DFS Alerts
A Spur You Can Trust
The minutes have certainly been there for Forbes, and he’s seen 72 total minutes over San Antonio’s last two games. With the Spurs very thin on the wings, Forbes simply has to log minutes. He’s extremely cheap, likely will see over 30 minutes again, and should do just enough to pay off his salary. At a thin shooting guard position on a four game slate, he’s a solid value play that allows you to spend up on guys like Westbrook and Aldridge.
Don't Get Cute - Play This Stud
I won’t spend much time here. I know he costs a ton and there are blowout concerns with the Thunder as 9 point favorites. But on a short four game slate, you just play Russell Westbrook in cash and work around him. He has the highest floor and ceiling, against one of the fastest teams in the league. I’m not a huge fan of fading the best player on a slate in cash games because of possible blowout concerns. If the game happens to stay close (or if somehow the Suns are winning), Westbrook will be in there and you will need him on your cash team.
Terrific Punt Play At A Minimum Salary
Here are five reasons to like Terrance Ferguson tonight. First, he’s minimum priced. Second, he’s been announced as the starter for Sunday’s game with Andre Roberson out and Alex Abrines questionable. Third, he gets to play against the Phoenix Suns, who are 3rd in pace and 29th in defensive efficiency. Fourth, he gets to square off against Devin Booker, who is a not known for his defense. Fifth, he’s seen 33 and 31 minutes over his last two games, so if he gets a similar allotment of minutes on Sunday he’ll have a chance to smash his salary.
Revenge Coming For This Power Forward
With the Spurs resting Kawhi Leonard and Tony Parker, Rudy Gay out injured and Danny Green doubtful, there’s a lot of potential value to be had with the Spurs. When you run a CourtIQ report and take Leonard, Parker, Gay and Green off the court, LaMarcus Aldridge leads the team with a 35% usage rate and averages 1.28 fantasy points per minute. To make this even more enticing is that this is a revenge game for LMA. The one drawback is the matchup, as he’ll face Al-Farouq Aminu, whose defense I do respect. I’m willing to overlook this fact given Aldridge’s expanded role in this game and fair price.
Andre Drummond (rib contusion) ruled out Saturday; Eric Moreland will start
Drummond has officially been ruled out and won’t play in tonight’s game against the Houston Rockets’ after his status was considered uncertain, despite never appearing on the Detroit Pistons’ injury report at any point throughout the day, as head coach Stan Van Gundy was originally non-committal when asked by reporters during his pregame media presser about Drummond’s availability for Saturday’s contest. Meanwhile, Stanley Johnson remains sidelined for the fourth consecutive game with a strained right hip flexor. With Drummond unable to suit up for the second time in the last three games, Eric Moreland will draw the start at center but shouldn’t be expected to see much more than the 17 minutes he logged in the previous game Drummond was unavailable. Even coming off the bench, Boban Marjanovic can be considered a viable value option on Saturday’s slate after easily exceeding salary-based expectations in 21 minutes in his spot start on Wednesday night. The Pistons will still be without Reggie Jackson for tonight’s game and with him, Drummond, Stanley Johnson, and Jon Leuer off the court this season, Bradley, Reggie Bullock, and Ish Smith each own at least a +3.3% usage rate differential while Marjanovic leads the team with a rate of 1.29 fantasy points per minute on DraftKings and 1.27 on FanDuel in this scenario.
As reported by: Mark Champion via Twitter Other tagged players: Eric Moreland
George Hill (personal) and Zach Randolph (dental) ruled out Saturday
Hill missed Friday’s practice to be with his wife, who is expected to give birth any day, and has been ruled out for tonight’s game against the Denver Nuggets to tend to that personal matter, while Zach Randolph has also been ruled out due to oral surgery despite never appearing in the Sacramento Kings’ injury report at any point throughout the day. The Kings are still without Frank Mason and there are several ways head coach Dave Joerger could go with his starting lineup sans Hill and Randolph, but Buddy Hield, Bogdan Bogdanovic, and Willie Cauley-Stein should all be in line for increased playing time no matter what. De’Aaron Fox is now essentially the only point guard on the Kings active roster and this is one of the few times we can feel confident in his minute workload after he logged 32 minutes in his first game back from a partially torn quad in Tuesday’s contest. With the aforementioned players off the court this season, Cauley-Stein and Bogdanovic have been the main beneficiaries from a usage standpoint, as each own at least a +4.0% usage rate potential, while Cauley-Stein leads the team with a rate of 1.18 fantasy points per minute on DraftKings and 1.22 on FanDuel in this scenario.
