Injury Report

To stay up-to-date on all of the injury news with up-to-the-minute updates, make sure to check out our LIVE Injury Report!

Cleveland Cavaliers @ Chicago Bulls

Game Time: 9:00 pm ET

DraftKings Lines

CLE -8 (-112), CHI +8 (-108)
Game Total 237.5

Key Storylines

Darius Garland looks rejuvenated: We have spoken about Evan Mobley’s improvements and the deep Cavs’ minutes trends already. It’s time to celebrate their starting PG looking like himself again. Sometimes we just might be missing a piece of the picture. Garland did start last season poorly, but the jaw injury caused him to lose weight and reset without ever truly finding a proper rhythm. It looks like he’s found that rhythm now. The .538 FG% and .950 FT% will cool down, so there is a small sell-high opportunity there, but he isn’t a player I’m necessarily eager to move off of.

Zach LaVine is a conundrum: I don’t think LaVine is as bad a player as some of the perception around him suggests, as he can be an efficient off-ball scorer when fed by good playmakers (remember the heights of pre-Lonzo Ball injury Bulls?). However, injuries already seem to be stacking up and that affects his play, even if he powers through them. Side note, Nikola Vucevic is a notable sell-high candidate with his blazing .585 FG% .880 FT% and .477 3P%. He is a first-rounder right now.

Stream of the Game

Caris LeVert can boost your offensive stats at the expense of some FG% sometimes.

Alternatives: Isaac Okoro, Dean Wade, Patrick Williams, Ayo Dosunmu and Jalen Smith.

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Washington Wizards @ Houston Rockets

Game Time: 9:00 pm ET

DraftKings Lines

WAS +13 (-110), HOU -13 (-110)
Game Total 227.5

Key Storylines

Youth Revolution: Kyshawn George and Bub Carrington are awesome trendy names at the moment,for good reason. While they are not necessarily a good team on paper, I like what the Wizards are trying to do: emphasizing development, pushing the pace, moving the ball and playing hard. George has a limited time to produce until Kyle Kuzma (groin) is back, but he already looks like an interesting do-it-all role player whose shooting percentages should improve as the season goes along. He should pop if Kuzma is traded, or just absent down the stretch.

Carrington is beginning to settle himself and may have some real ROS upside for points, dimes and potential rebounds, steals and threes. So if he is still lying around in your league he should be scooped up. A rookie guard is a synonym for bad FG% though. And yes, I think he’ll be prioritized over Malcolm Brogdon, whenever he’s back. Look out for any potential injuries popping up for Bub though, as that could dampen things.

Crowded and Talented Rotations are the new wave: Jabari Smith Jr. is a distressed fantasy asset, but he isn’t too far off what we expect him to be doing. Would I be extremely attached to him? Not with Tari Eason and company lurking to take minutes at any opportunity. Smith isn’t a guy to toss into the free agent ocean willy-nilly either though. Most of this rotation feels like they can contribute to fantasy on some level but Amen Thompson has begun to stake his claim and the statistical profile (and talent) suggest that you remain patient with him even if a few duds sneak their way in.

Stream of the Game

Kyshawn George for 3s, points, rebounds and a chance of defensive stats – if he is even still available.

Alternatives: Bilal Coulibaly, Bub Carrington – neither should really be available, Corey Kispert, Dillon Brooks, Tari Eason if available

Brooklyn Nets @ New Orleans Pelicans

Game Time: 9:00 pm ET

DraftKings Lines

BKN -1.5 (-110), NOP +1.5 (-110)
Game Total 211

Key Storylines

Claxton heating up?: Nic Claxton has started three games in a row, and looks to be back in top shape following his preseason hamstring injury. I turned Daniel Gafford into Claxton in one of my leagues, a deal I like for the value upside on my end when Dereck Lively II is playing (Gafford is still great in limited minutes), but do I feel great about it for March onwards? Nope. The Nets seemed to throw in the towel last season, and while Clax played a lot in March, it didn’t seem like anyone on the team was really trying anymore. As a prime candidate for the Cooper Flagg sweepstakes, that will likely be a reality again.

I’ll have a Trey, please: It’s a bit of a joke at this point, but, will we ever see a fully healthy Pelicans? Trey Murphy III does benefit from those injuries every year though, and he has a chance to start hot with the team in need of his skills. I said it about Devin Vassell and Immanuel Quickley: be patient if they start slow and buy low if they do. Those two came back in good form though (initially at least), so we will see with Murphy, but the same notes apply. Now, will it be Brandon Boston Jr. or Jeremiah Robinson-Earl to lose out first when Murphy is ready for 30-plus minutes? I would say it’s JRE to lose out there, as Boston’s offense may be needed more until CJ McCollum and (continue list here) are back. Although, Boston could just be the punch off the bench. Of course, it does mean fewer shots for Boston with Murphy back (right?) even if his minutes aren’t reduced significantly.

