DFS Alerts
Wayne Ellington (illness) plans to play Monday
Ellington will warm up with the intention to play in tonight’s game against the Minnesota Timberwolves after previously being listed as questionable on the Miami Heat’s injury report with an illness. Ellington didn’t participate in the team’s shootaround Monday morning and was considered a game-time decision but appears to be on track and says he plans to play tonight. Additionally, Hassan Whiteside will remain out, as reported earlier in the afternoon. With Ellington likely able to suit up, the projected fantasy value of Dion Waiters and Josh Richardson does take a slight knock, but Richardson still remains one of the best value options on Monday’s slate, especially on DraftKings, and is viable in every daily fantasy format.
As reported by: Ira Winderman via Twitter
Lucas Nogueira (ankle sprain) questionable Monday
Nogueira has been listed as questionable on the Toronto Raptors’ injury report for tonight’s game against the Portland Trail Blazers with a sprained left ankle that has already forced him to miss two consecutive games. With Serge Ibaka and Jonas Valanciunas both already ruled out with their respective injuries, Toronto could be left with essentially Jakob Poeltl, Pascal Siakam, and OG Anunoby to man the frontcourt if Nogueira is eventually ruled out, barring any call-ups, in traditional non-small ball lineups. Speaking of Poeltl, he has been the primary direct beneficiary of all these big man injuries and may be in line to set a season-high in minutes facing off against Jusuf Nurkic on the other side for Portland, making him an intriguing tournament option if he can stay out of foul trouble. That said, DeMar DeRozan may be the more under-the-radar player target from Toronto as he owns a +5.6% usage rate differential with Ibaka and Valanciunas off the court this year and leads the Raptors with a massive 37.4% usage rate in the aforementioned scenario while averaging 45 fantasy points per 36 minutes, which would easily pay off his salary across the industry Monday night.
As reported by: Josh Lewenberg via Twitter Serge Ibaka (knee) and Jonas Valanciunas (ankle) ruled out Monday
Ibaka and Valanciunas have both been ruled out and won’t play in tonight’s game against the Portland Trail Blazers due to knee and ankle injuries, respectively, which will now leave the Toronto Raptors’ frontcourt extremely thin for Monday’s contest. The Raptors have yet to provide an update on Lucas Nogueira since he missed their last game on Friday, and if he’s unavailable again, it will leave Toronto with essentially Jakob Poeltl, Pascal Siakam, and OG Anunoby to man the frontcourt, barring any call-ups, in traditional non-small ball lineups. Speaking of Poeltl, he has been the primary beneficiary of all these big man injuries and may be in line to set a season-high in minutes facing off against Jusuf Nurkic on the other side, making him an intriguing tournament option should he be able to stay out of foul trouble. That said, DeMar DeRozan may be the more under-the-radar player target as he owns a +5.6% usage rate differential with Ibaka and Valanciunas off the court this year and leads the Raptors with a massive 37.4% usage rate in the aforementioned scenario while averaging 45 fantasy points per 36 minutes, which would easily pay off his salary across the industry Monday night.
As reported by: Jason Quick via Twitter Other tagged players: Jonas Valanciunas Manu Ginobili (rest) questionable Monday
Ginobili has been added to the San Antonio Spurs’ injury report as questionable due to possible rest for tonight’s game against the Boston Celtics as the Spurs on the second night of a road back-to-back set. Ginobili typically sees around 20 minutes per night, as he has for the past couple seasons, and if he is unable to suit up, wing players like Kyle Anderson, Danny Green, and Rudy Gay will likely pick up the slack. That said, even if Ginobili is available to play, he should not be expected to see his normal complement of minutes. With Kawhi Leonard, Joffrey Lauvergne, and Tony Parker all still sidelined with their respective injuries, LaMarcus Aldridge will continue to be relied upon to carry the load on the offensive end for San Antonio in what sets up to be a positive matchup in the rebounding department if Aron Baynes doesn’t draw the start at center for Boston, while Dejounte Murray may have the sneakiest upside of all, if Ginobili is ruled out, in an excellent individual matchup with Kyrie Irving defense most of the night.
As reported by: the San Antonio Spurs via Twitter Domantas Sabonis (illness) questionable for Tuesday; Myles Turner (concussion, neck) will remain out
Sabonis has officially been listed as questionable on the Indiana Pacers’ injury report for tomorrow’s game against the Sacramento Kings with an upper respiratory infection, while head coach Nate McMillan confirmed that Myles Turner has passed the first stage of the concussion protocol but will remain out for a sixth consecutive game with a concussion and sore neck. Sabonis had been starting in place of Turner, so if he is eventually ruled out, the Pacers may be forced to start Al Jefferson opposite Willie Cauley-Stein, which sounds like a disaster. Thaddeus Young would clearly be the beneficiary of additional playing time in this scenario, while rookie Ike Anigbogu could also see run as a backup big man in the Indiana frontcourt. On the other hand, if Sabonis does play, he runs the risk of not being full strength, and will likely have an elevated price tag following his string of solid performances, meaning he may warrant a fade in tournaments given the added injury risk on top of the probable price increase.
As reported by: the Indiana Pacers via Twitter Other tagged players: Myles Turner World Series Hangover? Nah
If you follow Joel Embiid on Twitter (no reason not to), then you know that he was at the epic World Series game last night. The game didn’t end until one in the morning, but that would only affect the likes of average NBA players, not the GOAT. Embiid is averaging 1.37 FP/min and he put up 39 fantasy points against the Rockets in only 23 minutes of action last week. As long as he stays out of foul trouble, look for his minutes to creep up in the 28-29 range.
