DFS Alerts
Quietly Becoming A Factor
Trey Lyles is one of my favorite value options tonight, and I don’t expect a lot of people to look his way. With Jokic already ruled out for tonight’s game, Lyles should continue to benefit. In the last four games without Jokic, Lyles has scored at least 22 fantasy points in every game, and he’s played at least 22 minutes in three of those four games. Denver receives one of the biggest bumps in pace tonight, and even without Jokic, they have the fourth highest implied team total on the slate. Look for Trey Lyles to be a factor off the bench for the Nuggets.
Massive Usage Bump
The Magic will be without Terrence Ross and Evan Fournier tonight against Denver. Aaron Gordon and Jonathon Simmons both receive massive usage bumps when those two are off the floor. Without those two on the floor, Simmons has a 31.6% usage rate, and he’s averaging .96 DK points per minute. His price has come up for his production lately, but I still think he’s a good value play over on DraftKings tonight.
Draymond Green (shoulder) and Andre Iguodala (knee) probable for Friday; Zaza Pachulia (shoulder) questionable
Green has been upgraded to probable from questionable on the Golden State Warriors’ injury report for tomorrow’s game against the Detroit Pistons due to a sore right shoulder that has already forced him to miss one game, while Andre Iguodala is a new addition to the injury report and is probable with a sore left knee. Additionally, Zaza Pachulia has been upgraded to questionable from doubtful with a sore right shoulder and Patrick McCaw will officially miss his second consecutive game with a concussion and nose contusion. If Green is eventually ruled out, Jordan Bell would likely draw the start at power forward once again in order to keep Andre Iguodala in his normal sixth-man role off the bench and allow Kevin Durant to remain at small forward. Stephen Curry will remain out for the next couple of weeks and, in his absence, two-way player Quinn Cook will likely continue to start, signaling that McCaw probably is the team’s preferred starting point guard once he is able to return from injury while Curry is on the shelf. That said, the obvious beneficiary of Curry and Green’s (possible) absences is Kevin Durant, as he owns a +5.0% usage rate differential and also leads the Warriors with a 36.2% usage rate and averages 1.43 fantasy points per minute on DraftKings and 1.39 points on FanDuel with Curry and Green off the court this season.
As reported by: Mark Medina via Twitter Other tagged players: Andre Iguodala, Zaza Pachulia, Patrick McCaw
Let's Play The Guessing Game
Evan Fournier is averaging over 32 minutes per game this season, and without him and Ross, the Magic will be looking for someone off the bench to play more minutes. As a Magic fan, I doubt they go with Mario, and I think it’s going to be DJ Augustin. When Fournier left the game against the Hawks, Augustin was the player to check in, and was the guy they used down the stretch. He’s cheap tonight, and I’m willing to take a shot on him in this matchup.
Extra Minutes Available Because Of Injury
Marvin Williams is averaging 25.2 minutes per game this season, but should be in line for some extra minutes tonight against the Bulls. The Hornets will be without Zeller (21.3 MPG) and Kaminsky (19.2 MPG) tonight. I would expect the Hornets to use a shorter rotation tonight, and I think they’re a team to look at for value. They have a 106.3 implied team total tonight, which puts them towards the top. The Bulls rank 28th in efficiency against power forwards this season, which could lead to some easy buckets for Williams.
Dario Saric (eye) ruled out Thursday; T.J. McConnell (shoulder) available to play
Saric has been ruled out and won’t play in tonight’s game against the Los Angeles Lakers after previously being listed as questionable on the Philadelphia 76ers’ injury report with a right corneal abrasion and left eye laceration, while T.J. McConnell will be available to play following a three-game absence due to a sprained left shoulder AC joint. With Saric is unable to suit up, head coach Brett Brown will revert back to the starting lineup he utilized at the beginning of the season with Jerryd Bayless starting at “point guard” and Ben Simmons manning the power forward spot on the defensive end. There’s been no confirmed minute restriction for McConnell, but he is unlikely to be subject to one and will serve as the primary guard off the bench for Philadelphia in his return. In the previous games McConnell missed, Bayless averaged just over 25 minutes per game as the primary guard off the bench but may be able to maintain that minute workload as a member of the starting unit, putting him in play for tournaments on an abbreviated four-game slate. As long as Markelle Fultz is sidelined with his shoulder injury, Ben Simmons figures to maintain his massive minute floor and has averaged 38 minutes per game in his last three games played. Simmons trails only Joel Embiid on this Sixers squad with a 25.0% usage rate and a rate of 1.25 fantasy points per minute, keeping him in play for all formats on nearly a nightly basis.
