NBA Player News

Banchero ended Wednesday's 128-122 win over Cleveland with 25 points (8-18 FG, 2-6 3Pt, 7-9 FT), eight rebounds and seven assists over 37 minutes.

Banchero finished with a plus-11 differential in the six-point win, and while he didn't record any defensive stats, he chipped in in every other category. Since the All-Star break, Banchero has been a top-40 performer with averages of 26.1 points, 5.8 assists, 9.1 rebounds and 1.5 triples per contest.

Ellis finished with 20 points (6-9 FG, 5-8 3Pt, 3-4 FT), four rebounds, one assist, one block and one steal in 31 minutes during Wednesday's 128-122 loss to the Magic.

Ellis has been scorching over the past two games, converting 61.1 percent of his shot attempts to go with averages of 19.5 points, 2.5 rebounds, 4.5 triples and 1.0 steals per game. He won't stay this hot for long, but he's worth a look in deep leagues if you need some points and triples.

Harden recorded 30 points (11-16 FG, 5-9 3Pt, 3-5 FT), five rebounds and eight assists in 37 minutes during Wednesday's 128-122 loss to the Magic.

Harden missed only five shots, and he came through with some big buckets down the stretch to keep the game close, but ultimately, the Cavs weren't able to get the win. Evan Mobley double-doubled with 18 points (8-13 FG, 0-2 3Pt, 2-7 FT), 13 rebounds, four assists and two blocks over 32 minutes in the six-point loss.

Mitchell supplied 25 points (9-24 FG, 4-13 3Pt, 3-3 FT), five rebounds, five assists and one steal across 36 minutes during Wednesday's 128-122 loss to the Magic.

Mitchell has been in a bit of a shooting slump over the past two games, going 13-for-35 from the floor, but the counting stats have remained solid. The Cavs have a two-game series coming up against the Mavs, who rank 23rd in defensive efficiency, so Mitchell will have a good chance of busting out of his mini-funk Friday.

George has been ruled out for the remainder of Wednesday's game against the Knicks due to a right hamstring injury. He recorded 14 points (6-10 FG, 1-2 3Pt, 1-1 FT), five assists, two rebounds and one steal over 20 minutes prior to departing.

George checked out of the game with 5:47 left in the third quarter and was quickly ruled out for the rest of the contest. Though the severity of George's injury won't be known until he undergoes further testing, even mild hamstring strains often result in multi-game absences for players. With that in mind, George should be viewed as unlikely to play in Utah's next contest Friday in Portland. Isaiah Collier would be the next man up to start at point guard if George misses time.

George went back to the locker room during Wednesday's game against the Knicks with an apparent hamstring injury, Steve Popper of Newsday reports.

George went to block a shot by Karl-Anthony Towns and immediately grabbed at his hamstring area before departing the contest. While he's sidelined, look for Isaiah Collier to take over point guard duties, while Elijah Harkless could see some additional playing time.

Murphy generated 28 points (8-12 FG, 5-8 3Pt, 7-8 FT), seven rebounds, three assists and three steals across 34 minutes of Wednesday's 122-111 win over the Raptors.

Murphy hit the 25-point milestone for the 16th time this season, and his 12 field-goal attempts were the fewest he's taken to get there. The sharpshooting wing has now knocked down at least four three-pointers in five of his last six games, and he's generated a total of 12 steals during that stretch. He'll look to extend his streak of 20-point games to six when the Pelicans face Houston on Friday.

Ingram produced 22 points (8-19 FG, 2-7 3Pt, 4-4 FT), six rebounds, five assists, four steals and four turnovers across 38 minutes during Wednesday's 122-111 defeat to the Pelicans.

This was a nice bounce-back performance for Ingram, who was held to just nine points on 3-for-12 shooting his last time out. He was perfect at the line, aggressive in getting his shot up and tied his career high in steals. Ingram will look to keep it going Friday versus the Suns.

Kalkbrenner (illness) won't play in Wednesday's game against Sacramento, per the FanDuel Sports Network broadcast.

Kalkbrenner was a late addition to the injury report Wednesday evening before being cleared to play. However, the rookie center will wind up being unavailable for the contest due to illness. His next chance to play will come Saturday against the Spurs. Moussa Diabate and Xavier Tillman will likely handle most of the center duties Wednesday.

Towns (undisclosed) has returned to Wednesday's game against the Jazz.

Towns left Wednesday's contest in the first quarter for unknown reasons, but he's been cleared to retake the floor to start the second period. The star big man shouldn't be under any restrictions the rest of the way.