DFS Alerts
Pure Punt Play AKA The Triple P
For a small six game slate, this slate has all the makings to need a PPP. We have some great value options, but if George gets ruled out and Durant plays, I could see building a team with both Westbrook and Durant. You need a punt play if that happens, and my punt play tonight is Dorian Finney-Smith. The Dallas Mavericks are in full tank mode right now, but they’re giving some of the young guys minutes. After missing four months, Finney-Smith started at power forward against the Knicks on Tuesday. He played 18 minutes against Memphis in his return, and then played 20 minutes against the Knicks in his second game back. He played 20 minutes without any fourth quarter minutes, and playing the four, he has more rebounding upside.
Minute Increase Because Of Injuries
James Johnson saw a really nice increase in minutes with Wade, Whiteside, and Richardson out on Wednesday. Two of those guys have already been ruled out, and Richardson is doubtful to play tonight. Johnson is averaging 1.04 fantasy points per minute with those three guys off the floor this season. He played 34 minutes on Wednesday night, and he ended up crushing value at his price tag. His price didn’t go up enough, and he draws an excellent matchup with the Lakers, who rank 25th in defensive efficiency against power forwards.
Too Cheap For The Shot Attempts
With Wade and Whiteside already ruled out and Richardson doubtful, Ellington is someone I’m looking at again tonight. He took 19 shot attempts in 36 minutes against the Kings on Wednesday with those three guys out, and I could see him playing 33+ minutes again tonight. He doesn’t receive a big usage bump with those guys out, but his field goal attempts go up. He’s not a guy that’s going to fill up the stat sheet, but at his current price, he could certainly hit value with the shot attempts he receives in this game tonight.
Rodney Hood, not Ante Zizic, will start for Larry Nance (hamstring) on Thursday
Nance was officially ruled out and won’t play in Thursday’s game against the Portland Trail Blazers after originally being listed as questionable on the Cleveland Cavaliers’ injury report with a right hamstring injury, Meanwhile, Rodney Hood is active and will start following his original questionable designation on the injury report due to a strained lower back that had forced him to miss two consecutive games. Regardless of Hood’s in-game status, head coach Tyronn Lue already confirmed that he will go extremely small with Jeff Green starting at the five spot and Kyle Korver manning the shooting guard position for at least one additional game. With Nance unable to suit up, Ante Zizic was initially expected to start at center but will remain off the bench and is averaging 17 minutes per game as the backup center over the Cavaliers last two contests but could be in line for a significantly larger minute share as the only true healthy center left on the active roster with Tristan Thompson and Kevin Love still sidelined with their respective ailments.
As reported by: Marla Ridenour via Twitter Other tagged players: Ante Zizic
Tyson Chandler ruled out Thursday; Alex Len will start
Chandler is a late scratch and will be inactive for Thursday’s game against the Phoenix Suns due to an unspecified reason. Chandler was never listed on the Phoenix Suns’ injury report with any kind of ailment, so his inactive status may simply be a coach’s decision since his coming off of a DNP-CD in the loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers on Tuesday evening. In his absence, Alex Len will start at center alongside Dragan Bender to better matchup with Rudy Gobert and Derrick Favors on the defensive end of the floor, and this lineup change will send Josh Jackson back to the bench to resume his normal reserve role after logging 34 minutes en route to easily exceeding salary-based expectations in Tuesday’s contest. Len is about as volatile of a player as they come from a fantasy perspective, but he does average 1.04 fantasy points per minute on DraftKings and 1.08 on FanDuel with Chandler off the court this season, making him worthy of a shot in tournaments on the late slates at his price tag.
