DFS Alerts
A Top Power Forward Play
Taj Gibson is thriving under his former coach from Chicago in Tom Thibodeau, and his minutes are as rock steady as they come. The power forward spot is relatively weak tonight (especially on FanDuel with the lack of multi-position eligibility), and Gibson draws a favorable matchup against the Lakers. He was 11-for-13 from the floor on his way to 23 points and nine rebounds in the previous meeting between these two teams, and Gibson is a very solid play in all formats on a short slate.
Isaiah Thomas (hip impingement) will make Cavaliers debut on Tuesday
Thomas has been cleared to play and will make his season and Cleveland Cavaliers debut in tomorrow’s game against the Portland Trail Blazers, according to head coach Tyronn Lue, after recovering from a right hip impingement that has kept him sidelined for the entirety of the season until this point. However, Thomas has yet to be cleared to play in back-to-back situations, meaning that he will be rested for Wednesday’s highly-anticipated matchup with the Boston Celtics, his former team. Thomas will come off the bench in his return to action and will be subject to a minute restriction as he works his way back into game shape following his extended injury absence. Eventually, he’ll displace Jose Calderon as the Cavaliers starting point guard, but in the meantime, he’ll siphon usage away from Dwyane Wade and Jeff Green in the second unit.
As reported by: Fred McLeod via Twitter
An Elite Risk/Reward GPP Play
This isn’t a play for your cash games tonight, but sometimes you have to take some chances in order to win a GPP on a four game slate. Jonas Valanciunas could very well be that frisky play. He was immensely popular the other night when Serge Ibaka was suspended, but Big Val will fade back to low ownership with Ibaka back today. The minutes are always all over the map, and this isn’t an ideal matchup, but the upside is always there. If Valanciunas gets off to a hot start, he should get rewarded with some extra minutes. The floor isn’t ideal, and there’s certainly bust risk, but I’ll gladly grab about 10-15% of Valanciunas if I am mass entering GPPs this evening on the prospects of his upside.
At the Mercy of Luke Walton
First off, I will start this by saying I have no idea what goes through Luke Walton’s mind. His rotations are some of the wackiest things I have ever seen in the NBA. Julius Randle played just eight minutes in the early December meeting between the Rockets and Lakers, but he started and dominated in the rematch last night. Things are unpredictable here. That will be especially true tonight with the team coming off a double overtime game on New Year’s Eve. That said, it’s hard to avoid the team on a four game slate. With Caldwell-Pope and Ball out again tonight, the guard value seems like the most logical spot to go. Tyler Ennis returned from a flu bug, started, and played very well on Sunday. He’s basically minimum salary everywhere and is one of the top values on the slate in both cash games and tournaments.
Sneaky Consistency from an Unlikely Source
Justin Holiday doesn’t seem like a consistent player (at least not in my mind), but he has actually scored at least 22 fantasy points in 11 of his last 12 games and he has scored at least 15 fantasy points in every game since November 24th. With 15 fantasy points being the bare minimum floor, we should have interest in Holiday in cash games. He’s shown a high ceiling as well, which gives him appeal in tournaments. While the Blazers are tough defensively, the one position that they struggle to defend is shooting guard.
High Shot Volume in a Favorable Matchup
Andrew Wiggins is one of the most frustrating players to target in NBA DFS. He relies so much on scoring for his fantasy production that his game log is incredibly volatile. While he doesn’t necessarily fit the mold of what we are usually looking for in cash games, he is underpriced across the industry and in a tremendous matchup against the Lakers. I’m willing to take on more volatility in cash games than most, especially when the potential upside outweighs the risk.
Minutes are Gold in NBA DFS
The Lakers played in a double-overtime game against the Rockets last night and many of their starters logged 40+ minutes. While that would typically be a concern, they are going to be without three of their usual starters in Lonzo Ball, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, and Brook Lopez. Luke Walton has no choice but to play his starters big minutes tonight against the Wolves. Brandon Ingram has 40+ minute upside in an uptempo game and his price is still under $7,000 on both FanDuel and DraftKings.
Play the Man
There aren’t a lot of guys to spend up on tonight, and Giannis Antetokounmpo is now a bit cheaper than he was at his peak. His ceiling is higher than anyone else on this slate, and he is easy to fit into lineups. Plug him into your lineups and figure out the rest from there. He is still averaging a healthy double-double on the year at 29 PPG and 10 RPG, and he adds a healthy dose of assists, steals, and blocks as well. Even in a less than ideal matchup against the Raptors, I will be overweight on the Milwaukee star this evening.
Paul George (knee) will play Sunday; Andre Roberson (knee) ruled out
George has been cleared to play and will suit up for tonight’s game against the Dallas Mavericks after his status was previously unknown following a one-game absence due to a sore left knee, while Andre Roberson has been ruled out due to left patellar tendinitis despite never appearing on the Oklahoma City Thunder’s injury report at any point throughout the day. Head coach Billy Donovan did not disclose his replacement in the starting lineup and the typical leading candidate, Alex Abrines, only logged nine minutes in his spot start for Friday’s contest, giving way to Josh Huestis and Raymond Felton in the rotation, each of whom saw an increase in playing time with George sidelined. Somewhat surprisingly, Russell Westbrook has seen a significant bump in his per minute production with Roberson off the court this season, as he has averaged 1.63 fantasy points per minute on DraftKings and 1.57 on FanDuel, and also still leads the Thunder with a 37.8% usage rate in this scenario.
