NBA Player News

Dunn replaced Royce O’Neale in the starting lineup on Saturday, and the rookie will likely retain that role for the foreseeable future. O’Neale suffered a sprained left ankle during the second quarter of Saturday’s game and did not return. Dunn was 1-of-6 from three, but a 5-of-6 night from two led to his establishing a new career-high with 15 points. Dunn will be worth rostering until more is known about the severity of O’Neale’s injury, and Josh Okogie also deserves deep-league consideration. He played 31 minutes off the bench, finishing with 11 points (4-of-8 FGs, 2-of-4 FTs), nine rebounds, two steals, two blocks, and one 3-pointer.

Eric Gordon and Kyle Lowry are questionable, and multiple players are out for Wednesday’s tilt with the Kings. Oubre Jr.'s potential absence could free up additional playing time for the likes of Reggie Jackson, Caleb Martin and Ricky Council IV.

Brown made his season debut on Sunday and played the first half of Toronto’s back-to-back set on Tuesday. He’ll be held out for the second leg as he works his way back into game shape following a two-month absence to start the season.

Collins is poised to miss a fifth straight game, which means Walker Kessler should continue to see increased work. Kessler has averaged 9.3 points, 14.0 rebounds and 2.0 blocks across his last four with Collins on the sidelines.

Quickley has been sidelined since November 10, and he’s only appeared in three games this season. He hasn’t yet been cleared for contact, so his status is a bit surprising. Even if IQ is given the green light to return, he’ll likely face a minutes restriction while he ramps back up.

Both players sat out Tuesday’s loss to Boston, but they have a chance to return for the second half of Toronto’s back-to-back set. Davion Mitchell and Ja’Kobe Walter replaced them in the starting five against the Celtics, and they would presumably get starting nods again if Barrett and Dick are on the sidelines.

Allen’s counting stats have been slightly down this season, and one of the more shocking developments is that he is averaging less than one block per game for the first time in his career. However, he had three blocks in this game, which was the most that he’s had in a game since he had four during the season opener. He also set a new season-high for scoring as they extended their winning streak to eight games. This was arguably Allen’s most productive game of the season, and he’ll look to keep it going in Dallas on Friday.

Strus made his season debut less than two weeks ago, and he had been ineffective to this point of the season. However, he had his best game of the year in this one, which happened to be on the second night of a back-to-back. It’s encouraging to see him playing two days in a row, and he was able to set new season-highs for points, assists, blocks, 3-pointers and minutes in this one. Strus will eventually make a return to the starting lineup, and he will be limited in fantasy until that happens. Still, it was good to see him play well in this one.

Booker was back in the Suns’ lineup after a five-game absence, and he had some rust to work off. He shot 2-of-12 from inside the arc, and category league managers took a beating in the field goal percentage category. The positive is that Booker dished out nine assists, the seventh time this season he’s had at least that many in a game. With Bradley Beal injuring his hip during the first half of Tuesday’s defeat, the Suns could be back to not having all three of their stars available. Phoenix visits Indiana on Friday in its final game of Week 10.

After not attempting a shot in Saturday’s loss to the Warriors, Plumlee was more active on Tuesday. He made all six of his attempts from the field, scoring 12 points and providing solid value in the rebound, assist, and blocks categories. With Jusuf Nurkic suspended for one more game, Plumlee will be worth a look for Saturday’s game against the Pacers. Even with Saturday being one of the busier days on the Week 10 schedule (nine games).

After scoring 11 points on 4-of-16 shooting in the two games prior, Jones had one of his best scoring nights on Tuesday. He notched his third 20-point game, finishing one point shy of his season-high (22 vs. Sacramento, November 10). If there’s been an issue recently, it’s the decrease in assists. Over the past two weeks, Jones has averaged 4.1 assists per game, more than two less than his mark for the season (6.3). Devin Booker’s return may help, but that was countered by Bradley Beal suffering a hip injury during the first half.