NBA

Daily Fantasy Basketball Injury Report: Thursday 12/22/16

Thursday's short slate has a lot of injuries to role players, making it an interesting night to find value.

Short slates are usually light on injuries, but this Thursday's slate is unique.

Most of the injuries are to role players, which could open up some cheap value plays for your roster construction.

Here are some injuries to be aware of while building rosters tonight.

Notable Injuries

Los Angeles Lakers

D'Angelo Russell looks like he is good to go tonight, but the Los Angeles Lakers will be without Larry Nance Jr. for the foreseeable future, and Tarik Black is out tonight too. The holes left by Black and Nance could force Luke Walton to play Julius Randle a little more, while Timofey Mozgov might also see a bump in minutes. The rest could be taken over by Thomas Robinson, but he has been a DNP-CD over the Lakers' last four games.

Miami Heat

The Miami Heat will still be without both Wayne Ellington and Rodney McGruder tonight as they face the Lakers. Tyler Johnson had the game of his life on Tuesday and should see minutes well into the 30s on Thursday. James Johnson, Josh Richardson and Justise Winslow should all continue to see increased playing time with Miami's wing injuries.

Manu Ginobili, San Antonio Spurs

Manu Ginobili is in the last few months of his 30s, and with that naturally comes the need to take some time off from the grind of a full NBA season. The San Antonio Spurs therefore will rest Ginobili tonight and Friday. This should open up a few extra minutes for Jonathon Simmons and Danny Green over the next two games.

Evan Fournier, Orlando Magic

Evan Fournier is taking over as the Orlando Magic's leading scorer, and he is looking good doing it. However, he is a little nicked up after a double-overtime game against the Heat two nights ago, but he should be ready to play on Thursday.

Rodney Stuckey, Indiana Pacers

Rodney Stuckey and Monta Ellis will both be out again on Thursday, which will continue allowing Glenn Robinson III and C.J. Miles extra minutes.

Isaiah Whitehead, Brooklyn Nets

Jeremy Lin is back, and it is making Isaiah Whitehead droppable in year-long leagues, but after missing Tuesday's game, Whitehead is questionable tonight. If he is out again, Spencer Dinwiddie might work his way into consideration in tournaments tonight as a garbage-time option if the Brooklyn Nets' game with the Golden State Warriors gets out of hand.