DFS Alerts
Quietly Producing at an Elite Level
A lot of people are sleeping on just how good Dwight Howard has been this year. He has been consistent all season, and his averages of 15 points and 12 rebounds per game put him among the elite centers in the NBA again. The Hornets are playing well with four straight wins, and the matchup tonight is solid against a tanking Bulls squad. Howard is one of my favorite GPP center targets tonight.
Ryan Anderson (sore hip flexor) ruled out Monday
Anderson has officially been ruled out and won’t play in Monday’s game against the Utah Jazz after previously being listed as questionable on the Houston Rockets’ injury report with a sore left hip flexor. The Rockets will also be without Clint Capela, Eric Gordon, and Brandan Wright, leaving them shorthanded at several positions and enables Tarik Black to enter the rotation and start at center in Capela’s place. Meanwhile, Nene will be available to play off the bench following a one-game absence due to planned rest on the front end of this back-to-back set in Sunday’s win. Gerald Green was a DNP-CD last night, compared to the 28 minutes that were allocated to recently-signed Joe Johnson in the wing rotation, even with Trevor Ariza playing 32 minutes in his second game back from a lengthy absence due to a hamstring injury. That said, Green will more than likely be forced into a significant role with the second unit in tonight’s contest given the Rockets’ overall lack of depth due to the aforementioned player ailments.
As reported by: Craig Ackerman via Twitter
Clint Capela (illness) ruled out Monday, Tarik Black will start
Capela has officially been ruled out and won’t play in Monday’s game against the Utah Jazz after previously being listed as questionable in the latest version of the Houston Rockets’ game notes with an illness. He’ll join Eric Gordon, Brandan Wright, and Ryan Anderson among the Rockets’ inactives, which will enable Tarik Black to enter the rotation and start at center in Capela’s place. Meanwhile, Nene will be available to play off the bench following a one-game absence due to planned rest on the front end of this back-to-back set in Sunday’s win. Gerald Green was a DNP-CD last night, compared to the 28 minutes that were allocated to recently-signed Joe Johnson in the wing rotation, even with Trevor Ariza playing 32 minutes in his second game back from a lengthy absence due to a hamstring injury. That said, Green will more than likely be forced into a significant role with the second unit in tonight’s contest given the Rockets’ overall lack of depth due to the aforementioned player ailments.
As reported by: Craig Ackerman via Twitter Other tagged players: Tarik Black Jordan Bell (ankle inflammation) will play Monday; Kevon Looney inactive
Bell has officially been cleared to play and will suit up for Monday’s game against the New York Knicks after previously being upgraded to probable from questionable on the Golden State Warriors’ injury report with left ankle inflammation that has forced him to miss 15 consecutive games. Bell had gradually been increasing his activity in practice over the last week, so his return to the lineup this is far from surprising, especially following the midday upgrade on the injury report. To make room for Bell on the active roster, the Warriors will deactivate Kevon Looney and he’ll be unavailable to play in tonight’s contest. Meanwhile, JaVale McGee will remain in the starting lineup at center for the third straight game but hasn’t eclipsed 13 minutes in either of his previous starts, and there have been rumblings among Golden State beat reporters that McGee is essentially a placeholder at center until Bell is healthy enough to claim the role as his own.
As reported by: Anthony Slater via Twitter DeAndre Bembry (abdominal strain) officially ruled out Monday
Bembry has officially been ruled out and won’t play in Monday’s game against the Los Angeles Lakers after previously being listed as doubtful on the Atlanta Hawks’ injury report with a strained abdominal muscle. The Hawks buyout agreement with Ersan Ilyasova just became official, so they’ll be a bit shorthanded without him, Malcolm Delaney, Tyler Cavanaugh, and Antonius Cleveland due to their respective ailments. Bembry logged 25 minutes off the bench in Friday’s contest with the aforementioned players unavailable, so they’ll certainly be a substantial amount of playing time up for grabs for the likes of Tyler Dorsey and Isaiah Taylor in the backcourt and at the wing positions. John Collins struggled a bit in his first game as the new starting power forward, but he was the Hawks player to eclipse the 30-minute mark, making him an intriguing bounce-back candidate on Monday’s slate given his typical point per minute production.
As reported by: Michael Cunningham via Twitter Aron Baynes (elbow sprain) will play Monday
Baynes has officially been cleared to play and will suit up for Monday’s game against the Memphis Grizzlies after previously being listed as questionable on the Boston Celtics’ injury report with a sprained left elbow that had forced him to miss one game. Baynes will be immediately reinserted in the starting lineup following his one-game absence, which will send Daniel Theis back to the bench to resume his normal reserve role after averaging 19 minutes per game in relief over the past two contests. That said, even though Baynes is starting, he’s been largely irrelevant for daily fantasy formats ever since the Celtics signed Greg Monroe off waivers, as he’s eclipsed 14 minutes just one time in his last five games played. In fact, the frontcourt rotation, in general, has been extremely muddied since that time and all three big men are consistently seeing minutes in the mid-teens as part of a full-blown timeshare alongside.
