Another fairly quiet day on the NBA injury watch as there are a few players already ruled out or doubtful including Devin Booker, Dwyane Wade, Kelly Olynyk and Darren Collison. There are also a few that seem to be Probable as of this writing like Victor Oladipo and Andre Drummond.
However, things can change quickly and with the NBA Trade Deadline tomorrow, there is always the possibility of a player being dealt before tipoff or held out to ensure he doesn’t get injured, so be on the lookout.
This article will attempt to list all of the relevant injury situations to monitor for the day’s NBA slate and provide guidance on which players will benefit with either an increase in minutes or usage or both if that player is ruled out. I will also place an asterisk (*) by players that I think are worth DFS consideration if that player is ruled out. Players that have been out for at least five consecutive games I will not list as general playing time and usage patterns should be established.
This will NOT be an interactive article that is continually updated throughout the day as I hope to capture all of the potential relevant injury situations that could impact DFS lineups for the night and pre-determine what players benefit. Ideally, you monitor late-breaking news leading up to tipoff, find out a player is ruled out and come check the matrix below to see who the players are you should consider for your DFS lineups based on that news.
This article series will be a work in progress and I welcome any and all feedback on its usefulness and format either in the Comments below or directly to me on Twitter @Rotopilot.
NBA What If – Wednesday, February 7
| Team | Player | Status | If OUT |
| Cavaliers | Kevin Love | Out | Channing Frye (minutes) Jae Crowder (minutes) LeBron James (usage)* Isaiah Thomas (usage) JR Smith (usage) Jeff Green (usage) |
| Cavaliers | Dwyane Wade | Out | JR Smith (minutes) Kyle Korver (minutes/usage) Derrick Rose (minutes) Channing Frye (usage) Jae Crowder (usage) |
| Grizzlies | Tyreke Evans | Out | Andrew Harrison (minutes/usage) Wayne Selden (minutes) Dillon Brooks (usage) Marc Gasol (usage) |
| Heat | Justise Winslow | Questionable | James Johnson (minutes)* Josh Richardson (minutes)* |
| Heat | Kelly Olynyk | Doubtful | James Johnson (minutes)* Bam Adebayo (minutes)* Tyler Johnson (usage) |
| Heat | Wayne Ellington | Questionable | Tyler Johnson (minutes)* Josh Richardson (minutes)* |
| Jazz | Ekpe Udoh | Out | Jonas Jerebko (minutes) |
| Nets | Caris LeVert | Out | Joe Harris (minutes) Nik Stauskas (minutes) Allen Crabbe (usage) |
| Nets | Quincy Acy | Questionable | Joe Harris (minutes) Jahlil Okafor (minutes) |
| Pacers | Darren Collison | Out | Cory Joseph (minutes/usage) Joe Young (minutes) Lance Stephenson (minutes)* Victor Oladipo (usage)* Domantas Sabonis (usage) Bojan Bogdanovic (usage) |
| Pacers | Victor Oladipo | Probable | Lance Stephenson (minutes/usage)* Bojan Bogdanovic (minutes/usage)* Domantas Sabonis (usage) Thaddeus Young (usage) Cory Joseph (usage) |
| Pelicans | None | ||
| Pistons | Andre Drummond | Probable | Anthony Tolliver (minutes/usage)* Eric Moreland (minutes) Blake Griffin (usage)* Ish Smith (usage) Stanley Johnson (usage) |
| Pistons | Dwight Buycks | Probable | Langston Galloway (minutes) Luke Kennard (minutes/usage) |
| Rockets | Ryan Anderson | Questionable | PJ Tucker (minutes) Luc Mbah a Moute (minutes) James Harden (usage) Chris Paul (usage) Gerald Green (usage) |
| Spurs | None | ||
| Suns | Devin Booker | Out | Tyler Ulis (minutes/usage) Josh Jackson (minutes/usage) Josh Gray (minutes) TJ Warren (usage) Troy Daniels (usage) |
| Suns | Tyson Chandler | Rest? | Alex Len (minutes)* Marquese Chriss (minutes) |
| Timberwolves | None |
