NBA Player News

Carter was excellent on Tuesday, and the time off that comes with earning the seventh seed should benefit him. The Magic center rolled his right ankle during the first half and banged knees with a Hawks defender during the third quarter. The good news is that neither injury forced Carter out of Tuesday’s game immediately, and Orlando pulling away during the fourth quarter got him a little more time on the bench late. The Magic don’t play Boston in Game 1 of their first-round series until Sunday, which should help Carter regain strength.

Holiday logged 21 minutes in his third game back from a calf injury. The veteran guard posted a balanced stat line in his limited minutes, contributing as a scorer, rebounder, and passer. And as expected, Holiday made several plays defensively to impact the game. His numbers should improve as his minutes increase, but for now, fantasy managers must be patient in his return from injury.

Sharpe stuffed the stat sheet in Thursday’s convincing victory over the Hawks. The fourth-year guard scored pretty well both inside and outside the arc and was able to capitalize at the FT line when fouls were generated. He also made an impact as a facilitator and as a rebounder, leading to another strong fantasy performance. He’ll have a chance to secure another strong outing against the Lakers on Saturday.

After a slow start to the game, Butler and the Warriors grabbed control during the second and third quarters to take the victory. The 32 points were the most in a game for him in nearly two months, and his fifth 30-point game of the season. Butler’s category league value remains high, but Thursday’s performance was a reminder of what he’s capable of when aggressively hunting his shots.