DFS Alerts
Patrick McCaw (leg) and Kevon Looney (hip) ruled out tonight
McCaw was a late scratch from the Warriors lineup for tonight’s game against the Houston Rockets due to leg cramps, while Kevon Looney has officially been ruled out after previously being listed as doubtful on the Warriors’ injury report with a strained left hip that has now forced him to miss two consecutive games. The absence of McCaw will open up some additional minutes for Matt Barnes with the starting unit and possibly even Ian Clark off the bench. With Looney sidelined in Wednesday’s win over the San Antonio Spurs, backup power forward, David West, saw a season-high 21 minutes of action. If he can get anywhere near that type of run this evening, both he and Barnes are shaping up to viable punt options in tournaments on the late slate given their affordable price tags.
As reported by: Warriors PR Other tagged players: Kevon Looney
Nene (rest) officially ruled out tonight; Montrezl Harrell (personal) will play
Nene will be rested and won’t play in tonight’s game against the Golden State Warriors, as expected, while Montrezl Harrell will return to the team after dealing with a personal matter. Nene has consistently been seeing minutes in the high teens to low-20s, so there are definitely some reserve minutes available to be absorbed by Harrell off the bench. If looking for tournament punt on the late slate, there are certainly worse options than Harrell considering he has a realistic shot at exceeding salary-based expectations in 20-24 minutes of action, especially on DraftKings, where he is priced at the stone minimum.
As reported by: Calvin Watkins Other tagged players: Montrezl Harrell Sasha Vujacic will start for Carmelo Anthony (back) tonight
Anthony and Rose will not play in tonight’s game against the Miami Heat after previously being listed as questionable on the Knicks’ injury report with their respective ailments. Mindaugas Kuzminskas was originally expected to start in place of Carmelo once again, but Sasha Vujacic will receive the starting nod alongside Courtney Lee on the wing instead. Ron Baker played 40 minutes against Miami on Wednesday with Rose out and still only scored 15.3 DK points. He’s not an elite option on a massive 11-game slate and it’s probably best to fade such a low ceiling on this large of a slate. As far as Vujacic goes, his minute allotment is much more difficult to figure out, as Kuzminskas had been starting for Carmelo and played over 30 minutes in both instanced. He seemingly has a higher ceiling than Vujacic and Baker, but it may best to just target Kristaps Porzingis and avoid the Knick value options altogether unless in desperate need of salary savings.
As reported by: Marc Berman Taj Gibson (illness) ruled out tonight; Domantas Sabonis will start
Gibson will not play in tonight’s game against the San Antonio Spurs after previously being considered a game-time decision due to an illness that stopped him from participating in the Thunder’s shootaround on Friday morning. In his absence, Domantas Sabonis will draw the start at power forward. However, even when given the opportunity, Sabonis has been an underwhelming daily fantasy option and should not be considered in daily fantasy formats with Gibson unable to suit up. The preferred Thunder big man to target in tournaments would be Enes Kanter considering he could see a slight uptick in minutes and is a fantastic fantasy point per minute producer, even in difficult matchups like a meeting with San Antonio.
As reported by: Brett Dawson Other tagged players: Domantas Sabonis Andrew Harrison (ankle) ruled out tonight
Harrison will not play in tonight’s game against the Dallas Mavericks after previously being listed as questionable on the Grizzlies injury report with a right ankle injury. He’ll join Marc Gasol and JaMychal Green as a member of the Grizzlies walking wounded and his absence will likely open up some extra playing time for Troy Daniels and possibly even Wayne Selden, though it’s more likely Tony Allen receives those minutes considering Selden only played the waning moments of Wednesday’s contest. With Marc Gasol and JaMychal Green also unavailable, James Ennis and Brandan Wright will draw the start at power forward and center respectively once again, while Zach Randolph will be relied on to carry a majority of the offensive load in the frontcourt despite coming off the bench. Surprisingly, Mike Conley hasn’t historically seen a bump in usage rate with Gasol off the court this season, but Randolph (32.8%) and Daniels (25.6%) both own a +3.0% usage rate differential in the aforementioned scenario. However, Conley is still worth a look in tournaments considering he will likely see a slight uptick in minutes with Harrison unavailable to absorb some of the backup point guard minutes.
