DFS Alerts
Luke Babbitt downgraded to doubtful for Heat tonight
Babbitt was previously listed as questionable but looks unlikely to play tonight putting James Johnson squarely in the mix as an option tonight. Last game out, Johnson played 32 minutes and scored 26 points as well as providing stats in a variety of categories. If Babbitt is able to go, we’ll update you as soon as we find out.
As reported by: Ira Winderman on Twitter Other tagged players: James Johnson
Paul Millsap (knee) and Kent Bazemore (knee) will come off bench tonight for Hawks; Tim Hardaway Jr. (knee) will start; Malcolm Delaney (back) available
This is what they did last game as well. Millsap ended up playing 26 minutes and Bazemore received 16. Ersan Ilyasova will start again, but he only played 20 minutes in his last start. His value has disappeared with Millsap’s return. The power forward will cut into Dwight Howard’s time on the court as well; Howard played 25 minutes last game. Millsap and Bazemore aren’t great fantasy targets themselves as they may not receive enough minutes to be useful. On the bright side, Taurean Prince remains a great value while Thabo Sefolosha is out and Dennis Schroder matchups up with the league’s worst defender, Isaiah Thomas, who ranks dead last in DRPM (-4.17) out of all 461 qualifying players league-wide.
As reported by: Chris Vivlamore Other tagged players: Kent Bazemore, Tim Hardaway Jr., Ersan Ilyasova
Jason Smith will start in place of Markieff Morris Thursday
This was expected as Smith started for Morris the last two times he was out. He’s now one of the best value options available. He had a really nice game the first time he started for Morris, scoring 17 points and grabbing eight rebounds (37.75 DK points total). Smith has been a consistent points per minute guy all season – 0.9 DK ppm with Morris off – and he always seems to take advantage of his opportunities. Over his past eight games with at least 23 minutes, Smith has topped 22 DraftKIngs points in seven of them, 26 in five, and he’s averaged 26.4 DK points. He should push to the 30-minute mark or possibly past it tonight and he’s got an appealing matchup; the Knicks have the sixth-worst defensive rating (108.4) this season.
As reported by: Washington Wizards Marshall Plumlee will start in place of Kristaps Porzingis Thursday
Porzingis (back) was ruled out ahead of their matchup with the Wizards. This will be Plumlee’s first career start; he’s only averaged 6.8 minutes off the bench in 17 appearances this season. It’s not clear what type of minutes we can expect from Plumlee, both Maurice Ndour and Kyle O’Quinn should get extra time on the court as well with Porzingis unavailable. O’Quinn is a very risky, but viable tournament option as he delivers great per-minute fantasy production.
As reported by: Stefan Bondy Mike Conley (eye) will play Friday
Conley sat out last game due to an eye injury he sustained after a collision with Kawhi Leonard on Tuesday. He’ll be ready to take on the Knicks tomorrow though.
As reported by: Tim macM UPDATE: Kristaps Porzingis (hip) ruled OUT for Knicks tonight
The Knicks have decided to hold Porzingis out tonight after initially saying he was going to play. Maurice Ndour started for him last game, and could again tonight, but they have not announced their starting lineup yet. Ndour played 32 minutes last game and racked up 32.9 FD points. Ndour, Kyle O’Quinn, and Guillermo Hernangomez will all be interesting tournament targets either way, but definitely risky due to limited time on the floor. O’Quinn and Hernangomez have tremendous per-minute production, but rarely play a ton of minutes. Even with Porzingis out, O’Quinn received 26, and Hernangomez played 21.
As reported by: NY Knicks Paul Millsap (knee) WILL play tonight, rest tomorrow
Millsap made his return on Sunday from an eight-game absence, coming off the bench for 26 minutes of action. The hawks have not yet decided whether they will start him tonight. His presence immediately takes away Ersan Ilyasova’s value, especially because Ilyasova now has an inflated price. Dwight Howard doesn’t take a hit in his fantasy production, but he plays fewer minutes when Millsap is around. Even though the power forward was limited in his first game back, Howard still only saw the floor for 25 himself. Howard’s minutes have been inconsistent all season when Millsap is around, so his upside will be capped tonight. Dennis Schroder’s usage decreases by 2.3% when Millsap is on and Sefolosha is out, but he faces the league’s worst defender, Isaiah Thomas, based on DRPM (-4.17); he ranks 461st out of 461 qualifying players.
As reported by: Brad Rowland Markieff Morris (ankle) ruled OUT tonight for Wizards
Morris was listed as questionable today, now he’s been officially ruled out for tonight’s matchup with the Knicks. Jason Smith is expected to start and is now one of the best value options available. He had a really nice game the first time he started for Morris, scoring 17 points and grabbing eight rebounds (37.75 DK points total). Smith has been a consistent points per minute guy all season – 0.9 DK ppm with Morris off – and he always seems to take advantage of his opportunities. Over his past eight games with at least 23 minutes, Smith has topped 22 DraftKIngs points in seven of them, 26 in five, and he’s averaged 26.4 DK points. He should push to the 30-minute mark or possibly past it tonight and he’s got an appealing matchup; the Knicks have the sixth-worst defensive rating (108.4) this season. As one might expect, John Wall pops off without Morris. His usage jumps 5.5% to 37.8% and his DK ppm jumps 0.10 to 1.43, or 51.46 per 36. He’s available for $600 less on DraftKings than FanDuel and he’s just under $10k on the site.
