DFS Alerts
Jaylen Brown (foot) intends to play Saturday
Brown confirmed with reporters at shootaround that he plans to play in Saturday’s matchup against the Indiana Pacers after missing one game with a sore right foot. He officially remains questionable, but his likely return would send Semi Ojeleye back to the bench to resume his fringe, end of the rotation role following a solid showing in 22 minutes of action in his spot start. When the Celtics are at full strength, Kyrie Irving continues to just be a facilitator on offense, and he barely leads the team with a 26.2% usage rate while averaging 1.12 DraftKings and 1.10 FanDuel points per minute this season, making him an interesting fade candidate on tonight’s slate after two consecutive outstanding offensive performances.
As reported by: Adam Himmelsbach via Twitter
The Safest Value For Now
We have a lot of injury news today, and I really don’t love this play. I don’t love having TWO Pelicans listed as core plays against the Spurs, although I’m not concerned about the matchup necessarily. Moore isn’t a sexy fantasy option, but the good news is that he has been very consistent this year. The minutes are going to be there, and there’s something to be said about his 20-25 fantasy point floor on a slate that doesn’t have a ton of value. He’s not glamorous, but he generally gets the job done as a value pick. However, we have a lot of injury news to monitor today, and I’m hoping that some value will open up during the afternoon. In short, I’m hoping that I am able to change this selection as we get closer to lineup lock.
Great Floor and Ceiling Without Payton
We still don’t have clarity on the status of Anthony Davis, but we do have clarity on Elfrid Payton. The starting point guard for the Hornets will be out once again today, and that means that Jrue Holiday will run the show. His usage and production increased dramatically last year when Rajon Rondo was out, and we have seen the same thing this year with Payton out. If we run the CourtIQ query for the year with Payton off the floor, we see that Holiday sees a 4% usage boost and a modest bump in production. I would expect the production bump to be even higher in the long-run, too. I know a matchup against the Spurs doesn’t seem great on paper, but this isn’t the same San Antonio team. They currently rank in the bottom half of the league in defensive efficiency, and they simply aren’t the same with their losses from a few years ago (Kawhi Leonard) and their injuries (Dejounte Murray). I am not afraid of the matchup here, and Holiday is a fine play with Payton out. His upside increases even more if Anthony Davis misses again.
A Fantasy Stud in 2018-2019
It’s hard to get used to, but Walker just might be a top ten fantasy commodity this season. If you filter players by only those who have logged more than 100 minutes of court time this season, Walker ranks 6th in the NBA in usage rate right now. Remember how we used to constantly reference Walker’s home/road splits? He’s great at home! He stinks on the road! He’s matchup dependent! These used to be very valid points, but Walker is finally developing the consistency that Hornets fans and fantasy players have always longed for. He has topped 34 FanDuel points in every game this season. He has topped 37 DraftKings points in every game this season. That’s incredible consistency now that we are almost ten games in. Oh, and I buried the best point a little bit here — Walker draws a matchup against a Cleveland team that ranks dead last in the NBA in defensive efficiency so far this year. This game has a massive total, and Walker should continue his early-season success with ease. There’s a fine floor and a high ceiling here, and Walker just edges out Damian Lillard as my favorite point guard play of the day.
Tyus Jones will start in place of Jeff Teague (knee) on Friday
Teague was officially downgraded from questionable and won’t play in Friday’s matchup against the Golden State Warriors due to a left knee contusion, while Tyus Jones will return from a one-game absence because of a sore right foot. Jones will draw the start at point guard in place of Teague, but even so, it’s more than likely that both he and Derrick Rose end up seeing similar playing time, especially with Rose coming off of his monster performance in 40 minutes of action on Wednesday night. Prior to that contest, head coach Tom Thibodeau reiterated his desire to keep Rose at 26-28 minutes a night, and if that remains the plan, Jones could be an interesting tournament pivot with a chance to receive near starters’ minutes at a significant salary discount across the industry.
As reported by: Timberwolves PR via Twitter Devin Booker (hamstring) will play Friday
As expected, Booker has officially been upgraded from probable and will play in Friday’s matchup against the Toronto Raptors after missing three consecutive games due to a strained left hamstring. Isaiah Canaan also is set to return from a one-game injury absence and will overtake his starting point guard role from Ellie Okobo, while T.J. Warren will start at power forward for a second straight game. This new-look Suns starting lineup has only played together for 3.2 minutes this season, but it’s logical to assume that the offense will still run through Booker and Deandre Ayton with Warren pitching in as the secondary scoring option on the outside, as his 24.5% usage rate trails only Booker and Josh Jackson for the team lead among players that have logged more than 100 minutes on the year.
As reported by: Gerald Bourguet via Twitter Fred VanVleet (toe) and OG Anunoby (personal) will play Friday
VanVleet has officially been upgraded from questionable and will play in Friday’s matchup against the Phoenix Suns after missing four consecutive games with a sprained left big toe, while OG Anunoby is back with the team and will be available to play. This is the first time that Raptors have been at full strength this season, which means that Lorenzo Brown and Norman Powell will be relegated from the rotation. Kyle Lowry had also been seeing an uptick in minutes without VanVleet and Delon Wright unavailable for separate stretches over the first two weeks of the season, so he and the rest of the Raptors starters may not play a full complement of minutes in a matchup with Phoenix that projects as a potential blowout.
