NBA News & Fantasy Basketball Notes 12/20

Dec 20th 2023

Cooper 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

  • LeBron James (calf) — Available

  • Jayson Tatum (ankle) — Out

  • Anthony Davis (ankle) — Available

  • Paul George (illness) — Out

  • Donovan Mitchell (illness) — Out

  • Aaron Gordon (heel) — Available

  • Myles Turner (hamstrings) — Available

  • Gordon Hayward (illness) — Available

  • Mark Williams (back) — Out

  • Alex Caruso (ankle) — Available

  • Jericho Sims (ankle) — Injured

  • Patrick Williams (calf) — Available

  • Bogdan Bogdanovic (ankle) — Available

Follow us on Twitter at @Underdog__NBA for notifications.

Utah Jazz News

Confirmed Lineup: Talen Horton-Tucker, Collin Sexton, Simone Fontecchio, Lauri Markkanen, Walker Kessler

  • Omer Yurtseven (illness) — Out

  • Keyonte George (foot) — Injured

  • Jordan Clarkson (thigh) — Injured

Cleveland Cavaliers News

Confirmed Lineup: Craig Porter Jr., Max Strus, Isaac Okoro, Dean Wade, Jarrett Allen

  • Donovan Mitchell (illness) — Out

  • Evan Mobley (knee) — Injured

  • Darius Garland (jaw) — Injured

  • Ty Jerome (ankle) — Injured

  • Ricky Rubio — NWT

Charlotte Hornets News

Confirmed Lineup: Terry Rozier, Brandon Miller, Gordon Hayward, Miles Bridges, Nick Richards

  • Gordon Hayward (illness) — Available

  • Mark Williams (back) — Out

  • LaMelo Ball (ankle) — Injured

  • Frank Ntilikina (leg) — Injured

  • Cody Martin (knee) — Injured

Indiana Pacers News

Confirmed Lineup: Tyrese Haliburton, Bruce Brown, Buddy Hield, Obi Toppin, Myles Turner

  • Myles Turner (hamstrings) — Available

  • Jalen Smith (knee, heel) — Available

  • Andrew Nembhard (knee) — Injured

Turner missed the previous outing, resulting in Isaiah Jackson receiving a spot start, recording 15 points and four rebounds in 25 minutes. If Turner misses Wednesday's outing, Jackson would likely remain in the starting lineup and could have additional depth behind him, as Smith has missed the previous nine games but could make his return. Regardless of which frontcourt players are available for Indiana, they should find success against the Hornets, who give up a combined 53.1 points and 28.2 rebounds per game to power forwards and centers, both of which are bottom-three marks league-wide.

Miami Heat News

Confirmed Lineup: Kyle Lowry, Tyler Herro, Jaime Jaquez, Caleb Martin, Bam Adebayo

  • Jimmy Butler (calf) — Out

  • Kevin Love (illness) — Out

  • Dru Smith (knee) — Out for season

With Butler sidelined, all eyes will be on Herro and Adebayo, who returned from their injuries last game and played 33 and 36 minutes, respectively. They combined for 47 points in the Heat loss. Miami will now face the Magic, who have played well this season but have lost four of their last six outings. Herro played upwards of 40 minutes in his lone appearance sans Butler this season, but it's unclear if coach Spoelstra would be okay with Herro receiving that many minutes in his second game back.

Orlando Magic News

Confirmed Lineup: Anthony Black, Jalen Suggs, Franz Wagner, Paolo Banchero, Wendell Carter Jr.

  • Joe Ingles (ankle) — Out

  • Markelle Fultz (knee) — Out

Minnesota Timberwolves News

Confirmed Lineup: Mike Conley, Anthony Edwards, Jaden McDaniels, Karl-Anthony Towns, Rudy Gobert

  • Jaylen Clark (Achilles) — Injured

Philadelphia 76ers News

Confirmed Lineup: Tyrese Maxey, De'Anthony Melton, Kelly Oubre, Tobias Harris, Joel Embiid

