Tuesday’s NBA Injury Report: Betting, DFS Impact of Kyrie Irving and Marcus Morris Injuries

Tuesday’s NBA Injury Report: Betting, DFS Impact of Kyrie Irving and Marcus Morris Injuries article feature image
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Bob DeChiara-USA TODAY Sports. Pictured: Kyrie Irving, Marcus Morris

  • Celtics PG Kyrie Irving (hip) and PF Marcus Morris (knee) have been ruled out for Celtics-Cavs.
  • We break down the betting and DFS impacts for both in Tuesday's NBA Injury Report.

Tuesday night's NBA slate features eight games with several injuries of note and questionable players. We'll analyze the following situation:

  • Boston Celtics at Cleveland Cavaliers: 7 p.m. ET

Note: The information below is as of 1 p.m. ET. For up-to-the-minute news and analysis, check out our live news feed and follow us on Twitter.



Celtics PG Kyrie Irving (Hip) & PF Marcus Morris (Knee) Are Out

Injury background: Irving will miss Tuesday's game against the Cavs due to a strained left hip. The same injury held him out of two games last week, and it appears the Celtics are carefully resting him against inferior opponents.

Morris has also been ruled out due to a sore right knee, leaving the team without two starters. Robert Williams (back) will go through shootaround before determining if he's available while Aron Baynes (foot) remains sidelined.

Tonight's impact: Just like last week without Irving, Tuesday's DFS slate will be littered with Celtics options. In eight games with Irving out of the lineup this season, seven players have averaged over 26.0 DraftKings points. And in the only game without Irving and Morris, seven players provided at least 28.0 DK points (per our On/Off tool).

Terry Rozier has averaged 15.0 points, 5.6 rebounds and 6.1 assists in 30.6 minutes per game as a starter this season. He started the Celtics' most recent matchup against the Cavs, scoring a season-high 26 points to go along with eight rebounds and six assists.

Terry-Rozier
Credit: Jasen Vinlove-USA TODAY Sports. Pictured: Terry Rozier

However, his price has risen, skyrocketing all the way to $7,000 on FanDuel.

Jayson Tatum, Gordon Hayward and Jaylen Brown have all benefitted from sizable increases in usage rate with Irving and Morris off the floor this season. All three remain underpriced on both DK and FD and will garner cash game consideration as well as tournament exposure.

Outside of Rozier, Al Horford and Marcus Smart have seen their assist rate significantly increase in games without Irving, elevating their floor and ceiling if the game is relatively competitive.

Daniel Theis rounds out the DFS options, at only $3,700 on FD and $3,500 on DK. He recorded a team-high 1.45 DK points per minute in the prior game without Irving and Morris.

The Celtics are favored by 11 points as of writing (see live odds here) — despite being on the road and down multiple starters. In two previous games against the Cavs this season, Boston has an average margin of victory of 26.5 points.

With Irving off the court, the Celtics' offense predictably stagnates, but the defense improves. The team has a +9.2 Net Rating with Irving on the court compared to a +2.0 Net Rating with him off the court.

Rozier has filled in admirably, as Boston has won six of eight full games without Irving this season. The Cavs currently hold the league's worst Defensive Rating and Net Rating by a wide margin, and Tuesday's shootaround indicates that Deng Adel will make his first career start.

The Celtics will demand heavy ownership in DFS, and a plethora of solid options in an optimal matchup will likely lead to another double-digit victory and a potential cover.

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Sean Treppedi
Mar 28, 2024 UTC