DFS Alerts
Frank Ntilikina (ankle) ruled out Wednesday; Enes Kanter (back) will play
Ntilikina is a surprise late scratch from the New York Knicks’ active roster for tonight’s game against the Miami Heat due to a lingering sprained left ankle that had forced him to miss time earlier in the season. Meanwhile, Enes Kanter will suit up, as expected, after previously being listed as probable on the injury report with back spasms that had forced him to miss three consecutive games. With Kanter’s officially available, Kyle O’Quinn will almost assuredly head back to the bench to resume his normal reserve role after being wildly inconsistent, in typical Kyle O’Quinn fashion, while averaging just over 24 minutes per contest during his three-start stretch. Kanter’s presence on the floor doesn’t drastically impact any Knicks rotation player’s usage or production, so we can continue to approach this Knicks’ team as we normally would in daily fantasy formats. Additionally, Ntilikina’s absence will open up more playing time for Ramon Sessions behind Jarrett Jack at point guard and will allow Ron Baker to be promoted to the active roster but neither guard will see enough playing time to become relevant on Wednesday’s 10-game main slate.
As reported by: Al Iannazzone via Twitter Other tagged players: Enes Freedom
Luke Babbitt (back) probable for Thursday; Isaiah Taylor (retina) available to play
Babbitt has been upgraded to probable on the Atlanta Hawks’ injury report for tomorrow’s game against the Cleveland Cavaliers due to lower back spasms that had forced him to miss three consecutive games, while Mike Muscala will remain sidelined with a sprained right ankle and Isaiah Taylor has been removed from the injury report, enabling him to be available to return from a torn right retina. With Dewayne Dedmon expected to miss three-to-six weeks with a left tibia stress reaction, John Collins will most likely start at the center spot in his absence, while Miles Plumlee, who was recently recalled from the G-League, should be expected to see his minute workload increase as the backup center until Mike Muscala is able to return from his ankle ailment. With Dedmon and Muscala off the court this season, Kent Bazemore has actually been the primary beneficiary and owns a +4.2% usage rate differential, while averaging 1.16 fantasy points per minute and 1.20 on FanDuel in this scenario, adding to his tournament appeal on Thursday’s slate and moving forward.
As reported by: KL Chouinard via Twitter Other tagged players: Isaiah Taylor Dewayne Dedmon (tibia stress reaction) expected to miss 3-6 weeks
Dedmon has been diagnosed with a left tibia stress reaction and is expected to be sidelined for three-to-six weeks, effectively ruling him out tomorrow’s game against the Cleveland Cavaliers. His absence will allow John Collins to most likely start at the center spot, while Miles Plumlee, who was recently recalled from the G-League, should be expected to see his minute workload increase as the backup center until Mike Muscala is able to return from his ankle ailment. Luke Babbitt is currently listed as probable on the Atlanta Hawks’ injury report for Thursday’s game and his likely return will be a welcome addition to the Hawks’ depleted frontcourt. With Dedmon and Muscala off the court this season, Kent Bazemore has actually been the primary beneficiary and owns a +4.2% usage rate differential, while averaging 1.16 fantasy points per minute and 1.20 on FanDuel in this scenario, adding to his tournament appeal on Thursday’s slate and moving forward.
As reported by: KL Chouinard via Twitter Ben Simmons (ankle) will play Wednesday; Joel Embiid will play, but be rested on Thursday
Simmons has been cleared to play and will suit up for tonight’s game against the Washington Wizards after previously being listed as questionable on the Philadelphia 76ers’ injury report with a sprained right ankle, while Joel Embiid will play and start despite possible rest speculation, though he has been ruled out and will be rested for tomorrow’s game against the Boston Celtics on the road. With Simmons available, the Sixers will maintain their normal starting lineup with Simmons manning the point, a move that will keep T.J. McConnell on the bench to resume his normal reserve role after playing almost 37 minutes in Saturday’s spot start and falling just three rebounds shy of a triple-double. McConnell’s demotion to a bench role essentially removes him from consideration for daily fantasy formats on Wednesday’s slate considering some of the other value options available. As for Simmons, he’ll continue to be a fantastic cash game option on a nightly basis given his ability to stuff the stat sheet and minute floor, as he’s seen at least 37 minutes of playing time in four of his last six games.
