NBA Player News

Gillespie had an excellent night in Detroit, recording his second double-double of the season. The 18 points were the most he’s scored in a game since December 29, when he scored 25 in a win over the Wizards. Devin Booker (ankle) was out on Thursday, which freed up a few more scoring opportunities for Gillespie. Between Booker and Jalen Green (hamstring), there may come a point when fantasy managers look to move on from Gillespie. But as long as they’re out, he’s worth holding onto.

Smith missed Saturday’s loss to the Nuggets with a strained right calf. Guerschon Yabusele played 26 minutes as his replacement in the starting lineup, with Nick Richards playing 19 minutes off the bench in his Bulls’ debut. That will likely be the rotation on Monday if Smith remains out.

Jones is on track to miss a tenth straight game with a strained left hamstring. With the Bulls having added Jaden Ivey, Anfernee Simons and Collin Sexton at the trade deadline, it will be challenging for Jones to get the minutes needed to affect fantasy basketball once he’s cleared to play.

Giddey is on track to miss a seventh straight game as he continues to recover from a strained left hamstring. The Bulls have gone with a starting backcourt of Jaden Ivey and Anfernee Simons since the trade deadline, and that’s likely to remain the case on Monday.

Quickley is good to go after spraining his right ankle during practice on Friday. He’ll take on his usual role as the starting point guard, with Jamal Shead missing out on an opportunity to join the starters.

Potter was active for Friday’s loss to the Bucks, playing 16 minutes off the bench. He’ll likely take on a similar workload against Toronto, which makes Potter a non-factor in most fantasy leagues.

Initially questionable for Sunday’s game, Nesmith is good to go. He’ll take on his usual role within the starting lineup, and Jarace Walker remains with the reserves.

Phillips is good to go for his Timberwolves’ debut. However, he offered little fantasy value in Chicago, and that’s unlikely to change in Minnesota, at least in the short term.

Two days after NBA insider Chris Haynes reported that Davis was unlikely to play again this season, Dawkins said that he anticipates the forward/center returning at some point. In the short term, Davis will return to Dallas to work with his medical team as he recovers from ligament damage in his left hand. Dawkins also noted that the 4-to-6 week timeline provided in mid-January is closer to 6-to-10 weeks. If Davis were to play this season, the timeline suggests he won’t be available until sometime in March.

Already without Tyler Herro, the Heat won’t have Pelle Larsson for Sunday’s game as he recovers from an elbow injury. Gardner, who performed well in his first two starts this season, is back in the starting lineup to fill the resulting void.

Poeltl has been out since December, and that won’t change on Sunday. However, the past few days have been spent getting his conditioning up to par rather than rehabbing his lower back, which is a positive. Collin Murray-Boyles and Sandro Mamukelashvili will again play most of the available minutes, and Trayce Jackson-Davis is available to make his Raptors debut.