DFS Alerts
Tyreke Evans (ankle), Arron Afflalo (personal), and Ben McLemore (personal) ruled out tonight
Evans, Afflalo, and McLemore all will not play in tonight’s game against the San Antonio Spurs due to various ailments and personal reasons that have now forced each of them to miss two consecutive games. Garrett Temple will receive the starting nod at small forward in his place once again, while Langston Galloway will be relied upon to absorb significant minutes off the bench given Sacramento’s sudden lack of depth at the wing positions. This is just the second time that the Kings have been without each of the aforementioned players in the same game this season, so the sample size obviously isn’t huge, but Skal Labissiere and Georgios Papagiannis easily lead the Kings with at least a +5.2% usage rate differential in the above scenario since the All-Star break. They both are obviously worth a look in tournaments, but the Kings minute allocations have been relatively inconsistent for anyone not named Willie Cauley-Stein and Buddy Hield, so it is extremely difficult to pinpoint which of Labissiere or Papagiannis will benefit from extra playing time this evening.
As reported by: Vince Miracle Other tagged players: Arron Afflalo, Ben McLemore
Josh Richardson will start for Dion Waiters (ankle) tonight
Dion Waiters was previously ruled out in advance of tonight’s game against the Portland Trail Blazers and still remains without a timetable for his return after re-spraining the same ankle that recently forced him to miss three consecutive games. The Heat have classified Waiters as out indefinitely going forward. In his absence, Josh Richardson will be inserted into the Heat starting lineup at shooting guard, while Tyler Johnson and Wayne Ellington will likely pick up some extra playing time off the bench. Johnson, James Johnson, and Goran Dragic all have seen a minimum +2.0% usage rate differential with Waiters off the court since the All-Star break, which should put them all firmly in play for Sunday’s slate in a plus matchup with Portland.
As reported by: Official Twitter Account of the Miami Heat DeMarcus Cousins (knee, ribs) will start tonight
Cousins will play and start in tonight’s game against the Minnesota Timberwolves after previously being listed as questionable on the Pelicans’ injury report with a sore left knee and right rib contusion that forced him to miss one game. His return to the starting lineup will send Dante Cunningham back to the bench to resume his normal reserve role. Anthony Davis still has a significantly higher price tag than Cousins across the industry, so Cousins may actually be the preferred target of the two despite returning from an injury stint. It was expected that either E’Twaun Moore or Jordan Crawford would draw the start at the shooting guard spot, but Pelicans head coach Alvin Gentry apparently prefers the two playing with the second unit most of the time because Tim Frazier will receive the starting nod alongside Jrue Holiday in the backcourt. Frazier certainly possesses more upside for his price point than both Moore and Crawford, but will likely need to see significantly more than the 23 minutes he played off the bench in the Pelicans previous game to realistically crush value in the starting unit that has Davis, Cousins, and Holiday soaking up most of the usage.
As reported by: Official Twitter Account of the New Orleans Pelicans Lavoy Allen (sore left knee) available to play tonight
Allen is officially available to play in tonight’s game against the Toronto Raptors after previously being listed as questionable on the Pacers’ injury report with a sore left knee that had forced him to miss two consecutive games. His return to the rotation will likely cut into Rakeem Christmas’ reserve minutes with the second unit and should reduce Thaddeus Young’s playing time back to normal, opposed to minutes consistently in the upper-30s. Young is still clearly battling through a wrist injury given his recent lull production despite an uptick in minutes, so he can easily be avoided on Sunday’s slate with his playing time expected to decrease.
As reported by: Nate Taylor Tim Frazier will start alongside Jrue Holiday in Pelicans backcourt tonight
Frazier will be inserted into the Pelicans starting lineup for tonight’s game against the Minnesota Timberwolves in place of the recently released Wayne Selden, who had started several games consecutively during his brief New Orleans tenure. It was expected that either E’Twaun Moore or Jordan Crawford would draw the start at the shooting guard spot, but Pelicans head coach Alvin Gentry apparently prefers the two playing with the second unit most of the time. Frazier certainly possesses more upside for his price point than both Moore and Crawford, but will likely need to see significantly more than the 23 minutes he played off the bench in the Pelicans previous game to realistically crush value with the starting unit that has Anthony Davis, DeMarcus Cousins, and Jrue Holiday soaking up most of the usage.
