Oklahoma City Thunder's Russell Westbrook dribbles the ball during the first half of an NBA basketball game against the Los Angeles Lakers, Wednesday, Jan. 3, 2018, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)
As we approach the main slate, let's dive into some injury news and see if we can't make heads or tails of this funky four game slate the league has given us this evening. There were little to no question marks on the early set, while tonight's slate gives us plenty to pick through. Don't forget to take a look at the top plays at each position here.
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Westbrook and Anthony each missed yesterday's practice, each with an ankle sprain, and neither will take the court tonight as the Thunder host Memphis. The pair missed Thursday's game against the Lakers, and Raymond Felton, Jerami Grant, and Patrick Patterson all benefitted, though the only one from that trio I would even entertain the thought of running tonight is Felton. The big draw is in Paul George who sees his usage jump 12.5% with Melo and Westbrook off the court per NBAWowy.com.
Barea will rest while Dirk has an ankle injury, and Matthews deals with lower back soreness. Dennis Smith and Yogi Ferrel should pick up a large bulk of the back court minutes for the Mavs while Dwight Powell and Sarah Mejri will benefit from Dirks absence.
This will be Parsons 20th game missed in a row, so no surprises here. With Seldon dealing with knee soreness, and Andrew Harrison also questionable, the Memphis back court could be mighty thin tonight, leading to added time for Mario Chalmers, and Ben McLemore.
Ariza has been out since the end of January, and his missed six straight games with a hamstring injury. While he is listed as questionable for tonight's contest, it seems the Rockets are leaning towards hooding him out until after the break as he has no clear time table for return.
Rubio left Friday night's game early with hip soreness after 20 minutes and is currently sitting with a questionable designation for tonight. If he's unable to go Donovan Mitchell will run time at the point with Alec Burkes and Raul Neto seeing additional run.
Opponent - DAL
Proj Pts FD - 54.42 DK - 56.93
With Russell Westbrook likely on the shelf tonight, that leaves us with James Harden (and Jimmy Butler on FanDuel, but I'm not touching that) as the only $10K+ play on the docket for tonight. With a ton of value seeming to pop up from the various injuries we just went through, it should be quite easy to spring to the beard as an anchor in our lineups tonight. Dallas plays the fourth slowest game in basketball, but pace is a tough factor to look at this evening as each game features a sluggish team, es evidenced by this games 213 O/U being the highest on the night. Dallas also plays the third worst defense at the position over their last five games, allowing nearly 20 more FPPG than their season average in that span, and es we have already established, they will be mighty thin in the back court tonight.
Opponent - OKC
Proj Pts FD - 35.12 DK - 39.39
The Grizzlies put Tyreke Evans on the shelf in the weeks leading up to the trade deadline as they tried shopping him around. The deadline has passed and 'Reke is still in Memphis, so it seems the Grizzlies are ready to set him back in action tonight as they head into Oklahoma City. Since he last played, Evans' price has dropped about $500 across the industry, and is over a thousand less than it was at it's peak, which makes this a prime time to buy in. Add to the mix a matchup against a Thunder team that will be without Russell Westbrook and Carmelo Anthony, and an already good matchup looks even more appealing.
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