NBA News & Fantasy Basketball Notes 12/2

Dec 2nd 2023

Jay PerssonCooper Boni

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

  • Luka Doncic (personal) — Not on injury report

  • Tyrese Haliburton (knee, illness) — Out

  • Devin Booker (ankle) — Available

  • Zion Williamson — In

  • LeBron James (calf) — Available

  • DeMar DeRozan (ankle) — Available

  • Kyrie Irving (foot) — Out

  • Jamal Murray (ankle) — Out

  • Anthony Davis (adductor, hip) — Available

  • Jimmy Butler (ankle) — In

  • Rudy Gobert (hip) — In

  • CJ McCollum (rest) — Out

  • Andrew Wiggins (finger) — Out

  • Aaron Gordon (heel) — Available

  • Brandon Miller (ankle) — Available

  • Keegan Murray (back) — Available

  • Bojan Bogdanovic (calf) — In

  • Ausar Thompson (face) — Available

Follow us on Twitter at @Underdog__NBA for notifications.

Golden State Warriors News

Confirmed Lineup: Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson, Moses Moody, Draymond Green, Dario Saric

  • Andrew Wiggins (finger) — Out

  • Chris Paul (leg) — Out

  • Gary Payton II (calf) — Injured

  • Usman Garuba (finger) — Out

With Paul already unavailable, the Warriors could heavily depend on their stars if Wiggins is ultimately ruled out. Without Paul and Wiggins on the floor this season, Curry and Thompson have seen +5.3% usage rate increases. Curry's 37.7% usage rate in that situation is the team's highest. Regardless of Wiggins' final status, Golden State will have a tough matchup against the Clippers, as teams are shooting 45.3% from the field and 34.0% from deep against Los Angeles. Those marks are both bottom-six league-wide.

Los Angeles Clippers News

Confirmed Lineup: James Harden, Terance Mann, Paul George, Kawhi Leonard, Ivica Zubac

  • Mason Plumlee (knee) — Injured

  • Brandon Boston Jr. (quad) — Injured

Minnesota Timberwolves News

Confirmed Lineup: Mike Conley, Troy Brown Jr., Nickeil Alexander-Walker, Karl-Anthony Towns, Rudy Gobert

  • Anthony Edwards (hip) — Out

  • Rudy Gobert (hip) — In

  • Jaden McDaniels (ankle) — Injured

  • Jordan McLaughlin (knee) — Injured

  • Jaylen Clark (Achilles) — Injured

Before sitting out the last game, Edwards had led the team in scoring for five consecutive contests. In his absence, Towns posted a team-high 32 points and added 11 rebounds in a win. His usage rate increased from 26.5% to 35.1%, the biggest jump team-wide. With Edwards unlikely to play again, Towns could be heavily relied on against a Hornets team that allows the second-most points (28.1) and fourth-most rebounds per game (11.4) to power forwards.

Charlotte Hornets News

Confirmed Lineup: Terry Rozier, Brandon Miller, Gordon Hayward, Miles Bridges, Mark Williams

  • Brandon Miller (ankle) — Available

  • LaMelo Ball (ankle) — Injured

  • Nick Richards (concussion) — Available

  • Frank Ntilikina (leg) — Injured

  • Cody Martin (knee) — Injured

Orlando Magic News

Confirmed Lineup: Anthony Black, Jalen Suggs, Franz Wagner, Paolo Banchero, Goga Bitadze

  • Jonathan Isaac (ankle) — Available

  • Markelle Fultz (knee) — Out

  • Wendell Carter Jr. (hand) — Injured

Brooklyn Nets News

Confirmed Lineup: Spencer Dinwiddie, Cam Thomas, Mikal Bridges, Cam Johnson, Nic Claxton

  • Dennis Smith Jr. (back) — Available

  • Lonnie Walker (hamstring) — Out

  • Dorian Finney-Smith (foot, knee) — Out

  • Royce O'Neale (hip) — Not on injury report

  • Noah Clowney (shoulder) — Out

  • Ben Simmons (back) — Injured

Cleveland Cavaliers News

Confirmed Lineup: Darius Garland, Donovan Mitchell, Max Strus, Evan Mobley, Jarrett Allen