Other tagged players: T.J. McConnell, Jerryd Bayless Jaylen Brown (eye) and Marcus Morris (knee) questionable for Friday
Brown has been listed as questionable on the Boston Celtics’ injury report for tomorrow’s game against the San Antonio Spurs due to an inflamed right eye that has already forced him to miss one game, while Marcus Morris has also been listed as questionable with a left knee issue following his absence from Wednesday’s contest due to what was classified as a part of his knee rehabilitation plan. If Brown is unable to suit up, Marcus Smart will likely remain in the starting lineup at shooting guard after putting up a dud in 33 minutes of playing time in his first spot start. Morris had come off the bench for three consecutive games prior to his injury absence with Aron Baynes and Al Horford manning the center and power forward spots, and if Morris is unavailable, Baynes is virtually guaranteed to remain in the starting lineup for the fifth time in as many games. The starters that stand to benefit the most from Brown and Morris’ absences are Smart, Kyrie Irving, Jayson Tatum, and Al Horford, as each player owns at least a +2.0% usage rate differential with the aforementioned duo off the court this season, while Irving leads the team by a wide margin with a 35.0% usage rate.
As reported by: Steve Bulpett via Twitter Other tagged players: Marcus Morris Frank Kaminsky (ankle) ruled out for Friday; Cody Zeller (torn meniscus) out indefinitely
Kaminsky has been ruled out and won’t play in tomorrow’s game against the Chicago Bulls due to a sprained right ankle that he sustained in the second quarter of Wednesday’s loss. Meanwhile, Cody Zeller suffered a torn medial meniscus in that same game and will be sidelined indefinitely. The combination of Kaminsky and Zeller typically sees in the range of 40 minutes per night for this Charlotte frontcourt, so that playing time will likely be distributed to amongst Dwight Howard, Marvin Williams, and allow both Treveon Graham and Johnny O’Bryant to absorb larger roles off the bench in their absences.
As reported by: Rick Bonnell via Twitter Other tagged players: Cody Zeller Sixers trade Jahlil Okafor and Nik Stauskas for Trevor Booker, Nets will release Sean Kilpatrick
The Philadelphia 76ers have agreed to a trade Jahlil Okafor, Nik Stauskas, and a second-round pick to the Brooklyn Nets for Trevor Booker and, in order to make room for both players on the active roster, Brooklyn will release Sean Kilpatrick, who has seen sporadic playing time of late in the backcourt rotation. In terms of Thursday’s daily fantasy slates, this trade has a few impacts as Stauskas’ absence could free up a few minutes for Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot and Jerryd Bayless off the bench is T.J. McConnell is unable to suit up. On the Brooklyn side, Booker and Kilpatrick’s playing time will likely be spread around to Tyler Zeller, Rondae Hollis-Jefferson, DeMarre Carroll, and Allen Crabbe, though Zeller may be the only one to see a significant enough bump to warrant any additional consideration in daily fantasy formats.
As reported by: Adrian Wojnarowski via Twitter Other tagged players: Nik Stauskas, Trevor Booker, Sean Kilpatrick Myles Turner (calf) and Cory Joseph (shoulder) questionable for Friday
Turner has been listed as questionable on the Indiana Pacers’ injury report for tomorrow’s game against the Cleveland Cavaliers with a sore right calf, while Cory Joseph has also been listed as questionable with a nagging sore left shoulder, though he was able to play through the same injury in Wednesday’s contest and saw 31 minutes off the bench. Joseph has been a key cog in the Pacers second unit and has averaged just over 23 minutes of playing time off the bench, and if he’s unable to give it a go, Joe Young will likely step into a more significant role and serve as the primary backup point guard behind Darren Collison but has yet to play more than 10 minutes in any game this season. Should Turner be ruled out, Domantas Sabonis would enter the starting lineup at center, where he had tremendous success earlier in the year with Turner sidelined. In fact, Sabonis trailed only Victor Oladipo for the team lead with a rate of 1.17 fantasy points per minute on DraftKings and 1.14 on FanDuel during that stretch with Turner in the concussion protocol.