As reported by: Sean Cunningham via Twitter Other tagged players: Zach Randolph Jonathon Simmons (back spasms) ruled out Saturday; Mario Hezonja will start
Simmons has been ruled out and won’t suit up for tonight’s game against the Cleveland Cavaliers after previously being listed as questionable on the Orlando Magic’s injury report and considered a game-time decision due to back spasms. In his absence, Mario Hezonja will draw the start at small forward alongside Evan Fournier on the wing and logged 28 minutes in Wednesday’s contest after taking over for Simmons in the starting unit to begin the second half. The Magic are also without Nikola Vucevic, Jonathan Isaac, and Terrence Ross, leaving them relatively thin at the wing positions now that Simmons is unavailable, and should allow Hezonja to see all the minutes he can handle this evening. With the aforementioned players off the court this season, Elfrid Payton owns a massive +10.2% usage rate differential and has seen his production skyrocket to 1.57 fantasy points per minute on DraftKings and 1.64 on FanDuel in an, albeit, limited sample size.
As reported by: John Denton via Twitter Other tagged players: Mario Hezonja Andre Drummond (rib contusion) may not play Saturday
Drummond’s status for tonight’s game against the Houston Rockets’ appears to be uncertain, despite never appearing on the Detroit Pistons’ injury report, as head coach Stan Van Gundy was non-committal when asked by reporters about Drummond’s availability for Saturday’s contest. Meanwhile, Stanley Johnson remains listed as questionable and appears to be in danger of missing his fourth consecutive game with a strained right hip flexor. If Drummond is unable to suit up for the second time in three games, Boban Marjanovic would likely draw the start at center and immediately become one of, if not, the most popular value option on Saturday’s slate after easily exceeding salary-based expectations in 21 minutes in his first spot start. The Pistons will still be without Reggie Jackson for tonight’s game and with him, Drummond, Stanley Johnson, and Jon Leuer off the court this season, Bradley, Reggie Bullock, and Ish Smith each own at least a +3.3% usage rate differential while Marjanovic leads the team with a rate of 1.29 fantasy points per minute on DraftKings and 1.27 on FanDuel in this scenario.
As reported by: Keith Langlois via Twitter Victor Oladipo (knee) will play Saturday; Bojan Bogdanovic (ankle) ruled out
Oladipo has been cleared to play and will suit up for tonight’s game against the Chicago Bulls after previously being listed as questionable on the Indiana Pacers’ injury report with a sore right knee that had kept him sidelined for four consecutive games. Meanwhile, Bojan Bogdanovic has been ruled out due to a sprained left ankle following his earlier questionable designation on the injury report. Damien Wilkins will draw the start at small forward alongside Oladipo on the wing but won’t be a realistically viable option in daily fantasy formats. Oladipo made it clear to reporters that he’d be a full go when he returns and won’t limited in any way, making him an intriguing tournament option on Saturday’s slate now that he’s ultimately been cleared to play. In his absence, Lance Stephenson started on the wing and eclipsed 35 minutes in three of his four starts, keeping him in play for tournaments, even off the bench, now that Bogdanovic is officially ruled out.
As reported by: the Indiana Pacers via Twitter Other tagged players: Bojan Bogdanovic, Damien Wilkins Al Horford (sore knee) ruled out Saturday
Horford has been ruled out and won’t play in tonight’s game against the Brooklyn Nets after previously being downgraded to a game-time decision, just a short time ago, due to a sore left knee. This news was the first indication of a potential lingering knee issue by head coach Brad Stevens or the team, as the big man was never listed on the Boston Celtics’ injury report at any point leading up to Saturday’s contest. Horford apparently sustained the injury at some point during Friday’s win but was able to finish the game and ended up logging 31 minutes. Now that he’s officially unavailable, Aron Baynes will remain in the starting lineup at center for the second time in as many games, while Marcus Morris will start alongside him in the frontcourt at power forward. Morris finally saw his playing time increase to 25 minutes his last time out, hinting he may be trending towards a full starters’ workload in non-back-to-back situations. On top of that, he’s been the main beneficiary with Horford off the court this season and owns a +5.7% usage rate differential, while averaging 1.03 fantasy points per minute on DraftKings and 0.99 on FanDuel in this scenario.
