DFS Alerts
Ian Mahinmi (back) will start Friday
Mahinmi has officially been cleared to play and will start in Friday’s matchup against the Sacramento Kings despite his original questionable designation with back spasms that kept him sidelined for one game. His availability will send Jason Smith back to the bench to resume a reserve role after logging just 10 minutes in his spot start with Mahinmi and Dwight Howard sidelined. Meanwhile, Bradley Beal didn’t go through shootaround this morning and remains be a game-time decision due to a bruised sternum. If Beal is unable to suit up, Austin Rivers would be the likeliest candidate to draw the start alongside John Wall in the backcourt. The sample size is still limited, but Otto Porter has easily been the main beneficiary with Beal off the court this season, recording a 23.4% usage rate and averaging 1.56 DraftKings and 1.75 FanDuel points per minute.
As reported by: Candace Buckner via Twitter
Jalen Brunson will start in place of Dennis Smith Jr. (ankle) on Friday
Smith Jr. sustained a left ankle injury late in Wednesday’s loss but was originally expected to play in Friday’s matchup with the Toronto Raptors, however, he’s now been deemed as unavailable for tonight’s contest. In his absence, Jalen Brunson will draw the start at point guard, the first of his career, but it would not be surprising to see Luka Doncic take on a significantly higher percentage of the ball-handling responsibilities even when Brunson is on the court. Meanwhile, Harrison Barnes will make his season debut after missing each of the Mavericks first four games with a strained left hamstring. Barnes will have his minutes limited, but his return to the starting lineup could send Dorian Finney-Smith, who underwhelmed from a daily fantasy perspective in 32 minutes per game as a starter, to the bench to resume a reserve role.
As reported by: Eddie Sefko via Twitter Jimmy Butler (illness) will start Friday
Butler has officially been cleared to play and will start in Friday’s matchup against the Milwaukee Bucks despite his original questionable designation due to an illness. On the other hand, Andrew Wiggins will miss his second consecutive game with a right quad contusion. Josh Okogie ended up drawing the start at the shooting guard spot in the previous game with Wiggins unavailable and exceeded salary-based expectations in 26 minutes of action. Derrick Rose was also a significant beneficiary sans Wiggins last time out, logging 29 minutes and may now be the preferred daily fantasy option of the two with their prices much closer together this time around. Butler still leads the Timberwolves with a 26.9% usage rate and is averaging 1.24 DraftKings and 1.31 FanDuel points without Wiggins on the court this season, while Okogie, Tyus Jones and Gorgui Dieng all own at least a +2.3% usage rate differential in the aforementioned scenario, though Okogie has the highest minute floor of the three by a significant margin.
As reported by: Kyle Ratke via Twitter Andrew Wiggins (quad) out Friday
Wiggins has officially been downgraded from questionable to out and won’t play in Friday’s matchup against the Milwaukee Bucks due to a right quad contusion, while Jimmy Butler remains a game-time decision with an illness. Josh Okogie ended up drawing the start at the shooting guard spot in the previous game with Wiggins unavailable and exceeded salary-based expectations in 26 minutes of action. Derrick Rose was also a significant beneficiary sans Wiggins last time out, logging 29 minutes, and he’ll likely enter the starting lineup alongside Okogie on the wing if Butler is ruled out closer to tipoff. If that scenario comes to fruition, Keita Bates-Diop could finally make his NBA debut and see some playing time as the backup small forward behind Okogie, though he’ll unlikely be given a long enough leash by Thibodeau to become relevant in daily fantasy formats.