  • Caris LeVert (knee) — Out

  • Dean Wade (ankle) — Out

  • Ty Jerome (ankle) — Injured

  • Ricky Rubio (personal) — NWT

Detroit Pistons News

Confirmed Lineup: Cade Cunningham, Killian Hayes, Jaden Ivey, Isaiah Stewart, Jalen Duren

  • Bojan Bogdanovic (calf) — In

  • Ausar Thompson (face) — Available

  • Joe Harris (shoulder) — Injured

  • Monte Morris (quad) — Injured

It appears that Bogdanovic could make his season debut after missing the first 19 games. If so, he'll immediately provide scoring that the Pistons have lacked thus far. Their 109.6 points per game are the fourth-fewest league-wide, and while Cunningham is averaging 22.3 points per contest, no other player on the roster is scoring more than 12.0 per game. Detroit has lost all but two outings and is in the midst of a 16-game losing streak.

Indiana Pacers News

Confirmed Lineup: Andrew Nembhard, Bruce Brown, Buddy Hield, Obi Toppin, Myles Turner

  • Tyrese Haliburton (knee, illness) — Out

  • Jalen Smith (knee) — Injured

Haliburton is averaging 11.8 assists on 19.8 potential assists per game, both of which are league-highs. His 27.0 points per contest are the most of any player team-wide. The Pacers will face a Heat team that they lost to last game in an outing where Haliburton posted team-highs of 44 points and 10 assists. With Haliburton uncertain to play, Indiana could need increased production from TJ McConnell or Andrew Nembhard, who posted respective usage rates of 22.2% and 39.2% in the lone game that Haliburton missed.

Miami Heat News

Confirmed Lineup: Kyle Lowry, Duncan Robinson, Jimmy Butler, Haywood Highsmith, Orlando Robinson

  • Jimmy Butler (ankle) — In

  • Bam Adebayo (hip) — Injured

  • Tyler Herro (ankle) — Injured

  • RJ Hampton (knee) — Injured

  • Dru Smith (knee) — Out for season

New Orleans Pelicans News

Confirmed Lineup: Dyson Daniels, Herb Jones, Brandon Ingram, Zion Williamson, Jonas Valanciunas

  • Zion Williamson — In

  • CJ McCollum (rest) — Out

  • Trey Murphy III (rest) — Out

  • Jose Alvarado (ankle) — Available

  • Matt Ryan (calf) — Out

  • Larry Nance Jr. (rib) — Injured

While McCollum has played two games since returning from a collapsed lung, the plan was always for him not to travel with the team to Chicago in the second leg of the back-to-back set on Saturday. McCollum mentioned at Wednesday's shootaround that he didn't think he'd be cleared to fly to Chicago because the flight falls on the "four-week mark" from when he suffered the initial injury. Since returning, McCollum has averaged 19.5 points and 6.5 assists, while his 25.6% usage rate over that span has led all Pelicans starters.

Chicago Bulls News

Confirmed Lineup: Coby White, Alex Caruso, DeMar DeRozan, Patrick Williams, Nikola Vucevic

  • DeMar DeRozan (ankle) — Available

  • Zach LaVine (foot) — Injured

  • Lonzo Ball (knee) — Out for season

Despite DeRozan and LaVine missing the last outing, the Bulls snapped a five-game losing streak with an overtime win against the Bucks. Vucevic led the way with 29 points in that game, while White played a team-high 45 minutes. With LaVine still sidelined and DeRozan uncertain to play, the Bulls could struggle to find consistent offense, particularly against a Pelicans team with a top-10 Defensive Rating (111.8).

Atlanta Hawks News

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

Milwaukee Bucks News

Confirmed Lineup: Damian Lillard, Malik Beasley, Khris Middleton, Giannis Antetokounmpo, Brook Lopez

  • Andre Jackson Jr. (back) — Out

  • Pat Connaughton (ankle) — Out

  • Jae Crowder (adductor, abdomen) — Injured

Oklahoma City Thunder News

Confirmed Lineup: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Josh Giddey, Lu Dort, Jalen Williams, Chet Holmgren

Dallas Mavericks News

Confirmed Lineup: Luka Doncic, Seth Curry, Derrick Jones Jr., Grant Williams, Dereck Lively II

  • Luka Doncic (personal) — Not on injury report

  • Kyrie Irving (foot) — Out

  • Tim Hardaway Jr. (back) — Out

  • Josh Green (elbow) — Out

  • Dante Exum (personal) — Out

  • Maxi Kleber (toe) — Injured

With Doncic's status for the second leg of a back-to-back set unclear, Irving's injury in last night's game looms large. Irving expects to play despite tweaking his foot in the first quarter of that outing, but he mentioned that he'd have to see how he recovers as it was tough to play through. "It's hard to settle back in once you feel a tweak like that, especially in your feet," said Irving. "I'm looking like I'm going to play tomorrow, but we'll just see how it feels in the rising."