As reported by: Justin Verrier Ronnie Price (leg) officially ruled out today; Derrick Jones Jr. will start for Devin Booker (ankle)
Price will not play in today’s game against the Detroit Pistons after previously being listed as doubtful on the Suns’ injury report with a left leg contusion. He will join Devin Booker and Leandro Barbosa among the Suns’ recent players to be ruled out and leaves the Suns with just eight active players for today’s contest. The Suns have already shut down Eric Bledsoe and Brandon Knight for the season, so with Booker and Price unable to suit up, Phoenix will be extremely thin in the backcourt this afternoon. Tyler Ulis has played at least 39 minutes in each of the Suns last two games, so he is essentially a must play in all formats. He also draws a great individual matchup with Reggie Jackson and the Pistons’ backcourt defense. Recently signed Jarell Eddie is also in line for significant minutes with Booker and Price officially ruled out, but he can certainly be classified as a tournament-only option to pivot away from the potentially massive ownership on Ulis.
As reported by: Official Twitter Account of the Phoenix Suns Other tagged players: Derrick Jones Jr. Devin Booker (right ankle) ruled out today
Booker will not play in today’s game against the Detroit Pistons after previously being downgraded to questionable on the Suns’ injury report with a right ankle injury. He will join Leandro Barbosa among the Suns’ recent players to be ruled out, while Ronnie price still remains doubtful but is expected to be a game-time decision. The Suns have already shut down Eric Bledsoe and Brandon Knight for the season, so with Booker and possibly Price unable to suit up, Phoenix will be extremely thin in the backcourt for today’s contest. Tyler Ulis has played at least 39 minutes in each of the Suns last two games, so he is essentially a must play in all formats regardless of Booker and Price’s availability. He also draws a great individual matchup with Reggie Jackson and the Pistons’ backcourt defense. Recently signed Jarell Eddie would also be in line for significant minutes if Price is ruled out, but he can certainly be classified as a tournament option to pivot away from the potentially massive ownership on Ulis.
As reported by: Keith Langlois Manu Ginobili (rest) ruled out tonight; Dejounte Murray (groin) remains out
Ginobili will be rested and won’t play in tonight’s game against the Sacramento Kings, as the Spurs are on the second leg of a back-to-back. Ginobili also will reportedly be the only Spurs player to be rested. Additionally, Dejounte Murray will miss his fifth consecutive game with left groin tightness. This game is projected to be a blowout, so there could some extra playing time available for Jonathon Simmons and Kyle Anderson on the wings, which puts them in play as longshot tournament options on the main slate given Ginobili and Murray’s absence from the rotation.
As reported by: Official Twitter Account of the San Antonio Spurs Other tagged players: Dejounte Murray Danilo Gallinari (knee) and Wilson Chandler (groin) questionable for Monday; Darrell Arthur (knee) remains out
Gallinari and Chandler have both been officially listed as questionable for tomorrow’s game against the Houston Rockets due to their respective ailments that have kept them each sidelined for the past two games. Additionally, Darrell Arthur will remain out for the second consecutive game with a sore left knee that also forced him to miss Saturday’s contest. If both Gallinari and Chandler are unable to suit up, Juancho Hernangomez and Mason Plumlee will remain in the Nuggets starting lineup at small forward and power forward respectively. Given the expected game environment in this matchup, the status of Gallinari and Chandler will be a major piece of news to follow as we move on to Monday’s slate.
As reported by: Harrison Wind Other tagged players: Wilson Chandler, Darrell Arthur Devin Booker (ankle) questionable today; Ronnie Price (leg) doubtful; Leandro Barbosa (illness) remains out
Booker has officially been downgraded to questionable for today’s game against the Detroit Pistons due to an ankle injury, while Ronnie Price is officially doubtful with a leg contusion and Leandro Barbosa will miss his second consecutive game due to an illness. The Suns have already shut down Eric Bledsoe and Brandon Knight for the season, so if both Booker and Price are unable to suit up, Phoenix will be extremely thin in the backcourt for tonight’s contest. Tyler Ulis has played at least 39 minutes in each of the Suns last two games, so he is essentially a must play in all formats regardless of Booker and Price’s availability. He also draws a great individual matchup with Reggie Jackson and the Pistons’ backcourt defense.
