DFS Alerts
Sneaky Value at Center
Some of the value plays are totally obvious on tonight’s slate, but I will provide you with a sneaky one for GPP play. Dewayne Dedmon should see more opportunity in Atlanta than he ever did in San Antonio, and the path is cleared for him to play heavy minutes at center. He had a solid preseason and should be priced much higher than this before long. He is a strong play against a Dallas team that struggled on the glass last season.
Lock and Load on Opening Night
Damian Lillard should be one of the first guys you lock into your rosters this evening. C.J. McCollum has been suspended for the opener, and Lillard has a 38.4% usage rate over the last two seasons with McCollum off the floor. Throw in a nice matchup against a mediocre Suns defense, and you have all the makings of a fine play.
Nikola Mirotic (undisclosed) hospitalized and out indefinitely following altercation with Bobby Portis at practice
Mirotic and Portis were involved in a physical altercation at the Chicago Bulls’ practice Tuesday that resulted in Mirotic being hospitalized. Reports are rolling in that Mirotic suffered an extensive facial fracture from an alleged “cheap shot” thrown by Portis following their initial shoving match. Mirotic is still undergoing further tests but he will remain out for the foreseeable future, according to Shams Charania and his sources.
As reported by: Shams Charania via Twitter Other tagged players: Bobby Portis
LeBron James (ankle) will play Tuesday
LeBron will play and start in tonight’s season opener against the Boston Celtics, per Cavaliers head coach Tyronn Lue, after previously being listed as questionable on the Cavaliers’ injury report with a sprained ankle. LeBron participated in the team’s shootaround this morning and will reportedly have no minutes restriction in Tuesday’s contest. This news is far from a surprise, as Lue told reporters earlier in the week that he would leave the final call on his availability solely to LeBron, while Dwyane Wade also told reporters following shootaround today that he expected LeBron to play despite LeBron declining to speak to the media himself.
As reported by: Jason Lloyd via Twitter Tyreke Evans (ankle) questionable for Wednesday; Wayne Selden (quad) ruled out
Evans is a late addition to the Memphis Grizzlies’ injury report for tomorrow’s season opener against the New Orleans Pelicans with a right ankle injury, while Wayne Selden has already been ruled out with a right quad issue, despite nearly being a full participant in Tuesday’s practice. Andrew Harrison and James Ennis were confirmed as the starters on the wing for Memphis by head coach David Fizdale, and if Evans is eventually ruled, would be left with a sizable void behind Harrison at the shooting guard position and thin overall at the wing positions, opening up minutes and opportunity for the starters and back end of the Grizzlies rotation.
As reported by: Michael Wallace via Twitter Other tagged players: Wayne Selden Alex Len (foot) and Jared Dudley (foot) questionable for Wednesday
Both Len and Dudley have officially been listed as questionable for tomorrow’s season opener against the Portland Trail Blazers with separate left foot injuries respectively. The questionable tag placed on Dudley is somewhat surprising as he was originally slated to miss the start of the season recovering from surgery on his left toe. However, Dudley will likely rarely see the court this season after the Suns drafted Josh Jackson, minimizing the impact of his potential absence on the rest of the rotation. As for Len, his potential absence would open up additional minutes for the likes of Marquese Chriss, Dragan Bender, and Tyson Chandler in the Phoenix frontcourt.
As reported by: Casey Holdahl via Twitter Other tagged players: Jared Dudley Andre Iguodala (back) ruled out Tuesday; Omri Casspi (ankle) available to play
Iguodala will not be available to play in the Warriors’ season opener tonight against the Houston Rockets after previously being listed as questionable on the Warriors’ injury report with a back strain. Additionally, Casspi will suit up, as expected, after he was upgraded to probable with a sprained right ankle. With Iguodala now ruled out, minutes should open up on the wing for Casspi, Patrick McCaw, and Nick Young, though it’s difficult to imagine any of them seeing enough usage or minutes to become viable options, even on a minuscule two-game slate, outside of longshot tournament dart throws due to their unstable floors and limited ceilings.
As reported by: Warriors PR via Twitter Other tagged players: Omri Casspi Kawhi Leonard (quad) and Tony Parker (quad) ruled out for Wednesday, as expected
Just a formality here, as Leonard and Parker have both been ruled out for tomorrow’s season opener against the Minnesota Timberwolves due to separate quad injuries. Spurs coach head coach Gregg Popovich had said late last week that Leonard would miss Wednesday’s contest and remains without a timetable for return recovering from tendinopathy in his left quad that has forced him to miss all of training camp and preseason. In his absence, Rudy Gay is likely to step into the Spurs’ starting lineup, while LaMarcus Aldridge and Pau Gasol should be expected to shoulder the offensive load alongside Gay while Leonard is sidelined with the quad injury.
