This article is part of our Yahoo DFS Basketball series.
The NBA rolls along Wednesday with nine games on the schedule. The Hawks will be in action when they take on the Bulls, but they continue to deal with their outbreak of COVID-19. Although Trae Young is back, Bogdan Bogdanovic, Gorgui Dieng and Malik Ellison all entered the health and safety protocols Tuesday.
In addition to several teams dealing with COVID-19 absences, five teams will be playing the second game of a back-to-back set. That includes the Lakers, who are looking at a difficult matchup on the road against the Grizzlies. Let's highlight some players to consider for your Yahoo lineups, as well as a few to potentially avoid.
GUARDS
Jalen Brunson, DAL at SAC ($27): With injuries and a COVID-19 outbreak impacting the team, Brunson has started each of the last eight games for the Mavericks. He averaged 35 minutes during that stretch, which helped him score at least 31.3 Yahoo points seven times. Luka Doncic and Tim Hardaway Jr. both remain in the health and safety protocols, so Brunson should once again log plenty of minutes.
Jordan Clarkson, UTA at POR ($17): Donovan Mitchell (back) sat out Monday's game against the Spurs, which enabled Clarkson to play 32 minutes off the bench. He scored 23 points on 21 shot attempts, which were both significant increases over his season averages of 14.7 points and 13.9 shot attempts per game. Mitchell will be out again for this matchup, which should again leave Clarkson with an expanded role.
Guard to Avoid
Darren Collison, LAL at MEM ($18): This salary makes little sense. After having not appeared in the NBA since 2019, the Lakers brought in Collison during their outbreak of COVID-19. He has logged 14 minutes or fewer in both of the last two games, scoring 3.9 and 5.9 Yahoo points, respectively. Given that Clarkson's salary is a dollar cheaper, stay far, far away from Collison.
FORWARDS
Kristaps Porzingis, DAL at SAC ($40): Between an ankle injury and COVID-19, Doncic has sat out each of the last eight games. Porzingis also missed a couple of games recently, but he's averaged 22.3 points, 8.8 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 2.2 blocks across the six games in which he played without Doncic. He could feast against a Kings team that has the fourth-worst defensive rating in the league.
Cam Reddish, ATL at CHI ($15): Bogdanovic is the biggest loss among the three additional players that the Hawks placed in the protocols Tuesday. Reddish has been one of their few healthy options, which has helped him average 23.8 points, 3.8 rebounds and 2.5 assists over the last four games. That included when he scored 33 points and hit eight three-pointers against these same Bulls on Monday.
Forward to Avoid
Talen Horton-Tucker, LAL at MEM ($16): Horton-Tucker is one of the few intriguing young players with upside on an otherwise veteran-laden Lakers' roster. He's been an inconsistent source for production, though, which may have contributed to his move to the bench for Tuesday's game against the Rockets. He only logged 21 minutes in that role, recording two points and three rebounds. Considering the Lakers won, he could remain a member of the second unit for this game.
CENTERS
JaVale McGee, PHO vs. OKC ($17): Both of these teams have been hit hard by COVID-19. Deandre Ayton is in the health and safety protocols for the Suns, along with the Thunder's frontcourt trio of Jeremiah Robinson-Earl, Derrick Favors and Darius Bazley. That should mean that McGee starts and battles the duo of Mike Muscala and Isaiah Roby. Given that the Thunder have already allowed the third-most rebounds per game in the league, McGee could be in line for added production.
Omer Yurtseven, MIA at SA ($12): The Heat are thin at the center spot right now, which has forced them to rely more on Yurtseven. He hasn't let them down, scoring at least 34.0 Yahoo points in three of the last four games. Reinforcements aren't coming anytime soon, which means Yurtseven should again at least threaten to record a double-double.
Center to Avoid
Richaun Holmes, SAC vs. DAL ($18): We haven't seen much of Holmes lately, considering that he has missed 10 of the Kings last 17 games. After recently missing seven games with an eye injury, Holmes has played 25 minutes or fewer in each of the last three games. He didn't score more than 23.7 Yahoo points in any of those matchups, so it might be best to wait for him to show signs of getting back on track before taking a chance on him in DFS.
