DFS Alerts

Alfonzo McKinnie (foot) out Saturday

Alfonzo McKinnie has been ruled out Saturday for the Warriors due to a foot injury. With Draymond Green ruled out as well, this leaves Jonas Jerebko to see the most minutes at the power forward position for Golden State. Jerebko makes for a great value on Saturday’s NBA slate with the Warriors so thin at the position.

Victor Oladipo (knee) questionable for Saturday

Victor Oladipo has been listed as questionable for Saturday’s matchup with the Hawks due to a knee injury. If Oladipo were to be unable to suit up, it would lock Darren Collison, Corey Joseph and Tyreke Evans into heavy workloads handling the point guard and shooting guard positions for the Pacers. The Pacers find themselves in the most pace-up position of any team on the slate against the Hawks, so the remaining guards would all make for interesting value options should Oladipo be unable to play.

Aaron Gordon (ankle) questionable for Saturday

Aaron Gordon is listed as questionable for Saturday’s matchup with the Lakers due to an ankle injury. If Gordon were to miss the game it would open up a lot of minutes at the PF position, with Wesley Iwundu the most likely beneficiary of the additional run due to Jonathan Isaac remaining on a minutes limit. Gordon is also a high-usage player, so the rest of the Magic starters would see a bump in usage as well in Gordon’s potential absence. Keep an eye on the injury reports closer to game time to get a better idea of if Gordon is in serious danger of missing the contest.

NBA Injury Rundown - Saturday, 11/17

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

Brooklyn Nets – Rondae Hollis-Jefferson (TBD), Treveon Graham (Out), Caris LeVert (Out)

Atlanta Hawks – John Collins (Probable), Alex Len (Probable), Taurean Prince (Doubtful), Justin Anderson (Out)

Denver Nuggets – Torrey Craig (Questionable)

New Orleans Pelicans – Elfrid Payton (TBD – Unlikely to Play)

Philadelphia 76ers – Wilson Chandler (TBD)

Charlotte Hornets – Michael Kidd-Gilchrist (Out)

Los Angeles Lakers – Rajon Rondo (Out)

Sacramento Kings – Kosta Koufos (TBD)

Houston Rockets – Carmelo Anthony (Out), Brandon Knight (Out), Nene (Out)

Toronto Raptors – Kawhi Leonard (TBD), CJ Miles (TBD), Norman Powell (Out)

Golden State Warriors – Alfonzo McKinnie (Questionable), Draymond Green (Out), Stephen Curry (Out)

Dallas Mavericks – Luka Doncic (Questionable), Dwight Powell (Questionable), Wesley Matthews (Out)

Oklahoma City Thunder – Russell Westbrook (Out)

Phoenix Suns – Trevor Ariza (Out)

Elfird Payton (ankle) will start Friday

Payton has officially been cleared by the Pelicans’ medical staff and will start in Friday’s matchup against the New York Knicks after missing nine consecutive games with a sprained right ankle. There’s been no word of a minutes restriction for Payton, and his return will send Wesley Johnson back to the bench to resume a reserve role. Prior to his injury, Payton was averaging 32 minutes per game as the starting point guard alongside Jrue Holiday in the backcourt, and he recorded a 19.1% usage rate with an average of 1.04 DraftKings and 1.03 FanDuel points per minute over that span. Holiday is most directly impacted by Payton’s presence on the court, as his usage rate dips to 18.4% and is only averaging 0.97 DraftKings and 1.01 FanDuel points per minute in a 121.9 minutes sample size.

Derrick Rose (knee) will play Friday

Rose has officially been upgraded from questionable and will play in Friday’s matchup against the Portland Trail Blazers after missing one game due to a sore left knee. Rose was able to participate in Thursday’s practice, so the in injury doesn’t appear to be too much of a concern. There’s been no word if Rose will be subject to a minute restriction in his return, but it’s likely he’ll resume a reserve role with Jeff Teague healthy and Robert Covington logging a team-high 41 minutes in Wednesday’s win. Head coach Tom Thibodeau can be unpredictable, but it would make sense to keep Rose at a manageable minute workload moving forward now that the Timberwolves are at full strength and Josh Okogie has proven to be a capable rotation player. Additionally, Anthony Tolliver received a DNP-CD in the first game Covington and Dario Saric was active, though it wouldn’t be surprising if Gorgui Dieng is a DNP-CD more often given Tolliver’s versatility on both ends of the floor and Taj Gibson’s ability to handle the backup center minutes in most matchups.

Derrick Jones Jr. (illness) available to play Friday

Jones Jr. has officially been upgraded from probable and will be available to play in Friday’s matchup against the Indiana Pacers after missing one game with an illness. Jones Jr. has averaged just 11.4 minutes over the Heat’s last seven games, so his return to the return to the lineup won’t have much of an effect on the remaining members of the rotation. It’s possible a few minutes could be siphoned away from Justise Winslow, Rodney McGruder, and Wayne Ellington, but it won’t be enough to impact their projected daily fantasy value this evening.

