Ellington
Great Tournament Pivot
In a very small sample size, Reggie Jackson has a 38.7% usage rate without Blake Griffin, Ish Smith, and Reggie Bullock on the floor this season. That is a 12.9% usage increase on his season average. He’s averaging 1.5 fantasy points per minute, which is an increase of .56. Again, it’s a 33.2-minute sample size, but it really stood out to me when I was looking into Blake being out. Reggie Jackson is really cheap on DraftKings and could be an excellent pivot in tournaments off of the chalkier plays.
Taking Advantage Of Injuries
With Blake Griffin, Ish Smith, and Reggie Bullock out tonight, Langston Galloway should continue to play big minutes. He has played 31 and 37 minutes in the last two games and has 21.5 and 38.1 fantasy points in those two games. He had a 24.28% and 21.26% usage in those two games. Blake has a 31.5% usage rate this season, which leads to a lot of usage being spread out between the Pistons tonight.
More Ball Handling Duties
Sure two matchups with the Spurs has helped but Lonzo has posted two 35+ fantasy point performances in the last three games with Brandon Ingram out for all or most of the game. Lonzo’s minute totals in the two games that weren’t blowouts were 38 and 40 minutes as he’s been relied on more for ball handling duties in Ingram’s absence. Ball is still extremely affordable across the industry and makes for a strong mid-tier GPP option.
More Minutes + More Usage
Reggie may go a bit overlooked with all of the value options we have available tonight but RJax makes for a strong play in his own right. In addition to Ish Smith’s prolonged absence (good for Reggie’s minutes), the Pistons will also be without Blake Griffin on Monday night which helps Jackson’s usage. RJax has posted a strong usage rate (29.2%) and per minute production (1.02 DKPPM, 0.97 FDPPM) over the last two seasons with Griffin off the court. The combination of more minutes and usage should mean good thing for Jackson’s fantasy totals.
Stat Hunting
RWB has seemingly finally returned to his old triple-double chasing form as the Thunder point guard has posted the following lines in three of his last five games: 24/17/13, 21/17/15, 23/18/15. Defenses don’t matter when Westbrook is on a mission and even if they did the Jazz have actually been below average in effective field goal percentage (52.5%) allowed this season. We have a value to fit whatever studs we want into our lineup on Monday night and Westbrook is likely to come at a discount ownership as he is currently projected to be less owned than the likes of LeBron James, Joel Embiid, Nikola Jokic, Steph Curry, and Giannis.
Increased Minutes Because Of Injury
Tonight, we have very different lineup constructions on FanDuel, DraftKings, and FantasyDraft. While you might not use Rivers on DraftKings and FantasyDraft (he’s still a good value play on both sites), he’s way to cheap on FanDuel. He played 34 minutes with Wall out against Atlanta, and I’d expect around the same type of minutes tonight. It’s a tougher matchup than Atlanta, but it’s nice to take our “punt” play with someone that should play over 30 minutes.
Jamal Crawford (knee) listed questionable Monday
Crawford has been added to the most recent version of the Suns’ injury report and is listed as questionable for Monday’s matchup against the Los Angeles Clippers due to a sore left knee. Crawford has typically been playing between 18-22 minutes off the bench, so if he’s unable to suit up, his absence won’t have too much of an effect on the wing rotation, especially with T.J. Warren returning from a five-game absence this evening. The specifics of Warren’s minute restriction weren’t disclosed by head coach Igor Kokoskov, but assuming it isn’t too severe, Warren will likely return to the starting lineup and send Josh Jackson back to the bench to resume a reserve role. De’Anthony Melton is also poised to make a second consecutive start at point guard in place of Devin Booker, and he’s been productive from a fantasy perspective over the last three games despite failing to play more than 26 minutes in any one contest over that span. In fact, Melton owns a 21.2% usage rate and is averaging 1.00 DraftKings and 0.98 FanDuel points per minute in his time with Suns, giving him plenty of upside for tournaments if he’s able to begin seeing close to starters’ minutes.
As reported by: NBA Official Injury Report Anthony Davis (hip) listed questionable Monday; E'Twaun Moore (leg) listed probable
Davis has been listed as questionable on the most recent version of the Pelicans’ injury report for Monday’s matchup against the Boston Celtics due to a bruised left hip he sustained during Sunday’s win, while Moore is listed as probable with a strained lower leg and was limited to just 16 minutes off the bench in yesterday’s contest. Davis was ultimately able to return following a brief exit and logged 26 minutes, so it appears likely he’ll be able to play through the injury once again this evening. However, if he is held out, Nikola Mirotic would likely re-enter the starting lineup alongside Julius Randle in the frontcourt and managed to play 31 minutes in his second game back from an illness. Still, Randle has been the clear beneficiary with Davis off the court this season, as he owns a 31.7% usage rate (+3.9%) and is averaging 1.52 DraftKings and 1.50 FanDuel points per minute in this scenario.