As reported by: Jabari Young via Twitter Other tagged players: Tony Parker Guerschon Yabusele (illness) ruled out Tuesday
Yabusele will not play in tonight’s season opener against the Cleveland Cavaliers due to an illness. Yabusele was expected to be at the end of the Boston Celtics’ rotation so his absence will not affect any one individual player’s projected minutes in an overly substantial way. If anything, it may extend Al Horford and backup center Aron Baynes minutes by minimal margins but nothing to get overly excited about if considering rostering either Boston big man on Tuesday’s two-game slate.
As reported by: Chris Forsberg via Twitter Julius Randle (intercostal strain) practices fully, expects to play Thursday night
Randle was a full participant in Lakers’ practice on Tuesday and expects to play in Thursday’s season opener against the Los Angeles Clippers despite dealing with a strained right intercostal in his rib area. Randle’s role with this Lakers team will be one of the many situations to monitor in the early stages of the young NBA season, as he has seen very little time with the other starters throughout the preseason due to injury. Additionally, Lakers head coach Luke Walton has continually praised the frontcourt duo of Brook Lopez and Larry Nance and may end up rolling with them as the starters with Randle coming off the bench to lead the second unit along with backup guard Jordan Clarkson.
As reported by: Mike Trudell via Twitter Michael Kidd-Gilchrist (personal) ruled out for Wednesday
Kidd-Gilchrist has been away from the team for over a week now dealing with a personal matter and has officially been ruled out for the Charlotte Hornets’ season opener against the Detroit Pistons. His replacement in the starting lineup has yet to be decided upon by head coach Steve Clifford but Frank Kaminsky or Dwayne Bacon look to be the likeliest candidates with either Marvin Williams or Jeremy Lamb taking over at small forward depending on the final decision on Wednesday’s starting unit. Regardless of starters, Lamb and Kemba Walker will likely be the biggest beneficiaries of Kidd-Gilchrist’s absence with Nicolas Batum also sidelined for 8-12 weeks, while Malik Monk figures to see plenty of run off the bench with Michael Carter-Williams also unavailable to begin the season.
As reported by: Rick Bonnell via Twitter Raul Neto (leg) partially participated in practice, officially questionable Wednesday
Neto has now been a limited participant in each of the Utah Jazz’ last two practices and is officially considered questionable for tomorrow’s game against the Denver Nuggets with a leg injury. However, Jazz head coach Quin Snyder remains hopeful that Neto will be available to play in the team’s season opener Wednesday night. With Dante Exum’s season in jeopardy following shoulder surgery, Neto is firmly entrenched as the Jazz’ backup point guard, and if he is ruled out, Ricky Rubio should be expected to see extended minutes to pick up the slack at point guard with Donovan Mitchell or Nate Wolters giving him a breather from time-to-time in what sets up to be a fantastic individual matchup for Rubio against the Nuggets’ point guard duo of Jamal Murray and Emmanuel Mudiay.
As reported by: Tony Jones via Twitter Anthony Davis (illness) misses practice, still expected to play Wednesday night
Davis is dealing with a stomach issue, according to Pelicans head coach Alvin Gentry, and did not participate in the team’s practice on Tuesday. However, Gentry confirmed to reporters that Davis should be ready to suit up for the season opener against the Memphis Grizzlies tomorrow evening. Assuming Davis is good to go, he’ll start alongside Demarcus Cousins in the frontcourt, while Dante Cunningham, E’Twaun Moore, and Jrue Holiday will round out the Pelicans’ starting five with Rajon Rondo sidelined for the next 4-6 weeks recovering from sports hernia surgery.
As reported by: Will Guillory via Twitter Terrence Ross (hamstring) participates in practice, on track to play Wednesday night
Ross had missed a majority of the preseason and the Orlando Magic’s practice on Monday due to a strained hamstring but was reportedly a full participant in Tuesday’s practice, putting him on track to play in the season opener against the Miami Heat tomorrow night. If for some reason Ross is unable to suit up, Jonathon Simmons would likely find his way into the starting lineup in his place and could offer a potential source of value on Wednesday’s slate, though Elfrid Payton, Nikola Vucevic, and Aaron Gordon all would remain well ahead of him in the pecking order for offensive usage in the Magic’s starting lineup.
As reported by: Josh Robbins via Twitter LeBron James (ankle) participates in shootaround, officially questionable Tuesday
LeBron has officially been listed as questionable for tonight’s game against the Boston Celtics after his playing status was previously considered as uncertain and will likely be a game-time decision. He did participate in the team’s morning shootaround but did not speak with the media, adding some speculation to his availability for the Cavaliers’ opening contest this evening. Cavaliers coach Tyronn Lue had told reporters earlier in the week that he will leave the final call on his availability to LeBron, which would presumably indicate that he is more likely to play than not. If for some reason LeBron is ruled out, Kevin Love would enter virtual must play status on a two-game slate given his plus individual matchup and projected usage increase, while Dwyane Wade and Derrick Rose would assume a majority of the offensive playmaking responsibilities. Additionally, Jeff Green or Tristan Thompson would be the likeliest candidates to enter the starting lineup if LeBron is unable to suit up.
As reported by: Joe Vardon via Twitter