As reported by: Keith Pompey via Twitter Other tagged players: Joel Embiid Ample Opportunity
The Magic have finally benched the corpse of Terrence Ross, which has opened the doors for Jonathan Simmons to start and play heavy minutes. Though I don’t love this matchup against the solid wing defenders for OKC, the minutes and opportunity combined with a low price are too good to pass up. Simmons is capable of putting up 8x this salary tag if he plays 30+ minutes on a regular basis, and I’ll gladly take a chance on that upside in GPP formats, especially since Ross is struggling and Isaac is out again.
Don't Deny It!
It may not be sexy to play a Dallas Maverick, but it’s hard to completely ignore Harrison Barnes. The minutes are there. The shots are there. The matchup is great against the Nets. His price tag is very reasonable. Other than the name on his jersey, everything else is great about this spot. Fire up Barnes as one of the top overall plays of the night in all formats.
Value Alert!
Kemba Walker is not going to play tonight, and Michael Carter-Williams will enter the starting lineup. We have seen MCW post viable fantasy numbers in the past, which is a positive sign. Although we can’t expect the numbers like in his “glory days” when the Sixers let him run the show, he is definitely a serviceable option. On a slate that doesn’t offer a ton of slam dunk value, MCW is one of my favorites of the evening.
A Fine GPP Upside Play
The minutes have been inconsistent all year with Jackson, but we know he gets the playing time when he is playing well. Given a matchup against a fast-paced, porous Suns defense that doesn’t have much in the way of resistance, I expect Jackson to play well tonight. His price tag remains very affordable, and the upside is very tangible. He’s risky in cash games, but fire away in GPPs.
Al-Farouq Aminu (ankle) will play around 20 minutes off the bench on Thursday
Aminu told reporters that he will play in tomorrow’s game against the Milwaukee Bucks after missing 13 consecutive games with a sprained right ankle. However, in his return, he’ll come off the bench and be limited to around 20 minutes, meaning Noah Vonleh and Pat Connaughton will remain in the Portland Trail Blazers starting lineup for at least one more game. Vonleh had settled into a consistent role in the Blazers frontcourt rotation of late and was averaging just over 23 minutes per game in Aminu’s absence but should be expected to see his playing time diminished to some extent with Aminu now back in the fold. Despite Vonleh’s somewhat consistent production recently, this looks like a situation we will want to avoid on Thursday’s slate and going forward until we get a better idea of head coach Terry Stott’s new-look rotation.
As reported by: Mike Richman via Twitter Wilson Chandler (lower back) ruled out for Thursday
Chandler has been ruled out and won’t suit up for tomorrow’s game against the Chicago Bulls due to the lower back pain that has now forced him to miss the Denver Nuggets’ previous two games. Juan Hernangomez entered the starting lineup for Tuesday’s contest and saw 28 minutes of action in Chandler’s place, while Kenneth Faried remained as the starting power forward for the injured Paul Millsap in an effort to keep Will Barton in his normal sixth-man role off the bench. However, the Nuggets were blown out by a depleted Utah Jazz squad, so it would not be all that surprising if head coach Mike Malone decided to go in a different direction with his starting lineup and rotation on Thursday night. Barton and Faried’s minutes had been relatively sporadic in first three games Millsap missed but each should have a more stable minute floor while Chandler is unavailable. Barton and Gary Harris have been the main beneficiaries from a usage standpoint with Millsap and Chandler off the court this season, as each has seen at least a +2.4% usage rate differential in the aforementioned scenario, though they have yet to really consistently capitalize on their increased roles in the Nuggets offense from a fantasy perspective to this point.