As reported by: Andy Larsen via Twitter Other tagged players: Alex Len Devin Booker (hand contusion) will try to play Thursday
Booker confirmed with reporters following pregame warmups that he will try to play and is starting in Thursday’s game against the Utah Jazz after previously being listed as questionable on the Phoenix Suns’ injury report with a right-hand contusion. Booker was present and participating in shootaround this morning but was primarily shooting left-handed, which didn’t initially lend much confidence to his potential availability this evening. Tyson Chandler has mysteriously been listed as inactive for tonight’s contest due to an unspecified reason, and in his absence, Alex Len will start at center alongside Dragan Bender to better matchup with Rudy Gobert and Derrick Favors on the defensive end of the floor. This lineup change will send Josh Jackson back to the bench to resume his normal reserve role after logging 34 minutes en route to easily exceeding salary-based expectations in Tuesday’s contest as part of interim head coach Jay Triano’s small-ball starting unit. Len is about as volatile of a player as they come from a fantasy perspective, but he does average 1.04 fantasy points per minute on DraftKings and 1.08 on FanDuel with Chandler off the court this season, making him worthy of a shot in tournaments on the late slates at his price tag.
As reported by: Scott Bordow via Twitter Clint Capela (thumb strain) will play Thursday
Capela has officially been cleared to play and will suit up for Thursday’s game against the Los Angeles Clippers, according to head coach Mike D’Antoni, after originally being listed as probable on the Houston Rockets’ injury report with a strained right thumb. The availability Capela will keep Nene in his normal reserve role as the backup center, while Tarik Black will remain out of the regular rotation entirely. The Rockets are still without Ryan Anderson and Brandan Wright due to their respective ailments, so P.J. Tucker will have no competition for the starting power forward position for at least one additional game. Anderson doesn’t command a huge usage rate when on the floor, but with him off the court, both James Harden and Chris Paul still own a noteworthy +1.8% usage rate differential, while Harden unsurprisingly leads the Rockets with rates of 1.64 fantasy points per minute on DraftKings and 1.60 on FanDuel in this scenario.
As reported by: Ben DuBose via Twitter Tyreke Evans (rib) will start Thursday; Mario Chalmers (hamstring) remains out
Evans has officially been cleared to play and will start in Thursday’s game against the Chicago Bulls after previously being listed as questionable on the Memphis Grizzlies’ injury report with a right rib injury that has kept him sidelined since February 23rd, while Mario Chalmers will remain sidelined for the fifth consecutive game following his original doubtful designation on the injury report. The Grizzlies recently signed Briante Weber to a 10-day contract to provide some depth in the backcourt with Andrew Harrison still sidelined with his respective ailment, though in order to make room on the active roster, the team opted not to sign Xavier Rathan-Mayes to a second 10-day contract, making him a free agent. The return of Evans to the starting lineup will likely relegate Kobi Simmons to the bench to assume the backup point guard role in Chalmers’ absence, while either Ben McLemore or Jarell Martin will likely round out the starting lineup as they’ve consistently done whenever Evans or Harrison are unavailable.
As reported by: Grizzlies PR via Twitter Other tagged players: Mario Chalmers Jeremy Lamb (back) will attempt to play Thursday; Cody Zeller (knee) remains out
Lamb will be available and attempt to play in Thursday’s game against the Atlanta Hawks, according to head coach Steve Clifford, after previously being listed as questionable on the Charlotte Hornets’ injury report with back spasms. Meanwhile, Cody Zeller will miss this third consecutive game due to soreness in his surgically repaired left knee. The Hornets are relatively healthy at their wing positions, so Lamb figures to slot directly into his normal minute role in the low-20s off the bench, if healthy. In the last two games with Zeller sidelined, Dwight Howard has logged at least 34 minutes en route to exceeding salary-based expectations in each contest, making him an intriguing tournament option on Thursday’s slate. Frank Kaminsky is also a candidate to continue a larger role off the bench after playing 28 minutes his last time out, and he’d set up as an interesting tournament target once again if he can continue absorbing some additional backup center minutes to go along with his typical backup forward gig.
As reported by: Charlotte Hornets PR via Twitter Other tagged players: Cody Zeller Trevor Booker (ankle sprain) available to play Thursday
Booker has officially been cleared to play and will suit up for Thursday’s game against the Toronto Raptors after previously being listed as questionable on the Indiana Pacers’ injury report with a sprained right ankle. Meanwhile, Domantas Sabonis has already been ruled out for the next two games due to a sprained left ankle, which should open up some playing time in the frontcourt for the likes of Booker and Al Jefferson with the second unit. In the games that Sabonis has missed this season, Jefferson has averaged just over 17 minutes per game off the bench, but with Booker now in the fold, it will be difficult for him log that type of playing time or become relevant in daily fantasy formats on a sizable nine-game main slate.
