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 (foot) — Probable
Anthony Davis (back) — Questionable
Joel Embiid (injury recovery) — Questionable
Zion Williamson (hip, back) — Questionable
Zach LaVine (injury management) — Questionable
CJ McCollum (hand) — Questionable
Terry Rozier (ankle) — Doubtful
Michael Porter Jr. (injury management) — Expected to play
Russell Westbrook (hamstring) — Probable
Kevin Porter Jr. (thigh) — Probable
Jaden Ivey (illness) — Questionable
Kentavious Caldwell-Pope (ankle) — Questionable
Recent NBA News
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Projected Lineup: Trae Young, Dejounte Murray, De’Andre Hunter, John Collins, Clint Capela
Projected Lineup: Cade Cunningham, Jaden Ivey, Saddiq Bey, Bojan Bogdanovic, Isaiah Stewart
Jaden Ivey (illness) — Questionable
Alec Burks (foot) — Injured
Marvin Bagley (knee) — Injured
Projected Lineup: Dennis Smith Jr., Kelly Oubre, Gordon Hayward, PJ Washington, Mason Plumlee
Terry Rozier (ankle) — Doubtful
Cody Martin (quad) — Doubtful
LaMelo Ball (ankle) — Out
Dennis Smith Jr. has carried 21.1% usage and a 37.8% assist rate in his two starts. Kelly Oubre Jr. has also received 26.4% usage and Mason Plumlee has recorded a 25.0% assist rate during those two games while Gordon Hayward’s stats have remained stable.
Projected Lineup: R.J. Hampton, Terrence Ross, Franz Wagner, Paolo Banchero, Wendell Carter Jr.
Cole Anthony (oblique) — Injured
Jalen Suggs (ankle) — Injured
Moe Wagner (ankle) — Injured
Markelle Fultz (toe) — Injured
Gary Harris (knee) — Injured
Jonathan Isaac (ACL) — Injured
The Magic are down to just R.J. Hampton and two-way player Kevon Harris as reserve guards. Franz Wagner and Paolo Banchero are likely pressed into lead distributing roles.
Projected Lineup: Marcus Smart, Derrick White, Jaylen Brown, Jayson Tatum, Al Horford
Danilo Gallinari (ACL) — Injured
Robert Williams (knee) — Injured
Grant Williams (suspension) — Out
Noah Vonleh and Blake Griffin are more assured to receive the backup center minutes with Williams suspended. Malcolm Brogdon is also likely for a greater sixth-man role while Sam Hauser could receive greater playing time as well.
Projected Lineup: Donovan Mitchell, Caris LeVert, Dean Wade, Evan Mobley, Jarrett Allen
Darius Garland (eye) — Out
Dylan Windler (ankle) — Out
Ricky Rubio (ACL) — Injured
Donovan Mitchell is carrying a 31.6% usage rate and a 33.0% assist rate with Garland largely out this season. Caris LeVert is also maintaining a 25.0% assist rate as a result.
Projected Lineup: James Harden, Tyrese Maxey, Tobias Harris, PJ Tucker, Joel Embiid
The Raptors doubled Joel Embiid heavily during their playoff series last season, resulting in the 76ers making an additional two three-pointers per game from their regular season average despite the pace of play slowing to 90.3 possessions per game.
Projected Lineup: Fred VanVleet, Gary Trent Jr., OG Anunoby, Scottie Barnes, Pascal Siakam
The Raptors rank second in the league with 21.0 fast break points per game while the 76ers are allowing 21.2 fast break points per game, which ranks second-worse league-wide.
Projected Lineup: Tyrese Haliburton, Buddy Hield, Aaron Nesmith, Jalen Smith, Myles Turner
Projected Lineup: Monte Morris, Bradley Beal, Deni Avdija, Kyle Kuzma, Kristaps Porzingis
Johnny Davis or Jordan Goodwin could fill in for Wright as a second-unit ball-handler, though allowing Will Barton to fill the role with Anthony Gill stepping back into the rotation is an option.
Projected Lineup: Jalen Brunson, Evan Fournier, RJ Barrett, Julius Randle, Mitchell Robinson
The Knicks rank first in the league with 21.0 second-chance points per game. The Bucks rank third in allowing second-chance points, with just 10.0 per game.
Projected Lineup: Jrue Holiday, Jevon Carter, Grayson Allen, Giannis Antetokounmpo, Brook Lopez
Khris Middleton (wrist) — Injured
Pat Connaughton (calf) — Injured
Joe Ingles (ACL) — Injured
The Bucks rank first in defensive rating by 3.7 points per 100 possessions after allowing just 44 points in the second half against the Nets.
