RotoBaller has assembled NBA injury updates and advice on various injury situations throughout the NBA to help you prepare both your seasonal and daily fantasy league lineups in the NBA season. Understanding the injury landscape, including who's out and who could benefit is a key skill in all forms of fantasy basketball.
Here we will focus on the important questions: Who is injured? When are they coming back? Should you stash an injured player on your roster? Who is getting an opportunity in the mean time? This injury analysis should assist in projecting how to respond to injuries in seasonal leagues. Consider this your one-stop overview of fantasy-relevant injuries in the NBA.
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NBA Injury Roundup for Week Five
Questionable To Play
Rondae-Hollis Jefferson (SG/SF, BKN): Ankle. Sean Kilpatrick has been great off the bench all-season. Joe Harris saw more time with RHJ out.
Otto Porter Jr. (SF, WAS): Hip. Kelly Oubre and Tomas Satoransky will have a chance to seriously contribute if Porter misses time.
Markieff Morris (PF, WAS): Foot. Jason Smith would likely get extra run.
Gerald Henderson (SG/SF, PHI): Illness. Hollis Thompson slides to the starting two-spot, but Nik Stauskas has hit the hottest streak of his career.
Joakim Noah (PF/C, NYK): Illness. Kyle O’Quinn has been starting, but Willy Hernangomez has looked decent in Noah’s absence.
Justise Winslow (SF/PF, MIA): Wrist. Dion Waiters has really stepped up in Winslow’s absence.
Danilo Gallinari (SF, DEN): Thigh. Wilson Chandler and Will Barton will benefit the most with the freed-up minutes.
Jeremy Lin (PG/SG, BKN): Hamstring. Isaiah Whitehead is getting the starts, but Sean Kilpatrick has been getting some ball handling duties with Yogi Ferrell finding minutes as well.
Tyson Chandler (C, PHX): Personal. Alex Len is drawing the starts as Chandler deals with a loss in the family. Dragan Bender looks to have moved up in the depth chart.
Out Short Term
Julius Randle (PF, LAL): Hip. Larry Nance should feast, but Brandon Ingram will be getting the starts.
C.J. Miles (SG/SF, IND): Knee. The bench minutes are going to Rodney Stuckey and Glenn Robinson III.
Reggie Jackson (PG/SG, DET): Knee tendinitis. Ish Smith gets bumped up to the starting spot and Beno Udrih backs him up. He’s resumed basketball activities and is targeting December 4.
Devin Harris (PG, DAL): Sprained Right Toe. Harris is going through practice, but probably needs one more week. Seth Curry is getting the full NBA experience with the entire backcourt in Dallas injured.
Michael Carter-Williams (PG, CHI): Wrist Sprain, Bone Bruise. Isaiah Canaan, Denzel Valentine, and Jerian Grant have all seen a few more minutes, but remain irrelevant on the fantasy end.
Doug McDemott (SF, CHI): Concussion. Hoiberg has been shortening the rotation with Isaiah Canaan and Nikola Mirotic getting extra run.
Cody Zeller (PF/C, CHA): Shoulder. Roy Hibbert and Frank Kaminsky are playing extra minutes, but are dealing with their own ailments. Spencer Hawes has also stepped up in Cody’s absence.
Deron Williams (PG, DAL): Left Calf. Seth Curry gets all the point-guard duties he can handle while Deron and Barea are out.
No Timetable to Return
Derrick Favors (PF/C, UTA): Knee. He’s been dealing with the bone contusion. Trey Lyles is the starter and Boris Diaw is getting the bench minutes. It should be Lyles’ time to shine.
T.J. Warren (SF, PHX): Head. The details of the injury haven’t been disclosed, but Earl Watson has chosen to go with a three-guard lineup. Brandon Knight needs to get it going in his absence.
Quincy Pondexter (SG/SF, NOP): Knee Surgery. E’Twaun Moore has gotten all the starts, while Langston Galloway has carved out deep league value.
Cameron Payne (PG, OKC): Foot. Semaj Christon has looked serviceable in real-life, but it hasn’t translated to fantasy ball just yet.
Al-Farouq Aminu (SF/PF, POR): Calf. Terry Stotts has decided to go small, inserting Allen Crabbe into the lineup with Moe Harkless moving to the four-spot. Being re-evaluated Friday.
Out Multiple Weeks
James Ennis (SG/SF, MEM): Calf. Vince Carter, Troy Daniels and Troy Williams are all sharing the minutes with the Griz thin on the wings.
Chandler Parsons (SG/SF, MEM): Knee. Tony Allen will play both wing spots with Andre Harrison playing more SG than usual.
D’Angelo Russell (PG, LAL): Knee. Jordan Clarkson will be a strong play for the next few weeks and Lou Williams should also take advantage of the extra run.
Gary Harris (SG, DEN): Foot. Will Barton has been the starting SG, but Jamal Murray is starting to heat up.
J.J. Barea (PG/SG, DAL): Achilles. Seth Curry becomes the man with Deron Williams out short term. Jonathan Gibson is getting a decent look as well.
Jodie Meeks (SG, ORL): Foot Surgery. Mario Hezonja has been getting primary backup minutes.
Mike Scott (PF, ATL): Knee. Targeting December. Mike Muscala will be the first big off the bench and has been great for deep leagues with the extended minutes.
Ben Simmons (SF/PF, PHI): Foot. Ersan Ilyasova looks to be starting for the next couple of months with Dario Saric getting the bench minutes.
Tyreke Evans (PG/SG, NOP): Knee. E’Twaun Moore is getting the starts at SG while Solomon Hill and Dante Cunningham have both started at some point.
Nerlens Noel (PF/C, PHI): Left knee surgery. Embiid and Okafor will eat up all the minutes at Center.
Jared Sullinger (PF/C, PHI): Foot surgery. Pascal Siakam will draw the starts with Patrick Patterson getting most of the minutes.
Likely Out for the Season
Khris Middleton (SG/SF, MIL): Torn hamstring. The Bucks push Tony Snell to the starting lineup for his ability to space the floor. Rashad Vaughn and Malcolm Brogdon have also benefitted
Chris Bosh (PF/C, MIA): Blood clot. Luke Babbitt will get the starts for now, but James Johnson and Willie Reed benefit from the extra frontcourt minutes.
Alec Burks (PG/SG, UTA): Left Ankle. Suffered a setback after off-season surgery. Rodney Hood should continue to earn the starts.
Nikola Pekovic (C, MIN): Chronic Ankle Issues. Will likely be bought out for the final year in his contract. Cole Aldrich has gotten the primary backup minutes behind Karl-Anthony Towns.