NBA Player News

While Antetokounmpo has played through the patella injury most nights, he was held out of Tuesday’s win over Miami. That gave him six days to recover, and it appears likely that Milwaukee will have its star forward on the court Saturday night. AJ Green will return to the bench, where he offers minimal fantasy value.

With Stephon Castle (shoulder) sidelined for this game, Sochan will make his return to the starting unit. Devin Vassell will still play a large role off the bench, but Sochan should be able to play 30+ minutes in this game.

Ducas hasn’t suited up since October and has played less than 10 total minutes this year. His absence will not impact their rotation.

Harden is back after sitting out Sunday’s loss to the Rockets, which means Kevin Porter Jr. returns to the bench. The other change is Batum, who will fill in for the injured Derrick Jones Jr. With “Airplane Mode” out for at least two weeks, Batum will be worthy of streaming consideration in deep leagues.

Absent from the initial injury report, Beal began to experience swelling between Thursday night and Friday morning. He has since been ruled out, opening up a spot in the starting lineup. Kevin Durant’s return will help, while Grayson Allen and Royce O’Neale should see their minutes increase.

Embiid took a shot to the face just before halftime and will be held out for the rest of the game. Andre Drummond and Guerschon Yabusele will be the center options for Philly as they try to claw their way back into this game.

Brooks has yet to miss a game this season, but that could change with his appearance on the injury report ahead of Saturday’s NBA Cup semifinals. Amen Thompson would likely move into the starting lineup if he cannot play. However, it will likely take a lot to prevent Brooks from taking on the challenge of defending fellow Canadian Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.

Due to his lingering ankle issue, Wiggins has missed Golden State’s last two games. Gary Payton II replaced him in the starting lineup for both contests, but he does not provide enough value to merit being streamed in most fantasy leagues.

Both bigs will be sidelined, with Williams having been out for over two weeks. Ayton has been available in recent weeks, but his absence will coincide with Donovan Clingan (knee) returning. However, Clingan will be on a minutes restriction, so Jabari Walker will get the start at center.

Clingan is available for the first time since November 23, when he injured his knee during a win over the Rockets. His minutes will be restricted, but there’s room for fantasy production due to the absences of Deandre Ayton and Robert Williams III. Jabari Walker will start and is worth streaming due to the injuries.

Once again, Young is expected to play through this Achilles ailment. It has only forced him to miss one game this season, and it likely won’t be his second in the NBA Cup semifinals on Saturday.