As reported by: the Indiana Pacers via Twitter Other tagged players: Cory Joseph Anthony Davis (adductor strain) questionable for Friday
Davis has officially been listed as questionable on the New Orleans Pelicans’ injury report for tomorrow’s game against the Sacramento Kings due to a strained left adductor that has already forced him to miss three consecutive games. In the prior games, Davis has missed this season, head coach Alvin Gentry has opted to alternate starts between Dante Cunningham and Darius Miller, though Cunningham would likely draw a fourth consecutive start after averaging just under 25 minutes in his last three spot starts, indicating that his playing time will likely fluctuate based on his performance and matchup. Even with Davis active, Darius Miller has been a solid contributor and has consistently seen minutes in the mid-20s, making him interesting punt option in tournaments if he continues to see minutes in the low-30s when Davis is sidelined. If Davis is unavailable, DeMarcus Cousins would become an obvious play for daily fantasy formats on Friday’s slate and owns a +4.3% usage rate differential and leads the Pelicans in per minute production by a wide margin at 1.60 fantasy points on DraftKings and 1.56 on FanDuel with Davis off the court this season.
As reported by: Will Guillory via Twitter Tyson Chandler will start Thursday, but all three Suns' centers could see minutes
Chandler will play and start in tonight’s game against the Washington Wizards after a one-game absence due to rest in the Phoenix Suns’ previous game. His return to the lineup will relegate Greg Monroe back to the bench to resume a reserve role. The Suns have exhibited a strange pattern recently, sitting one of their three centers every single game, but interim head coach Jay Triano told reporters that he may end up using all three of Chandler, Greg Monroe, and Alex Len in approximately a 20-20-8 split in minutes, depending on “feel”, for Thursday’s contest. If that’s the case, it essentially renders all three of them unusable in daily fantasy formats, and Len figures to be the leading candidate to be on the receiving end of the eight-minute allocation in the aforementioned split.
As reported by: Scott Bordow via Twitter Rodney Hood (ankle) remains out Thursday; Raul Neto (foot) probable
Hood has officially been ruled out and won’t play in tonight’s game against the Houston Rockets due to a sore left ankle that has now forced him to miss six consecutive games, while Raul Neto has been listed as probable and appears set to return following a one-game absence due to a sore right foot. Rudy Gobert did not make an appearance on the injury report for the second straight game, signaling he has suffered no setbacks from a right knee contusion, but it remains to be seen if he is cleared to play more than the 26 minutes he logged in Tuesday’s contest. Now that Hood has been confirmed out, Donovan Mitchell will continue to demand a heavy minute workload, as he will remain the starting shooting guard and also see time at the point guard spot when Ricky Rubio is off the floor. Alec Burks will also serve as the primary guard off the bench for Utah and has averaged 27 minutes over the past four games, leaving him firmly in play for all formats at his still low price tag across the industry. In fact, Mitchell and Burks continue to lead the Jazz in per minute fantasy production with Hood and Joe Johnson off the court this season, but it should be noted that Neto’s probable availability could eat into their minute floors ever-so-slightly this evening.
As reported by: Andy Larsen via Twitter Other tagged players: Raul Neto I Receive The Biggest Bump
Mike James is one of my favorite value plays on the slate, and I don’t expect a lot of people to look his way tonight. In 220.5 minutes without Booker on the floor this season, James has a 33.2% usage rate and he’s averaging 1.14 fantasy points per minute. On the 26th of November, he played 30.47 minutes off the bench, and finished the game with a 26-5-7 line. Even without their leading scorer, the Suns have a 104.8 implied team total. That’s only 2.8 points lower than their season average this season.
I'm Better Than The Starter
With a ton of value available on a 4-game slate, I think Satoransky goes overlooked tonight. I expect a lot of people to attack the Sun s value, and while I like that, I think Satoransky is a nice pivot. Since John Wall got hurt, he’s played at least 23 minutes in four of six games. He has at least 24 fantasy points in three of the last five games, and he’s shown 30-point upside. He’s been playing better than Frazier, and I love him in this pace up game against the Suns.