DFS Alerts
Matthew Dellavedova and Kevin Love probable for Thursday
Matthew Dellavedova had missed five games prior to the All-Star break with a hamstring injury. With the extended time off, Dellavedova has healed enough to be on the active roster for Thursday. The Cavs host the Bulls on TNT, making Dellavedova a solid punt option on a three-game slate. Kevin Love (shoulder) played before the break and should be in action on Thursday as well. Love’s name has been tossed around the rumor mill quite a bit today, and if he gets traded he will have to be left off DFS rosters.
As reported by: Dave McMenamin Other tagged players: Kevin Love
Courtney Lee to start on Friday with the Hornets
Hornets Coach Steve Clifford has announced that Courtney Lee will be starting on Friday against the Bucks. Lee was acquired by the Hornets in a three-team deal with the Grizzlies and the Heat. Salaries have yet to be released but Lee was $3,900 on DK prior to the All-Star break. He will likely be an under-owned punt option with nice upside on Friday.
As reported by: Rick Bonnell Al Jefferson hopeful to play on Friday
Per Steve Clifford, Jefferson’s knee looked as good as it has all season in today’s scrimmage, and he’s expected to return to the lineup this weekend. His first chance to return will come on Friday (Charlotte also plays Sunday) against the Bucks, a match-up that would set up well for Jefferson if he’s able to return and play a healthy allotment of minutes. It’s still likely that Jefferson returns on a minutes limit, so we’ll provide an update if we get any kind of target minute total. Cody Zeller isn’t likely to see his playing time rise above 30 minutes when Jefferson is re-acclimated, and it’s likely that the playing time of Marvin Williams and Spencer Hawes also drops.
As reported by: @Hornets Chris Bosh ruled out for Friday, likely to miss significant time
Chris Bosh is dealing with issues resulting from blood clots and has officially been ruled out for Friday. He’s likely to miss significant time beyond Friday, and the possibility that this could be career-ending is there. Dwyane Wade’s usage rate will see a big bump with Bosh out of the lineup, making him a core play in any format against Atlanta. Hassan Whiteside will likely move back into the starting lineup and he’s an excellent upside play against the team with the worst rebounding differential in the NBA. Amar’e Stoudemire is also a fine GPP punt play with Bosh out.
As reported by: Chris Vivlamore on Twitter Other tagged players: Dwyane Wade, Hassan Whiteside, Amare Stoudemire
Anthony Tolliver to start at least the next 3 games ahead of Tobias Harris
Tolliver is expected to start at least the next three games at PF. This means Tobias Harris will be starting his Pistons career on the bench, taking him out of DFS consideration. Tolliver is also not in play despite getting the starting nod, as he’s not likely to see typical starters minutes with Harris and the Pistons wings healthy. He’d need multiple injuries to the front-court in order to have any real DFS viability.
As reported by: Dave Pemberton Kentavious Caldwell-Pope probable for Friday
Kentavious Caldwell-Pope is fully expected to play on Friday against the Wizards. He’s likely to step back into his normal role (36-38 minutes) even with Stanley Johnson producing admirably in his absence, and he’ll be a nice contrarian GPP target tomorrow against a Wizards squad that has seriously struggled at defending the perimeter. Johnson’s minutes should drop back into the high-20s tomorrow night, making him a recommended fade.
As reported by: Dave Pemberton Other tagged players: Stanley Johnson Rodney Stuckey out for at least three games
Stuckey hasn’t played in over a month, so this doesn’t change much in terms of the recent Pacers rotation. A combination of C.J. Miles, Glenn Robinson III and Joseph Young will eat up minutes behind the starters while Stuckey is out of action. Frank Vogel has already ruled Stuckey out for the next three games, but he noted the possibility that he misses some time beyond that, and we’d guess that’s more than likely at this point.
As reported by: Pat Boylan Tobias Harris expected to debut for Pistons on Friday
Harris is likely to make his Pistons debut on Friday against the Wizards. It’s still a little unclear what Harris’ role here due to Stanley Johnson’s emergence and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope’s return from an injury, but he’s likely to get a long look at the PF spot and will be an upgrade over Ersan Ilyasova both in real life and in DFS terms. He’s clearly nothing more than a dart-throw GPP play on Friday against a Wizards team that has been stout against opposing 4s, and his presence also eats into the value of Marcus Morris and Stanley Johnson.