Stream of the Game

Jose Alvarado should not be available, but if he is, proceed to your wire and correct that.

Alternatives: Brandon Boston Jr., Dorian Finney-Smith, Ben Simmons (shudders), Ziaire Williams, Noah Clowney, Jalen Wilson, Javonte Green, Daniel Theis, Yves Missi, Jeremiah Robinson-Earl

L.A. Clippers @ Oklahoma City Thunder

Game Time: 9:00 pm ET

DraftKings Lines

LAC +7 (-115), OKC -7 (-105)
Game Total 218.5

Key Storylines

Norman Powell-Ivica Zubac-James Harden: There isn’t really anything new to say here. The trio have all been delivering nice numbers. Powell looks like a real ROS guy, but he is also a sell-high averaging 25.5 points, 4.1 triples and a sweet .515 FG% for second-round value at the moment. How high you can sell depends on your league, but even if we do see a Kawhi Leonard appearance, Powell may have a top 70-to-90 floor in 9-cat. Honestly, that might even be a conservative estimate on my part.

OKC continues to ascend: I haven’t watched as much of the Thunder as I want to so far, but a simple “damn, they’re so good” feels fitting. The roulette at shooting guard is a bit unfortunate for fantasy, but I get the reasoning as Mark Daigneault has so many good options to sift through for specific matchups. Cason Wallace, Aaron Wiggins and Isaiah Joe are all doing their thing regardless though, and Alex Caruso has entered the chat as well.

Update: So, Chet Holmgren broke his hip. They don’t have a true center left unless you count Alex Reese. They went ultra-small with Isaiah Joe starting the second half in Holmgren’s place last night, but that’s vs. the Warriors. Ousmane Dieng (probably not) and Dillon Jones could fulfill some small-ball duties. The aforementioned roulette guys should all get a short-term boost as they can also feature in small lineups, at least until a center is signed or one returns. Jaylin Williams re-aggravated his hamstring recently, unfortunately.

Isaiah Hartenstein’s value should go through the roof when he returns with Holmgren out at least 8-to-10 weeks from here.

Stream of the Game

Cason Wallace is the go-to for steals, 3s and potential other good stuff.

Alternatives: Kris Dunn, Derrick Jones Jr., Kevin Porter Jr., Amir Coffey, Terance Mann, Nicolas Batum, Alex Caruso, Luguentz Dort, Isaiah Joe and Aaron Wiggins.

20-plus team leagues can also consider Ajay Mitchell, Ousmane Dieng and Dillon Jones.

Sacramento Kings @ San Antonio Spurs

Game Time: 9:00 pm ET

DraftKings Lines

SAC -1 (-110), SAS +1 (-110)
Game Total 221

Key Storylines

De’Aaron Fox: Fox is dealing with a finger injury but it doesn’t seem worrisome at the moment. He can play through it. More notable is his 4.6 APG (a drop-off) and his .865 FT% (a major improvement), excluding whatever he did on Sunday night. I speculated about the FT% in either the Kings Season Wrap or the Quarterly Ranks Analysis Draft Guide article (maybe both?). He shot well from the line in the final month and a half of last season and if he worked on his 3-point shot, you’d assume there is some improvement in overall touch to follow at the line. Maybe he drops down to 80.0 to 82.0% over time, but that’s a positive still and we’d take it. As for the assists, there could be some positive regression as well but a loss in playmaking opportunity (or scoring, at least one of the two) was always likely with the addition of DeMar DeRozan.

Update: Malik Monk injured his ankle on Sunday night. Opening a path for Kevin Huerter and Keon Ellis to both return value a little more consistently, in the short term at least. We don’t have any timelines yet.

Kinship Between Talent: Stephon Castle just had the best game of his young career with 23 points. Devin Vassell looked good in his return. We also heard some nice stuff about Castle and Vassell encouraging each other throughout the game. We like that. For fantasy, I want to see who Vassell hurts between Castle (who may not be consistent enough for standard formats yet anyway), Keldon Johnson and Julian Champagnie. I wasn’t big on Johnson anyway, so he likely takes another step back. Castle might be the one to eventually move back to the bench though, again capping some of his early fantasy appeal. Castle still has some questions to answer as an offensive hub, but the early flashes are positives for dynasty managers. Tre Jones should also be back sometime soon, so redraft value for Castle is still shaky in the long run this season. Oh yeah, that Victor Wembanyama is a decent guy. Expect him to grow into the season once again, like he did as a rookie. He is already doing so.

Stream of the Game

Keon Ellis for 3-and-D stats and Julian Champagnie for the same with potential for more.

Alternatives: Kevin Huerter, Trey Lyles, Keldon Johnson, Harrison Barnes, Zach Collins and maybe Malaki Branham in very deep formats if he is cleared to play.