DFS Alerts
Starting Tonight
With Kawhi Leonard and OG Anunoby both ruled out tonight, look for Pascal Siakam to see an uptick in minutes and production. He’s already been announced as the starter tonight. Siakam is averaging .88 fantasy points per minute this season but should play 25+ minutes in this game tonight. The Bucks are not a great rebounding team, and that could lead to an easier road for Siakam to hit value in this spot. He’s going to be extremely popular tonight, but he has a super high floor in this matchup.
Solid Upside Because Of Injuries
Ilyasova will start for Giannis Antetokounmpo tonight, and looks to be a great pivot in tournaments off of Pascal Siakam. I could also see playing both of them together to build a strong rest of your lineup. Ilyasova is averaging 7.8 points and 6.3 rebounds in 22.8 minutes per game this season, and he’s averaging just over .9 fantasy points per minute overall and has put up at least 25 fantasy points in three of six games this season. I don’t think he’s as safe as Siakam, but he should come in at lower ownership.
Multiple Center Sites
I like Jarrett Allen a lot tonight, and I think he’s a great play on DraftKings and FantasyDraft. I want to use McGee and some other centers tonight, so playing Allen on sites where we can play multiple centers is key for me. Like LeVert and Russell, Allen is averaging over a fantasy point per minute this season, and he’s averaging 28.1 minutes per game. Allen had one of his best games of the season in the first matchup for the Knicks earlier this season, and this is the cheapest his price has been on DK all season.
Playing Small
Serge Ibaka is another Toronto Raptor player that may get lost in the mix on Monday night. It seems likely that Serge will draw the start against a Bucks team starting Brook Lopez at center but Ibaka’s playing time has remained consistent regardless of if he’s in the starting lineup or not. Ideally, we’ll be able to squeeze more than 28 minutes out of Ibaka in this game and if we’re able to he represents a strong point-per-dollar option on a team that is losing a lot of usage with Kawhi resting.
Keep An Eye On Pelicans Starting Lineup
This isn’t pretty but it makes sense to attack some of these secondary options on injury plagued teams that should directly benefit from increased playing time. The Pelicans haven’t announced a starting lineup yet but whomever is announced is worth a look in GPPs despite likely low usage. Tim Frazier has shown some value in this role in the past for the Pels.
Other tagged players: Ian Clark, Tim Frazier Andre Iguodala (calf) probable Monday; Shaun Livingston (foot) remains out
Iguodala has officially been listed as probable for the second leg of the Warriors back-to-back set and is expected to play in Monday’s matchup against the Chicago Bulls despite dealing with left calf tightness, while Shaun Livingston will his second consecutive game due to a sore right foot. With Livingston unavailable, Quinn Cook theoretically should absorb a sizable amount of the backup guard minutes, but to this point, head coach Steve Kerr has opted to just spread most of this available playing time amongst his starters, Iguodala, Alfonzo McKinnie, and Jacob Evans, making it difficult to utilize Cook or any of the Warriors reserve players in daily fantasy formats moving forward.
As reported by: Warriors PR via Twitter Other tagged players: Shaun Livingston
Increased Usage
The battle of the unbeaten quickly lost intrigue this morning as within a 10-minute span Kawhi Leonard was announced out for rest and Giannis Antetokounmpo was placed in the NBA’s concussion protocol. This sucks as an NBA fan but opens up a lot of value for DFS purposes as both Giannis and Kawhi were sporting monster usage rates to start the year. Kyle Lowry may be the biggest beneficiary of Kawhi’s absence but may still go relatively low-owned due to his high price tag. In Kawhi’s lone game missed this year, the Raptors offense was clearly ran through Lowry as he hoisted 21 shots and tallied 12 assists.
Anthony Davis (elbow) and Darius Miller (quad) out Monday
Davis has officially been downgraded from questionable and will not play in Monday’s matchup against the Denver Nuggets due to a sprained right elbow, while Darius Miller will also be sidelined with a bruised right quad. Julius Randle remains probable, but he’ll more than likely draw the start at center in Davis’ place, making him an elite option on tonight’s slate at his price tag and per-minute production rates even though he was limited to just 18 minutes in Saturday’s blowout. The Pelicans sample size with Davis, Miller, and Elfrid Payton all off the court together this season is fairly limited, but in that time, both Jrue Holiday and Nikola Mirotic have seen at least a +7.7% increase in usage rate, though Holiday has been much more efficient in converting this usage into fantasy production, averaging 1.48 DraftKings and 1.55 FanDuel points per minute in the aforementioned scenario.
As reported by: Pelicans PR via Twitter Other tagged players: Darius Miller Giannis Antetokounmpo (concussion) out Monday
Antetokounmpo has been placed in NBA’s concussion protocol and will not play in Monday’s matchup against the Toronto Raptors. He’ll be replaced in the starting lineup by Ersan Ilyasova, who has averaged 22.3 minutes per game this season off the bench. Antetokounmpo has dominated the offensive usage (35.3%) in the Bucks offense, and his absence will open up plenty of opportunities for Ilyasova and the remaining members of the starting lineup. Ilyasova is averaging 1.00 DraftKings and 0.99 FanDuel points per minute with Antetokounmpo off the court this season, which puts him in play as an elite value option on tonight’s slate, but it’s actually been Khris Middleton that has been the main beneficiary in this scenario, recording a 36.8% usage rate (+11.7%) and averaging 1.72 DraftKings and 1.61 FanDuel points per minute.