As reported by: Sean Grande via Twitter Zach LaVine (rest) ruled out Monday
LaVine is a fresh addition to the Chicago Bulls’ injury report and has officially been ruled out for Monday’s game against the Brooklyn Nets due to planned rest on the front-end of the Bulls upcoming back-to-back set. This news is far from surprising since the team announced over the weekend that LaVine would sit in one game of every back-to-back situation for the remainder of the season as he continues to rehab from a torn ACL he sustained this time last year, which means he will be ready to go for the matchup with the Charlotte Hornets on Tuesday evening. In his absence, Justin Holiday will reenter the rotation and the starting lineup at the shooting guard spot following two consecutive DNPs out of the All-Star break in the Bulls new-look rotation. That said, Denzel Valentine and Bobby Portis have actually been the primary beneficiaries with LaVine off the court this season, as each own at least a +5.2% usage rate differential since he made his Bulls and season debuts, and Valentine has seen his production skyrocket to 1.22 fantasy points per minute on DraftKings and 1.16 on FanDuel in this limited sample.
As reported by: the Chicago Bulls via Twitter Other tagged players: Justin Holiday Eric Gordon (illness) and Brandan Wright (knee) listed out Monday; Clint Capela (illness) and Ryan Anderson (hip) listed questionable
Gordon has been listed out in the latest version of the Houston Rockets’ game notes for Monday’s game against the Utah Jazz due to an illness that has already forced him to miss two consecutive games, Brandan Wright is also listed out with right knee soreness after logging 15 minutes and making his official Rockets debut in Sunday’s win. Additionally, Clint Capela and Ryan Anderson have both been listed as questionable in the game notes with an illness and a sore right hip flexor, respectively. While there’s yet to be an official update from the team or head coach Mike D’Antoni on the aforementioned players, it seems best to approach Monday’s slate as if Gordon will be unavailable for the third time in as many games. Gerald Green was a DNP-CD last night, compared to the 28 minutes that were allocated to recently-signed Joe Johnson in the wing rotation, even with Trevor Ariza 32 minutes in his second game back from a lengthy absence due to a hamstring injury. That said, neither player figures to be a factor in daily fantasy formats, even with Gordon sidelined, since D’Antoni now suddenly has the ability to deploy deeper nine or 10-man rotations, limiting the minute and usage upside of tertiary rotational pieces like Johnson and Green moving forward.
As reported by: NBA.com Game Notes Other tagged players: Brandan Wright, Clint Capela, Ryan Anderson Increased Usage Tonight
I feel like I write up Harrison a lot, and I play him a lot as well. He’s just that guy for me, and he does well, it’s always nice because he’s always low owned. Tyreke Evans has already been ruled out for tonight’s game. Without Evans on the floor this season, Harrison has a 27.2% usage rate and he’s averaging 1.01 fantasy points per minute. That is a 6% usage, and .21 fantasy points per minute increase. It’s a tough matchup against Boston, but he makes for a very interesting large field GPP play tonight.
Adding Consistency to His Upside
Quietly, Elfrid Payton has actually been… consistent since joining the Suns. I know, it sounds strange to hear the word consistent uttered in the same sentence as Elfrid Payton, but here we are. Payton has now logged six straight games of at least 30 fantasy points, and the minutes are going to be there. I really like this game as a game that could turn into a shootout, as both the Suns and Pelicans love to run. The Pelicans also might be a little tired after playing an overtime game on Sunday. Though Payton doesn’t come as cheap as he used to, the GPP potential is very high in this matchup.
Breakout Game Incoming
Collins is one of my favorite plays on the slate tonight. Ersan Ilysova is in the process of being bought out by the Hawks, and Collins is the player benefiting the most from this. He’s played at least 30 minutes in back-to-back games, and has a great matchup against the Lakers tonight. The Lakers rank 22nd in defensive efficiency this season, and they’re ranked 29th against power forwards. With the massive bump in pace and the high implied team total, the Hawks are a team to look at tonight.
Don't Forget About Me!
The herd might flock to Anthony Davis if spending on a big man tonight, but don’t forget about Towns. You can make a strong case for him ahead of Davis with a bit of a price discount combined with the fact that Davis is playing on the second leg of a back-to-back after an overtime game on Sunday. Towns also draws a favorable matchup against a Kings team that is weak defensively and doesn’t have much for answers on the interior. We know the upside is there, and Towns has been very consistent since a slow start to the season. That feels like ages ago now, so fire up Towns with tons of confidence in GPP formats.
Elite Form and an Elite Matchup
Jrue Holiday is priced up around the industry, but rightly so. Over his last four games, he has scored 50, 55, 49, and 60 fantasy points. The crazy part is that nobody seems to have noticed. He draws a tremendous matchup tonight against the Suns, who are ranked dead last in both points allowed per game and defensive efficiency. Holiday offers a high floor and a high ceiling, which makes him a strong play in both cash games and tournaments.
No Reason to Fade this Center
Alex Len has always been an elite per-minute producer in the NBA. This season, he’s been stuck behind Greg Monroe and Tyson Chandler in the Suns’ rotation. However, with Monroe shipped out of town and Chandler hurt, Len has had a chance to shine as the starting center. Over his last three games, he has scored 42, 37, and 33 fantasy points. He has tremendous upside tonight against the Pelicans in a game that has all the makings of a shootout. All he needs to do is stay out of foul trouble.
Chasing Upside in Cash Games
We always take about the importance of a player’s floor in cash games, but that doesn’t mean that we have to completely avoid volatile players. While Rajon Rondo doesn’t have a particularly high floor in most matchups, he has enough upside that I’m willing to take the risk, even in cash games. Over his last five games, he has averaged 1.13 fantasy points per minute. His playing time is trending upward and he gets to face a Suns’ defense that is ranked dead last in both points allowed per game and defensive efficiency.