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UPDATE: Jan. 23, 6:42 p.m. — AD is available to play vs. the Nets.
Anthony Davis WILL PLAY tonight in Brooklyn. Rajon Rondo and Kyle Kuzma are on the court now, but Lakers anticipate that both will play.
— Kyle Goon (@kylegoon) January 23, 2020
UPDATE: Jan. 23, 11:57 a.m. — Anthony Davis is questionable to play in Thursday night’s game vs. the Nets. Rajon Rondo and Kyle Kuzma are probable. I figured AD may not play in this game, so we’ll have to wait until later to find out his status. If AD is ruled out, fire up LeBron James in DFS in both cash games and GPPs. Kuzma would also be a strong tournament option.
Injury update for LAL tonight at Brooklyn: Rajon Rondo (avulsion fracture of right ring finger) and Kyle Kuzma (sore left ankle) are probable, and Anthony Davis (gluteus maximus contusion) is questionable.
— Mike Trudell (@LakersReporter) January 23, 2020
UPDATE: Jan. 20, 6:06 p.m. — Davis will be restricted to 28 minutes. This hurts his upside as a DFS play and is a slight downgrade to the Lakers. LeBron could pick up a bit more usage with AD not quite at full strength.
Anthony Davis will indeed play tonight, and will be on restriction of 28 minutes. Could see him essentially play the first 7 minutes of the 1st and 3rd Q and the final 7 of the 2nd and 4th, for example. AD had a workout this morning and said he was ready to play.
— Mike Trudell (@LakersReporter) January 20, 2020
Rajon Rondo is also available to play vs. the Celts. His return will cut into the minutes of Avery Bradley and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope.
Rajon Rondo (avulsion fracture, right ring finger) is available to play tonight.
— Mike Trudell (@LakersReporter) January 20, 2020
UPDATE: Jan. 20, 11:52 a.m. — Davis is going to be available to play in Monday’s game vs. the Celtics. Davis has missed the past five games after landing hard on his tailbone against the Knicks on Jan. 7.
Anthony Davis is available to play for tonight’s game in Boston.
— Mike Trudell (@LakersReporter) January 20, 2020
Fantasy basketball analysis: Lakers PF Anthony Davis
With AD back in the starting lineup, Kyle Kuzma should head back to the bench in his usual reserve role. This is a pretty big downgrade for Kuz in both season-long and DFS. We’ll see if AD is on a minutes limit (I think that’ll be the case), but if he isn’t then you can fire him up in all formats. The Celtics lack frontcourt depth and size, so AD has a great matchup.
UPDATE: Jan. 19, 6:12 p.m. — Anthony Davis and Rajon Rondo are both questionable to play on Martin Luther King Jr. Day against the Boston Celtics.
The Lakers say Anthony Davis and Rajon Rondo remain questionable for Monday’s game in Boston.
— Dave McMenamin (@mcten) January 19, 2020
AD and Rondo were both ruled out for Saturday’s game vs. the Rockets. It was Davis’ fifth straight game sitting out, while Rondo missed three games with a fractured finger. Davis has been listed with a glute injury but it’s more of a tailbone issue. The Lakers have been fine without both players, going 4-1 the past five games.
UPDATE: Jan. 18, 7:05 p.m. — Rondo and AD have been ruled out of Saturday’s matchup against the Rockets.
Lakers star big man Anthony Davis will not play Saturday in Houston, missing his fifth straight game as he continues to recover from a hard fall on his backside against the Knicks
— Dave McMenamin (@mcten) January 19, 2020
Rondo has now missed two straight contests while AD is extending his break from action to five games. Kyle Kuzma ($12,900) has been inserted into the starting lineup for four games but has been underwhelming in his last two appearances. But he should continue to play around 30 minutes a night until AD returns. Alex Caruso ($6,000) has stepped in behind LeBron as the backup point guard and has seen a nice offensive surge. But he played sparingly in the Lakers’ last loss to the Magic. Both Kuzma and Caruso are worth a flex play in a Saturday Showdown contest.
The Lakers say that Rajon Rondo (fractured right ring finger) is out tonight. Alex Caruso has been upgraded from probable to available to play. Anthony Davis remains questionable.
— Dave McMenamin (@mcten) January 18, 2020
Los Angeles Lakers PF/C Anthony Davis and PG Rajon Rondo are both questionable for Saturday’s game vs. the Houston Rockets.
Anthony Davis did not participate in practice but is doing individual work now, and will be listed as questionable.
— Bill Oram (@billoram) January 17, 2020
Rajon Rondo will be upgraded to questionable, Lakers say.
— Bill Oram (@billoram) January 17, 2020
We also got an update on G Alex Caruso, who left Wednesday’s game vs. the Magic.
Alex Caruso went through a concussion evaluation yesterday and results were negative. He had some neck soreness, but went through practice today and he’s expected to play tomorrow at Houston.
— Mike Trudell (@LakersReporter) January 17, 2020
Caruso is expected to play, which is a good sign given how serious concussions and neck injuries can be. Davis and Rondo have been sidelined, but the Lakers have been fine without both of them outside of the loss to Orlando. Rondo’s initial timeline was 4-5 days, so that’s right in line with Saturday’s game.
Davis is a bit more tricky. He was supposed to be a game-time decision Wednesday, but was ruled out sometime in the afternoon. He’s been dealing with a bruised tailbone and obviously there’s a lot invested in Davis, so no need to push him back into the lineup.
Fantasy Basketball analysis: Los Angeles Lakers PF Anthony Davis and PG Rajon Rondo
If Rondo remains out, we should continue to see Quinn Cook get minutes off the bench. Kentavious Caldwell-Pope has also been seeing some time, but that could just be because Avery Bradley hasn’t been playing well. If Caruso is fine, he should get back into his normal role in the rotation.
As far as Davis, if he is back Saturday, I’d say that he’d probably be on a minutes restriction. Still, Dwight Howard and JaVale McGee get a downgrade, while Jared Dudley wouldn’t see much playing time in the frontcourt.