As reported by: Malika Andrews via Twitter Kawhi Leonard (rest) and OG Anunoby (personal) out Monday
Leonard will be rested on the front end of the Raptors upcoming back-to-back set and won’t play in Monday’s matchup against the Milwaukee Bucks, while OG Anunoby remains away from the team and will miss his second consecutive game dealing with a personal matter. Delon Wright is still expected to play, but Fred VanVleet was limited in Sunday’s practice and remains questionable. With both Leonard and Anunoby unavailable, Norman Powell will more than likely draw the start at small forward alongside Pascal Siakam in the frontcourt and logged 23 minutes the last time Leonard was rested in a back-to-back situation. Kyle Lowry has clearly been the primary beneficiary with Leonard off the court this season, recording a 32.2% usage rate (+10.1%) and averaging 1.62 DraftKings and 1.56 FanDuel points per minute, but Danny Green may also see a boost in production while spending more time at the small forward position, as his usage rate climbs to 24.8% and is averaging 1.08 DraftKings and 1.09 FanDuel points per minute with both Leonard and Anunoby off the floor.
As reported by: Blake Murphy via Twitter Other tagged players: OG Anunoby Markieff Morris (illness) will start Sunday
Morris had been considered a game-time decision, but he will start in Sunday’s matchup against the Los Angeles Clippers despite dealing with an illness. The Wizards are still without Dwight Howard due to a piriformis ailment, so Ian Mahinmi will start at center once again, though he’s yet to play more than 19 minutes in any game this season. This is largely due to the fact that head coach Scott Brooks has utilized more small-ball lineup combinations with Morris at center and either Kelly Oubre or Austin Rivers playing as the extra wing. There’s been no reported minute restriction for Morris, but he’s still likely better reserved for tournament formats given his illness, and if healthy, he should see substantial minutes at the five in a matchup that should allow both teams to play small for a large portion of the game.
As reported by: Chase Hughes via Twitter Luc Mbah a Moute (knee) remains out Sunday
Mbah a Moute has officially been downgraded from questionable to out and won’t play in Sunday’s matchup against the Washington Wizards due to a sore left knee. However, he hasn’t had a major role in head coach Doc Rivers’ rotation to start this season, averaging just 15 minutes per game. Mbah a Moute obviously isn’t relevant for daily fantasy formats with his low minute floor, but with him unavailable, those minutes will have to be absorbed somewhere in the rotation. Whatever available playing time that isn’t distributed to the starters, will likely trickle down to Montrezl Harrell and Mike Scott, though the matchup with Washington certainly does lend Rivers the ability to utilize three-guard lineups, which may lead to Lou Williams seeing a bit more extended run than the 25 minutes he’s averaged through the first five games.
As reported by: Jovan Buha via Twitter Hamidou Diallo inactive Sunday
Diallo missed shootaround Sunday morning and will be inactive for tonight’s matchup against the Phoenix Suns, which will enable Terrance Ferguson and Alex Abrines to share a majority of the available shooting guard minutes when Russell Westbrook and Dennis Schroeder aren’t on the floor together. Meanwhile, Jerami Grant will remain in the starting lineup ahead of Patrick Patterson at power forward, and he should continue to be a viable value option at his salary across the industry after finally eclipsing the 30-minute plateau in his first start on Thursday evening. Ever since making his season debut last weekend, Westbrook has led the Thunder with a 34.4% usage rate and has averaged 1.49 DraftKings and 1.41 FanDuel points per minute, which should gradually increase as he shakes off the rust from a minor offseason knee procedure.
As reported by: Brett Dawson via Twitter Alec Burks (hand) will play Sunday
Burks has officially been upgraded from questionable and will play in Sunday’s matchup against the Dallas Mavericks despite dealing with a left-hand contusion. Burks hasn’t eclipsed the 15-minute mark in any of the Jazz previous four games, but he could be a candidate for an uptick in playing time in small-ball lineups since Derrick Favors has already been ruled out for tonight’s contest with left knee soreness. Jae Crowder will more than likely slot into the starting lineup at power forward in his absence, but there is certainly a non-zero chance that head coach Quin Snyder prefers to keep Crowder in his normal bench role by starting one of the other Jazz reserves. However, Crowder is already playing more minutes than Favors on most nights, making it likely he sees an increase in playing time no matter what his role ends up being this evening. Additionally, Thabo Sefolosha will be available to make his season debut following a five-game suspension for violating the NBA’s anti-drug policy last season, and he’ll likely step immediately into a considerable role in Snyder’s rotation, especially while Favors is sidelined.
As reported by: Eric Woodyard via Twitter Russell Westbrook (shoulder) will start Sunday
Westbrook didn’t participate in Saturday’s practice, but head coach Billy Donovan confirmed that he will start in Sunday’s matchup against the Phoenix Suns despite dealing with a sore right shoulder. Meanwhile, Jerami Grant will remain in the starting lineup ahead of Patrick Patterson at power forward, and he should continue to be a viable value option at his salary across the industry after finally eclipsing the 30-minute plateau in his first start on Thursday evening. Ever since making his season debut last weekend, Westbrook has led the Thunder with a 34.4% usage rate and has averaged 1.49 DraftKings and 1.41 FanDuel points per minute, which should gradually increase as he shakes off the rust from a minor offseason knee procedure.
As reported by: Brett Dawson via Twitter