As reported by: Rob Fischer Alexis Ajinca (hip) ruled out tonight
Ajinca will not play in tonight’s game against the Sacramento Kings after previously being listed as questionable on the Pelicans’ injury report with due a hip injury. With Ajinca officially unable to suit up, Donatas Motiejunas will likely step into the backup center role behind both DeMarcus Cousins and Anthony Davis with Omer Asik already sidelined for the remainder of the season. Ajinca does not see significant playing time when both Cousins and Davis are healthy, so Motiejunas is unlikely to see enough minutes to become fantasy relevant on Friday’s slate with Ajinca ruled out.
As reported by: Pelicans PR Reggie Jackson (rest) ruled out tonight, as expected
Jackson has officially been ruled out for tonight’s game against the Milwaukee Bucks. This is the fourth consecutive game he will miss due to “rest”, and Pistons head coach Stan Van Gundy is contemplating whether or not the team will shut Jackson down for the remainder of the season. Ish Smith had recently overtaken the starting point guard role from Jackson anyway and looks to have secured the job for the rest of the regular season regardless of Jackson’s availability. Smith will remain a value option until his price tag across the industry adjusts to his new role considering Beno Udrih is the only other active point guard competing for playing time behind him.
As reported by: Rod Beard
Carmelo Anthony (sore lower back) and Derrick Rose (knee) ruled out for tonight; Lance Thomas (hip) continues to be out
Carmelo Anthony will miss tonight’s game due to a sore lower back. Derrick Rose is dealing with a knee issue and has also been ruled out. Mindaugas Kuzminskas is expected to start in place of Anthony and Ron Baker is expected to start in place of Rose. Baker played 40 minutes against Miami on Wednesday with Rose out and still only scored 15.3 DK points. He’s not an elite option on such a large slate and it’s a better to fade his potential ceiling of 20 fantasy points. Mindaugas Kuzminskas is a strong punt option on FanDuel where his salary is at the minimum. Kuzminskas started for Anthony last week and played over 30 minutes in both contests. He has a slightly higher ceiling than Baker but is at an equally deep position. With Jaylen Brown already confirmed as a starter for the Celtics, Kuzminskas will be the lower owned GPP pivot.
As reported by: @NY Knicks PR Other tagged players: Derrick Rose, Lance Thomas, Mindaugas Kuzminskas, Ron Baker Taj Gibson (illness) still a game-time decision; Domantas Sabonis will start if Gibson is ruled out
Gibson is expected to be a game-time decision for tonight’s game against the San Antonio Spurs after previously being unable to participate in the Thunder’s shootaround on Friday morning. The was is still reportedly hopeful that he will be able to start, but if not, Domantas Sabonis would draw the start at power forward should Gibson be ruled out. However, even when given the opportunity, Sabonis has been an underwhelming daily fantasy option and should be considered if Gibson is unable to suit up. The preferred Thunder big man to target in tournaments would be Enes Kanter considering he could see a slight uptick in minutes if Gibson is unavailable and is a fantastic fantasy point per minute producer, even in difficult matchups like a meeting with San Antonio.
As reported by: Erik Horne Other tagged players: Domantas Sabonis Matthew Dellavedova confirmed as the starter in place of Malcolm Brogdon; Michael Beasley will be limited to 15 minutes
Dellavedova has been confirmed as the starter in place of Malcolm Brogdon. Dellavedova a the minimum priced PG over on FanDuel and only $3.2k on DraftKings. He will need to play about 30 minutes to truly exceed value but his cheap salary allows for maximum flexibility on this slate. He should be able to exceed value regardless and Rashad Vaughn will also see the court tonight. Vaughn is not a viable option but his presence will likely keep Jason Terry to about 22-24 minutes. Terry also lacks elite upside but is much more refined scorer than Vaughn. Michael Beasley will return after missing 17 games but will be limited to about 15 minutes. He’s not a viable option for this slate.