As reported by: NBA Official Injury Report Blake Griffin (rest) and Reggie Bullock (ankle) listed out Monday; Stanley Johnson (knee) listed questionable
Griffin has been listed as out on the most recent version of the Pistons’ injury report and won’t play in Monday’s matchup against the Philadelphia 76ers due to rest purposes, while Reggie Bullock remains sidelined because of a sprained left ankle and Stanley Johnson is listed as questionable with a bruised right knee. Bruce Brown has started the last two games at the shooting guard spot in place of Bullock, but his playing time has been sporadic and was limited to just 19 minutes in Sunday’s loss. Head coach Dwane Casey could go a few different directions with his starting lineup sans Griffin, but Johnson, if he plays, or Jon Leuer appears to be the likeliest candidates. Reggie Jackson is also poised to be a significant beneficiary of Griffin’s absence, as he owns a 31.6% usage rate (+5.8%) and is averaging 0.99 DraftKings and 0.97 FanDuel points per minute with him off the court this season.
As reported by: NBA Official Injury Report Other tagged players: Reggie Bullock, Stanley Johnson Too Cheap On DraftKings
Lyles started for the injured Paul Millsap against Atlanta and ended up playing a season high 38 minutes. The Nuggets are shorthanded and will need Lyles to continue to play a larger role. While FanDuel was very fast to price him up, he’s extremely cheap at $3,700 on DraftKings and $7,700 on FantasyDraft. He draws a tougher matchup against Memphis, but Memphis tends to play big, so he should see all the minutes he can handle tonight.
Top Value Option For Me
With the Boston Celtics news, we have even more value to look at tonight. Daniel Theis becomes my favorite value play, and he should play all the minutes he can handle tonight. He played 32 minutes against Chicago with Horford and Baynes out on Saturday and posted a monster line. Boston’s implied team total will drop from the 118 it opened at, but they’re still a great team to target for DFS. There is 90+ minutes to make up for tonight, and they receive the second biggest bump in pace.
Kris Dunn (knee) and Bobby Portis (knee) will play off the bench Monday
Dunn was originally listed out on the Bulls’ injury report, but he confirmed with reporters that he will play off the bench in Monday’s matchup against the Sacramento Kings after recovering from a sprained left MCL that’s forced him to miss all but one game this season. Bobby Portis has been cleared to play off the bench following a lengthy injury absence, and both he and Dunn will be subject to unspecified minute restrictions in tonight’s contest. Dunn will eventually displace Ryan Arcidiacano from the starting point guard role once he’s back up to full speed, but Portis appears poised to come off the bench for the foreseeable future with Wendell Carter Jr. and Lauri Markkenen holding down the starting center and power forward positions. Markkanen has been fantastic for the most part since his return from injury, but he and the rest of the Bulls should probably be avoided in daily fantasy formats until this suddenly crowded rotation has a chance to settle.
As reported by: Darnell Mayberry via Twitter Other tagged players: Bobby Portis T.J. Warren (ankle) will play limited minutes Monday
Warren has officially been upgraded from questionable and will play limited minutes in Monday’s matchup against the Los Angeles Clippers after missing five consecutive games with a sore right ankle. The specifics of Warren’s minute restriction weren’t disclosed by head coach Igor Kokoskov, but assuming it isn’t too severe, Warren will likely return to the starting lineup and send Josh Jackson back to the bench to resume a reserve role. De’Anthony Melton is also poised to make a second consecutive start at point guard in place of Devin Booker, and he’s been productive from a fantasy perspective over the last three games despite failing to play more than 26 minutes in any one contest over that span. In fact, Melton owns a 21.2% usage rate and is averaging 1.00 DraftKings and 0.98 FanDuel points per minute in his time with Suns, giving him plenty of upside for tournaments if he’s able to begin seeing close to starters’ minutes.
As reported by: Kellan Olson via Twitter Kyrie Irving (shoulder) and Aron Baynes (ankle) out Monday; Al Horford (knee) and Gordon Hayward (illness) now doubtful
Irving is a new addition to the Celtics’ injury report and won’t play in Monday’s matchup against the New Orleans Pelicans due to a sore right shoulder, while Baynes will miss his second consecutive game with a sprained left ankle. Horford and Hayward have also been downgraded to doubtful, so it appears that Boston will be severely shorthanded for tonight’s contest. The likely continue absences of Horford and Baynes will allow Daniel Theis to draw another start at center following a monster fantasy performance in 32 minutes of action in Saturday’s blowout win, and he’ll be an elite value option once again even after a considerable price increase across the industry. With Irving sidelined, Terry Rozier or Jaylen Bown will start alongside Marcus Smart in the backcourt, and that decision mainly hinges on how head coach Brad Stevens wants to divvy up the ballhandling responsibilities, as all three will see heavy minutes with Celtics on track to have just 10 active bodies for tonight’s contest, including two-way players.
As reported by: the Boston Celtics via Twitter Other tagged players: Aron Baynes, Al Horford, Gordon Hayward