Jaylen

Nowell

Middleton and Smart are out for injury management reasons, so the Wizards’ young players will again be the priority. Bub Carrington will likely move into the starting lineup, while there should be bench minutes available to Jaylen Nowell and Erik Stevenson. There’s no need to stream Nowell or Stevenson in this spot, but Carrington is worth adding.

Despite Khris Middleton and Marcus Smart reportedly expecting to make their respective Wizards debuts after the break, the team has rewarded a player who has performed well for their G League affiliate. Stevenson, a shooting guard who went undrafted after completing his college career at West Virginia, has averaged 17.1 points, 4.1 rebounds, and 3.3 assists per game for the Capital City Go-Go. To free up a roster spot for Stevenson, the Wizards have waived Jaylen Nowell.

Nowell, who played with the Pelicans in November, is back in the NBA. He most recently played for the Wizards’ G League affiliate, and he’ll fill Washington’s open roster spot for the next ten days. The 2019 second-round pick is not a player who should be added to fantasy league rosters.

McCollum fully participated in practice on Monday, while Hawkins was only able to participate in certain parts. Both are still listed out for Tuesday’s game against the Mavs, but it appears that they’re both close to returning. When that happens, Brandon Boston Jr., Javonte Green and Jaylen Nowell will all lose minutes and value.

Due to injuries and Trey Murphy sitting for injury management reasons, Nowell practically played starters’ minutes off the bench on Saturday. While he didn’t shoot the ball efficiently, the 2019 second-round pick established a new season-high with 18 points. Under normal circumstances, Nowell would not be worth a look in most leagues. However, the Pelicans have been decimated by injuries and have another back-to-back on Tuesday/Wednesday.

Murphy will sit out the second night of the back-to-back, which isn’t surprising following his extended absence to start the season. Jeremiah Robinson-Earl and Jaylen Nowell will both be in line for extra minutes, with JRE likely to get the start in place of Murphy.

It has been two weeks since the initial reports that McCollum would miss 2-3 weeks. He’s getting very close to returning and would be a big addition to the Pelicans’ rotation due to the plethora of other injuries they have been managing. Javonte Green replaced the injured Jose Alvarado in their last game, but he would return to a bench role when McCollum is available to make his return.

With Jose Alvarado sidelined for the foreseeable future, Green will replace him in the starting unit. The injuries continue to pile up, which means that Boston and BI will be the primary playmakers in this game, with Jaylen Nowell filling that role with the bench unit.

New Orleans will already be missing CJ McCollum, Trey Murphy III, Herb Jones and Dejounte Murray, so the inclusion of Hawkins and Williamson on the injury report means the Pels could be sending out a skeleton crew against the Blazers. Javonte Green, Jaylen Nowell and Jeremiah Robinson-Earl could all see increased run if Hawkins and Williamson are out, while Brandon Ingram should handle a massive workload.

The Pelicans are severely shorthanded on the perimeter, with Dejounte Murray, CJ McCollum, Herb Jones, and Trey Murphy all out due to injury. Nowell will add depth in the short term, but fantasy managers should not expect to see him emerge as a credible streaming option.