David

Lee

Lee is locked and loaded into big numbers and the Warriors have a great playoff schedule. Enjoy the ride.

David Lee is expected to start at center with Dominic McGuire seeing time as well, and we could even see some of Jeremy Tyler without Biedrins int he lineup. Lee is the biggest beneficiary from a fantasy standpoint as he’ll play all the minutes he can handle.

Apparently Lee has been dealing with the issue for weeks. Following the MRI, he was told by team doctors that he should not play until he is fully healed, or risk causing further substantial injury. This doesn’t sound like a day-to-day injury and this late in the season it’s definitely a shutdown risk. The Warriors don’t have any real replacement for Lee, but Jeremy Tyler, Dominic McGuire, and Mickell Gladness are the next guys up, with Tyler and McGuire being the guys to look at in fantasy leagues.

We figured the Warriors would throw him back into the fire, defensive deficiencies and all, and that’s what we got tonight as he logged just under 40 minutes. We like his chances of playing heavy minutes like this going forward, too. David Lee added 30 points with eight boards, one steal, and five turnovers in the loss.

Lee has already been ruled out of Saturday’s game against the Clippers, but it sounds like he’s going to miss much more time than that. He is absolutely a shutdown candidate for the remainder of the season as doctors have advised him not to play until it’s completely healed. If this is it for Lee this season, he’ll finish the year with averages of 20.1 points, 9.6 rebounds and 1.0 steals on 50.3 percent shooting.

The Warriors are already starting three rookies, and with operation tank city in full effect, why not make it four? Lee will be out indefinitely with his groin issue, and Golden State might as well get a look at Gladness to see what he’s capable of doing. Gladness has played just four games in April, but it is reasonable to believe he should see time down the stretch. Regardless, he’s not on the fantasy radar.

He missed the end of the season with a groin injury, which was apparently quite legitimate. Lee’s return date hasn’t yet been established, but it doesn’t sound like he’s in any danger of not being ready for training camp.

Lee is out for the season, but his course of action to get back on the court will likely be determined by what the doctor says at his appointment. We should have an update on his condition before long, but we’d tentatively expect him to be ready to go for next season.

Lee spent some time at center tonight, as Andris Biedrins was out with a groin injury, and little used Jeremy Tyler started at center. He’s been hot all season, especially over his last five games, when he’s averaging 22 points, nine rebounds and just under a steal per game. It’s just too bad he’s not a shot blocker.

Stephen Curry scored 11 points on 3-of-6 shooting (including three treys) with three rebounds, six assists, and a block, David Lee scored 24 points with 13 rebounds and three steals, and Nate Robinson played ‘no, no, no, yes’ with nine points on 3-of-8 shooting (including a three) with three rebounds, three assists, a steal, and a pair of key buckets down the stretch.