DFS Alerts

Mikal Bridges will start ahead of Isaiah Canaan on Monday

Head coach Igor Kokoskov is playing the matchups and has opted to start Bridges at the shooting guard position in Monday’s game against the Philadelphia 76ers, which slides Devin Booker over to point guard to handle a majority of the ball-handling responsibilities and sends Canaan to the bench to assume a reserve role. Bridges has logged at least 25 minutes in each of the last three games while Trevor Ariza was away from the team dealing with a personal matter, and he figures to see a similar minute workload in a homecoming game in Philadelphia this evening. Bridges only has a 17.3% usage rate on the year, but he remains cheap enough across the daily fantasy industry to be utilized as a punt option in tournaments.

Russell Westbrook (ankle) now questionable Monday

Westbrook has rejoined the Thunder in Sacramento and his status for Monday’s matchup against the Kings will be determined following an evaluation after his participation in shootaround. Westbrook was originally listed as out on the Thunder’s injury report, so this is certainly an upgrade in his status, while Alex Abrines is also questionable with an illness and Terrance Ferguson remains away from the team due to a personal matter. Hamidou Diallo is still a candidate to draw another start at shooting guard following a dismal fantasy performance in 19 minutes of action, even though he was outproduced by Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot off the bench, demonstrating the short leash that head coach Billy Donovan has afforded Diallo in terms of playing time. If he struggles again, the projected wing rotation would become that much more cloudy, especially if Abrines is cleared, making it difficult to trust any of the three as a punt option in tournaments.

Alex Abrines (illness) now listed questionable Monday

Abrines has been listed as questionable on the most recent version of the Thunder’s injury report for Monday’s matchup against the Sacramento Kings with an illness that has already forced him to miss one game. Meanwhile, Russell Westbrook is currently not with the team due to personal reasons and is not expected to be available for tonight’s contest despite Oklahoma City listing him as questionable. With Terrance Ferguson still sidelined, Hamidou Diallo is still a candidate to draw another start at shooting guard following a dismal fantasy performance in 19 minutes of action, even though he was outproduced by Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot off the bench, demonstrating the short leash that head coach Billy Donovan has afforded Diallo in terms of playing time. If he struggles again, the projected wing rotation would become that much more cloudy, especially if Abrines is cleared, making it difficult to trust any of the three as a punt option in tournaments.

Heating Up

I remain determined to attack the Bucks defensive philosophy when given the opportunity. Milwaukee has placed an emphasis on clogging the lane defensively which has resulted in the lowest frequency of shot attempts against them at the rim (27.9%), the second highest frequency of attempts mid range (43.7%), and the 10th highest frequency of attempts from three (36.8%). Notably, Gary Harris has excelled at mid range jumpers this season (47%) and has started to heat up from distance as he’s shot 13-of-24 from behind the arc over his last four games.

Rudy Gay (rest) questionable Monday; Pau Gasol (foot) and Davis Bertans (concussion) remain out

Gay is officially considered questionable for Monday’s matchup against the New Orleans Pelicans due to rest purposes on the second night of a back-to-back set, while Gasol and Bertans will remain sidelined with their respective ailments and are still without a timetable for their returns. If Gay is eventually ruled out, Derrick White would likely enter the starting lineup at point guard after logging just 18 minutes off the bench in Sunday’s win, which would slide Bryn Forbes and DeMar DeRozan to the shooting guard and small forward positions, respectively. There hasn’t really been a projectable beneficiary with Gay, Gasol, and Bertans off the court thus far, but DeRozan still leads the Spurs by a wide margin with a 32.8% usage rate and is averaging 1.11 DraftKings and 1.10 FanDuel points per minute in this scenario.

Better Than Expected

With all eyes on Luca Doncic due to a thinned out Mavs’ guard rotation, DeAndre Jordan may fly a bit under the radar at an exploitable price tag across the industry. DAJ could see an uptick in minutes himself as backup center Dwight Powell has already been announced out for Monday’s contest. A matchup against the Grizz is better than expected for Jordan as Memphis is allowing the eighth most shot attempts at the rim in the league and the 13th worst effective field goal percentage (62.7%). Memphis also ranks 19th in offensive rebounding rate allowed (27.1%), an area in which DAJ has excelled at throughout the course of his career.

Sheesh!

Man, at this point why are we not just playing AD in all of our lineups every night? Who cares about salary. Davis is on a roll and has posted 60+ fantasy points in five of his six last contests, including two games north of 70 fantasy points. Sheesh! The Spurs have struggled defensively this season, ranking 20th in effective field goal percentage allowed (52.8%) and 16th in effective field goal percentage at the rim (61.3%). This matchup is better for Davis than it looks at first glance and we shouldn’t be shying away from rostering the top fantasy option in the league whenever we have the chance.

Increase In Usage

Cory Joseph has played at least 30 minutes in four of the last five games, and while he shouldn’t see too many extra minutes tonight, he should receive a bump in usage. Joseph has a 13% usage rate on the season, but it goes up 3.2% with Oladipo off the floor and he’s averaging .84 fantasy points per minute. With the projection of 30+ minutes and the slight bump in usage, Joseph becomes one of the top value options on the slate tonight. Utah was a top five defensive team last season, they’re not ranked in the top ten to start this season.