It Doesn't get any Safer than this Point Guard
When it comes to cash games, I’m looking for players with a high floor and hopefully a high ceiling as well. Goran Dragic has a high usage in the Heat offense, he’s playing at home in a game without Hassan Whiteside, and he draws an excellent matchup against the Wolves. Jeff Teague is not a great defender and the Wolves have allowed the second most fantasy points to point guards this season.
All the Usage in a Close Game
For whatever reason, people hate to play LaMarcus Aldridge in DFS. Perhaps, it’s just that people don’t trust the Spurs in general. Even though this game has one of the lower totals on the board, we know where the Spurs are going offensively. Aldridge currently has a 28% usage rate and he’s taken at least 20 shots in four of the first six games of the season. The Celtics don’t have a great defensive frontcourt and the game is expected to stay close throughout. Aldridge will continue to fire up shots because he knows Kawhi Leonard will be back in the lineup soon enough.
Marc Gasol (ankle) downgraded to questionable Monday
Gasol is a late addition to the Memphis Grizzlies’ injury report for tonight’s game against the Charlotte Hornets with a left ankle injury. The Grizzlies are already without Gasol’s running mate in the frontcourt, JaMychal Green, and will likely be forced to deploy Jarell Martin and Brandan Wright in the starting lineup if Gasol is ruled out closer to game time. Memphis could also roll with their version of a small-ball lineup more often, utilizing James Ennis at power forward, allowing Dillon Brooks or Tyreke Evans more playing time with the starting unit at the small forward spot. In fact, Evans has seen a massive usage rate differential of +9.0% with Gasol and Green off the court this season and leads Memphis with an elite 33.9% usage rate in the aforementioned scenario. Needless to say, Evans would become a great tournament option, if Gasol is ruled out, for an affordable price tag across the industry. As for Chandler Parsons, he has been transitioning to more of a small-ball power forward with Green sidelined but has yet to eclipse 18 minutes of action in any game thus far, minimizing his floor and capping his ceiling, essentially removing him from consideration in daily fantasy formats.
As reported by: Grizzlies PR via Twitter DeMarre Carroll (ankle) questionable for Tuesday; Quincy Acy (groin) ruled out
Carroll has officially been listed as questionable on the Brooklyn Nets’ injury report for tomorrow’s game against the Phoenix Suns with a sore right ankle that has already forced him to miss one game. Additionally, Quincy Acy has already been ruled out and will miss his second straight contest with a strained left groin. With Acy sidelined again, Trevor Booker and Jarrett Allen will likely continue splitting his minute workload off the bench in an effort to pick up his slack in the frontcourt with the second unit. If Carroll is unable to suit up, Allen Crabbe should draw the start at small forward for the second consecutive game alongside Caris LeVert, though LeVert looks to have the upper hand in terms of a usage and potential upside, making him the clearly better tournament option. In fact, despite Crabbe seeing 27 minutes on Sunday, it was Joe Harris who primarily benefited from Carroll’s absence and should continue to see extra playing time should he eventually be ruled out on Tuesday.
As reported by: Bryan Fonseca via Twitter Other tagged players: Quincy Acy Contrarian Option at Center
DeMarcus Cousins is obviously rolling at center, and he will garner some attention on the top end. If you want to pay up to get some upside while pivoting away from Cousins, give Towns a long look. Hassan Whiteside has already been ruled out for this game, and Miami has no chance to keeping up with Towns on the interior with the rest of their personnel. After a slow start to the year, Towns woke up with a 33 point, 19 rebound performance his last time out, and that kind of upside is certainly accessible. Fire up Towns with confidence in GPP games this evening.
Upside in a Tough Matchup?
The small forward spot leaves a little to be desired tonight, so I don’t mind targeting Barnes even in a difficult matchup. Barnes carries a healthy 26.3% usage rate, and he actually ranks 6th in the league in minutes per game so far this year. We all know that minutes equal money in daily fantasy hoops, and Barnes is jacking up 16 shots per contest. Utah does not have the strongest personnel at the small forward spot, so this isn’t necessarily a bad one-on-one matchup for Barnes, either. Despite the low total in this game, I will have plenty of Barnes exposure at his reasonable salary tag.
Minutes and Double-Digit Shot Attempts
Hardaway has played at least 28 minutes in every game this season, and he has double-digit shot attempts in each of those games. With the departure of Carmelo Anthony, the offense runs through Porzingis and Hardaway. He’s coming off his best game of the season, and I’m hoping he can continue to shoot the ball well tonight. Shooting guard is limited on FanDuel tonight, and I think Hardaway is a good cheaper option to target.
Injury Has Created Opportunity For Me
TJ McConnell has played over 28 minutes in back-to-back games, and with the injury to Fultz, I fully expect him to continue to play a bigger role. If Redick plays, I hope it scares people of McConnell, and I hope people don’t realize his increased role. He went for 41.5 fantasy points against the Rockets on the 25th. Over the last two games, he is averaging 1.12 fantasy points per minute, and he’s one of my favorite value plays tonight.
Dorian Finney-Smith (sore knee) ruled out at least 2 games
Finney-Smith has been ruled out for tonight’s game against the Utah Jazz and at least one additional game with a sore left knee. Finney-Smith has largely been out the Dallas Mavericks rotation lately, so his absence will not have a significant impact on the remainder of the wing rotation. Any of his potential playing time would likely be deferred to an end of the rotation player like Gian Clavell but obviously nothing significant enough to enter consideration in daily fantasy formats.
As reported by: Earl K. Sneed via Twitter