DFS Alerts
Paul Zipser (knee) and Kris Dunn (finger) questionable for Saturday
Zipser has officially been listed as questionable on the Chicago Bulls’ injury report for tomorrow’s game against the Oklahoma City Thunder with a right knee contusion that forced him to miss Thursday’s contest against the Atlanta Hawks. Meanwhile, Kris Dunn has also been listed as questionable to make his season and Bulls debut with a dislocated left index finger that has kept him sidelined for every game thus far this year. The Bulls would be extremely thin at the wing and forward positions once again should Zipser be ruled out, which would force Denzel Valentine into the starting lineup and significantly more minutes for the second straight game after seeing 35 minutes of action on Thursday, while Quincy Pondexter should also be expected to play a larger role off the bench. Lauri Markkanen has seen 33 minutes or more in all but one game this season and would be in line for even more playing time, if Zipser officially ruled out, given the Bulls’ current tight rotation, making him an interesting tournament option on Saturday’s slate depending on price.
As reported by: K.C. Johnson via Twitter Other tagged players: Kris Dunn
Dennis Schroder (ankle) questionable Friday; Ersan Ilyasova (knee) and Marco Belinelli (Achilles) probable
Schroder has officially been listed as questionable on the Atlanta Hawks’ injury report for tonight’s game against the Denver Nuggets with a sprained right ankle that has already forced him to miss two consecutive games. Meanwhile, Ilyasova and Belinelli have each been listed as probable and are fully expected to play. If Schroder is unavailable, Malcolm Delaney can be expected to draw the start at point guard once again and will set up as a viable, but uninspiring, value options on Friday’s slate. Atlanta Hawks head coach Mike Budneholzer also told reporters that we could continue to see more of Josh Magette and Isaiah Taylor as the backup point guard as well. Schroder leads the Hawks in usage rate so far this season so there will be plenty of opportunities there for the taking for the rest of the starting unit in terms of usage and potential production should he be ruled out for the third time in as many games.
As reported by: the Atlanta Hawks via Twitter Other tagged players: Ersan Ilyasova, Marco Belinelli D'Angelo Russell (knee sprain) upgraded to questionable Friday
Russell has been upgraded to questionable for tonight’s game against the New York Knicks after previously being listed as doubtful on the Brooklyn Nets’ injury report with a sprained right knee that has already forced him to miss one game. This news does add some uncertainty to Russell’s availability and how to attack this Nets squad if he is able to suit up. That said, if Russell remains sidelined, Spencer Dinwiddie would likely replace Russell in the starting lineup at point guard once again, allowing Sean Kilpatrick to remain in the backcourt rotation after seeing 10 minutes off the bench in the previous contest. Caris Levert, Rondae Hollis-Jefferson, and Trevor Booker have seen the largest sample size with both Russell and Jeremy Lin off the court this season and have all been benefited from a positive usage differential in the aforementioned scenario. In fact, both Hollis-Jefferson and Booker own usage differentials of at least +4.3%, making them each intriguing tournament options on Friday’s slate if Russell is officially sidelined for the second game in a row. That said, the main issue with Nets players is playing time, as it’s rare any of them exceed 30 minutes with head coach Kenny Atkinson’s deep rotation.
As reported by: Brian Lewis via Twitter Jimmy Butler (illness) goes through shootaround, will play Friday barring a setback
Minnesota Timberwolves head coach Tom Thibodeau told reporters that Butler is feeling better and is expected to play in tonight’s game against the Oklahoma City Thunder, barring a setback, after previously being listed as questionable on the injury report with an illness that had forced him to miss two consecutive games. Butler participated in Friday morning’s shootaround, and Thibodeau has already been confirmed that Butler won’t be subject to a minutes restriction if he is able to suit up this evening. However, coming off of an illness and in a difficult matchup with Andre Roberson and the Thunder wing defenders, Butler is nothing more than deep tournament play on Friday’s slate despite his more than reasonable price tag across the industry.
As reported by: Jon Krawczynski via Twitter Tarik Black (hip) probable Friday; Nene (Achilles) remains out
Black was added to the Houston Rockets’ injury report for tonight’s game against the Charlotte Hornets but is listed as probable with a right hip contusion and is fully expected to play. Meanwhile, Nene will miss his second consecutive game with a sore left Achilles, leaving Black and Ryan Anderson the likely recipients of the backup center minutes behind Clint Capela, who is coming off of a dominant performance against the Philadelphia 76ers in 31 minutes. of action. However, the matchup for Capela and the remaining Rockets big men is less than ideal, as Dwight Howard is a capable defender and one of the better rebounding centers in the entire league, relegating Capela to a fringe tournament option at an elevated price tag.
As reported by: Jonathan Feigen via Twitter Other tagged players: Nene Hilario The Forgotten Stud
For whatever reason, Kemba Walker always seems to get ignored by the DFS community at large. However, this is an absolutely fantastic spot to load up on him in GPP formats. He has been better at home throughout his career, this is a pace up game against the Rockets, and he will face off against the defense of Eric Gordon. With Patrick Beverley off to Los Angeles and Chris Paul sidelined, point guards should be able to put up some solid numbers against the Rockets. His mid-to-high price point always puts him in an awkward spot, as it’s easier to just pay up for a guy like Wall or Westbrook. Use that leverage to your advantage in GPP formats this evening.
