DFS Alerts
A New Team Leader?
The Clippers are starved for scoring in the absence of three of their primary offensive weapons, and Austin Rivers appears poised to step up to fill that void. He scored a season high 30 actual points in the last contest and should be locked into a 32-36 minute role given all the injuries. He’s a fine mid-range tournament option on a large Wednesday night slate, and he should be in store for a price bump shortly. There’s still some value in his current tag.
A Value Big Man
With a new interim head coach in place, it appears as though JaMychal Green is going to get some extended run for the Grizzlies. He has logged 31 and 36 minutes over the last two games, posting nearly 30 fantasy points in both of them. While he is not the sexiest of DFS names, I like the matchup today, and I think he has the potential to put up a double-double against the Bucks.
Heavy Lifting
With Stephen Curry ruled out for the next couple of weeks, Kevin Durant is going to have to do the heavy lifting for the Warriors. He carries a 33.2% usage rate with Curry off the floor this year, and Curry’s absence also means this game has a better likelihood of staying competitive through four quarters. If I am spending up on one high dollar play tonight, Durant would be my first choice.
Quietly Warming Up
Although it’s DeMarcus Cousins who gets all the attention with Anthony Davis on the sidelines, it has been Jrue Holiday that has stepped up over the last few games. In three December contests without Anthony Davis, Holiday is averaging 21 points, five rebounds, and four assists over a very healthy 39 minutes per game. He’s a fine option in what could be a close, high scoring game between the Pelicans and Nuggets this evening. I will be prioritizing him on a lot of lineup builds.
Tyson Chandler (rest) officially ruled out Tuesday
Chandler has officially been ruled out and won’t play in tonight’s game against the Toronto Raptors due to rest on the second leg of a back-to-back set. The Phoenix Suns have exhibited a strange pattern recently, sitting one of their three centers every single game, and based on this pattern it was evident that it was Chandler’s turn to be “rested” after playing a whopping 36 minutes in last night’s win. Meanwhile, Alex Len told reporters following pregame warmups that he will be available to play after previously being listed as questionable on the injury report due to lingering effects from a sprained left ankle that had forced him to receive an injury designation prior to Saturday’s contest as well. Len’s playing time has been extremely sporadic of late, playing 11 minutes and receiving a DNP-CD in the Suns last two games, and he appears to be falling behind Tyson Chandler and Greg Monroe in the frontcourt rotation. Clearly, given Len’s injury and sporadic playing time, Monroe is shaping up to be an intriguing tournament option on Tuesday’s abbreviated three-game slate, as he should end up leading the Suns’ centers in minutes in an exploitable matchup with the Toronto frontcourt defense.
As reported by: Scott Bordow via Twitter
Thabo Sefolosha (concussion) available to play Tuesday; Raul Neto (foot) ruled out
Sefolosha has cleared the League’s concussion protocol and will be available off the bench for tonight’s game against the Oklahoma City Thunder after previously being considered a game-time decision with a concussion. Meanwhile, Raul Neto has been ruled out with a lingering sore right foot, despite playing 19 minutes off the bench in Monday’s win. Sefolosha’s status would be much more significant if Rudy Gobert wasn’t available to soak up limited playing time in the frontcourt rotation, sliding Derrick Favors over to power forward, primarily, though he may see some extra minutes on Tuesday as the Jazz attempt to keep the Thunder’s big three in check. With Rodney Hood already 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 29 minutes over the past three games, putting 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, and it should be noted that Neto’s unavailability could raise their minute floors ever-so-slightly this evening.
As reported by: Kyle Goon via Twitter Other tagged players: Raul Neto Thabo Sefolosha (concussion) a game-time decision Tuesday
Sefolosha is apparently still in the League’s concussion protocol, despite no earlier reports from the team, and is likely to be a game-time decision for tonight’s game against the Oklahoma City Thunder due to the aforementioned concussion. Sefolosha’s status would be much more significant if Rudy Gobert wasn’t available to soak up limited playing time in the frontcourt rotation, sliding Derrick Favors over to power forward, primarily. Raul Neto popped up on the Utah Jazz’ injury report again with a lingering sore left hamstring and is listed as questionable, despite playing 19 minutes off the bench in Monday’s win, and is likely to be a game-time decision. With Rodney Hood already 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 29 minutes over the past three games, putting 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, and it should be noted that Neto’s possible unavailability could raise their minute floors ever-so-slightly this evening.
As reported by: Kyle Goon via Twitter Alex Len (ankle) said he'll be available to play Tuesday; Tyson Chandler (rest) expected to be out
Len told reporters following pregame warmups that he will be available to play in tonight’s game against the Toronto Raptors after previously being listed as questionable on the Phoenix Suns’ injury report due to lingering effects from a sprained left ankle that had forced him to receive an injury designation prior to Saturday’s contest as well. His playing time has been extremely sporadic of late, playing 11 minutes and receiving a DNP-CD in the Suns last two games, and he appears to be falling behind Tyson Chandler and Greg Monroe in the frontcourt rotation. However, the Suns have exhibited a strange pattern recently, sitting one of their three centers every single game, and based on this pattern it is now Tyson Chandler’s turn to receive a DNP-CD after played a whopping 36 minutes in last night’s win, and is expected to be rested on the second leg of a back-to-back set. Clearly, given Len’s injury and sporadic playing time, Monroe is shaping up to be an intriguing tournament option on Tuesday’s abbreviated three-game slate, as he should end up leading the Suns’ centers in minutes in an exploitable matchup with the Toronto frontcourt defense.
