DFS Alerts
Giannis Antetokounmpo (illness) ruled out today
Antetokounmpo will not play in today’s game against the Washington Wizards due to an illness. The Bucks have yet to confirm who will replace him in the starting lineup, but Mirza Teletovic or Michael Beasley would be the likeliest candidates with Matthew Dellavedova still limited to a minutes restriction of 20 minutes as he works his way back from injury. Additionally, Malcolm Brogdon will certainly be pegged with more of the distribution and ball handling responsibilities in Antetokounmpo’s absence. No members of the Bucks’ starting unit see a particularly substantial usage spike with Antetokounmpo off the floor, but Jabari Parker does lead the team with a 27.3% usage rate while averaging 1.09 FanDuel and 1.15 DraftKings points per minute.
As reported by: Official Twitter Account of the Milwaukee Bucks
Chandler Parsons (illness) questionable tonight
Parsons is questionable to play in tonight’s game against the Utah Jazz due to an illness. Parsons continues to be on a strict minutes restriction and has yet to see more than 16 minutes in any game since returning from injury, so if he is unable to give it a go, there isn’t necessarily a ton of extra playing time to go around. James Ennis would likely draw the start at small forward, just as he’s already done several times when Parsons has been inactive previously. Ennis is worth consideration if he draws the start but isn’t a particularly intriguing option in the lowest total and lowest projected pace game of the night.
As reported by: Tim MacMahon T.J. McConnell will start ahead of Sergio Rodriguez today
Rodriguez will be available to play off the bench in today’s game against the Brooklyn Nets after previously being listed as questionable on the Sixers injury report with a sprained left ankle that had forced him to miss the last three games. T.J. McConnell will remain in the starting line up at point guard on Sunday, but it will be interesting to see if this might be a permanent move by Sixers head coach Brett Brown. With Rodriguez active, McConnell is no longer the only point guard on the Sixers roster and his minutes should be expected to take a hit, although Brown hinted at the possibility of McConnell still seeing starters’ minutes. McConnell is still in play for the all day slates but is no longer a lock for cash games given his price increase and the the return of Rodriguez to the rotation.
As reported by: Keith Pompey Other tagged players: Sergio Rodriguez Sergio Rodriguez (ankle) available to play today
Rodriguez will be available to play off the bench in today’s game against the Brooklyn Nets after previously being listed as questionable on the Sixers injury report with a sprained left ankle that had forced him to miss the last three games. T.J. McConnell will remain in the starting line up at point guard on Sunday, but it will be interesting to see if this might be a permanent move by Sixers head coach Brett Brown. With Rodriguez active, McConnell is no longer the only point guard on the Sixers roster and his minutes should be expected to take a hit, although Brown hinted at the possibility of McConnell still seeing starters’ minutes. McConnell is still in play for the all day slates but is no longer a lock for cash games given his price increase and the the return of Rodriguez to the rotation.
As reported by: Jessica Camerato Other tagged players: T.J. McConnell Andrew Bogut replaces Dorian Finney-Smith in starting lineup tonight
Bogut will draw the start at center for tonight’s game against the Atlanta Hawks, sliding Dirk Nowitzki and Harrison Barnes back over to their natural power and small forward positions, respectively. This lineup change also sends Dorian Finney-Smith back to the bench to resume a reserve role. It remains to be seen whether this is purely a matchup-based starting lineup to combat Dwight Howard on the both ends of the court or if it’s a starting unit that we should expect moving forward. Despite the starting nod, Bogut will still likely be limited to around 20 minutes and is not a viable option in a difficult matchup with Howard.
As reported by: Bobby Karalla Other tagged players: Dorian Finney-Smith Gary Harris (groin) scratched from Nuggets lineup tonight
Harris has been scratched from the Nuggets lineup well after lineup lock for tonight’s game against the Oklahoma City Thunder due to a groin issue. For what it’s worth, Will Barton will draw the start at shooting guard in his absence. With Nikola Jokic also ruled out, Jusuf Nurkic will draw the start at center in and instantly becomes one of the better value options on the entire slate despite the less than ideal individual matchup with Steven Adams. However, Nurkic is now the only active true center on the roster and could push the 30-minute plateau in a matchup with a Thunder team that prefers to play with at least one big on the floor at nearly all times.