As reported by: Eric Smith via Twitter Other tagged players: OG Anunoby Grayson Allen will start in place of Donovan Mitchell (hamstring) on Friday
Mitchell had been ruled out in advance of Friday’s matchup against the Memphis Grizzlies due to right hamstring tightness, while Alec Burks remains sidelined with a sprained left hand. Derrick Favors and Jae Crowder are still listed as probable but both are fully expected to play at this point. Royce O’Neale had typically been head coach Quin Snyder’s first choice to start at shooting guard whenever Mitchell was unavailable, but he’s instead opted to start rookie Grayson Allen, who’s had an inconsistent role at the bookend of the rotation thus far. While Allen is nothing more than a tournament dart throw, his presence in the starting lineup does make the minute floor of O’Neale and Dante Exum much less stable.
As reported by: Eric Walden via Twitter Boban Marjanovic will start ahead of Marcin Gortat (undisclosed) on Friday
Gortat didn’t appear on the most recent version of the Clippers injury report, but he is reportedly dealing with an undisclosed injury and his status for Friday’s matchup against the Orlando Magic is uncertain. Gortat was limited to just nine minutes in Thursday’s loss to the Sixers after being thoroughly dominated by Joel Embiid on both ends of the floor. In response, head coach Doc Rivers has opted to replace Gortat with Boban Marjanovic at center in tonight’s contest, and it appears this decision is at least partly influenced by the possibility Gortat is unavailable. If Gortat is eventually ruled out, Marjanovic, Montrezl Harrell, and Mike Scott would absorb basically all of the vacated minutes at center. Marjanovic has averaged 1.60 DraftKings and 1.66 FanDuel points per minute with a 26.9% usage rate this season, so he possesses massive upside for his price if he sees anywhere near the 22 minutes he logged on Thursday night.
As reported by: Andrew Greif via Twitter Markieff Morris (concussion) and Dwight Howard (glute) won't have minute restrictions Friday
Morris is set to return from a one-game absence due to a concussion, and head coach Scott Brooks confirmed with reporters that he won’t be subject to a minutes restriction in Friday’s matchup against the Oklahoma City Thunder, while Howard has also been cleared to make his Wizards debut and isn’t expected to have any limitations from a minutes perspective. His insertion into the starting lineup will send Ian Mahinmi back to the bench to resume a reserve role, while Jason Smith will likely be relegated from the rotation entirely with Brooks utilizing small-ball lineups much more often than he has in past seasons.
As reported by: Candace Buckner via Twitter Other tagged players: Dwight Howard James Harden (hamstring) officially out Friday; James Ennis (hamstring) will start
As expected, Harden has officially been downgraded from doubtful and won’t play in Friday’s matchup against the Brooklyn Nets due to a strained right hamstring. However, head coach Mike D’Antoni did confirm with reporters that Harden is probable for Saturday’s second game of their current back-to-back set and would have been active tonight if not for the back-to-back situation. Meanwhile, James Ennis will replace Carmelo Anthony in the starting lineup at small forward after missing three consecutive games with a strained right hamstring. Predictably, the Rockets have struggled mightily without Harden the past three games, and even though Chris Paul has averaged 1.36 DraftKings and 1.37 FanDuel points per minute with Harden off the court, he’s only recorded a 27.4% usage rate in this scenario and has been horrendous from the field, along with most of the other core Rockets rotation players.
As reported by: Jonathan Feigen via Twitter Other tagged players: James Ennis III Rodions Kurucs (ankle) available to play Friday
Kurucs has officially been upgraded from probable and will be available to play in Friday’s matchup against the Houston Rockets after missing five consecutive games with a sprained left ankle. Kurucs averaged 13.7 minutes in the Nets first three games this season but that was with Rondae Hollis-Jefferson sidelined due to injury, so it remains unclear if he’ll even be able to crack the frontcourt rotation with Hollis-Jefferson, Jared Dudley, Ed Davis, and Jarrett Allen clearly ahead of him in the pecking order for playing time.
As reported by: Anthony Puccio via Twitter Marcin Gortat dealing with undisclosed injury, may be unable to play Friday
Gortat didn’t appear on the most recent version of the Clippers injury report, but he is reportedly dealing with an undisclosed injury and his status for Friday’s matchup against the Orlando Magic is uncertain. Gortat was limited to just nine minutes in Thursday’s loss to the Sixers after being thoroughly dominated by Joel Embiid on both ends of the floor. Head coach Doc Rivers implied to reporters that he may make a change to his starting lineup for tonight’s contest but it remains unclear if that lineup decision is directly correlated to Gortat’s possible unavailability. If Gortat is ruled out closer to tipoff, Montrezl Harrell and Boban Marjanovic would absorb a majority of the vacated minutes at center, just as they did in yesterday’s loss.
As reported by: John Denton via Twitter Jonathon Simmons (wrist) out Friday
Simmons has officially been downgraded from questionable and won’t play in Friday’s matchup against the Los Angeles Clippers due to a right wrist contusion. In a corresponding roster transaction, Orlando activated Melvin Frazier to the active roster for depth purposes. Simmons has been a key cog in the Magic’s second unit and has averaged 23.3 minutes through six games, so his absence will likely enable Wesley Iwundu to enter the rotation while Terrance Ross figures to see an increased minute workload at the wing positions. Ross’ minutes on a game-to-game basis directly correlates to his performance on the floor, as head coach Steve Clifford hasn’t shied away from riding the hot hand if Ross is playing well. Without Simmons available, he makes for an intriguing tournament with an elevated minute floor and has an achievable ceiling at his price point across the industry.
As reported by: Josh Robbins via Twitter Opportunity Trumps Efficiency
There are a lot of wing minutes and usage to go around in Utah with both Donovan Mitchell and Alec Burks already declared out. Enter Ricky Rubio and Royce O’Neale who are priced entirely too cheap for an expanded role. A matchup against the Grizz and their slow pace is less than ideal for the duo but this is a clear spot where opportunity is more important than efficiency.
Other tagged players: Royce O'Neale