Jaylen Brown, Kemba Walker both out Saturday vs. Suns [UPDATE]

UPDATE: Jan. 18, 5:55 p.m. — Walker and Brown have both been ruled out vs. the Suns.

UPDATE: Jan. 18, 12:02 p.m. — Brown has been ruled out, while Kemba Walker has popped up on the injury report as questionable Saturday vs. the Suns.

Marcus Smart and Daniel Theis are going to play, but it doesn’t seem like either player is 100%. The Celtics are severely banged up right now. This should make things much easier on Phoenix. With Kelly Oubre Jr. out for the Suns, Ricky Rubio and Devin Booker are both strong plays overall. For Boston, Smart will start for Brown again, and if Kemba is sidelined the bruising G/F will probably see 30+ minutes. Gordon Hayward would also be the focus on offense with Jayson Tatum if Brown and Walker are out.

UPDATE: Jan. 17, 4:19 p.m. — Jaylen Brown is listed as questionable for Saturday’s game vs. the Phoenix Suns.

Marcus Smart and Daniel Theis are also on the injury report, but they appear fine to play against Phoenix. Brown was ruled out Thursday and the Celtics struggled against the Bucks, though they put up a fight. Kemba Walker dropped 40 points in that game, and if Brown remains out, Kemba would be in line for heavy usage again. The matchup is better, so Walker is in play in DFS.

UPDATE: Jan. 16, 6:17 p.m. — Jaylen Brown has been ruled out Thursday vs. the Bucks.

With Brown out and Tatum back, Smart should start for Brown, so things don’t change much from Wednesday vs. the Pistons. I think the Celtics are in a bad spot vs. the Bucks on the road and I’m not crazy about playing any of their guys. Kemba Walker and Gordon Hayward are the only appealing plays.

UPDATE: Jan. 16, 2:16 p.m. — Jayson Tatum is off the injury report after missing Wednesday’s game and Jaylen Brown (thumb) is being listed as questionable Thursday vs. the Milwaukee Bucks.

If Brown is out, Marcus Smart should start again. Gordon Hayward and Kemba Walker are good DFS options, though the Bucks are a top defensive team. The way the Celtics played last night, I’d look elsewhere on this five-game slate.

UPDATE: Jan. 15, 9:18 p.m. — The Celtics were without Tatum and things did not go well for them at home against the Pistons on Wednesday night. Detroit got out to an early lead and never looked back en route to a 116-103 win.

Boston let me down, among other bettors, failing miserably to cover a 9.5-point spread at home against a team well below .500. The only bright spot for the Celtics and DFS players was Gordon Hayward ($6,300) and Jaylen Brown ($6,500) both put up solid fantasy stats. Hayward had 38.75 fantasy points while Brown finished with a team-high 43.5 FPTS, both scoring over 24 points.

UPDATE: Jan. 15, 6:31 p.m. — Marcus Smart will start in place of Tatum as expected.

Boston Celtics SF/PF Jayson Tatum has been ruled out for Wednesday night’s game vs. the Detroit Pistons, per coach Brad Stevens.

The Celtics confirmed the news and also mentioned that it isn’t anything to worry about if you’re a Tatum owner in fantasy basketball.

So it appears this is just a scheduled rest day with the Celtics on the first of a back-to-back set before facing the Milwaukee Bucks on Thursday. But let’s focus on how Tatum’s absence impacts Wednesday night’s 10-game slate.

Fantasy Basketball Analysis: Boston Celtics F Jayson Tatum

With Tatum out, I’d imagine the Celtics will go small with Gordon Hayward at the 4 and Jaylen Brown at the 3, moving Marcus Smart into the starting lineup off the bench. Smart can also guard the 3, so it makes the lineup a bit versatile. I’d say Kemba Walker ($7,200), Brown ($6,500) and Hayward ($6,300) are all very strong plays on DraftKings. Smart ($5,400) gets a nice value boost, while Enes Kanter ($5,700) would be another solid choice if Daniel Theis ($4,200) is out again. I don’t have a problem stacking Kemba, Brown and Hayward, to be honest.