In the midst of fantasy basketball championship week, owners may need to make a few adjustments based on recent injury news.
Surprise, surprise: Injuries remain the dominant storyline of the 2017-18 NBA season. A pair that arose Tuesday night could have major implications for fantasy basketball owners who are currently battling for championships.
During the second quarter of Tuesday’s game against the Washington Wizards, San Antonio Spurs big man LaMarcus Aldridge suffered a left knee contusion in a collision with Otto Porter Jr. that sidelined him for the rest of the contest. After the game, Tom Orsborn of the San Antonio Express-News tweeted Aldridge “looked stiff but [had] no noticeable limp” as he worked his way toward the team bus, although head coach Gregg Popovich told reporters LMA was headed for an MRI Wednesday to determine the extent of the injury.
As of early Wednesday afternoon, the Spurs had not announced the results of Aldridge’s MRI, so his status for the team’s Thursday contest against the Oklahoma City Thunder remains unclear. If Aldridge is forced to miss time, Pau Gasol (78.3% owned) figures to slide back into San Antonio’s starting lineup, while Rudy Gay (24.4% owned) could pick up some extra minutes off the bench, particularly with Kawhi Leonard still sidelined.
Down in South Beach, meanwhile, Cleveland Cavaliers big man Kevin Love found himself on the receiving end of Miami Heat center’s Jordan Mickey’s elbow in the opening minutes of their contest Tuesday night. Let’s just say Love emerged worse for the wear.
Yikes. pic.twitter.com/dUxYJegjae
— NBA on TNT (@NBAonTNT) March 28, 2018
He briefly headed back to the locker room to get his jacked-up tooth checked out, but he returned to the game in the second quarter and played six more minutes. At halftime, however, Love displayed concussion symptoms and was promptly ruled out for the rest of the game. On Wednesday, the Cavaliers announced Love has been placed in the concussion protocol and is ruled out of Wednesday’s game against the Charlotte Hornets.
For owners whose championship matchups end Sunday, it’s time to say goodbye to the Cavaliers big man (especially since he isn’t IR-eligible in ESPN.com leagues). Even if you’ve opened up an overwhelming advantage these first two days, Love likely will give you a bagel not only Wednesday, but Friday and possibly Sunday as well.
In Love’s absence, Larry Nance Jr. (46.7% owned), Tristan Thompson (7.8% owned) and Jeff Green (4.0% owned) figure to benefit the most, but Nance is the only one worth rostering in standard-sized league. Either way, none of those guys will single-handedly replace Love’s output, so fantasy owners can only piece together their best replacement options and hope the rest of their roster picks up the slack.
For those of you still clinging to Isaiah Thomas (76.0% owned), meanwhile, it’s officially time to cut bait. The Los Angeles Lakers announced Wednesday that he’ll undergo arthroscopic surgery to his right hip Thursday, which will sideline him for the remainder of the regular season. Brandon Ingram (64.8% owned) is expected to return Wednesday, according to Mike Bresnahan of Spectrum SportsNet, so make sure he isn’t floating around on your waiver wire, particularly with Thomas done for the year.
Portland Trail Blazers forward Moe Harkless (7.6% owned) likewise appears done for the regular season, as the team announced Tuesday night that he would be undergoing arthroscopic surgery Wednesday on his left knee. While the Blazers haven’t released a timetable for his return, fantasy owners in deeper leagues should drop him regardless. Al-Farouq Aminu (45.5% owned) is the biggest beneficiary of Harkless’ absence, although Evan Turner (3.9% owned) moved into Portland’s starting lineup Tuesday night, finishing with 14 points on 5-of-10 shooting, six rebounds, two assists and two 3-pointers in 36 minutes against the New Orleans Pelicans.
As for some much-needed good news on the injury front, look no further than the Philadelphia 76ers, where Markelle Fultz made his unexpected return Monday night after a mysterious shoulder injury sidelined him for 68 games. While Fultz played only 14 minutes, he finished with 10 points on 5-of-13 shooting, eight assists and four rebounds. Philly’s cakewalk rest-of-season schedule should provide a significant amount of garbage time for Fultz to get his sea legs back, but he isn’t likely to serve as a fantasy difference-maker given his limited role.
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Kevin Durant also appears to be nearing his return from a rib injury, according to ESPN.com’s Chris Haynes. While Golden State Warriors head coach said Durant would “probably” be active for Thursday’s game against the Milwaukee Bucks, KD told Haynes, “You can tell them I’m playing Thursday.” With Stephen Curry done for the rest of the regular season and Klay Thompson and Draymond Green still sidelined, Durant should shoulder an enormous offensive load for Golden State, giving him matchup-swinging potential just in the nick of time.
All ownership percentages via ESPN.com. All average draft position info via FantasyPros. All rankings via Basketball Monster are based on nine-category leagues and are current heading into Wednesday, March 28.