As reported by: Scott Bordow via Twitter Other tagged players: Tyson Chandler Greg Monroe will start ahead of Tyson Chandler (possible rest) on Tuesday
Len remains listed as questionable on the Phoenix Suns’ injury report and is expected to be a game-time decision for tonight’s game against the Toronto Raptors due to lingering effects from a sprained left ankle that had forced him to receive an injury designation prior to Saturday’s contest as well. His playing time has been extremely sporadic of late, playing 11 minutes and receiving a DNP-CD in the Suns last two games, and he appears to be falling behind Tyson Chandler and Greg Monroe in the frontcourt rotation. However, the Suns have exhibited a strange pattern recently, sitting one of their three centers every single game, and based on this pattern it is now Tyson Chandler’s turn to receive a DNP-CD and played a whopping 36 minutes in last night’s win, further providing evidence that he could be rested on the second leg of a back-to-back set. This trend could obviously change if Len is unavailable, but Monroe is shaping up to be an intriguing tournament option on Tuesday’s abbreviated three-game slate, regardless if Len is active or not, as he should end up leading the Suns’ centers in minutes in an exploitable matchup with the Toronto frontcourt defense.
As reported by: Scott Bordow via Twitter Other tagged players: Tyson Chandler Stephen Curry (ankle) will miss at least "a couple of weeks”
Curry’s X-rays and MRI results didn’t reveal any structural damage to his sprained right ankle, but the former MVP is dealing with significant swelling and, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski, he won’t be re-evaluated for “a couple of weeks”. Curry had already been ruled out for tomorrow’s game against the Charlotte Hornets with the aforementioned ankle injury and will now obviously miss much more time than that. Meanwhile, Zaza Pachulia and Patrick McCaw have been listed as questionable on the Golden State Warriors’ injury report with their respective ailments. Depending on McCaw’s availability, either he or Shaun Livingston will draw the start at point guard and have alternated starts in the previous two games Curry has missed. That said, the obvious beneficiaries of Curry’s absence are Klay Thompson and Kevin Durant, as each own at least a +2.9% usage rate differential with him off the court this season, while Durant also leads the Warriors with a 33.2% usage rate and a rate of 1.35 fantasy points per minute in the aforementioned scenario.
As reported by: Adrian Wojnarowski Anthony Davis (adductor strain) doubtful for Wednesday
Davis has officially been listed as doubtful on the New Orleans Pelicans’ injury report for tomorrow’s game against the Denver Nuggets due to a strained left adductor that has already forced him to miss two consecutive games. In the three prior games, Davis has missed this season, head coach Alvin Gentry has opted to alternate starts between Dante Cunningham and Darius Miller, though Cunningham appears to be in line for a third consecutive start after playing 14 and 32 minutes in his last two 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 while Davis is sidelined. With Davis unlikely to be available, DeMarcus Cousins will become an obvious play for daily fantasy formats on Wednesday’s slate and owns a +4.0% usage rate differential and leads the Pelicans in per minute production by a wide margin at 1.61 fantasy points on DraftKings and 1.57 on FanDuel with Davis off the court this season.
As reported by: Pelicans PR via Twitter Rudy Gay (heel) and Joffrey Lauvergne (finger) probable for Wednesday
Gay has been listed as probable on the San Antonio Spurs’ injury report for tomorrow’s game against the Miami Heat due to a lingering sore right heel, while Joffrey Lauvergne has is also probable with a sprained right middle finger and Kawhi Leonard remains out with right quad tendinopathy. Despite the injury designations, both Gay and Lauvergne should be expected to be available to play, as Gay started in Kyle Anderson’s place and saw a season-high 31 minutes on Monday night and Lauvergne received a DNP-CD but he was active. Assuming Gay is ready to go and doesn’t suffer a setback with his sore heel, he’ll likely be one of the top value options on Wednesday’s slate depending on his adjusted price tag across the industry. In fact, Gay trails only LaMarcus Aldridge and Pau Gasol among the Spurs starters with a rate of 1.09 fantasy points per minute with Anderson off the court this season.
As reported by: Paul Garcia via Twitter Other tagged players: Joffrey Lauvergne Kristaps Porzingis (ankle sprain) probable for Wednesday
Porzingis has been upgraded to probable on the New York Knicks’ injury report for tomorrow’s game against the Memphis Grizzlies due to a sprained right ankle that has forced him to miss two consecutive games. His likely return will send Michael Beasley back to the bench to resume his normal reserve role, though Damyean Dotson may end up drawing another start at the shooting guard spot in place of Tim Hardaway Jr., who is expected to miss at least two weeks. However, Dotson was really a nonfactor in the one competitive game he started without Hardaway Jr. and Porzingis available. Now that Porzingis is expected to be back, assuming he isn’t subject to a minute restriction, he’ll become the main beneficiary of Hardaway Jr.‘s extended absence and owns a +5.4% usage rate differential with him off the court this season while leading the Knicks with a 42.6% usage rate and averaging 1.45 fantasy points per minute on DraftKings and 1.40 on FanDuel.
As reported by: Marc Berman via Twitter Attacking This Team
Without a lot of value on this 3-game slate, I’m turning to the Raptors in what should be a blowout win against the Suns. The Raptors implied team total is 13 points higher than the next highest total on the slate, and it’s 8.3 points higher than there season average. Pascal has played at least 20 minutes in seven of the last eight game. Jakob Poeltl was sent home from practice on Monday, and they said he will play tonight. If for some reason he struggles during the game, Pascal could pick up some extra minutes.
Extra Minutes In A Pace Game
The Raptors face the Suns on a back-to-back tonight, and with very little value on this slate, I think VanVleet is an option tonight. If this game turns into a blowout, he should receive some extra run, and with extra run, he’s performed well this season. He’s also done very well in pace up games this season. He’s not the highest upside value play on the slate, but in this matchup, I actually think he gives you a nice floor.