NBA Player News

Brooks’ unofficial Suns debut went smoothly on Friday night. In addition to bringing his usual brand of defense, the veteran forward was disciplined in his shot selection. Four of the five attempts came from beyond the arc, with Brooks knocking down three. Will that hold once the regular season begins? Given Brooks’ track record, fantasy managers can’t be blamed if they’re skeptical. He remains a player who will be a late-round option, at best, in standard leagues. However, from a non-fantasy standpoint, it will be fun to watch the wing tandem of Brooks and Ryan Dunn (4/8/3/1) go to work defensively on a nightly basis.

LaVine returns to the starting unit after coming off the bench on Thursday, which will push Nique Clifford back to the bench. Domantas Sabonis is out on the second night of this back-to-back, which results in Raynaud making his return to the opening unit. This is likely just a one-game nod for Raynaud, but he should have some upside in an increased role.

Williams missed Tuesday’s game against the Wizards as he continues to manage a knee injury. The 28-year-old backup center will be back on the court Friday against the Knicks. He improves the Trail Blazers’ depth, especially with Duop Reath (foot) done for the year, but isn’t worth rostering in most fantasy leagues.

Avdija was initially listed as questionable, but he will be good to go against New York. He struggled in his return to the lineup on Tuesday, and he’ll look to have a better performance in this one while occupying his usual spot in the starting unit.

Santos was listed as probable and has officially been cleared to suit up. He scored 16 points on Wednesday, which was a season high, but he hasn’t contributed much value this season and shouldn’t be viewed as a target for fantasy managers.

With Tre Johnson (ankle) and Khris Middleton (knee) sidelined for the second leg of this back-to-back, Carrington and Champagnie will enter the starting lineup. Both players should see a nice boost in production in increased roles.

McBride was downgraded to doubtful earlier in the day and has now officially been ruled out for a second straight game. Landry Shamet and Tyler Kolek should take on large reserve roles once again, just as they did against Toronto on Wednesday.

Hart was upgraded to probable Friday, so his availability isn’t a surprise. The 30-year-old shooting guard had 22 points in 35 minutes in Wednesday’s win over the Raptors. Expect Hart to take on a similar workload Friday.

Conley missed Thursday’s game against the Thunder, which led to Bones Hyland and Jaylen Clark taking on a few extra minutes off the bench. Conley will be part of the mix in the guard rotation off the bench against Memphis.

Dončić twisted his ankle during Wednesday’s loss to the Cavaliers. The 26-year-old point guard was able to return and finish the game, but wound up on the injury report as questionable. Dončić will play Friday against the Wizards and should be without restriction.

Reaves hasn’t played since Christmas Day, but he was upgraded to questionable ahead of this game. However, he won’t make his return yet, which means Marcus Smart will get another start. Reaves’ next chance to play will be against the Knicks on Sunday.