Damian Lillard says he’ll play Friday vs. Mavericks [UPDATE]

UPDATE: Jan. 17, 8:20 p.m. — Lillard says he’ll play through the illness vs. Dallas.

So I don’t think we have to worry too much about Dame. If he says he’s good enough to play through the illness, then he’s clearly good enough for a full amount of minutes. Maybe I’d be a bit cautious, but this is Dame.

Portland Trail Blazers PG Damian Lillard is questionable to play Friday vs. the Dallas Mavericks due to an illness.

This is some late-breaking news that could impact Friday’s seven-game slate quite a bit. With Lillard’s status in question, we may have to rethink some of our lineups with just over an hour until lock at 7:00 p.m. ET.

Fantasy Basketball, DFS analysis: Portland Trail Blazers PG Damian Lillard

So if Dame is ruled out, CJ McCollum ($6,800) is pretty much the chalk play of the slate. He’d be the go-to scorer in a good matchup in terms of pace. McCollum is hot too, having scored a combined 71 points over the past three games. Hassan Whiteside ($8,400) was already in a good spot, but I think this only makes things better if Lillard is out. The Mavs have had trouble containing bigs in the paint and Kristaps Porzingis isn’t going to play tonight.