Al Jefferson Daily Fantasy News, Rankings, Projections
Al Jefferson (ankle) available to play tonight
Jefferson hasn't played in the last ten games, he should have very little impact on Indiana's fantasy production tonight. Thaddeus Young and Myles Tuner should continue to push into the mid-30s minutes-wise. They combined for 17 rebounds in Game 1 and could continue that same level of production or improve as Cleveland ranks 21st in rebounding percentage after the break (48.9%). Turner is one of the best shot-blockers in the league (2.1 bpg), but he may have trouble racking them up in this series; Cleveland's shooters were only blocked 3.3 times per game in the second half of the season, which was the second-best rate in the NBA.
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.
Glenn Robinson out for Pacers on Thursday; Al Jefferson is questionable
Robinson hasn't played in nearly two weeks and will remain out for Indiana on Thursday. Jefferson hasn't played since March 28th and is listed as questionable for tomorrow. He was expected to miss two weeks so he's doubtful to suit up. C.J. Miles and Lavoy Allen are the biggest beneficiaries of these two being sidelined.
Rodney Stuckey (left knee strain) officially ruled out for tonight; expected to miss 4-6 weeks
Stuckey is going to miss four to six weeks due to a patellar strain in his left knee. Stuckey was not playing much but was supposed to pick up the minutes left behind by the injured Glenn Robinson III. Stuckey has dealt with a myriad of injuries all season long and rarely did you miss having him in your lineups. The Pacers are running a tighter rotation with Stuckey and GR3 out. Al Jefferson is also out for a few weeks due to an ankle issue, but he was not a viable DFS option as well. Lavoy Allen has seen more of the big man minutes off the bench.
Al Jefferson ruled out for Pacers on Tuesday
The veteran Indiana center is out for at least a few days including their game on Tuesday against Minnesota. He sprained his ankle yesterday and x-rays came back negative but he experienced a lot of swelling leading the team to rule him out for tomorrow. No one benefits enough to become a viable DFS option as Jefferson's role has been limited off the bench.
Al Jefferson (dental work) available to play tonight
Jefferson will be available to play in tonight's game against the San Antonio Spurs after previously being listed as questionable on the Pacers' injury report due to an emergency root canal that had forced him to miss three consecutive games. Jefferson will likely resume his normal backup center role behind Myles Turner and will compete for reserve frontcourt minutes with Lavoy Allen and a combination of Kevin Seraphin and Rakeem Christmas, who is also available to play this evening. However, none of the aforementioned big men are viable daily fantasy options on a massive 11-game slate with a plethora of other value options available.
Al Jefferson (dental work) officially ruled out tonight
Jefferson will not play in tonight's game against the Houston Rockets after previously being downgraded to doubtful from questionable on the Pacers' injury due to pain from an emergency root canal he underwent last week, which has now forced him to miss three consecutive games. Lavoy Allen and Rakeem Christmas have soaked up a majority of the backup frontcourt minutes behind Myles Turner and Thaddeus Young in Jefferson's absence, which has effectively forced Kevin Seraphin out of the Pacers' rotation almost entirely. However, neither Allen or Christmas are viable options on Monday's slate considering both players highly unlikely to see more than 15-20 minutes of action.
Al Jefferson doubtful for Pacers tonight
The Pacers veteran big man had emergency dental surgery last week and is still experiencing pain. He's doubtful to play tonight according to Head Coach Nate McMillan despite being listed as questionable by the team on their injury report. Jefferson hasn't had much of a role in the Pacers rotation, averaging less than 15 minutes per game over his last 10 games, so his loss has minimal DFS impact.
Al Jefferson (dental pain) ruled out Saturday
This will be Jefferson's second straight absence. Lavoy Allen will continue to get minutes at PF and C off the bench, he had a double-double last game with ten points and ten rebounds. It's highly unlikely he can produce something similar again tonight, though, and he's not a great fantasy target. Myles Turner has been playing well, he's definitely in play against a Miami team that ranks 19th in DvP against centers.
Al Jefferson (dental pain) has been ruled out for tonight
Al Jefferson has been ruled out of tonight's contest due to dental pain. Jefferson has not played over 20 minutes this calendar year and does not significantly change the rotation. With Thaddeus Young expected back tonight, Kevin Seraphin will likely be used as the backup C behind Myles Turner. Both Turner and Seraphin are extremely risky options against the Grizzlies tonight.