As reported by: Timberwolves PR via Twitter Dennis Smith Jr. (ankle) out Friday
Smith Jr. sustained a left ankle injury late in Wednesday’s loss but was originally expected to play in Friday’s matchup with the Toronto Raptors, however, he’s now been deemed as unavailable for tonight’s contest. There’s been no word on who will replace him in the starting lineup, but either J.J. Barea or Jalen Brunson appears to be the likeliest candidates if head coach Rick Carlisle doesn’t opt to just move Luka Doncic over to point guard. Meanwhile, Harrison Barnes will make his season debut after missing each of the Mavericks first four games with a strained left hamstring. Barnes will have his minutes limited, but his return to the starting lineup could send Dorian Finney-Smith, who underwhelmed from a daily fantasy perspective in 32 minutes per game as a starter, to the bench to resume a reserve role.
As reported by: Mark Followill via Twitter Luc Mbah a Moute (knee) out Friday
Mbah a Moute has officially been downgraded from questionable to out and won’t play in Friday’s matchup against the Houston Rockets 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 Mike Scott or Montrezl Harrell, though the matchup with Houston certainly does lend Rivers the ability to utilize three-guard lineups, which may lead to Lou Williams seeing more extended run than the 25 minutes he’s averaged through the first four games.
As reported by: Andrew Greif via Twitter Fred VanVleet (toe) out Friday
VanVleet has officially been downgraded from questionable to out and won’t play in Friday’s matchup against the Dallas Mavericks due to a sprained left toe. Meanwhile, OG Anunoby is away from the team dealing with a personal matter, Delon Wright will miss yet another game after reaggravating his strained left adductor during the first half of Wednesday’s win. This means that the Raptors backcourt depth will certainly be tested with two of its key members sidelined, and Lorenzo Brown will step into a significant role as the primary backup guard after logging 12 minutes with VanVleet sidelined in the previous game. The absence of Anunoby also raises the minute floors of remaining frontcourt members like Pascal Siakam and Serge Ibaka, while Norman Powell and C.J. Miles should absorb the majority of available reserve wing minutes.
As reported by: Blake Murphy via Twitter Knicks will start Ntilikina, Hardaway Jr., Dotson, Robinson and Vonleh on Friday
Lance Thomas has officially been upgraded from questionable to available to play in Friday’s matchup against the Golden State Warriors, while Emmanuel Mudiay will remain sidelined with a sprained right ankle. Head coach David Fizdale made waves with reporters this afternoon when he implied that he intended to shake things up with his starting lineup for tonight’s contest, and he’s certainly done that, opting to roll with Frank Ntilikina, Tim Hardaway Jr., Damyean Dotson, Mitchell Robinson, and Noah Vonleh as his starting five. This means that Thomas will now come off the bench, but he’s only played more than 20 minutes in one game all season, so he wasn’t relevant for daily fantasy formats even prior to this news. It’s difficult to trust any of the starters that have been relegated to reserve roles, but any of the inexpensive starters like Dotson, Robinson, or Vonleh are all intriguing tournament targets and borderline cash viable depending on roster construction.
As reported by: Chris Iseman via Twitter Other tagged players: Mitchell Robinson, Noah Vonleh J.J. Barea (hamstring) listed available Friday
Barea has been listed as available in the most recent version of the Mavericks injury report and will presumably play in Friday’s matchup against the Dallas Mavericks despite his original questionable designation with a strained left hamstring. As expected, Harrison Barnes will make his season debut after missing each of the Mavericks first four games with a strained left hamstring. Barnes will have his minutes limited, but his return to the starting lineup will send Dorian Finney-Smith, who underwhelmed from a daily fantasy perspective in 32 minutes per game as a starter, to the bench to resume a reserve role. Barnes clearly won’t be a viable option on a minutes restriction and in a difficult matchup with a Raptors squad that ranks sixth in defensive efficiency to start the year, but his presence in the lineup will still naturally impact the usage of Wesley Matthews, Luka Doncic, and Dennis Smith Jr. all of whom currently sport usage rates of at least 25.8% through four games.
