Each day, this column will provide live updates for all NBA news. Enjoy up-to-the-minute alerts for injuries and lineup confirmations. The Key News to Watch section will highlight notable injuries to monitor for the current NBA slate.
Key NBA News to Watch
Kevin Durant (foot) — Out
Nikola Jokic (back) — Available
Giannis Antetokounmpo (illness) — Available
Anthony Edwards (back) — Available
Zach LaVine (foot) — In
Darius Garland (neck) — In
Jrue Holiday (ankle) — Out
Deandre Ayton (back) — Available
Nic Claxton (ankle) — Out
Terry Rozier (groin) — Available
Aaron Gordon (heel) — Out
Kentavious Caldwell-Pope (ankle) — Available
Reggie Jackson (back) — Available
Alex Caruso (toe) — Out
Grayson Allen (illness) — Out
Jalen Johnson (wrist) — Injured
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Confirmed Lineup: Malcolm Brogdon, Shaedon Sharpe, Toumani Camara, Jerami Grant, Deandre Ayton
Deandre Ayton (back) — Available
Ish Wainright (knee) — Injured
Anfernee Simons (thumb) — Injured
Robert Williams (knee) — Out for season
Confirmed Lineup: Damian Lillard, Malik Beasley, Andre Jackson Jr., Giannis Antetokounmpo, Brook Lopez
Giannis Antetokounmpo (illness) — Available
Khris Middleton (Achilles) — Out
Jae Crowder (adductor, abdomen) — Injured
Middleton was forced out during the third quarter of the previous contest after experiencing left Achilles tightness. Afterward, Coach Griffin attempted to downplay the seriousness of the injury, citing caution as the reason Middleton was pulled. "Just took him out for precautionary measures," Griffin said. "We're evaluating him tomorrow." He was then evaluated and ultimately ruled out for Sunday's game against Portland. Middleton has already been playing on a minutes restriction due to his off-season knee surgery, as he's averaging just 19.8 minutes per contest.
Confirmed Lineup: Trae Young, Dejounte Murray, De'Andre Hunter, Saddiq Bey, Clint Capela
Jalen Johnson (wrist) — Injured
Mouhamed Gueye (back) — Injured
Kobe Bufkin (thumb) — Injured
Johnson took a hard fall in the previous contest that caused him to leave the game early. His status for Sunday is unclear as Atlanta is set to play the second leg of a back-to-back set, but it's feared that he could miss a bit of time. If so, Saddiq Bey would likely be reinserted into the starting lineup after being supplanted by Johnson in the fourth game of the season. In his three starts, Bey averaged 11.3 points and 4.3 rebounds in 28.7 minutes per game and had a 15.2% usage rate.
Confirmed Lineup: Derrick White, Dalano Banton, Jaylen Brown, Jayson Tatum, Al Horford
Jrue Holiday (ankle) — Out
Kristaps Porzingis (calf) — Out
After exiting the last game early, Porzingis received an MRI, the results of which seemed to bring relief from the Celtics' new big. While there was no "hard news" reported on what the imaging revealed, Porzingis took to Instagram to inject positivity into the fan base regarding the injury. "Good news this morning," Porzingis posted. "Be back very soon." It's unclear if his injury will require him to miss multiple games, but Boston could've benefited from his defensive prowess against a Hawks team whose 120.4 Offensive Rating is the second-highest league-wide.
Confirmed Lineup: Devin Booker, Eric Gordon, Josh Okogie, Keita Bates-Diop, Jusuf Nurkic
Kevin Durant (foot) — Out
Grayson Allen (illness) — Out
Yuta Watanabe (quad) — Available
Drew Eubanks (ankle) — Available
Bradley Beal (back) — Injured
Damion Lee (knee) — Injured
Durant is playing the fourth most minutes per contest (36.9) of any player league-wide. After missing the previous game, he participated in practice on Saturday, and coach Vogel noted that the plan was to see how his injury responded during practice to decide on his availability for Sunday's outing. Regarding his foot, Durant mentioned that it already seems to be on the mend. "Feels better. A little tweak," said Durant. "Just wanted to make sure everything was right before I get back out there."
