DFS Alerts
Al Horford (ankle sprain) ruled out Wednesday; Guerschon Yabusele will start
Horford has officially been ruled out for Wednesday’s matchup with the Utah Jazz due to a sprained left ankle and he’ll join Marcus Morris among the Boston Celtics’ recent inactives. The absence of Morris will open up additional playing time for the starters and bench players like Semi Ojeleye and possibly Shane Larkin in small-ball lineup combinations, while Guerschon Yabusele will start at power forward alongside Aron Baynes and should step into an expanded role in the frontcourt without Horford available. The sample size begins to dwindle when taking Horford, Morris, and Kyrie Irving off the court, but Terry Rozier, Jayson Tatum, and Greg Monroe appear to be in the best positions to benefit, as each own at least a +5.7% usage rate differential, while Rozier averages a lofty 1.38 fantasy points per minute on DraftKings and 1.34 on FanDuel in this scenario as well.
As reported by: Adam Himmelsbach via Twitter Other tagged players: Guerschon Yabusele
Andrew Harrison (wrist, shoulder) and Ivan Rabb (heel) ruled out Wednesday
Harrison is dealing with an injured right wrist and left shoulder and won’t play in Wednesday’s matchup with the Portland Trail Blazers, which will enable Mario Chalmers to enter the starting lineup at point guard and immediately vault him into consideration for daily fantasy formats at his price tag if he’s able to see anywhere close to starters’ minutes this evening. Harrison had started the previous two games and averaged just under 35 minutes over that span, though he was wildly inconsistent from a daily fantasy perspective. The Grizzlies are also without Tyreke Evans one again, so Marc Gasol, Wayne Selden, and Dillon Brooks have the potential to benefit the most from his and Harrison’s absences, as each own at least a +2.2% with them off the court this season. Gasol also leads the team with a 31.1% usage rate overall and is averaging 1.21 fantasy points per minute on DraftKings and 1.20 on FanDuel in this scenario.
As reported by: Grizzlies PR via Twitter Other tagged players: Ivan Rabb Damyean Dotson (foot strain) available to play Wednesday
Dotson is set to return from a two-game absence due to sprained right foot and will be available to play in Wednesday’s matchup with the New York Knicks, while Kyle O’Quinn and Courtney Lee will be inactive. Lee was demoted to the bench in favor of Frank Ntilikina and most recently Lance Thomas but has still averaged 29 minutes off the bench the last two games, potentially giving Dotson an opportunity to see significant playing time. With O’Quinn unavailable, the New York Knicks will be forced to rely upon Luke Kornet and possibly Isaiah Hicks to absorb the backup minutes behind Enes Kanter at center, though Kornet should be expected to see a substantial increase in playing time since O’Quinn hasn’t logged more than 15 minutes in either of his last two games. Trey Burke has been stellar in his two-game stint as the starting point guard in place of Emmanuel Mudiay and has smashed his salary-based expectations on both occasions while averaging just under 34 minutes over that span. Burke has been priced more appropriately across the industry for Wednesday’s slate, but he remains in play for tournament formats with Mudiay’s role in the rotation appearing to be trending downward.
As reported by: Chris Iseman via Twitter Cedi Osman (hip flexor strain) available to play Wednesday
Osman is officially available to play in Wednesday’s matchup with the Charlotte Hornets after missing nearly three full weeks with a strained left hip. The Cleveland Cavaliers are still without Kyle Korver as he deals with a personal matter, so the return of Osman will provide some depth at the wing positions, though interim head coach Larry Drew has yet to confirm if Osman would be subject to a minute restriction off the bench. Rodney Hood replaced Love to begin the second half of Tuesday’s loss, and he will start along with Tristan Thompson in tonight’s contest, sliding George Hill back over to point guard and sending Jose Calderon back to the bench to assume a reserve role. To the surprise of no one, LeBron James leads the team with a 34.4% usage rate with Love and Korver off the court this season and is averaging 1.57 fantasy points per minute on DraftKings and 1.54 on FanDuel in this scenario.
As reported by: Joe Vardon via Twitter Courtney Lee (foot inflammation) ruled out Wednesday
Lee will join Kyle O’Quinn among the New York Knicks inactives and won’t play in Wednesday’s matchup with the Philadelphia 76ers due to left foot inflammation. Lee was demoted to the bench in favor of Frank Ntilikina and most recently Lance Thomas but has still averaged 29 minutes off the bench the last two games. With O’Quinn unavailable, the New York Knicks will be forced to rely upon Luke Kornet and possibly Isaiah Hicks to absorb the backup minutes behind Enes Kanter at center, though Kornet should be expected to see a substantial increase in playing time since O’Quinn hasn’t logged more than 15 minutes in either of his last two games. Trey Burke has been stellar in his two-game stint as the starting point guard in place of Emmanuel Mudiay and has smashed his salary-based expectations on both occasions while averaging just under 34 minutes over that span. Burke has been priced more appropriately across the industry for Wednesday’s slate, but he remains in play for tournament formats with Mudiay’s role in the rotation appearing to be trending downward.