As reported by: NBA Official Injury Report Lance Thomas (knee) listed available Friday; Emmanuel Mudiay (ankle) listed out
Thomas has officially been upgraded from questionable to available to play in Friday’s matchup against the Golden State Warriors, while Mudiay will remain sidelined with a sprained right ankle. Head coach David Fizdale made waves with reporters this afternoon when he implied that he intended to shake things up with his starting lineup for tonight’s contest, and he’s certainly down that, opting to roll with Frank Ntilikina, Tim Hardaway Jr., Damyean Dotson, Mitchell Robinson, and Noah Vonleh as his starting five. This means that Thomas will now come off the bench, but he’s only played more than 20 minutes in one game all season, so he wasn’t relevant for daily fantasy formats even prior to this news. It’s difficult to trust any of the starters that have been relegated to reserve roles, but any of the inexpensive starters like Dotson, Robinson, or Vonleh are all intriguing tournament targets and borderline cash viable depending on roster construction.
As reported by: NBA Official Injury Report Other tagged players: Emmanuel Mudiay Chandler Hutchison will start in place of Bobby Portis (MCL) on Friday
Portis is expected to miss several weeks with a right MCL sprain, so head coach Fred Hoiberg has opted to go with Chandler Hutchison as the starting power forward in Friday’s matchup against the Charlotte Hornets, a move that leaves Jabari Parker on in the bench in a sixth-man role. This starting lineup decision is rather surprising, but Hoiberg did reiterate that Hutchison would likely give way to Parker more often in the second half and definitely in the final minutes of the game. Hutchison will likely see a small uptick in minutes as a starter and has averaged 15 minutes in the Bulls last two games, but Parker will still be the direct beneficiary of Portis’ absence and finally eclipsed the 30-minute mark for the first time this season his last time out.
As reported by: K.C. Johnson via Twitter Sacrificing Floor for Upside
We always talk about maximizing our lineup’s floor in cash games, but there are instances where I’m willing to sacrifice a little floor for the chance at a much higher upside. Marvin Bagley has been tremendous in his first few NBA appearances, but his minutes have been all over the map. He deserves 30 minutes a night, but could see anywhere between 22 and 34 tonight. While that’s risky, we have to like his upside against the Wizards, who are under-sized and under-manned in their frontcourt.
You Can Blame or Thank me Later
If you take this advice, you will either be really glad or really mad that you saw this blurb. Danny Green could be a difference-maker tonight against the Mavericks. Not only are they ranked 30th in defensive efficiency against shooting guards, but the Raptors will be without OG Anunboy and Delon Wright. There’s also a chance that Fred VanVleet could miss another game. Green is locked into 30+ minutes against a team that doesn’t defend the three-point line well and he’s dirt cheap across the industry.
All the Narratives
I feel like this is an episode of Oprah. You get a narrative and you get a narrative, except Chris Paul is taking them all. He is coming off of a suspension, so he should be well rested and ready to get back out there. He is facing his former team, so he’ll had added motivation. And he’s playing without James Harden. Since the start of last season, Paul sees a 6% usage bump and a 0.34 FP/min bump with Harden off the floor. I will gladly pay the premium for Paul in both cash games and tournaments.
Bradley Beal (sternum) and Ian Mahinmi (back) are game-time decisions Friday
Beal didn’t go through shootaround Friday morning and is expected to be a game-time decision for tonight’s matchup against the Sacramento Kings due to a bruised sternum, while Ian Mahinmi remains questionable with back spasms. If Beal is unable to suit up, Austin Rivers would be the likeliest candidate to draw the start alongside John Wall in the backcourt. Since Dwight Howard is still dealing with a piriformis ailment, Jason Smith would likely draw the start at center once again if Mahinmi is unable to suit up, but he also started in Wednesday’s loss to the Warriors and logged just 10 minutes. The sample size is still limited, but Otto Porter has easily been the main beneficiary with Beal off the court this season, recording a 23.4% usage rate and averaging 1.56 DraftKings and 1.75 FanDuel points per minute.
As reported by: Candace Buckner via Twitter Other tagged players: Ian Mahinmi