Great Value Option

Evans is going to be one of the highest owned players on the slate tonight, and as much as I like to fade the chalk value guys, it’s hard not to lock him in tonight, as he has a 32% usage rate and he’s averaging 1.09 fantasy points per minute with Oladipo off the floor this season. Everyone will see a usage bump with the Pacers tonight because Oladipo has a 28.1% true usage rate. Evans started the second half for Oladipo and finished with 24 minutes. He didn’t see any fourth quarter minutes in that game, and I’m hoping we see him play around 26-28 minutes tonight.

Minutes In A Strong Matchup

Mike Muscala has played at least 26 minutes in each of the four games since returning from injury. He continues to have a low usage rate, but with little value opening up on today’s slate, he’s certainly someone to look at in this matchup. The 76ers have the third highest implied total tonight, and it’s 3.6 points higher than their season average. The Suns rank 29th in DRPM against opposing power forwards and 27th in defensive efficiency as a team.

Taurean Prince (Achilles) probable Monday; Alex Poythress (ankle) out

Prince has been upgraded to probable on the Hawks’ injury report for Monday’s matchup against the Los Angeles Clippers due to a sore right Achilles that has forced him to miss two consecutive games, while Poythress has been officially ruled out with a left ankle contusion. There’s been no word if Prince will be subject to a minutes restriction in his likely return, but he should reclaim his spot in the starting lineup either way, which will send Kevin Huerter back to the bench to resume a reserve role following two underwhelming fantasy performances in 28.5 minutes per game over that span. However, with John Collins expected to be limited to 18 minutes off the bench, it’s also possible that Prince starts at power forward and enables either Huerter or DeAndre Bembry to start at small forward. As for Poythress’ absence, any minutes he would have played will be distributed amongst Omari Spellman, Vince Carter, and Justin Anderson, who is expected to be limited to 12 minutes in his Hawks debut after recovering from a surgical procedure on his left leg.

J.J. Barea (groin) and Dwight Powell (knee) out Monday

Barea has officially been downgraded from questionable and won’t play in Monday’s matchup against the Memphis Grizzlies due to a strained left adductor, while Powell will also be unavailable because of a left knee effusion. Wesley Matthews remains listed as doubtful on the Mavericks injury report, but he reportedly will go through a workout this afternoon at shootaround and still has a chance to be cleared for tonight’s contest. The absences of Barea and Powell will clear the way for Devin Harris, Maxi Kleber, and Jalen Brunson to take on more significant roles in the second unit, but Dennis Smith Jr. may actually be a sneaky beneficiary with Barea sidelined, as the two rarely share the court together and should lead to an uptick in his minutes. On top of that, Smith Jr. has a 27.5% usage rate and is averaging 0.93 DraftKings and 0.91 FanDuel points per minute with the aforementioned players off the court this season.

Victor Oladipo (knee) out Monday

Oladipo has officially been downgraded from questionable and won’t play in Monday’s matchup against the Utah Jazz due to a sore right knee he aggravated in Saturday’s win. Head coach Nate McMillan wouldn’t confirm who would replace Oladipo in the starting lineup, but Tyreke Evans got the nod to begin the second half following Oladipo’s exit, making him the leading candidate to start at the shooting guard spot. However, if McMillan prefers to keep Evans in his customary sixth-man role, either Cory Joseph or Aaron Holiday could enter the lineup alongside Darren Collison in the backcourt. Holiday saw the first meaningful minutes of his young career on Saturday and did not disappoint, as he contributed 12 points in an efficient 15 minutes of action, though it’s difficult to imagine Holiday seeing much more run than that, even if he starts this evening. Evans remains the far superior fantasy option given his 32.0% usage rate (+3.1%) and an average of 1.11 DraftKings and 1.09 FanDuel points per minute with Oladipo off the court this season.

NBA Injury Rundown - Monday, 11/19

Philadelphia 76ers – Furkan Korkmaz (Questionable), Justin Patton (Out)

Charlotte Hornets – Michael Kidd-Gilchrist (Out)

Cleveland Cavaliers – George Hill (Out), Sam Dekker (Out), Kevin Love (Out)

Indiana Pacers – Victor Oladipo (Questionable)

Los Angeles Clippers – Avery Bradley (Questionable), Luc Mbah a Moute (Out)

Atlanta Hawks – Taurean Prince (Doubtful), Alex Poythress (Doubtful)

San Antonio Spurs – Davis Bertans (TBD), Pau Gasol (TBD)

New Orleans Pelicans – Elfrid Payton (Out)

Dallas Mavericks – Wesley Matthews (Doubtful), J.J. Barea (Questionable), Dwight Powell (Questionable)

Denver Nuggets – Torrey Craig (Probable), Will Barton (Out)

Oklahoma City Thunder – Russell Westbrook (Out), Terrance Ferguson (Out), Alex Abrines (Out)

Sacramento Kings – Kosta Koufos (Out)

Rudy Gay will start ahead of Derrick White on Sunday

Head coach Gregg Popovich has opted to make a change to his starting lineup for Sunday’s matchup against the Golden State Warriors, and he’ll insert Rudy Gay at the small forward position, which will slide DeMar DeRozan and Bryn Forbes over to shooting guard and point guard, respectively, while Derrick White will head to the bench to resume a reserve role. There’s been no word if this will be a long-term change, but White figures to see a reduction in playing time for at least one additional game regardless. Gay logged 25 minutes in Thursday’s loss, and he’ll be poised to take on an even larger minute workload in tonight’s contests, especially with San Antonio attempting to slow down Kevin Durant on the offensive end of the floor. On top of that, Gay owns a 24.5% usage rate and is averaging 1.08 DraftKings and 1.07 FanDuel points per minute this season, making him a viable option in an up-tempo matchup with Golden State this evening.