As reported by: Brian Robb via Twitter DeMarre Carroll (rib) will play Saturday; Caris LeVert (groin) remains out
Carroll has been cleared to play and will suit up for tonight’s game against the Boston Celtics after previously being listed as questionable on the Brooklyn Nets’ injury report with a sore rib, while Caris LeVert has been ruled out for a second consecutive game following his earlier doubtful designation due to a strained left groin. LeVert has been great serving as the team’s primary backup and his absence will up open up additional minutes for Joe Harris and Nik Stauskas with the second unit. It’ll be interesting to see if the Nets ever decide to recall Isaiah Whitehead from his G-League assignment because, if not, Spencer Dinwiddie will continue to be in line for a hefty minute workload, by head coach Kenny Atkinson’s standards, for the duration of LeVert’s absence and logged 36 minutes of court time in Wednesday’s win. With LeVert off the court this season, Allen Crabbe actually owns a +2.6% usage rate differential and trails only Carroll and Rondae Hollis-Jefferson for the lead among the Nets starters with a 21.5% usage rate in this scenario.
As reported by: Anthony Puccio via Twitter Other tagged players: Caris LeVert A Better Play Than You Think
It’s important to not only look at Anderson’s production with James Harden off the court, but with Chris Paul on it. Paul missed a significant chunk of the season due to injury, and the dynamic of Houston’s offense changes with him back in the mix. With Harden off and Paul on, Anderson is producing nearly a fantasy point per minute. His usage rate isn’t high, but Paul is good at creating open looks for his teammates, and given his elite passing skills, he should be able to find Anderson wide open more often than not. Anderson is very cheap, and I think he makes for a very strong cash game option, especially given the number of high-priced studs that are worth rostering tonight.
A Possibly Overlooked Injury
With studs like James Harden and Nikola Vucevic on the shelf, the injury analysis will naturally focus around those types of players. Pay attention to Washington, however, as Otto Porter is currently listed as questionable. If he’s out, Beal sees a boost of nearly 0.20 fantasy points per minute, which, given he plays nearly 40 minutes, is a significant increase. He’s already a strong cash game option given his high floor, but he becomes a must play for me if Porter is out.
Kevin Durant (calf) ruled out Saturday; All other Warriors available to play
Durant has been ruled out and won’t play in today’s game against the Los Angeles Clippers after previously being listed as questionable on the Golden State Warriors’ injury report with a sprained right ankle that has now forced him to miss two consecutive games. Meanwhile, Stephen Curry, Draymond Green, Andre Iguodala, Omri Casspi, and David West are all available to play following their prior probable designations on the injury report. Casspi is a candidate to start at small forward in place of Durant, even though Iguodala received the starting nod on Thursday and easily exceeded salary-based expectations in 30 minutes of action. Stephen Curry managed to log 36 minutes in that contest and appears to have put any concern of a possible minute restriction behind him, as he averaged a whopping 35 minutes per game in the Warriors back-to-back set this week. This means he immediately becomes one of the top options on Saturday’s early slate at any position, as he owns a +8.2% usage rate differential with Durant off the court this season, and he leads the Warriors with a 39.7% usage rate while averaging 1.76 fantasy points per minute on DraftKings and 1.67 on FanDuel in this scenario.
As reported by: Mark Medina via Twitter Milos Teodosic (plantar fascia) ruled out Saturday
Teodosic has been ruled out and won’t play in today’s game against the Golden State Warriors after previously being listed as questionable on the Los Angeles Clippers’ injury report with a sore left plantar fascia that he sustained in the first half of Thursday’s loss and was unable to return. Jawun Evans ended up replacing him at point guard to begin the second half, logging 23 minutes, and will do so once again, according to head coach Doc Rivers, for Saturday’s contest. The Clippers are without Austin Rivers and Patrick Beverley, leaving them relatively thin at the point guard position for the duration of Teodosic and Rivers’ absences, which forced the team to part ways with Jamil Wilson and sign Tyrone Wallace to a two-way contract. This should lead to a massive minute load for Lou Williams, and he owns a +4.5% usage rate differential with the aforementioned players off the court this season, making him an elite option with his per minute rate of 1.27 fantasy points on DraftKings and 1.19 on FanDuel in this scenario.
As reported by: Tomer Azarly via Twitter