  • Marcus Morris (illness) — Available

  • Robert Covington (illness) — Out

  • Nicolas Batum (hamstring) — Out

New York Knicks News

Confirmed Lineup: Jalen Brunson, Donte DiVincenzo, RJ Barrett, Julius Randle, Isaiah Hartenstein

  • Josh Hart (knee) — Available

  • Jericho Sims (ankle) — Injured

  • Mitchell Robinson (ankle) — Injured

Brooklyn Nets News

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

  • Dennis Smith Jr. (back) — Injured

  • Lonnie Walker (hamstring) — Injured

  • Ben Simmons (back) — Injured

Denver Nuggets News

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

  • Aaron Gordon (heel) — Available

  • Vlatko Cancar (knee) — Injured

Toronto Raptors News

Confirmed Lineup: Dennis Schroder, OG Anunoby, Scottie Barnes, Pascal Siakam, Jakob Poeltl

  • Christian Koloko (respiratory) — Injured

Los Angeles Lakers News

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

  • LeBron James (calf) — Available

  • Anthony Davis (ankle) — Available

  • Jarred Vanderbilt (heel) — Available

  • Gabe Vincent (knee) — In

  • Jalen Hood-Schifino (back) — Out

James has been hampered by his ailment for over a month but has only missed two games this season. Meanwhile, Vincent has missed the previous 23 outings but is expected to return on Wednesday. They'll face a Bulls team that has actually performed better this season without Zach LaVine, who remains sidelined due to a foot injury. The Lakers have struggled outside of the In Season Tournament, losing 12 of those 21 outings after winning all seven of their IST contests.

Chicago Bulls News

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

  • Alex Caruso (ankle) — Available

  • Patrick Williams (calf) — Available

  • Henri Drell (thumb) — Out

  • Onuralp Bitim (nose) — Out

  • Torrey Craig (foot) — Injured

  • Zach LaVine (foot) — Injured

  • Lonzo Ball (knee) — Out for season

Atlanta Hawks News

Confirmed Lineup: Trae Young, Dejounte Murray, De'Andre Hunter, Saddiq Bey, Clint Capela

  • Bogdan Bogdanovic (ankle) — Available

  • AJ Griffin (personal) — Out

  • Jalen Johnson (wrist) — Injured

  • Mouhamed Gueye (back) — Injured

  • Kobe Bufkin (thumb) — Injured

Houston Rockets News

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

  • Tari Eason (leg) — Questionable

  • Amen Thompson (illness) — Available

  • Jae'Sean Tate (illness) — Questionable

  • Victor Oladipo (knee) — Injured

Los Angeles Clippers News

Confirmed Lineup: James Harden, Terance Mann, Amir Coffey, Kawhi Leonard, Ivica Zubac

  • Paul George (illness) — Out

  • Norman Powell (illness) — In

  • Bones Hyland (knee) — Available

  • Moussa Diabate (hip) — Out

  • Mason Plumlee (knee) — Injured

Over the last five games, the Clippers' 133.1 Offensive Rating has been the league's best, and one of those outings was without George. If George is sidelined tonight, Zubac could be involved more, as he saw increases in minutes (+3.5) and usage (+1.8%) in the lone game sans George. During this five-game stretch, Zubac has averaged a double-double, and now he'll get a matchup against a Mavericks team that gives up the third-most points (25.1) and seventh-most rebounds per game (15.4) to centers. Dallas is also without starting center Dereck Lively (ankle).

Dallas Mavericks News

Confirmed Lineup: Luka Doncic, Dante Exum, Derrick Jones Jr., Grant Williams, Dwight Powell

  • Seth Curry (back) — Available

  • Dereck Lively II (ankle) — Out

  • Kyrie Irving (heel) — Injured

  • Josh Green (elbow) — Injured

  • Maxi Kleber (toe) — Injured

Boston Celtics News

Confirmed Lineup: Jrue Holiday, Derrick White, Jaylen Brown, Sam Hauser, Kristaps Porzingis

  • Jayson Tatum (ankle) — Out

  • Al Horford (rest) — Out

  • Luke Kornet (adductor) — Injured

Sacramento Kings News

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

  • Malik Monk (foot) — Available

  • Alex Len (ankle) — Injured