As reported by: the Indiana Pacers via Twitter Tim Hardaway Jr. (ankle sprain) will play Thursday
Hardaway Jr. has officially been cleared to play and will suit up for Thursday’s game against the Philadelphia 76ers after previously being listed as questionable on the New York Knicks’ injury report with a sprained right ankle he sustained in the closing moments of Tuesday’s loss. Meanwhile, Lance Thomas is still away from the team and will not play in tonight’s contest as he continues to deal with a personal family matter. It has yet to be confirmed by head coach Jeff Hornacek or the team, but the absence of Thomas should allow Michael Beasley to rejoin the starting lineup at power forward after averaging 31 minutes in his last two games. Hardaway Jr. is the only Knick to average more than 29 minutes per game since the All-Star break, which makes it difficult to rely upon any one player in cash game formats, though Beasley makes for an intriguing tournament option given his deflated price tag and projected increased role in the rotation this evening.
As reported by: Ian Begley via Twitter Clint Capela (thumb strain) remains probable Thursday
Capela was originally reported as out, but there was apparently a typo in the Houston Rockets’ afternoon injury update that’s sent out to media members, so he remains listed as probable on the injury report for Thursday’s game against the Los Angeles Clippers due to a strained right thumb. As of now, Capela is expected to play, but if he were to actually be ruled out, either Tarik Black or Nene figure to be the likeliest candidates to start at center with Ryan Anderson and Brandan Wright still sidelined with their respective ailments. Anderson doesn’t command a huge usage rate when on the floor, but with him off the court, both James Harden and Chris Paul still own a noteworthy +1.8% usage rate differential, while Harden unsurprisingly leads the Rockets with rates of 1.64 fantasy points per minute on DraftKings and 1.60 on FanDuel in this scenario.
As reported by: Jonathan Feigen via Twitter Lance Thomas (personal) listed out Thursday
Thomas is currently listed out in the latest version of the New York Knick’s games notes for Thursday’s game against the Philadelphia 76ers due to personal reasons. While there hasn’t been an official update from head coach Jeff Hornacek or the team, Thomas is classified as “not with the team” in the aforementioned games notes, making his availability for tonight’s contest highly unlikely. Additionally, Tim Hardaway Jr. remains questionable with a sprained right ankle he sustained in the closing moments of Tuesday’s loss. Hardaway Jr. is the only Knick to average more than 29 minutes per game since the All-Star break, so if he’s unavailable, there will certainly be a plethora of playing time available for the other members of the wing and guard rotations.
As reported by: NBA.com Game Notes Larry Nance (hamstring) ruled out Thursday; Rodney Hood (back) available to play
Nance has officially been ruled out and won’t play in Thursday’s game against the Portland Trail Blazers after previously being listed as questionable on the Cleveland Cavaliers’ injury report with a right hamstring injury, Meanwhile, Rodney Hood will be active and is probable to play off the bench following his original questionable designation on the injury report due to a strained lower back that had forced him to miss two consecutive games. Regardless of Hood’s in-game status, head coach Tyronn Lue already confirmed that he will use the same starters as last time out, which means Kyle Korver will start at shooting guard for at least one additional game. With Nance unable to suit up, Ante Zizic will draw the start at center and has averaged 17 minutes per game as the backup center over the Cavaliers last two contests but could be in line for a significantly larger minute share as the only true healthy center left on the active roster with Tristan Thompson and Kevin Love still sidelined with their respective ailments.
As reported by: Marla Ridenour via Twitter Other tagged players: Rodney Hood, Ante Zizic Increased Usage With Injuries
This depends a lot on Hardaway Jr. and Lance Thomas. Hardaway is dealing with a sprained ankle, and if he misses the game tonight, it’s a nice bump for Beasley. He has a 29.2% usage rate, and he’s averaging 1.04 fantasy points per minute. The 76ers rank in the bottom half against small forwards this season. I like the value he presents in this spot, and I could see him with lower ownership on this slate.