Denver Nuggets point guard Jamal Murray (shoulder) has been given the green light to suit up for Saturday's contest versus the Suns despite receiving a questionable tag earlier in the day with a sprained left shoulder. Murray logged 40 minutes in Friday's overtime win against Phoenix and showed no worse for wear, but the combination of injury and back-to-back could still funnel a handful of additional minutes in the direction of Monte Morris on Saturday. Both of Murray's outings when facing the Suns this year have resulted in strong production, raising his fantasy floor despite the ailment concerns.
Orlando Magic guard Michael Carter-Williams produced a full line in a loss to the Hawks on Wednesday. Carter-Williams compiled 20 points with six rebounds, six assists, two triples, two steals, and a block in 34 minutes. The 29-year-old has been more productive as of late- but the last two games have really been great showings from the Syracuse product. Carter-Williams has notched at least 18 points, six rebounds, six assists, a triple, and a steal in each of his last two contests. He'll get a break with All-Star weekend coming up, though it will be interesting to see if he can pick up right where he left off in the second half.
Atlanta Hawks forward Danilo Gallinari got the start on Wednesday, drilling five triples in 39 minutes of action. The 32-year-old totaled 23 points, adding nine rebounds, six assists, two steals, and a block in the 115-112 victory over Orlando. Clint Capela (foot) was forced to sit out the contest, prompting the Hawks to go small in the frontcourt with John Collins at the five and Gallinari at the four. The floor spacing and three-point shooting were so effective that it makes you wonder if Atlanta will experiment with Gallo as a member of the starting five in the second half of the season.
Orlando Magic center Nikola Vucevic dropped 29 points with nine rebounds, three assists, two triples, a block, and a steal in a 115-112 loss to the Hawks. Teammate Evan Fournier (groin) was sidelined, leaving Vucevic, who came out of the gate hot in the first quarter, to be aggressive. The All-Star big man has produced at least 28 points, eight boards, and two triples in six of his last seven games. Vooch will head into the All-Star break after putting together some of the best numbers of his career in the first half, with his next chance to play coming on Thursday of next week.
Toronto Raptors guard Norman Powell stayed red-hot in Wednesday's loss to the Pistons. Coming off of a 30-point effort in his last outing, Powell dropped a season-high 36 points with five rebounds, five triples, one assist, and a steal in 38 minutes. The 27-year-old was already seeing added opportunities with Kyle Lowry down for an extended period- but he's taken things to another level recently. With the Raptors down Fred VanVleet, OG Anunoby, and Pascal Siakam to the health and safety protocols, he took a season-high 20 shots Wednesday night. Powell is a must-play in DFS against the Celtics on Thursday.
Detroit Pistons guard Dennis Smith Jr. kept up his recent stretch of superb play in a blowout win over the Raptors. Smith scored 10 points, with 12 rebounds, 11 assists, three steals, and two triples in just 27 minutes of the 129-105 victory. The 23-year-old struggled to see playing time when he first arrived in Detroit, though the injury to Delon Wright (adductor) has opened the window of opportunity for the NC State product. While guard Saben Lee has also been productive off the bench, Smith is averaging 11.8 points, 5.8 assists, 5.2 rebounds, 2.0 steals, and 1.6 triples per game over his last five contests. He'll get the Knicks on Thursday, who held him to 3-for-11 shooting in last week's matchup.
Detroit Pistons center Mason Plumlee notched the second triple-double of his career in a 129-105 win over the Raptors. Plumlee scored 14 points with 11 rebounds, 10 assists, a block, and a steal in just 28 minutes. The veteran big man took advantage of the wealth of opportunities available in the offense with both Jerami Grant (quad) and Josh Jackson (illness) sidelined- with the shorthanded Raptors making it a perfect-storm type of situation. Plumlee won't be on triple-double watch every night, but his all-around abilities at the five shouldn't go unnoticed, particularly in DFS formats. He's averaging 12.5 points, 9.8 rebounds, and 5.1 assists per game since February. Plumlee will get the Knicks on Thursday, who held him below his averages in all three of those categories last week.
Golden State Warriors point guard Stephen Curry dropped a game-high 35 points on 13-for-28 shooting against Portland on Wednesday, but his efforts weren't enough in a 108-106 loss. The former MVP added seven rebounds, five assists, and three steals with four turnovers in 36 minutes. Curry, who was 5-for-14 from deep, managed just 16 points in Monday's marquee matchup against the Lakers, so he regained some rhythm ahead of the All-Star break. He gets one more game before the break as the Warriors head to Phoenix. The Suns have a good defensive record and they play at a slow pace, so it's not a great matchup for Curry and the Warriors, although he did notch 28 points in just 31 minutes against Phoenix in the previous meeting on Jan. 28.
Portland Trail Blazers forward Carmelo Anthony did some cooking in Wednesday's win over Golden State, racking up 22 points on 8-for-13 shooting in 32 minutes off the bench. He went 2-for-6 with the three-ball and added four assists and two rebounds. Melo has had his fair share of struggles as a bench scorer, but he's currently enjoying some very good form with three 20-point nights in his past four outings. He's in a great spot to have another good one in Thursday's matchup against the Kings and their league-worst defense. Anthony managed only 19 points combined across two outings against Sacramento earlier in the season, but he should do much better this time with the Blazers not having many scoring options.
Portland Trail Blazers point guard Damian Lillard had 22 points and nailed a couple of key treys late in the game, which led to a 108-106 win over the Warriors on Wednesday. He was horrible from deep all night but was there when the team needed him the most. Lillard ended up with a 3-for-10 effort from outside and 6-for-17 overall shooting. He added six assists, five rebounds and two steals with five turnovers in 36 minutes. Dame will have one more outing before the All-Star break, and it's a good one against Sacramento on Thursday. The Kings can't guard anyone and their games are generally very high-scoring because they play at a fast pace.
Houston Rockets shooting guard Victor Oladipo recorded a season-high 33 points in Wednesday's loss to the Nets but did so with horrible 9-for-25 shooting from the field. He ended up with a nice 5-for-11 shooting from downtown but struggled everywhere else. Oladipo's line also included seven rebounds, five assists, two steals, two blocks, and two turnovers in 37 minutes. The former Pacers started off his career in H-Town with a superb 32-point outing against Chicago in which he shot 56 percent from the field, but he has managed to hit at least half of his shots just once since then and his overall shooting percentage as a Rocket stands at a miserable 38.7 percent. Oladipo will be chucking up plenty of shots in the next matchup as well, as the Rockets meet up with the Kings, who own the NBA's worst defensive efficiency with a 102.5 pace.
