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Devin Goes Down
The full injury report that used to run at the start of this column is now included at the end.
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Monday Morning Injury News and Notes
Down Goes Devin
Devin Harris is the latest fantasy stud to go down, as he suffered a shoulder injury in a nasty-looking collision on Sunday night. The Nets are saying he might be back sooner than later, and may even delay getting an MRI for a few days. However, it would be very surprising if he were to play on Monday or Wednesday, leaving him very iffy to even play two games this week. I dropped
Josh Howard to pick up
Keyon Dooling last night, as Dooling should have a pretty solid week if Harris is out. Hopefully we will get some more information on Harris this afternoon, but if we don't, I'm going to be recommending that he be benched until further notice.
The Butler Isn't Doing It
We have been suggesting that
Caron Butler is a late-season risk for some time now and he's proving to be just that. In fact, I'm guessing that his owners would use words like annoying, frustrating and several others that can't be used here to describe their first-round pick. He'll have an MRI on his hamstring today and word on the street is that he's not likely to accompany the Wiz on their four-game road trip that starts on Tuesday. I'm not sure I can tell you to cut him, but he at least needs to be on your bench until the results of his MRI are known. We didn't know when, why or how he would go down, but he has had "shutdown" written all over him for the last month or so.
Deng It
Luol Deng will be out for another week with his leg injury but there are still no guarantees he'll play again this season. He's already been dropped in most leagues and he can probably be dropped in yours as well. If you want to hang on for another week until we get a (hopefully) final answer, go for it.
Jo-Ho Done Until Playoffs?
Josh Howard sprained his left ankle two weeks ago, played well in a game and a half on it later that week, and has been shut down ever since. There was a quote from him yesterday about "hoping to get back for the playoffs." He missed 11 games earlier in the season with a sprain to the same ankle, and was day-to-day the entire time. At least this time around we're getting some notice that he could be done for the fantasy season. As I mentioned above, I held on for as long as I could, but cut him in my final league last night for Dooling.
My Favorite Marvin
Marvin Williams will not have back surgery, but is also not expected back in action any time soon. He very well may not play another regular-season game for the Hawks this season and you can probably safely let him go.
Flip Murray and Mo Evans will pick up his slack, although neither has been too reliable since guys like
Joe Johnson,
Mike Bibby,
Josh Smith and
Al Horford have all decided to start playing again for the suddenly hot Hawks.
Duhon's Disappearing Act
Chris Duhon has missed his last couple games with ankle and back injuries, but is also very fatigued. His recent numbers were terrible when he was playing and there is no reason he should be in fantasy lineups right now. I'm not sure I'd cut him, but it's doable if you need to.
K-Mart Hurting
Kenyon Martin's back problem has caused him to miss five of his last six games, but he says he wants to play at some point in the upcoming week. There is no way I would put him in fantasy lineups right now, although he could return.
Renaldo Balkman has been playing very well and is a tempting play this week, but the reality is that K-Mart could really put a damper on that plan if he does make an appearance or two. Maybe we'll get some more info this afternoon.
DE-TROIT IN-JU-RIES!
Allen Iverson updates have been about as easy to come by as tickets to the Masters but it sounds like he's going to be out until at least Friday with his back injury. He'll have some more tests done on Wednesday, but this is also a case of 'where there's smoke, there's fire.' Iverson may very well be hurt, but it's also possible that he is just setting himself up to be shut down for the year. It's probably best to just hang onto him until we find out what happens on Wednesday, but if you need to cut him, you won't be the first to do so.
Rasheed Wallace has been shelved with a calf injury and isn't likely to play in a two-game road trip to Texas this week. In fact, he may just take the entire week off so get him on your bench as well.
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Deron and Memo Iffy
Deron Williams is shaky for Tuesday's game with a lower leg injury. He was worried about it swelling on the plane, but he sounds like a game-time decision for Tuesday. The Jazz play just two games this week, so if you were already on the fence about playing him, this might help you make your decision.
Mehmet Okur is also iffy with an ankle injury, which is scary with just two games. I would bench both of these guys.
Manu Still Down
I really don't know when
Manu Ginobili is going to return from his ankle injury, and Gregg Popovich doesn't either. But if Manu isn't back on the practice floor by Thursday, Pop will officially become concerned. I don't expect Ginobili to play at all this week, so just keep him benched until further notice.
Celtics Update
Kevin Garnett and
Glen Davis could return from their injuries on Friday, meaning each would play two games this week. This is bad news for
Leon Powe, but then again, I doubt Doc Rivers will throw KG and Big Baby into the fire for too many minutes right away when they return. If you want to grab Powe and play him this week, go for it.
Z-Bo
The death of
Zach Randolph's father caused plenty of problems in fantasyland. He made several trips to Indiana and then missed a couple games due to the funeral, including his last two. He was said to be traveling back to L.A. on Sunday so he should be good to go from here on out. Of course, we've said that before, only to see him continue to shower us with surprised DNPs.