A Rebound Performance
Kristaps Porzingis and the rest of the Knicks were admittedly terrible against Boston the other night, and Porzingis burned a ton of DFS players in the process. Everyone is entitled to a bad game here or there, and Porzingis should rebound nicely in a great matchup with the Nets tonight. Brooklyn plays at a fast pace and doesn’t offer much defensively, as they have allowed at least 104 points in each of their first five games. Porzingis is a matchup nightmare for this Brooklyn squad (and any squad, really). Fire him up with confidence and hope that his ownership is lower tonight because of his dud the last time out.
Higher Price, Massive Upside
Poeltl is one of the most interesting discussions of the night. He will continue to come off the bench for the Raptors, but the minutes will be there in the absence of Jonas Valanciunas and Lucas Nogueira. Nogueira is questionable for this game, so keep an eye on that as we move through the afternoon. Poeltl is coming off a dominant 12 point, 14 rebound outing against the Warriors the other night in a game where he played 27 minutes. He is a solid interior player with a great “motor” as the experts say, and he will be a high upside option if both Valanciunas and Nogueira remain sidelined.
Keep Attacking This Center
Adam is right on the verge of the 5k-price range, but I think he’s a good value at his current DraftKings price. They’ve slowly raised his price, but they still haven’t raised it enough. He’s gone for at least 35 DK points in three of four games, and he went for 44.25 in his last game against Minnesota. Karl-Anthony Towns is a great young talent, but he was a bottom five defender last season. I’ve been attacking centers against him for a year now, and I’m not going to stop with a center that I feel is underpriced. With Kanter gone, Adams is averaging 32 minutes per game, and he’s the guy that’s going to play down the stretch now.
Nice DraftKings Floor Play
DeMarre Carroll is over 6k on FanDuel, and while I don’t hate that, I’m going to get my exposure to him on DraftKings. He’s put up 30+ DK points in four straight games, and has another really good matchup tonight. He’s averaging 28 minutes per game this season, and while that doesn’t sound like a lot, no one from the Nets is averaging over 30 minutes per game. He receives a 3.2% usage bump without Russell on the floor, and he’s averaging 1.36 fantasy points per minute. I think Carroll gives you a nice floor for cash games, but also brings some nice 6x-7x upside.
Get On This Player Now
Jamal Murray is one of my favorite GPP plays tonight, and I don’t expect anyone to be on him tonight. He continues to see an uptick in minutes, and he’s taken 32 shots in the last two games. Dennis Schroder is expected back for Atlanta tonight. We picked on him a lot with opposing point guards last season, and I like it even more tonight coming back from injury. There’s nothing safe about Murray, but there is upside at this price and ownership.
I'm Getting Starters Minutes Because of Injury
With the injury to D’Angelo Russell, Spencer Dinwiddie is one of the best value plays on the slate. Russell is doubtful to play tonight, and Dinwiddie played 31 minutes in his absence on Wednesday night. The Knicks haven’t won a game this season, and they rank 26th in defensive efficiency this season. This is going to be an ugly game to watch, but with these two defenses, we should have a lot of scoring. Dinwiddie has gone for 30+ fantasy points in each of the games he’s played over 20 minutes this season.
Anthony Davis (knee, quad) officially ruled out Thursday; Darius Miller will start
Davis has officially been ruled out by New Orleans Pelicans head coach Alvin Gentry and will not play in tonight’s game against the Sacramento Kings after previously being listed as questionable on the injury report and considered unlikely to play with left knee and quad tendinitis. In his absence, Darius Miller will draw the start but has been relatively ineffective in his playing time this season, making Cheick Diallo the preferred punt option in tournaments of the two forwards but now has, even more, minute volatility coming off the bench. DeMarcus Cousins still remains an elite option and probably the top overall play on Thursday’s slate in both cash games and tournaments. While the Pelicans could go several different directions with their rotation, one thing is certain that Cousins is in an absolute smash spot against his former team and leads the Pelicans with an insane 40.7% usage rate and 64 fantasy points per 36 minutes with Davis off the court this season.
As reported by: Will Guillory via Twitter Other tagged players: Darius Miller Mario Chalmers (ankle) available to play Thursday
Chalmers is officially available to play in tonight’s game against the Dallas Mavericks after appearing on the Memphis Grizzlies’ injury report as questionable with a right ankle injury. Additionally, Wayne Selden will remain out for the fifth consecutive game with a right quad injury. Chalmers has handled a majority of the ball-handling duties behind Mike Conley off the bench and may even be in line for a few extra minutes with Tyreke Evans expected to have his minutes monitored on the second leg of a back-to-back set. Andrew Harrison could also see an uptick in playing time, but Chalmers and possibly even Dillon Brooks easily carry the higher upside of the backup guards and wings, assuming Evans see significantly fewer minutes than normal.
As reported by: Grizzlies PR via Twitter Marcus Smart (ankles) will play Thursday, will be limited to 16-20 minutes
Smart will play in tonight’s game against the Milwaukee Bucks after previously being listed as questionable on the Boston Celtics injury report with tweaked ankles that had forced him to miss two consecutive games. Smart will come off the bench and is expected to play just four to five minutes per quarter, effectively setting his minutes restriction to 16-20 minutes. Daniel Theis will take over for Aron Baynes in the Celtics starting lineup in an effort to keep him out of early foul trouble, according to head coach Brad Stevens, and match up with Greg Monroe off the bench. All of the Celtics former value options like Jaylen Brown, Jayson Tatum, and Terry Rozier are now appropriately or overpriced, making Kyrie Irving the only real intriguing tournament target while Al Horford remains a fine cash option at this price point.
As reported by: Gary Washburn via Twitter