As reported by: Doug Haller Other tagged players: Ronnie Price, Leandro Barbosa Justin Anderson (illness) ruled out today
Anderson will not play in today’s game against the Boston Celtics due to an illness despite never appearing on the Sixers’ injury report at any point over the weekend. In his absence, expect Gerald Henderson and Nik Stauskas to absorb a majority of the reserve wing minutes vacated by Anderson, while Shawn Long could also pick up some additional playing time at power forward with the second unit. However, none of the aforementioned reserve players are particularly viable options on the early slate, and exposure to the Sixers should be focused to Dario Saric, Robert Covington, Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot, and possibly even Richaun Holmes off the bench.
As reported by: Bob Cooney Trevor Booker (sore leg) available to play today
Booker will officially be available to play off the bench in today’s game against the Dallas Mavericks, as expected, after being left off the Nets’ latest injury report with a sore leg that had forced him to miss two consecutive games. Additionally, the Nets will also still be without both Sean Kilpatrick and Joe Harris, leaving them short handed on the wing. The Nets limit the minutes of their young players to such an extent that’s it difficult to foresee Caris Levert playing significantly more minutes in Sunday’s contest, as he has yet to see more than 25 minutes in either game both Kilpatrick and Harris have been sidelined, but he is still set up to be a viable tournament option, despite the pace down matchup with this Dallas squad. A majority of Kilpatrick’s minutes have been directly absorbed by K.J. McDaniels, who has now entered the Nets rotation with their lack of depth on the wing. However, McDaniels will not be a viable option on the early slate since he hasn’t played more than 18 minutes in either game Kilpatrick missed this past week.
As reported by: Brian Lewis Sam Dekker (back spasms) available to play tonight
Dekker will officially be available to play in tonight’s game against the Denver Nuggets after previously being classified as a game-time decision by Rockets head coach Mike Malone following Friday’s loss to the New Orleans Pelicans. He has really seen his role in the rotation diminished ever since Lou Williams was acquired at the trade deadline from the Los Angeles Lakers, so he still isn’t on the radar for daily fantasy barring an injury to one of the Houston starters or major rotation pieces. Additionally, Nene will available off the bench after being rested yesterday, which just further clogs up the frontcourt rotation.
As reported by: Harrison Wind Cavs will start Williams, Smith, Shumpert, Frye, Thompson tonight; Derrick Williams (quad) available off the bench
James, Irving, and Love will all be rested and won’t play in tonight’s game against the Los Angeles Clippers despite never appearing on the Cavaliers’ injury report at any point throughout the day. Unfortunately for those that rostered any member of the big three on the main slate, this news first broke just minutes after lock. This Cavaliers will roll with a starting lineup of Deron Williams, J.R. Smith, Iman Shumpert, Channing Frye, and Tristan Thompson, which obviously means that Shumpert will, in fact, play after previously being considered questionable. Additionally, Derrick Williams will be available to play off the bench after missing one game with a quad contusion. Any time the big three sit for rest, a case can be made for rostering any member of the newly assembled starting five, and tonight is no different, though the last time LeBron, Irving, and Love sat out, no player on Cleveland so more than 28 minutes of action.
As reported by: Jason Lloyd Other tagged players: J.R. Smith, Channing Frye, Derrick Williams Nikola Mirotic will start ahead of Bobby Portis tonight
Mirotic will be inserted into the Bulls starting lineup for tonight’s game against the Utah Jazz, which will send Bobby Portis back to the bench to resume a reserve role. Mirotic has been playing fantastic over the past three games and has consistently been ahead of Portis in terms of minutes, even off the bench, so the news of him starting does very little to alter either forwards’ projected fantasy value on Saturday’s slate. The matchup with Utah is a bad one on paper for Mirotic, but the Jazz have been known to occasionally struggle to defend power forwards that can stretch the floor, which makes Mirotic an even more intriguing tournament option now that he’s been given the starting nod.
As reported by: Nick Friedell