NBA Player News

Richards (rib) supplied 12 points (3-5 FG, 6-7 FT), six rebounds, three blocks, one assist and one steal across 25 minutes in Saturday's 107-104 loss to the Hawks.

Though he ended up coming off the bench in his return from a 14-game absence due to a right rib fracture, Richards saw more playing time than starting center Moussa Diabate (22 minutes). The Hornets will likely prioritize Richards ahead of Diabate and could even move Richards back into the starting lineup beginning with Tuesday's game against the 76ers, but Mark Williams (foot) may not be far behind Richards in returning from a multi-week absence. Once Williams is back to full health, Richards might have a tough time consistently finding anything more than a 20-to-25-minute role.

Okongwu closed with 16 points (5-10 FG, 0-2 3Pt, 6-6 FT), 11 rebounds, two assists and one steal in 28 minutes during Saturday's 107-104 victory over the Hornets.

Okongwu contributed in a big way off the bench, finishing second on his team in rebounds behind Clint Capela's 14 boards. Okongwu continues to serve in a reserve role behind Capela and struggled to consistently produce through his first 12 appearances of November, though he's looked sharp as a scorer of late, putting up double figures in three straight games.

Collins finished with 16 points (6-15 FG, 1-5 3Pt, 3-3 FT), nine rebounds, two assists, one block and one steal across 37 minutes during Saturday's 106-94 loss to the Mavericks.

Collins struggled a bit with his shot, particularly from three-point range. Still, fantasy managers won't worry too much about his efficiency as long as he continues to put up solid numbers across the major categories. Collins finished just one rebound away from recording what would've been his fourth consecutive double-double. Furthermore, Collins is averaging 19.7 points and 10.2 rebounds per contest since becoming a starter nine games ago.

Kessler posted 18 points (7-9 FG, 4-5 FT), 10 rebounds, one assist, five blocks and three steals over 30 minutes during Saturday's 106-94 loss to Dallas.

The Jazz came up short against the Mavericks, but Kessler delivered one of his best fantasy performances of the campaign. This was his third double-double in four games since returning from a six-game absence due to a hip injury. Furthermore, Kessler now has seven double-doubles in 13 games while recording multiple blocks in all but two of those 13 appearances.

Lopez closed Saturday's 124-114 win over the Wizards with 18 points (7-14 FG, 4-10 3Pt), three assists and three blocks over 35 minutes.

Lopez was the Bucks' third-best scorer in this win, sitting behind Damian Lillard's 25-point performance and Giannis Antetokounmpo's 42-point masterpiece. Lopez has scored in double digits in six games in a row while hitting multiple threes five times during that stretch. He's getting it done on the defensive end as well, recording multiple blocks in all but one game during the team's six-game winning stretch.

Valanciunas closed with 16 points (6-9 FG, 0-2 3Pt, 4-4 FT), seven rebounds, five assists and one steal over 31 minutes during Saturday's 124-114 loss to Milwaukee.

Valanciunas earned his first start since Nov. 8, when he recorded 16 points in a loss to the Grizzlies, in an effort to counter the Bucks' frontcourt physicality of Giannis Antetokounmpo and Brook Lopez. Even though the Wizards suffered another loss, Valanciunas had a decent showing, and the veteran continues to remain valuable in fantasy even if he's not starting. Valanciunas has scored at least 15 points in back-to-back games for the first time this season, and he's registered double-digit points in 12 of his 18 contests.

Duren provided four points (2-2 FG) and two assists over 13 minutes during Saturday's 111-96 loss to the 76ers.

Most of the starters struggled in this matchup, and Duren wasn't the exception -- he logged only 13 minutes, to the disappointment of fantasy managers. Duren has been far from the double-double machine he was in 2023-24, and he's reached that outcome just eight times so far. He's also recorded single-digit points in four of his last six appearances.

Drummond has been diagnosed with a sprained right ankle, and there's no clear timetable for his return, head coach Nick Nurse told Ky Carlin of Sixers Wire. "I don't know," coach Nick Nurse said of a Drummond timeline. "Again, they did all the X-Rays and stuff, and it is just a sprain. So there's nothing else there. I mean, he's going to be in a boot, yeah."

Drummond exited Saturday's win over the Pistons during the first quarter after landing on Tobias Harris' foot on a made basket. The fact that he wasn't able to put any pressure on his ankle as he exited the court was concerning, but further tests seem to suggest the big man avoided a severe injury. Drummond finished Saturday's game with four points (2-3 FG, 0-1 3Pt), three rebounds and a steal across four minutes. The big man could be in line to miss at least a few games due to this injury. Guerschon Yabusele and Adem Bona will be in line for more minutes in the frontcourt with Drummond sidelined.

Jackson-Davis is in the starting lineup for Saturday's game against the Suns, John Dickinson of 95.7 The Game San Francisco reports.

Jackson-Davis will return to the first unit after coming off the bench in the 105-101 loss to the Thunder on Wednesday. He's averaging 8.6 points, 5.4 rebounds, 2.2 assists and 0.6 blocks per game when deployed in a starting role this season.

Plumlee is in the starting lineup for Saturday's game against the Warriors.

Plumlee will move into the starting lineup due to the absence of Jusuf Nurkic (ankle). The veteran big man is averaging 9.7 points and 11.0 rebounds per game in his previous three starts this season.