Confirmed Lineup: Jalen Brunson, Quentin Grimes, RJ Barrett, Julius Randle, Mitchell Robinson
Confirmed Lineup: LaMelo Ball, Terry Rozier, Gordon Hayward, Miles Bridges, Mark Williams
Terry Rozier (groin) — Available
PJ Washington (foot) — Available
Nick Richards (concussion) — Out
Frank Ntilikina (leg) — Injured
James Bouknight (knee) — Injured
Cody Martin (knee) — Injured
It appears as if Rozier could return after missing the previous nine outings. The Hornets managed to win three of those games, and they got Bridges back in the process. Sunday's outing against Orlando would be the first opportunity for Rozier and Bridges to play together this season. Rozier's final status will be critical against a surprising Magic team with the league's fifth-best Net Rating (+5.1) and whose 11 wins are tied for the second-most league-wide.
Confirmed Lineup: Anthony Black, Jalen Suggs, Franz Wagner, Paolo Banchero, Goga Bitadze
Markelle Fultz (knee) — Out
Jonathan Isaac (ankle) — Out
Wendell Carter Jr. (hand) — Injured
Confirmed Lineup: Mike Conley, Anthony Edwards, Nickeil Alexander-Walker, Karl-Anthony Towns, Rudy Gobert
Anthony Edwards (back) — Available
Jaden McDaniels (ankle) — Injured
Jordan McLaughlin (knee) — Injured
Jaylen Clark (Achilles) — Injured
Confirmed Lineup: Jacob Gilyard, Desmond Bane, Santi Aldama, Jaren Jackson Jr., Bismack Biyombo
Ja Morant (suspension) — Out
Luke Kennard (knee) — Injured
Marcus Smart (foot) — Injured
Brandon Clarke (Achilles) — Injured
Xavier Tillman (injury recovery) — Injured
Jake LaRavia (eye) — Injured
Steven Adams (knee) — Out for season
Confirmed Lineup: Coby White, Zach LaVine, DeMar DeRozan, Patrick Williams, Nikola Vucevic
Zach LaVine (foot) — In
Alex Caruso (toe) — Out
Lonzo Ball (knee) — Out for season
Despite playing 38 minutes in the previous outing, LaVine's availability is uncertain against the Nets. Chicago lost their lone contest sans LaVine two games ago when they scored just 102 points. Their 106.5 points per contest are the third-fewest league-wide, and even with LaVine having been playing, they've not been impressive to start the year. If LaVine sits, DeRozan will be expected to handle much of the offensive workload. In the contest that LaVine missed, DeRozan and White each had 17 field goal attempts and combined for 48 points.
Confirmed Lineup: Spencer Dinwiddie, Mikal Bridges, Royce O'Neale, Cam Johnson, Dorian Finney-Smith
Nic Claxton (ankle) — Out
Dennis Smith Jr. (back) — Out
Ben Simmons (back) — Injured
Cam Thomas (ankle) — Injured
Confirmed Lineup: Dennis Schroder, OG Anunoby, Scottie Barnes, Pascal Siakam, Jakob Poeltl
Gradey Dick (G League) — Out
Christian Koloko (respiratory issues) — Injured
Confirmed Lineup: Darius Garland, Donovan Mitchell, Max Strus, Evan Mobley, Jarrett Allen
Darius Garland (neck) — In
Dean Wade (ankle) — Out
Ty Jerome (ankle) — Injured
Ricky Rubio (personal) — NWT
Confirmed Lineup: Jeremy Sochan, Malaki Branham, Keldon Johnson, Victor Wembanyama, Zach Collins
Confirmed Lineup: Reggie Jackson, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Justin Holiday, Michael Porter Jr., Nikola Jokic
Nikola Jokic (back) — Available
Aaron Gordon (heel) — Out
Kentavious Caldwell-Pope (ankle) — Available
Reggie Jackson (back) — Available
Peyton Watson (illness) — Available
Jamal Murray (hamstring) — Out
Vlatko Cancar (knee) — Injured
With the Nuggets set to play the first leg of a back-to-back set, their injury report is extensive for one of the first times all season. However, it appears as if all players listed other than Murray and Cancar are more likely to play than sit. In the last game, Jokic, Caldwell-Pope, and Gordon played 42, 39, and 39 respective minutes in a blowout loss. It would make sense for the Nuggets to feel comfortable sitting any of those players against the Spurs, who have lost 11 consecutive games and whose -12.7 Net Rating is the worst of any team league-wide.