NBA Player News

McGowens is benefitting from his strong summer league play. The 21-year-old wing was waived by the Hornets after averaging 24.5 points in a pair of exhibition games. Portland has too many young wings for him to be a legitimate fantasy asset next season, though.

Green has not practiced the last two days, with his absence on Thursday being excused by the team. The veteran forward has missed Golden State’s last two games with a right midfoot sprain, with Quinten Post being his most recent replacement. With Jonathan Kuminga picking up a DNP-CD on Sunday, either Post or Al Horford would start if Green remains out.

Small suffered a turf toe injury in his left foot while playing for the Grizzlies’ G League affiliate in early November and has not played since. The updated timeline provided by the team gives him a shot at playing in early January. Whether Small’s availability affects fantasy basketball depends on the availability of Ja Morant, Ty Jerome and Scotty Pippen Jr. And with Vince Williams Jr. and Cam Spencer being the point guard rotation with those three out, Small is unlikely to get the opportunities needed to affect fantasy basketball.

Konchar suffered a UCL tear in his left thumb against the Trail Blazers on December 7. The 29-year-old shooting guard is set to have surgery. A timeline for return will be provided after the procedure.

Edey underwent surgery on his left ankle in June, which makes Thursday’s announcement especially concerning. The Grizzlies expect the 7-foot-4 center to make a full recovery, and they’ll take an “offloading and rehabilitation” approach before re-evaluating him in four weeks. Jock Landale began the season as the starting center and should return to that role, making him a worthwhile addition in deeper leagues. There should also be more minutes available to Santi Aldama, but Landale should be the primary target of fantasy managers.

According to Cowley, the Timberwolves are “looking to fix the primary ball-handling situation that’s been an issue all season long,” and they are “not looking to wait until February and the trade deadline to get a deal done.” Anthony Edwards has been playing a fair amount of point guard, or initiating more of the offense for the Timberwolves, but that apparently doesn’t feel sustainable for them. White turned down an extension with the Bulls last offseason and wanted “to bet on himself and explore unrestricted free agency come next July,” so the Bulls may prefer getting something in return for him, rather than risk letting him walk for free.

Smith has missed the last five games with a hamstring injury but will return on Friday. The wrinkle is that Zach Collins (wrist) returned to the court for the first time this season while Smith was sidelined. The two have not played together this season, so it remains to be seen how the minutes will be distributed, but neither player will likely have much fantasy appeal.

Okoro has missed the last eight games with a back injury, but could be back and starting on Friday, with Kevin Huerter (hamstring) still out. Okoro has averaged 8.2 points, 2.7 rebounds, and 1.6 assists in 15 games this season.

Collins had offseason wrist surgery and returned to the court for the first time last Friday. In two games, he’s averaged 5.5 points, 5.0 rebounds, and 1.0 assists while playing 20 minutes a game. The Bulls are understandably being cautious with his recovery, but we should expect about 20 minutes from him again on Friday.

Morant has missed 10 games with a calf injury after playing only six minutes on November 15th against the Cavaliers. It now seems like we have a good chance of seeing him back on the court on Friday. In his stead, Vince Williams Jr. has taken over the starting point guard role and had performed well before slowing of late. Cam Spencer has also begun to earn more minutes at Williams’ expense over the last week, but both players should see their minutes and usage take a hit when Morant returns.

Clifford is averaging just under 15 minutes per game over his last five games, but he had 16 points, seven rebounds, and one steal in 32 minutes in the G-League on Tuesday and will now be back up with the Kings and in the starting lineup. We wouldn’t go ahead and run to add him yet, but it does make sense for the Kings to give their rookie more playing time in what’s looking to be a lost season.