Jarrett Allen (illness) will play Friday; Rondae Hollis-Jefferson (ankle) ruled out

Allen has officially been upgraded from questionable and will play in Friday’s matchup against the Washington Wizards after missing two consecutive games with an illness, while Hollis-Jefferson has been downgraded to out due to an ankle injury he sustained in Wednesday’s contest. Hollis-Jefferson and Ed Davis alternated starts in Allen’s absence, though he was limited to just 17 minutes as head coach Kenny Atkinson opted to utilize small lineups more often, which enabled Spencer Dinwiddie and Shabazz Napier to each log more than 25 minutes. Atkinson has already admitted that Dinwiddie may replace Allen Crabbe in the starting lineup at some point, even if it’s not tonight, making him an extremely intriguing tournament option if he continues to see close to 30 minutes off the bench. On top of that, Dinwiddie leads the Nets with a 29.4% usage rate (+6.6%) and is averaging 1.14 DraftKings and 1.12 FanDuel points per minute with Hollis-Jefferson and Caris LeVert off the court this season

Marcus Morris (illness) available to play Friday

Morris has officially been upgraded from questionable and will be available to play in Friday’s matchup against the Toronto Raptors after missing one game due to an illness. There’s been no word of a minutes restriction for Morris, so he’ll presumably step directly back into mid-20s minutes role off the bench. However, his presence in the lineup will be a major hit to the playing time of Semi Ojeleye, who managed to log 21 minutes in Wednesday’s win, and he may be relegated from the rotation entirely after head coach Brad Stevens uncharacteristically utilized a 12-man rotation in Morris’ absence. Meanwhile, Gordon Hayward had his minute restriction officially lifted in the previous contest and has played at least 29 minutes in each of the Celtics last two games, increasing his fantasy floor and ceiling moving forward.

Bargains to be found against strong defensive team

The Jimmy Butler trade added another player with high usage to the team, but it also opened up playing time with both Robert Covington and Dario Saric heading to Minnesota. Wilson Chandler and Mike Muscala have both seen their playing time increase recently, and both players are near-minimum price across DFS sites tonight. Chandler started at forward in the 76ers last game, and has seen 23 minutes in each of the past two games, and Muscala has seen between 23 and 28 minutes in each of his last five games played. Utah isn’t a defensive matchup we would generally look to exploit, as the Jazz rank 10th in the NBA in opponent points allowed, however the team ranks a surprising 28th in field goal percentage allowed, putting these minimum-priced player in play as bargains tonight.

The Pace Should Increase For This Team Tonight

The Memphis Grizzlies have the largest positive difference between their average team points per game (102.9) and their implied point total (109.5) tonight, which makes sense given that they are at home facing a Sacramento team that 25th in the league in points allowed per game. The Grizzlies and Kings have already met once this season, and Mike Conley led the way in that game scoring 27 points and adding 5 assists and 6 rebounds. Fellow guard Shelvin Mack is also a name to consider, averaging over 30 minutes per game off the bench over his last three games, and Marc Gasol is intriguing with the Kings ranking 25th in the league in rebounding differential.

The Trendy Pick

Pat Connaughton seems like he will be the trendy value pick tonight, and while I have some concerns over his recent stretch being a bit of a flash in the pan, it’s hard to ignore him while his price remains cheap. He’s been very good over the last few games, and the minutes will be there even if this game turns into a blowout. I do think there’s reason behind possibly fading him in GPP formats if his pOWN% starts to climb even more, but he makes a lot of sense in cash games given the price tag and expanded role.

A New Team And A Pile Of Minutes?

Covington has all the makings of a Tom Thibodeau special. He played a team-high 41 minutes in his Minnesota debut, and while there are some concerns about playing time if Derrick Rose returns, that will only serve to keep ownership lower than it should be. The price tag is still too cheap here, and I’ll gladly play Covington in all formats tonight. The price tag is most prohibitive on FD, but his value at a thin position carries more weight over there. As such, I’ve tagged him as a salary saver on all sites.

Sneaky Potential Value

The Bulls are a mess, but they do seem commited to giving Ryan Arcidiacono minutes right now. He has played 30+ minutes in four straight games, averaging 11 points, five rebounds, and three assists over those contests. Those aren’t necessarily sexy lines, but he seems to have a floor around 20 fantasy points, and his upside should increase as he gets more comfortable in his role. On a slate that lacks obvious value in the absence of clarifying news, Arcidiacono is a fine value pick.

Mitchell Robinson (ankle) will play Friday; Allonzo Trier replaces Noah Vonleh in starting lineup

Robinson has officially been upgraded from probable and will play in Friday’s matchup against the New Orleans Pelicans despite dealing with a sprained right ankle. Robinson’s playing time has been all over the place of late with head coach David Fizdale constantly reshuffling his starting lineup and rotations and makes him difficult to trust in daily fantasy formats. Speaking of that everchanging starting lineup, Fizdale has opted to start Allozo Trier at the shooting guard spot this evening, which will send Noah Vonleh to the bench to assume a reserve role and slides Tim Hardaway Jr. to small forward and Kevin Knox to power forward respectively. This move is particularly interesting for Knox, as he should now theoretically have more rebounding opportunities and still owns a 26.6% usage rate on the season, giving him immense upside for his current price tag across the industry.