As reported by: Al Iannazzone via Twitter Michael Kidd-Gilchrist (illness) will play Wednesday
Kidd-Gilchrist is battling a case of food poisoning that kept him absent from shootaround Wednesday morning but he will play in tonight’s matchup with the Cleveland Cavaliers despite the previous questionable designation on the injury report. With Cody Zeller still sidelined with a sore left knee, Dwight Howard figures to continue being on the receiving end of some additional playing time, while Guillermo Hernangomez should remain in the backup center role and is averaging just over 15 minutes per game over his last six contests. No individual player specifically benefits with and Zeller off the court, but Kemba Walker does still lead the Hornets with a 29.2% usage rate and is averaging 1.10 fantasy points per minute on DraftKings and 1.07 on FanDuel in this scenario.
As reported by: Rick Bonnell via Twitter Wesley Iwundu (illness) ruled out Wednesday
Iwundu is a surprise inactive and won’t play in Wednesday’s matchup with the Brooklyn Nets due to an illness. Rodney Purvis has already been confirmed as his replacement in the starting lineup at the shooting guard spot, and there will be a significant void to fill on the wing with Jonathon Simmons, Jonathan Isaac, Evan Fournier, and Terrence Ross all still sidelined with their respective ailments. While Nikola Vucevic still leads the Orlando Magic with a 36.2% usage rate with the aforementioned players off the court this season, Aaron Gordon profiles as a better tournament option on tonight’s slate and owns a +2.9% usage rate differential while averaging 1.24 fantasy points per minute on DraftKings and 1.25 on FanDuel as well.
As reported by: Josh Robbins via Twitter Amir Johnson (flu-like symptoms) ruled out Wednesday
Johnson is a surprise inactive and won’t play in Wednesday’s matchup with the New York Knicks due to an illness. Johnson typically logs minutes in the mid-teens in the Philadelphia 76ers frontcourt rotation as the backup behind Joel Embiid at center, so Richaun Holmes will more than likely step directly into that role, limiting his overall appeal in daily fantasy formats this evening. Justin Anderson and Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot have been relegated from the rotation with Markelle Fultz set to play his second consecutive game and just sixth of the season, making their injury absences relatively meaningless to the playing time of the remaining members of this Sixers squad. Fultz still won’t be subject to a specific minute restriction, and head coach Brett Brown reiterated that Fultz’s fitness level and flow of the game will dictate how much he actually plays.
As reported by: Jon Johnson via Twitter Elfrid Payton (knee tendinopathy) listed questionable Wednesday
There’s been no official update from the team but Payton has popped up on the Phoenix Suns’ game notes for Wednesday’s matchup with the Los Angeles Clippers due to left knee tendinopathy. Devin Booker and T.J. Warren will jointly miss their fifth consecutive game, so Troy Daniels and Josh Jackson appear to be in line to remain in the starting lineup for at least one additional game. Daniels has averaged 33 minutes per game over that span and been at least semi-consistent from a daily fantasy standpoint. For the most part, Jackson has been stellar with Warren and Booker sidelined and is averaging 38 minutes per game outside of a lone 27-minute effort in last Friday’s blowout loss. Jackson also sports a +4.1% usage rate differential with Booker, Warren, and Tyson Chandler off the court this season and is averaging 1.01 fantasy points per minute on DraftKings and FanDuel in this scenario.
As reported by: NBA.com Game Notes Milos Teodosic (sore plantar fascia) ruled out Wednesday
Teodosic reaggravated his left plantar fascia in Tuesday’s win and will not play in Wednesday’s matchup with the Phoenix Suns as the Los Angeles Clippers already announced that he’ll be re-evaluated on Thursday before his status moving forward is determined. Lou Williams ended up replacing Teodosic in the starting lineup for the second half of last night’s contest, logging 37 minutes, and he appears to be the leading candidate to start alongside Austin Rivers in the backcourt, unless head coach Doc Rivers opts to start someone like Sindarius Thornwell or Tyrone Wallace in order to keep Williams in his normal sixth-man role. Unsurprisingly, Williams, Rivers, and DeAndre Jordan lead the post-trade deadline Clippers with a minimum +1.9% usage rate differential with Teodosic, Danilo Gallinari, and Avery Bradley off the court, while both Rivers and Jordan own at least a +0.13 increase to their per minute production in this scenario as well.