Memphis Grizzlies News

Confirmed Lineup: Jaylen Nowell, Desmond Bane, David Roddy, Jaren Jackson Jr., Bismack Biyombo

  • Derrick Rose (ankle) — Out

  • Ziaire Williams (illness) — Out

  • Ja Morant — Suspended

  • Marcus Smart (foot) — Injured

  • Luke Kennard (knee) — Injured

  • Jake LaRavia (eye) — Injured

  • Brandon Clarke (Achilles) — Injured

  • Steven Adams (knee) — Out for season

Phoenix Suns News

Confirmed Lineup: Devin Booker, Grayson Allen, Josh Okogie, Kevin Durant, Jusuf Nurkic

  • Devin Booker (ankle) — Available

  • Eric Gordon (knee) — Out

  • Bradley Beal (back) — Injured

  • Damion Lee (knee) — Injured

Booker missed the last game after suffering his injury in Wednesday's contest. Coach Vogel mentioned that while Booker was able to stay on the court in that outing, the ankle got worse after, and Booker's status remains unclear heading into Saturday's game. "He's basically been getting treatment every 12 hours, twice a day," said Vogel. "You know, in a situation like that, sometimes guys can tough it out and finish the game, but it's going to swell up later that night, and it did." When asked if Booker would be available for this contest, coach Vogel said, "We'll see."

Portland Trail Blazers News

Confirmed Lineup: Malcolm Brogdon, Shaedon Sharpe, Toumani Camara, Jerami Grant, Deandre Ayton

  • Ish Wainright (knee) — Injured

  • Anfernee Simons (thumb) — Injured

  • Robert Williams (knee) — Out for season

Utah Jazz News

Confirmed Lineup: Keyonte George, Ochai Agbaji, Simone Fontecchio, John Collins, Omer Yurtseven

  • Jordan Clarkson (thigh) — Out

  • Kelly Olynyk (shoulder) — Out

  • Kris Dunn (personal) — Out

  • Lauri Markkanen (hamstring) — Injured

Denver Nuggets News

Confirmed Lineup: Reggie Jackson, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Michael Porter Jr., Aaron Gordon, Nikola Jokic

  • Jamal Murray (ankle) — Out

  • Aaron Gordon (heel) — Available

  • Reggie Jackson (quad) — Available

  • Vlatko Cancar (knee) — Injured

Sacramento Kings News

Confirmed Lineup: De'Aaron Fox, Kevin Huerter, Harrison Barnes, Keegan Murray, Domantas Sabonis

  • Keegan Murray (back) — Available

  • Davion Mitchell (illness) — Out

  • Alex Len (ankle) — Injured

Houston Rockets News

Confirmed Lineup: Fred VanVleet, Jalen Green, Dillon Brooks, Jabari Smith Jr., Alperen Sengun

  • Fred VanVleet (thumb) — Available

  • Jae'Sean Tate (knee) — Available

  • Amen Thompson (ankle) — Injured

  • Victor Oladipo (knee) — Injured

Los Angeles Lakers News

Confirmed Lineup: D'Angelo Russell, Cam Reddish, Taurean Prince, LeBron James, Anthony Davis

  • LeBron James (calf) — Available

  • Anthony Davis (adductor, hip) — Available

  • Cam Reddish (groin) — Available

  • Jaxson Hayes (elbow) — Available

  • Rui Hachimura (nose) — Not on injury report

  • Gabe Vincent (knee) — Injured

  • Jarred Vanderbilt (heel) — Not on injury report

While Davis and James continue to have injury designations for each game, it appears to be procedural at this point. Davis has missed just one game since suffering his dual injury over three weeks ago, while James has missed only one game since he's been listed with a left calf contusion. Hachimura and Vanderbilt are set to return from extended absences, with the latter's absence lasting for the entire season thus far. Both players are expected to provide immediate depth and toughness to a Lakers team that's lost three of their last five games and given up 125.0 points per contest in those losses.