As reported by: Chris Dempsey Shabazz Muhammad (illness) will play tonight
Muhammad will play in tonight’s game against the Utah Jazz after previously being listed as questionable on the Timberwolves’ injury report due to an illness that forced him to miss one game. In Muhammad’s brief absence, Brandon Rush surprisingly saw more minutes than Nemanja Bjelica but will likely have his role reduced to normal now that Minnesota has all of their key rotation players available. Unfortunately, none of the aforementioned players are in play on an 8-game slate given how many minutes Timberwolves head coach Tom Thibodeau prefers to give his starters.
As reported by: Timberwolves PR Cameron Payne (foot) will be limited to approximately 20 minutes tonight
Payne was recalled from the Thunder’s D-League affiliate, the Oklahoma City Blue, earlier in the day for tonight’s game against the Denver Nuggets after undergoing foot surgery in the offseason. Payne was also officially activated by the Thunder and will be available to play approximately 20 minutes off the bench this evening. Payne did average 20 minutes per game in his two-game stint in the NBA Development League for Oklahoma City so it makes sense for the Thunder to use the 20-minute benchmark as a starting point for Payne’s comeback from injury. His return to the rotation will likely significantly reduce the roles of Semaj Christon and Alex Brines in the second unit.
As reported by: Royce Young Cody Zeller (concussion) will play tonight
Analysis coming soon.
As reported by: Charlotte Hornets PR Patrick Patterson (knee) ruled out tonight
Patterson will not play in tonight’s game against the Chicago Bulls after previously being listed as questionable on the Raptors’ injury report with a strained left knee that has now forced him to miss four consecutive games. Lucas Nogueira drew the start at power forward Thursday and played 25 minutes in the win over the Utah Jazz. He is certainly in play this evening against the front court duo of Taj Gibson and Robin Lopez and is expected to draw the start once again. Theoretically, Jonas Valanciunas, who played at least 30 minutes in two of the last three contests, should see similar run against a Bulls squad that prefers to play big, but his minutes and production are still too volatile to be confidently recommended as anything other than a tournament option along with Nogueira.
As reported by: RaptorsMR Jusuf Nurkic confirmed as starter for Nikola Jokic (illness) tonight
Jokic will not play in tonight’s game against the Oklahoma City Thunder after previously being listed as questionable on the Nuggets’ injury report with an illness. Jusuf Nurkic will draw the start at center in his absence and becomes one of the better value options on the entire slate despite the less than ideal individual matchup with Steven Adams. However, Nurkic is the only active true center on the roster and could push the 30-minute plateau in a matchup with a Thunder team that prefers to play with at least one big on the floor at nearly all times.
As reported by: Chris Dempsey Other tagged players: Nikola Jokic Donatas Motiejunas will play and make Pelicans debut tonight
Motiejunas will make his Pelicans debut in tonight’s game against the Boston Celtics and, according to Pelicans’ head coach Alvin Gentry, he will be limited to “a few six-minute stretches” for Saturday’s contest. Still, Motiejunas’ presence in the rotation is enough to lower the minute floors of Dante Cunningham and Terrence Jones, essentially eliminating the trio of forwards from consideration entirely.
As reported by: Michael Pina Nikola Jokic (illness) ruled out tonight
Jokic will not play in tonight’s game against the Oklahoma City Thunder after previously being listed as questionable on the Nuggets’ injury report with an illness. Jusuf Nurkic will draw the start at center in his absence and becomes one of the better value options on the entire slate despite the less than ideal individual matchup with Steven Adams. However, Nurkic is the only active true center on the roster and could push the 30-minute plateau in a matchup with a Thunder team that prefers to play with at least one big on the floor at nearly all times.
As reported by: T.J. McBride Avery Bradley (illness) ruled out tonight; Marcus Smart will start in his place
Bradley will not play in tonight’s game against the New Orleans Pelicans due to a strained Achilles. In his absence, Marcus Smart will draw the start at shooting guard and immediately becomes a viable punt option across the industry. Jaylen Brown and Terry Rozier will likely be the largest beneficiaries in terms of extra playing time, but Isaiah Thomas remains the preferred Celtic guard to target in all formats. According to our CourtIQ tool, Thomas has a 3.9% usage rate differential (38.9%) with Bradley off the court this season. Clearly, with Bradley unavailable, Thomas is just further cemented as an elite option in an exploitable matchup with the Pelicans’ back court defense.
As reported by: Sean Grande Other tagged players: Marcus Smart Pistons-Blazers officially postponed, game will be moved to Sunday
The NBA has officially postponed tonight’s Piston-Blazers game due to inclement weather, as significant snow and ice is expected in the Portland area. The game will be moved to Sunday at 8:00 pm EST.
As reported by: Keith Langlois Other tagged players: Andre Drummond