Tyreke Evans will miss the rest of Week 23 after experiencing dizziness during Thursday’s practice.
• Tyreke Evans (concussion) experienced dizziness while attempting to practice Thursday and is out for at least the Kings’ next two games (Fri @BOS, Sun @ CLE). Here’t what Evans himself had to say:
"I just felt weak, a little lightheaded. I was going for
like an hour until we started playing five-on-five, and I started to
feel a headache."
He’ll be re-evaluated Monday, ahead of an excellent back-to-back from a matchup perspective (Tue @IND, Wed @MIN). If you are perched on the precipice in your current h2h matchup, then you may have to cut Evans for a warm body. In most cases, cutting Evans will only net you one game, since it’s already Friday, but make note that three teams play back-to-backs on Saturday/Sunday (CHI, GSW, POR) when perusing your free agent list.
If you aren’t in a position to lose anything by rostering Evans at least through his re-evaluation, then I suggest that you do so. Francisco Garcia will continue to start for Evans, and he’s averaged 11 points, 1.3 threes, 3.7 boards, 1 steal, and 2 blocks over the past three games. Those are not must-add numbers at this point, but add him to your Watch List in the event that he’s still starting when that favorable back-to-back rolls around. Beno Udrih should continue to post good lines with Evans out (19 points, 56% FG, 1.3 threes, 6.3 boards, 10.7 assists, 3.3 turnovers, 1.7 steals over the past three games), although the next two matchups are anything but easy.
• Andrew Bogut is "likely" to miss Friday’s game because of a mid-back strain. Scott Skiles called the injury nothing serious but sore enough that he won’t play. As of this post going live, Bogut had yet to officially be declared out, so be sure to follow up closer to game-time. Kurt Thomas will get the start at center, and Ersan Ilyasova may also be out (flu, questionable), so Luc Richard Mbah a Moute should log plenty of minutes.
• Al Thornton is questionable for Friday’s game because of a strained left hip flexor, suffered on Wednesday. He’ll be at much less than 100 percent if he remains active, and Alonzo Gee has already been named to the starting lineup in his place.
• Kevin Martin missed Thursday’s game because of a nagging shoulder injury and has been designated with the dreaded day-to-day label. The Rockets are off Friday and play once over the next three days (Sat LAL), so the team may look to hold him out. Keep an eye out for a specific update on Friday. Chase Budinger would get another start (29 minutes, 14 points, 2 threes Friday) if Martin is again inactive, and Kyle Lowry would also see more playing time (30 minutes, 14 points).
• He played just 19 minutes on Wednesday for the same reason … There’s a chance that Jarrett Jack will replace Jose Calderon in the starting lineup Friday, mostly for defensive reasons. Calderon is already a fringe option in standard leagues even if he continues to start – over the past five games, he’s averaged just 7.8 points on 38-percent shooting in 24 minutes, although some other numbers have been solid (5.4 assists, 1.4 turnovers, 1.6 steals). The one reason to have some hope for Calderon is his favorable schedule next week (@CHA, LAC, @PHI, GSW).
• Will Bynum will continue to start for the Pistons at point guard, as John Kuester said the team is "still weighing everything" while having lost six consecutive games. It may not have a huge impact on playing time as it is, as Bynum played 17 minutes (11 points, 1 three, 4 assists, 1 turnover, 1 steal) to Rodney Stuckey’s 32 (11 points, 1 three, 6 fouls) on Tuesday.
• Notes from Wednesday’s games: Taj Gibson (29 minutes, 12 points, 10 boards, 1 steal, 1 block) is playing like his plantar fasciitis has suddenly improved … I give Chris Kaman (25 minutes, 4 points, 12 boards, 2 blocks) credit for staying healthy, but he’s been pretty marginal when it comes to production for a while now … Don’t read too much into Craig Smith’s performance (25 minutes, 25 points, 10 boards, 2 steals, 2 blocks), as he’d totaled 13 points over the team’s previous five games … Brendan Haywood got all the playing time (35 minutes, 8 points, 8 boards, 4 blocks) despite coming off the bench behind Erick Dampier (8 minutes) and will produce regardless of role.
• Friday’s other game-time decisions: Andrei Kirilenko (calf), Hedo Turkoglu (stomach flu),
Louis Williams (back), Terrence
Williams (ankle), and Roy Hibbert (jaw).
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