NBA Player News

According to Woj, Gentry says that he is “largely asymptomatic, except for a scratchy throat.” Gentry will have to return two consecutive negative tests at least 24 hours apart in order to return to the bench. In the meantime, the Kings have canceled their shoot around for Wednesday, and are going through testing to see if there are any more positive tests. Either Doug Christie or Mike Longabardi are the most likely candidates to serve as acting head coach, though no decision has been made yet.

Wiggins started in OKC’s last game on Wednesday, but he won’t be available to play Sacramento. Chet Holmgren and Alex Caruso will be back, but Wiggins’ absence will open up more minutes for Ajay Mitchell and Isaiah Joe, even if Luguentz Dort returns from his shoulder injury.

Dort missed Wednesday’s game against Portland after an early exit on Tuesday. If he remains out for another game, Ajay Mitchell should get another start in Dort’s place. Mitchell had 21 points in 31 minutes against the Trail Blazers.

Sabonis missed Wednesday’s game against Golden State, which allowed Drew Eubanks to get the starting nod in his place. Eubanks should get another start if Sabonis remains out, with Maxime Raynaud and Precious Achiuwa filling out the reserve minutes. If Sabonis is back, he’ll play the majority of the minutes at center.

Caruso sat out the second leg of OKC’s back-to-back on Wednesday, but he’ll be back against Sacramento. He’ll occupy his typical role off the bench, which should push Ousmane Dieng out of the rotation.

Green will immediately start in his season debut, but it won’t be Allen heading to a reserve role. Ryan Dunn, who had started every game this season, will come off the bench. With Green on a minutes limit, Dunn should still play a large role.

Holmgren will be back after missing Wednesday’s game. He’ll be back in the starting lineup, which has been a revolving door for the Thunder. Aaron Wiggins (adductor) has been ruled out, so Holmgren will slide into that starting spot.

LaVine missed Wednesday’s game against Golden State, which opened the door for Nique Clifford to start. The rookie logged 33 minutes but will be pushed to the bench with LaVine back in the lineup.

Beal enters the starting unit in place of James Harden, who is sidelined due to personal reasons. Beal is reportedly on a minutes restriction, so even though he is back in the lineup and starting, he isn’t going to play a significant role, which means more minutes for Bogdan Bogdanovic.

Allen was a late addition to the injury report, but he will play through an illness. Jalen Green (hamstring) will be available for the first time this season, so Allen may be pushed to a reserve role, which will limit his upside. However, there will be a “target number” for Green’s minutes, so Allen should still play a large role in this game.

As expected, Green will make his debut for the Suns in this game. There will be a “target number” for Green’s minutes in this game, so even if Grayson Allen is pushed to the bench, he should still play a large role.