NBA Player News

Sengun may not have done much scoring on Wednesday, but the rebounds, assists, and defensive stats more than made up for it. He recorded his third straight double-double, and the four blocks matched his season-high. Over the last week, Sengun has been a top-30 player in 9-cat formats, improving his season-long value.

Smith has been productive as of late. He’s scored 12 or more points in two of his previous three contests. E.J. Liddell could get some limited run if Smith can’t play, as Adama Sanogo has been ruled out with a knee injury.

Bridges has missed three consecutive contests and it appears like he’s set to miss at least a few more. Tidjane Salaun is among the players who could step into a larger starting role while Bridges is out.

Suggs is set to return to the lineup after sitting for one game against the Hornets. He’ll likely replace Anthony Black as a starter if he steps back into his usual role.

Carter will return to action after nearly a month off but will be limited in his first game back. Moritz Wagner and Goga Bitadza will likely remain fairly involved against Chicago.

Nobody was happier than Booker to have Kevin Durant and Bradley Beal back in the lineup. Though he has a few big scoring nights with them out of the lineup, he also had his fair share of struggles, and the team had lost their previous five games. Booker has had a rough shooting season so far, but the presence of KD and Beal should help him get easier looks. Managers should expect Booker’s numbers to continue to improve as the team logs more games with their full lineup healthy.

After missing the team’s last five games, Beal was back in the lineup on Tuesday and picked up right where he left off. He has scored at least 20 points in three straight games, and he reached that mark in just 27 minutes in this one. Mike Budenholzer said that he would manage the minutes of Beal and Kevin Durant, and he luckily didn’t need to play them more because the game got out of hand in the third quarter. This was the first night of a back-to-back, and it wouldn’t be surprising if they got the night off against the Nets.

Following a seven-game absence, Durant was back in the lineup on Tuesday and helped the Suns end their five-game losing streak. He was expected to have his minutes managed, and he logged about 30 minutes, though his night was cut short by the lopsided score. He may have played longer if he needed to, which was an encouraging sign for fantasy managers. They’ll host the Nets on the second night of a back-to-back on Wednesday, and it wouldn’t be surprising if Durant and Bradley Beal ended up sitting out to manage their calf injuries. That would likely allow Ryan Dunn and Royce O’Neale to return to the starting lineup.

For the first time in franchise history, the Lakers lost an NBA Cup game, though it certainly wasn’t AD’s fault. He bounced back from arguably his worst performance of the season during Saturday’s blowout loss to Denver, and while it didn’t help his team get back on track, it did provide a nice boost for fantasy managers. Davis will continue to be one of the best players in fantasy basketball regardless of the Lakers’ record, but he will have a chance to help them get back on track in San Antonio on the second night of a back-to-back for both teams on Wednesday.

Russell has struggled all season, but his numbers have dropped off even more in his move to the bench. He played well in his first game following his demotion, but this was his highest-scoring game since then. Russell has ranked outside the top-200 since becoming the team’s sixth man, and even his good games haven’t been great for fantasy managers. He’s still rostered in 84% of Yahoo leagues, and it’s difficult to drop a player that was selected in the middle rounds. However, the production has been nowhere near his ADP, and there isn’t much hope for a turnaround.

Hayes missed the team’s last six games with a right ankle sprain, and in his first game back, he injured the same ankle in the final minutes. The severity of this one is unclear, but it seems unlikely that he’ll be available to play in San Antonio on Wednesday. Christian Koloko should fill out some of the backup center minutes in his place, but he won’t play a large enough role to be worth streaming in any format.