As reported by: Brad Turner via Twitter Alex Len (ankle), Devin Booker (hand), and T.J. Warren (knee) ruled out Wednesday
Len is dealing with a sprained left ankle and won’t play in Wednesday’s matchup with the Los Angeles Clippers, which will allow Jared Dudley to absorb an expanded role in the frontcourt rotation, while Alan Williams should serve as the primary backup center after averaging roughly a fantasy point per minute in 15 minutes of action in his season debut on Monday evening. Devin Booker and T.J. Warren will jointly miss their fifth consecutive game, so Troy Daniels and Josh Jackson appear to be in line to remain in the starting lineup for at least one additional game. Daniels has averaged 33 minutes per game over that span and been at least semi-consistent from a daily fantasy standpoint. For the most part, Jackson has been stellar with Warren and Booker sidelined and is averaging 38 minutes per game outside of a lone 27-minute effort in last Friday’s blowout loss. Jackson also sports a +4.1% usage rate differential with Booker, Warren, and Tyson Chandler off the court this season and is averaging 1.01 fantasy points per minute on DraftKings and FanDuel in this scenario.
As reported by: Scott Bordow via Twitter Other tagged players: Devin Booker, TJ Warren Kevin Love (concussion protocol) ruled out Wednesday
Love has officially entered the NBA concussion protocol and won’t be available to play in Wednesday’s matchup with the Charlotte Hornets, likely allowing either Tristan Thompson or Larry Nance to join the starting lineup at center due to matchup purposes. Nance averaged 31 minutes per contest over the four games prior to the returns of Love and Thompson earlier in the month, but that minute floor will be far from safe with the Cleveland Cavaliers much closer to full strength now than they were at that time. Rodney Hood replaced Love to begin the second half of Tuesday’s loss, so he should be in line for an expanded role no matter what the Cavaliers starting lineup looks like this evening. To the surprise of no one, LeBron James leads the team with a 34.4% usage rate with Love and Kyle Korver off the court this season and is averaging 1.57 fantasy points per minute on DraftKings and 1.54 on FanDuel in this scenario.
As reported by: Joe Vardon via Twitter Brandon Ingram (groin strain) will play Wednesday
Ingram will make his return from a 12-game absence for Wednesday’s matchup with the Dallas Mavericks, but he’ll reportedly be subject to an unspecified minute restriction in his first game back. The news of Ingram’s availability couldn’t have come at a better time for the Los Angeles Lakers, as the team announced that Isaiah Thomas will undergo surgery on his ailing hip and miss the remainder of the season. With Ingram back in the fold, Kyle Kuzma will more than likely head back to the bench to assume the vacated sixth-man role of Thomas, though his playing shouldn’t be drastically affected by whether he’s in a reserve or starting role. That said, the presence of Ingram will still enable head coach Luke Walton to extend the rotation a bit and players like Kuzma, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, and Lonzo Ball should see their total minutes creep back down to their normal levels, even with Ingram limited some extent from a workload standpoint.
As reported by: the Los Angeles Lakers via Twitter Marcus Morris (ankle) ruled out Wednesday; Al Horford (ankle) questionable
Morris confirmed with reporters during shootaround Wednesday morning that he won’t play in tonight’s matchup with the Utah Jazz due to a sprained left ankle. Head coach Brad Stevens also disclosed that Al Horford is also dealing with a sprained left ankle, and he’ll be listed as questionable on the injury report. The absence of Morris will open up additional playing time for the starters and bench players like Semi Ojeleye and possibly Shane Larkin in small-ball lineup combinations. Horford will test out his ailing ankle during pregame warmups, but if he’s unable to give it a go, Guerschon Yabusele should step into an expanded role in the frontcourt and even potentially start alongside Aron Baynes at power forward. The sample size begins to dwindle when taking Horford, Morris, and Kyrie Irving off the court, but Terry Rozier, Jayson Tatum, and Greg Monroe appear to be in the best positions to benefit, as each own at least a +5.7% usage rate differential, while Rozier averages a lofty 1.38 fantasy points per minute on DraftKings and 1.34 on FanDuel in this scenario as well.
As reported by: the Boston Celtics via Twitter Other tagged players: Al Horford Michael Kidd-Gilchrist (illness) questionable Wednesday
Kidd-Gilchrist battling a case of food poisoning that kept him absent from shootaround Wednesday morning. If Kidd-Gilchrist is ruled out closer to tipoff, Treveon Graham would likely start at small forward and be tasked with defending LeBron James, which would lock James in as a virtual must-play in cash game formats across the industry. With Cody Zeller still sidelined with a sore left knee, Dwight Howard figures to continue being on the receiving end of some additional playing time, while Guillermo Hernangomez should remain in the backup center role and is averaging just over 15 minutes per game over his last six contests. No individual player specifically benefits with Kidd-Gilchrist and Zeller off the court, but Kemba Walker does still lead the Hornets with a 29.9% usage rate and is averaging 1.19 fantasy points per minute on DraftKings and 1.16 on FanDuel in this scenario.
As reported by: Charlotte Hornets PR via Twitter