As reported by: Harrison Wind via Twitter Hassan Whiteside (sore knee) ruled out Wednesday
Whiteside is a surprise addition to the Miami Heat’s injury report and has been ruled out for tonight’s game against the New York Knicks due to left knee soreness. In his absence, Bam Adebayo is expected to draw the start at center following his impressive performance in just 18 minutes of action in Tuesday’s loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers on the road. Whiteside has amassed just 39 combined minutes in the Heat’s previous two games, so while there will be minutes available in the frontcourt, there won’t be as many as we would typically expect with a team’s starting center unavailable. Jordan Mickey has appeared in just three games all season for Miami, so it appears it will be mainly Abedayo and Kelly Olynyk holding down the center spot in Whiteside’s absence. While everyone gravitates towards Abedayo coming off his big game as a punt option at center, Olynyk does make a lot of sense as a pivot in tournaments, considering he is likely the odds-on favorite to see more playing time despite coming off the bench. In fact, Olynyk averages 1.02 fantasy points per minute on DraftKings and 0.98 on FanDuel with Whiteside off the floor this season, production that lands him behind only James Johnson among the Heat’s regular rotation players on a per minute basis. Should Olynyk be able to get on the court for 25-30 minutes, a reasonable and realistic expectation, he would be in prime position to exceed salary-based expectations across the industry this evening.
As reported by: Tom D'Angelo via Twitter Kevin Durant (ankle) and Stephen Curry (hand) upgraded to probable Wednesday; David West (knee) ruled out
Durant and Curry have both been upgraded to probable on the Golden State Warriors’ injury report for tonight’s game against the Los Angeles Lakers with a sprained left ankle and a right-hand contusion, respectively, while David West is a new addition to the injury report and has been ruled out due to left lateral knee soreness. Durant had been sidelined for four of the last five games, while Curry only missed Monday’s loss. In their absences, Patrick McCaw and Omri Casspi entered the starting lineup while Shaun Livingston surprisingly saw only 18 minutes off the bench in relief of McCaw at point guard. However, Durant and Curry’s likely return to the starting lineup will now send McCaw and Casspi back to the bench to resume their reserve roles and the Warriors should be expected to be back at full strength for Wednesday’s contest given their probable designations. As for West, he has typically been playing anywhere between 10-15 minutes on a nightly basis and his playing time will likely be dispersed amongst Casspi and possibly Kevon Looney or Jordan Bell, assuming both forwards are active and available for the matchup against the Lakers this evening.
As reported by: Warriors PR via Twitter Taking Advantage of Recency Bias
One of the toughest things to do in DFS is to not have biases, especially after a player burns us 24 hours earlier. Bradley Beal was one of the highest owned players in the slate last night and he could only muster up 21 fantasy points in 34 minutes of action. We shouldn’t overthink this though. We know that Beal’s usage and FP/min both go through the roof without John Wall on the floor and every player in the NBA is welcome to a bad game every now and then. He should bounce back in a big way tonight against the Sixers, who are ranked 22nd against shooting guards this season.
Don't Overthink This One
Harrison Barnes always seems to grade out as an excellent play. He has a very high usage rate and is consistently underpriced across the industry. The problem is that he plays for the Mavericks, who usually have one of the lowest implied totals on the board. That’s not an issue tonight, as Dallas squares off against the Nets, who are ranked dead last in points allowed per game this season. Barnes should get plenty of shots up in this one and his peripheral statistics could see a boost given the pace of the game.
Overlooked Value in a Pace-Up Spot
It feels strange recommending a back-up point guard in a ten game slate, but I absolutely love Ish Smith tonight against the Suns. Phoenix is playing in the second half of back-to-back road games and are listed as double-digit underdogs tonight. If the game stays close, Smith will play 18-20 minutes in a dream matchup (Suns are ranked dead last against point guards). If the game turns into a blowout (which is what I’m expecting), Smith could see 25+ minutes tonight. Smith is averaging 0.95 FP/min this season and should be able to pay off his cheap salary in this matchup.