Barbosa In Pain
Leandro Barbosa has been dealing with an abdominal strain for nearly two weeks, although it doesn't sound like he has a hernia. He was 0-of-5 in the second half of Sunday's game and said afterward it was the worst the injury has felt. "Every time I try to walk or run, it hurts," he said. "It gets worse when I play. After the game, I can't sleep." Um, add in the fact the Suns only go twice this week, and owners should probably just hope the Suns give him both of those off so he can get healthy.
GSW News - Stephen Jackson Suspension Coming?
Stephen Jackson and Don Nelson were both ejected on Sunday and it sounds like Jackson could receive a one-game suspension for his actions, although that's not a guarantee. If he does get shut down for one game, he'll still have three in the week to make up for it. Well, if Nellie plays him in those other three.
Monta Ellis is back from an ankle injury, while
Andris Biedrins is out for the entire week with one of his own. I'm starting
Ronny Turiaf in a couple leagues despite his lackluster performance last night. As usual, most of the Warriors are very iffy for the week, as we just don't know what Don Nelson will do with guys like
Jamal Crawford,
Kelenna Azubuike,
Corey Maggette and his pair of young power forwards (
Brandan Wright and
Anthony Randolph).
Granger Is Back – Sort Of
Danny Granger returned to action on Sunday, although the results weren't very good. And did you happen to see that dunk that
Shawn Marion threw down on him? Wow. Granger plays three times this week and all three matchups work in his favor. Therefore, go ahead and roll the dice on him unless you have a four-game option you feel safer about.
Old To Begin
Greg Oden's knee injury is supposedly getting better and there's an outside chance he'll play this week, although he's out tonight. And it would take a heck of a lot more than this news for me to put him in a lineup right now.
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Monday Morning Injury Breakdown
Marvin Williams – back – Could be done for regular season.
Kevin Garnett – knee – Aiming for Friday. We shall see.
Glen Davis – ankle – Targeting Friday's game for return.
Brian Scalabrine – concussion – No real value when healthy.
Eddie House – ankle – Hoping to play Tuesday.
Luol Deng – shin – Out for week, possibly season.
Zydrunas Ilgauskas – thumb – Played through it, should be OK.
Ben Wallace – leg –May not return for regular season.
Josh Howard – ankle – May be out for rest of regular season.
Jerry Stackhouse – foot – Returned, but then shut down again.
Devean George – knee – Had season-ending surgery.
Kenyon Martin – back – Missed five of last six, iffy for week.
Rasheed Wallace – calf – Should miss at least two game this week.
Allen Iverson – back – Out until at least Friday, maybe for season.
Andris Biedrins – ankle – Should miss whole week w/ sprain.
Marco Belinelli – toe – Too risky to play when healthy.
Tracy McGrady – knee – It's official. Season over.
Mike Dunleavy – knee – Had surgery, out for the year.
Danny Granger – foot – Back in action, struggled Sunday.
Zach Randolph – personal – Dad's funeral behind him, should be safe.
Ricky Davis – knee – Could be done for the year.
Andrew Bynum – knee – Running, but can't cut. Anyone's guess on return.
Daequan Cook – teeth – Should play at some point this week.
Andrew Bogut – back – Season very much in doubt.
Michael Redd – knee – Had surgery and is done for the season.
Kevin Ollie – flu – No value either way.
Al Jefferson – knee – Season over.
Devin Harris – shoulder – Went down hard Sunday, very risky play.
Eduardo Najera – ab strain – Out for season.
Peja Stojakovic – back – Iffy for week, in pain. Bench him.
Sean Marks – flu – Has missed three straight games w/ flu.
Chris Duhon – ankle – Finally sat a couple games, very risky play.
Eddy Curry – knee – Could play again, but no fantasy value.
Desmond Mason – knee – Out for season.
Jameer Nelson – shoulder – Not likely to play again this season.
Elton Brand – shoulder – Season over.
Leandro Barbosa – abdomen – Playing through severe pain. Risky.
Amare Stoudemire – eye surgery – Done through playoffs. Hello, Barnes.
Greg Oden – bone chip knee – Out Monday, but could play soon. Bench him.
Martell Webster – foot – Says he'll play again this season.
Beno Udrih – foot – Returned on Sunday, played well. Playable w/ 4 games.
Bobby Jackson – cheek – Fractured cheek, could require surgery.
Manu Ginobili – ankle – Could play soon, but then again, may not.
Kris Humphries – leg – Broken leg, out indefinitely.
Deron Williams – leg – Iffy for Tuesday, benchable anyway w/ 2 games.
Mehmet Okur – ankle – Very risky play with two games.
Caron Butler – hip – Likely out for all week and possibly season.
DeShawn Stevenson – back – Season-ending surgery.
Etan Thomas – knee – Trying to avoid surgery. Forget him.
Brendan Haywood – wrist – Could play again, but not soon.
Gilbert Arenas – knee – Return now not looking good.
</TD></TR><TR vAlign=top><TD class=subHead vAlign=top colSpan=3>Devin Harris to undergo MRI on shoulder </TD></TR><TR vAlign=top><TD class=vaLabel colSpan=3>Devin Harris - G - NJ - Mar. 16 </TD></TR><TR><TD vAlign=top colSpan=3>Devin Harris (sprained shoulder) is unlikely to play on Monday or Wednesday, but a timetable for his return won't be available until he has an MRI.