As reported by: Matt Velazquez Other tagged players: Michael Beasley, Rashad Vaughn, Malcolm Brogdon, Jason Terry Kenneth Faried replaces Wilson Chandler in the starting lineup
Faried will be inserted into the Nuggets starting lineup at power forward for tonight’s game against the Charlotte Hornets, which will send Wilson Chandler to the bench to assume a reserve role. Even with the starting nod, it’s difficult to imagine Faried seeing significantly more playing time than he was as a reserve considering he hasn’t played more than 25 minutes in any game since the beginning of February. This is more than likely a temporary lineup change by Nuggets head coach Mike Malone in an effort to counteract the production loss in the second unit with Will Barton already ruled out. In fact, the expected usage bump for Chandler likely makes him a better option than Faried in all formats, as their minute allotments are very unlikely to change all that much.
As reported by: Nick Kosmider Other tagged players: Wilson Chandler Aaron Gordon (sore shoulder) will play against the Celtics tonight
Gordon will play in tonight’s game against the Boston Celtics after previously being considered a game-time decision with a sore shoulder. Gordon will resume his normal role as the Magic’s starting power forward, but with Jeff Green ruled out for the next two games, Mario Hezonja will likely continue seeing additional playing as a reserve four and could really stand to benefit should Gordon suffer a mid-game setback. Gordon hasn’t really flashed significant upside of late, but he has played at least 36 minutes in each of the last two games sans Green, meaning he is still a worthy tournament target in a matchup with a Celtics squad that ranks 19th in DvP against opposing power forwards.
As reported by: Joshua Robbins Robert Covington (knee) and Jahlil Okafor (knee) to miss the remainder of the season
The Sixers have announced that Robert Covington and Jahlil Okafor will miss the remainder of the season. Covington was diagnosed with a slight lateral meniscus tear in his right knee and treatment options are currently being discussed between the team and medical staff. As for Okafor, the news is less surprising that the team has decided to shut him done for the rest of the season with a nagging knee injury. Their absences will permit young players like Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot, Richaun Holmes, and Justin Anderson to continue seeing extended run at their respective positions.
As reported by: Jess Other tagged players: Jahlil Okafor Avery Bradley (illness) ruled out for tonight; Jaylen Brown starting in his place
Bradley will not play in tonight’s game against the Orlando Magic due to an illness despite never appearing on the Celtics’ injury report at any point throughout the day. In his absence, Jaylen Brown will draw the start at shooting guard, while Marcus Smart can also be expected to see some additional run off the bench at both the point guard and shooting guard spots. Outside of Brown and Smart, the clear beneficiary of Bradley’s absence from a usage standpoint is Isaiah Thomas, as he owns a +3.3% usage rate differential (38.8%) with Bradley off the court since the All-Star break. Thomas has seen his price tag come down significantly across the industry in recent weeks, and he is now potentially an elite play in a matchup with a Magic squad that ranks 27th in DvP against opposing point guards.
As reported by: Brian Robb Other tagged players: Jaylen Brown Kent Bazemore (knee) probable for Saturday
Bazemore has officially been listed as probable for tomorrow’s game against the Chicago Bulls due to a knee injury. This is likely just a precaution on the part of Atlanta, as Bazemore was able to finish the game in Wednesday’s win over the Philadelphia 76ers. He now joins Mike Dunleavy on the Hawks’ injury report, who has also been listed as probable with a sore right ankle, while the team has already been confirmed that Paul Millsap and Thabo Sefolosha will remain sidelined for Saturday’s contest. The presumed availability of Bazemore and Dunleavy will add to Atlanta’s depth on the wing, possibly making players like Taurean Prince and Tim Hardaway Jr. less viable at their currently inflated price tags. Bazemore will likely remain on a minute restriction but his presence off the bench does lower the minute floors of the aforementioned Prince and Hardaway Jr.
As reported by: @Hawks