As reported by: Ava Wallace Other tagged players: Jason Smith, John Wall Sean Kilpatrick (hamstring) ruled OUT for Nets; Isaiah Whitehead (ankle) will play
Kilpatrick was listed as questionable as he reaggravated a hamstring injury in their last game. Whitehead missed that one, but he’s back tonight after a one-game absence. Not a whole lot changes with this situation in terms of usage or production. Caris LeVert scores an extra 0.07 DK ppm, but he probably won’t get enough run to be useful. Brooklyn plays a ton of guys and there simply aren’t enough minutes to go around. Archie Goodwin and K.J. McDaniels will pick up extra time on the court, but they don’t offer high ceilings. It’s clearly a great matchup as Orlando gives up the 25th-most fantasy points per game and have poor DvP rankings across the board. Brook Lopez and Jeremy Lin are the best bets and Rondae Hollis-Jefferson is a riskier option with some upside that’s relatively cheap.
As reported by: Keith Smith Other tagged players: Isaiah Whitehead Kristaps Porzingis (back) WILL play tonight; Chasson Randle (ankle) ruled out
Porzingis didn’t play last game, but he’s all set to return tonight against the Wizards. Chasson Randle will be held out due to an ankle injury. With Rose, Noah, Thomas and Randle off the floor this season, Carmelo Anthony sees by far the biggest bump in usage (7.0%), with Porzingis picking up just 0.6%. Assuming Melo is able to take on a full allotment of minutes this evening, he’s a nice upside GPP target at depressed price tags across the industry. Porzingis has the best draw on the Knicks side as the Wizards rank 22nd in DvP against PFs, but he’s a little hard to trust coming off an injury in games that mean next to nothing for the Knicks. With Randle out this evening, Ron Baker figures to pick up a large allotment of playing time yet again, he just offers very little upside in terms of FPPM value.
As reported by: Al Iannazzone Other tagged players: Chasson Randle Malcolm Brogdon (back) officially ruled out Thursday
Brogdon wasn’t expected to play tonight after missing the past three straight games. Coach Jason Kidd added that he doesn’t expect him to play at all during their road trip, which concludes with a visit to Philadelphia on Saturday. He does expect him back before the end of the regular season, though, so he could play next Monday against the Hornets.
As reported by: Charles F. Gardner Jameer Nelson (calf) not expected to play Friday; Will Barton (foot) is questionable
Nelson returned from a two-game absence last night and played 32 minutes. It appears the calf is still bothering him and it will likely keep him out tomorrow. Barton has missed the past four games. He was a late scratch yesterday after being listed questionable. Darrell Arthur (knee) is probable.
As reported by: Harrison Wind Other tagged players: Will Barton, Darrell Arthur Terrence Ross will only play first half tonight for Magic
Coach Frank Vogel is going to sit Ross in the second half tonight to allow Patricio Garino and Marcus Georges-Hunt to see some game action. Evan Fournier has been ruled out altogether. Jodie Meeks will start in his place. Since Orlando went out of their way to mention Fournier and Ross, we can hope this means Aaron Gordon, Elfrid Payton, and Nikola Vucevic will play a full game. Without question, there’s a chance they don’t, so they’re probably too risky for cash. They are, however, very interesting tournament options. They’re in an awesome matchup with the Nets. Those three players have only played 86.4 minutes with Meeks alongside them when Ross and Fournier were out. Payton led in ppm, racking up 1.19 in FanDuel scoring.
As reported by: Josh Robbins Evan Fournier (wrist) ruled OUT tonight for Magic
Fournier has been ruled out ahead of tonight’s game with Nets. Jodie Meeks will start in his place. Terrence Ross will start but only play the first half. Since Orlando went out of their way to mention Fournier and Ross, we can hope this means Aaron Gordon, Elfrid Payton, and Nikola Vucevic will play a full game. Without question, there’s a chance they don’t, so they’re probably too risky for cash. They are, however, very interesting tournament options. They’re in an awesome matchup with the Nets, who are terrible against every position and allow the most fantasy points per game. Those three players have only played 86.4 minutes with Meeks alongside them when Ross and Fournier were out. Payton led in ppm, racking up 1.19 in FanDuel scoring. Gordon cam crashing down to earth last time out after posting monster double-doubles in back to back games. One of them was against Brooklyn; he had 22 points, 15 rebounds, and five assists. Vucevic scores an extra 0.05 FD ppm (1.22 total) when Fournier and Jeff Green are off the court this season. All three are solid tournament targets in this matchup, but they’ll certainly be risky. Jodie Meeks doesn’t have a huge ceiling and he’s bombed in starts before, there are better value options available tonight.
As reported by: Orlando Magic Other tagged players: Jodie Meeks Al Jefferson (ankle) available to play tonight
Jefferson has missed Indiana’s last five games with an ankle sprain, but he’s set to make his return tonight when the Pacers host the Bucks. He won’t’ be a viable fantasy option himself as he doesn’t play enough minutes normally, let alone coming off an injury. If he plays he could take some minutes from the bigs, but it won’t be anything crazy and he’ll mostly affect the backups. Myles Turner has been playing a ton of minutes and Thaddeus Young has been into the 30s lately. Indiana is in a three-way battle for the final two spots in the east. They’ll likely keep running their starters hard whether Jefferson plays or not. Young has been particularly well recently. Over the past two weeks, his usage is up 2.1% and his FanDuel ppm rate has increased 0.06 to 0.83. He’s still under $5k on both FD and DraftKings, which is a great price – he’s averaged 28.9 FD points and 30.35 DK points over his last five games.
As reported by: Indiana Pacers Other tagged players: Thaddeus Young, Myles Turner