As reported by: Erik Horne via Twitter Other tagged players: Andre Roberson James Harden (foot) and Ryan Anderson (back) will play Sunday
Harden has been cleared to play and will suit up for tonight’s game against the Los Angeles Lakers after previously being listed as questionable on the Houston Rockets’ injury report with a right foot contusion, while Ryan Anderson and Clint Capela also will play following their earlier probable designations, the latter’s availability being confirmed by head coach Mike D’Antoni following Friday’s loss. Harden always seemingly plays through injuries, as he’s missed two games combined over the past three seasons, so it would have been shocking to see him ruled out with just a contusion to his foot. Chris Paul was limited to just 25 minutes in Friday’s contest after missing the previous three games due to a strained left adductor and it still remains unclear if he’ll see that minute restriction increased or even lifted for Sunday’s matchup.
As reported by: Craig Ackerman via Twitter Other tagged players: Ryan Anderson Chandler Parsons (sore knee) remains out Sunday
Parsons has officially been ruled out and won’t play in tonight’s game against the Sacramento Kings due to a sore right knee that has now forced him to miss two consecutive games. Parsons has rested one leg of every back-to-back set this season, so it remains to be seen if his unavailability was tied to that or if the knee issue is more serious than the team may be letting on. Theoretically, his absence would open up some additional minutes in the frontcourt, but JaMychal Green and Brandan Wright each returned from their respective injuries on Saturday night and combined for just 28 minutes of playing time, while Deyonta Davis surprisingly logged 17 minutes off the bench. The Grizzlies offense will continue to run through Tyreke Evans and Marc Gasol, but Kobi Simmons may be someone to keep an eye on after he easily exceeded salary-based expectations in 30 minutes playing alongside Evans on the wing to close the game during Saturday’s loss.
As reported by: Grizzlies PR via Twitter Jaylen Brown (knee) will start Sunday; Marcus Morris (knee) available to play
Brown has been cleared to play and will suit up for tonight’s game against the Brooklyn Nets, as expected, after previously telling reporters following Saturday’s practice that he would make his return from a two-game absence due to a sore right knee. Meanwhile, Marcus Morris will be available to play off the bench and Semi Ojeleye remains out with a back injury. The return of Brown will send Marcus Smart back to the bench resume his normal reserve role and averaged 34 minutes of action in his two spot starts en route to some mixed results. As for Morris, he’s yet to play more than 20 minutes in either of his last two games, so his impact on the frontcourt rotation will be minimal until he begins logging minutes in the low-to-mid-20s on a consistent basis. Kyrie Irving continues to lead the Celtics by a wide margin with a 33.4% usage rate on the season, and the offense will continue to flow through him and Al Horford on a majority of possessions most nights
As reported by: A. Sherrod Blakely via Twitter Other tagged players: Marcus Morris Kris Dunn (patella tendinitis) will play Sunday
Dunn has been cleared to play and will suit up for today’s game against the Washington Wizards after previously being listed as questionable on the Chicago Bulls’ injury report and considered a game-time decision with a left patella tendinitis that had forced him to be a late scratch prior to Friday’s win. There has yet to be any reported minute restriction for Dunn, and his presence in the starting lineup will end Jerian Grant back to the bench to resume his normal reserve role. Grant stepped into the starting lineup at point guard in the previous game and greatly exceeded salary-based expectations in 33 minutes. The Bulls didn’t really have a third-string point guard since they waived Kay Felder, so Denzel Valentine and Justin Holiday had to serve as the primary ball-handlers with the second unit when Grant was off the floor, and their projected fantasy values take a slight hit with Dunn appearing healthy enough to take on his typical minute workload this afternoon.
As reported by: the Chicago Bulls via Twitter Austin Rivers (Achilles strain) ruled out Sunday
Rivers has been ruled out and won’t play in tonight’s game against the Charlotte Hornets, according to ESPN’s Chris Haynes, after previously being listed as questionable on the Los Angeles Clippers’ injury report with a strained right Achilles, though it’s likely to only be a one-game absence as he is expected to return for the matchup with the Memphis Grizzlies on Tuesday night. It remains unclear exactly who will replace him in the starting lineup, but Wesley Johnson appears to be the leading candidate, a change that would slide C.J. Williams to the shooting guard spot with Lou Williams continuing his normal sixth-man role off the bench. Blake Griffin made his return from a 14-game absence due to a sprained MCL for Friday’s loss and logged 32 minutes, providing confidence that he and Lou Williams will be able to shoulder the offensive load sans Rivers this evening. With Rivers, Danilo Gallinari, and Patrick Beverley off the court this season, Williams continues to lead the Clippers with a 34.9% usage rate in this scenario, a +4.6% differential over his season average.
As reported by: Chris Haynes via Twitter A Key Injury Boosts a Teammate
With Paul George out, Melo is sporting a 31.8% usage rate while producing around a fantasy point per minute this season. Even against a Mavericks team that plays at a snail’s pace, he’s a strong cash game option given most of the offense will run through him and Russell Westbrook.