Projected Lineup: LeBron James, Patrick Beverley, Lonnie Walker, Anthony Davis, Damian Jones
LeBron James (foot) — Probable
Anthony Davis (back) — Questionable
Russell Westbrook (hamstring) — Probable
Juan Toscano-Anderson (ankle) — Out
Dennis Schroder (thumb) — Injured
Thomas Bryant (thumb) — Injured
On injury report before playing:
LeBron: 4-for-4
AD: 4-for-4
Damian Jones, Juan Toscano-Anderson, and Wenyen Gabriel could receive more time against Minnesota’s large frontcourt if Davis needs to be out. Austin Reaves started for Westbrook on Wednesday and he could again receive more minutes along with Kendrick Nunn and Troy Brown Jr. if he remains out.
Projected Lineup: D’Angelo Russell, Anthony Edwards, Jaden McDaniels, Karl-Anthony Towns, Rudy Gobert
Anderson’s potential return would lead to lesser minutes for Jaden McDaniels, Jaylen Nowell, and Taurean Prince.
Projected Lineup: Ayo Dosunmu, Zach LaVine, DeMar DeRozan, Patrick Williams, Nikola Vucevic
DeMar DeRozan recorded a 33.1% usage rate and 44.1% assist rate with LaVine out for the first two games of the season. Nikola Vucevic recorded 19.5% usage against Bam Adebayo and the Heat but was up to 30.9% usage against the Wizards.
Projected Lineup: Tre Jones, Josh Richardson, Keldon Johnson, Jeremy Sochan, Jakob Poeltl
Josh Richardson recorded a 35.7% assist rate in his start on Wednesday. Keldon Johnson (28.2%), Doug McDermott (25.4%), and Jeremy Sochan (20.6%) received much of the usage left behind by Vassell and Primo.
Projected Lineup: Mike Conley, Jordan Clarkson, Lauri Markkanen, Jarred Vanderbilt, Kelly Olynyk
Collin Sexton (oblique) — Questionable
Walker Kessler (illness) — Questionable
Rudy Gay (health protocols) — Out
Simone Fontecchio (health protocols) — Out
Udoka Azubuike (ankle) — Not on injury report
Udoka Azubuike is off of the injury report to provide a backup center option along with two-way player Micah Potter if Kessler is ruled out. Talen Horton-Tucker was the backup point guard after Sexton got hurt on Wednesday, and he could also be in the mix for greater minutes sans Gay and Fontecchio along with Nickeil Alexander-Walker, Ochai Agbaji, and Malik Beasley.
Projected Lineup: Jamal Murray, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Michael Porter Jr., Aaron Gordon, Nikola Jokic
Michael Porter Jr. (injury management) — Expected to play
Kentavious Caldwell-Pope (ankle) — Questionable
Davon Reed (personal) — Questionable
Bruce Brown could be in line for another start if Caldwell-Pope can’t play. Christian Braun and Jeff Green would be the top reserves in that event and could again both clear 20 minutes of playing time.
Projected Lineup: CJ McCollum, Herb Jones, Trey Murphy, Zion Williamson, Jonas Valanciunas
Zion Williamson (hip, back) — Questionable
Brandon Ingram (concussion) — Out
CJ McCollum (hand) — Questionable
Herb Jones (knee) — Questionable
Jose Alvarado (back) — Questionable
Dyson Daniels (ankle) — Questionable
Kira Lewis (ACL) — Injured
Devonte’ Graham, Naji Marshall, Trey Murphy, Larry Nance Jr., Jonas Valanciunas, and Jaxson Hayes are the remaining healthy rotation players for the Pelicans. Garrett Temple, Willy Hernangomez, and Dereon Seabron are also options.
Projected Lineup: Chris Paul, Devin Booker, Mikal Bridges, Cam Johnson, Deandre Ayton
Projected Lineup: Kevin Porter Jr., Jalen Green, Eric Gordon, Jae’Sean Tate, Jabari Smith Jr.
Bruno Fernando (knee) — Injured
TyTy Washington (knee) — Injured
Alperen Sengun (illness) — Probable
Kevin Porter Jr. (thigh) — Probable
Sengun’s likely return should mean lesser minutes for KJ Martin, Tari Eason, Daishen Nix, and potentially Usman Garuba as the Rockets should be expected to go small less in their second unit. Sengun or Garuba could also start with the Rockets set to face Jusuf Nurkic.
Projected Lineup: Anfernee Simons, Shaedon Sharpe, Josh Hart, Jerami Grant, Jusuf Nurkic
Shaedon Sharpe, Nassir Little, Keon Johnson, and Justise Winslow should all see increased minutes while Damian Lillard is out. Anfernee Simons and Jusuf Nurkic had respective +3.9% and +3.2% usage rates with Lillard and CJ McCollum off of the floor last season. Josh Hart also carried 25.0% usage after being acquired in the McCollum trade, though the addition of Jerami Grant provides another scoring option.
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