As reported by: Keith Langlois Other tagged players: Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Stanley Johnson, Marcus Morris Tiago Splitter out for remainder of season, will have surgery
This was expected and Splitter announced today he will be out for approximately eight months after he undergoes surgery for his injured hip. This isn’t too relevant in terms of DFS but it will mean continues additional minutes (not many though) for the likes of Mike Muscala and Mike Scott.
As reported by: Chris Vivlamore on Twitter
Pelicans starters are Cole, Gee, Cunningham, Davis, Asik
Alonzo Gee will be starting in place of Bryce Dejean-Jones tonight. Gee has not provided much DFS value even when he starts, yet is worth a roster spot today. With the news coming so close to when lineups lock, Gee will be an under-owned and elite punt option. With only two games being played Gee can be used in tournaments and cash games.
As reported by: Jim Eichenhofer Other tagged players: Norris Cole, Anthony Davis, Dante Cunningham, Omer Asik Kris Humphries (illness) out on Thursday
Kris Humphries has been ruled out due to an illness for tonight’s game against the Bucks. Humphries was not much of a DFS option after playing 4 minutes on Tuesday. Nene and Drew Gooden may see a few extra minutes in his absence. Gooden and Nene are tournament only options tonight.
As reported by: Washington Wizards Other tagged players: Nene Hilario, Drew Gooden Jrue Holiday is a good option with his increased role
Jrue Holiday will look to take over a bigger role going forward with Tyreke Evans out for the foreseeable future. Tonight he gets a matchup with the Thunder in which he will likely see the floor for around 30 minutes again off of the bench. Because he does come off of the bench, Holiday sometimes gets ignored because of his price tag, but he is extremely productive when he is on the court. He averages just under 1.2 DK points per minute when he is on the court and his usage rate is 28.0, slightly below only Anthony Davis at 29.1 on the Pelicans. It also helps that Bryce Dejean-Jones will also be out tonight because of contractual issues and hasn’t yet signed another contract (his ten-day contracts have expired but it is reported he will be playing after the All-Star Break). Holiday is in a great spot to reach value again tonight in a fast-paced game, and is a relatively safe option at PG tonight.
Giannis Antetokuonmpo is a solid option vs. Wizards’ wing defense
It has been fairly well documented that the Wizards really struggle at guarding opposing wing players. They are 27th and 29th respectively on the season vs. SGs and SFs and they have given up some big performances to the likes of Carmelo Anthony and Nicolas Batum over the past week. John Henson has been ruled out of tonight’s contest yet again, and Giannis seems to get the biggest bump when he is out, as he has been playing minutes in the upper thirties since Henson has been sidelined. Giannis is so versatile that he can literally play almost every position on the court, and that has led to a lot of playing time for him lately. He gets a great matchup tonight with Washington on a short slate, and he is a significantly discounted pivot away from Durant who will likely have an extremely high ownership on this short slate. Go ahead and fire Giannis up in your cash games or GPPs.
Gary Neal (leg) out on Thursday
Gary Neal will miss his second consecutive game with a leg injury tonight. Garrett Temple was able to pick up the extra minutes off the bench in the last game and should see about 28-32 minutes again tonight. Temple was not able to make much of a DFS impact this past Tuesday, so he is a low-end punt option against the Bucks.
As reported by: Washington Wizards Other tagged players: Garrett Temple Michael Kidd-Gilchrist likely out for the season with a shoulder injury
Michael Kidd-Gilchrist has been diagnosed with a torn labrum which will likely require surgery. This is the same shoulder he injured in October, which caused him to miss the first 46 games of the season. P.J. Hairston will likely start again in his place but has played this season as a low-end DFS option. Expect Nicolas Batum to really pick up his play after the All-Star break, he’s averaged 46.37 FPs in his last four games.
As reported by: Spencer Percy Other tagged players: P.J. Hairston, Nicolas Batum