NBA DFS Picks, Projections, Lineups, Injuries & More Today: Thursday Playbook

It's Thursday, February 26th, and we have a 9-game NBA DFS main slate on DraftKings and seven games on FanDuel. 

There's a crazy amount of injury news to deal with yet again, with Jalen Johnson and Cooper Flagg among the most impactful names that have been ruled out. A mid-day downgrade for Donovan Clingan and a questionable Nickeil Alexander-Walker for an already shorthanded Atlanta squad are newsworthy situations to monitor as we approach roster lock. 

Before actually diving into the meat and potatoes, welcome to the NBA DFS season. If this is your first time reading our column on NBA DFS picks, I just want to welcome you and give you a few tips and tricks on what you should be looking for each night.

• News outlets: reliable sources that give us injury news & starting lineups
• Pace of play: who's playing fast vs. who's playing slow. Which teams get a pace-up spot (more possessions) vs. pace-down (fewer possessions)
• Usage rates: is a percentage of how many plays that player is being used in
• NBA DFS Projections
• Lineup Generator
• NBA Ownership

NBA DFS Picks & Daily Fantasy Playbook Today, February 26th

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Pre/Post-Lock Update Section

This section will be used for anything that changes from the morning until right up to roster lock. 

Injury updates, players we’re higher on than we were in the morning and so much more.

All status updates after contest roster lock will be made in the Fantasy Alarm Discord: https://discord.gg/2yATJxXe8G

UPDATE 6:40 PM ET 

• Daniel Gafford - OUT
• Khris Middleton - AVAILABLE
• Obi Toppin starting (minutes restriction) 

UPDATE 6:30 PM ET 

• Stephon Castle - AVAILABLE
• Davion Mitchell - AVAILABLE
• Norman Powell - AVAILABLE
• Zaccharie Risacher - AVAILABLE
• Nickeil Alexander-Walker - OUT
  • ATL is even more appealing now
  • Added Zaccharie Risacher and Mouhamed Gueye to Core Plays 

UPDATE 5:30 PM ET 

• Rui Hachimura - OUT
• Andrew Nembhard - AVAILABLE
• Pascal Siakam - OUT
• Obi Toppin - AVAILABLE 
• Jalen Suggs - AVAILABLE  

UPDATE 3:00 PM ET 

• Norman Powell - Questionable (downgrade)
• Lauri Markkanen - OUT
• Keyonte George - OUT
• Kyshawn George - OUT
• Tristan Vukcevic - AVAILABLE
• Jalen Johnson - OUT
• Khris Middleton - Probable (upgrade)
• Patrick Williams - OUT
• Stephon Castle - Questionable
• Keldon Johnson - Questionable 
• Donovan Clingan - Questionable (downgrade)
• Keegan Murray - OUT
• Russell Westbrook - OUT
• Malik Monk - Questionable 

NBA Injuries, News & Updates Today, 2/26

• CHA:
  None
• IND:
  Andrew Nembhard - Questionable
  Obi Toppin - Questionable
  Pascal Siakam - Doubtful
  Aaron Nesmith - Out
  Ivica Zubac - Out
  Tyrese Haliburton - Out
  Johnny Furphy - Out
• MIA:
  Davion Mitchell - Questionable
  Nikola Jovic - Out
• PHI:
  Joel Embiid - Probable
  Paul George - Suspended
• HOU:
  Yet to submit
• ORL:
  Jalen Suggs - Questionable
  Franz Wagner - Out
• SAS:
  Yet to submit
• BKN:
  None
• WAS:
  Kyshawn George - Questionable
  Tristan Vukcevic - Questionable
  Alex Sarr - Out
  Trae Young - Out
  Anthony Davis - Out
  Cam Whitmore - Out
• ATL:
  Jalen Johnson - Questionable
  Nickeil Alexander-Walker - Questionable
  Zaccharie Risacher - Questionable
• POR:
  Robert Williams - Questionable
  Deni Avdija - Out
  Shaedon Sharpe - Out
  Damian Lillard - Out
• CHI:
  Patrick Williams - Doubtful
  Jalen Smith - Out
  Anfernee Simons - Out
  Jaden Ivey - Out
  Zach Collins - Out
  Noa Essengue - Out
• SAC:
  Yet to submit
• DAL:
  Khris Middleton - Questionable
  Daniel Gafford - Doubtful
  P.J. Washington - Out
  Cooper Flagg - Out
  Dereck Lively - Out
  Kyrie Irving - Out
• LAL:
  Rui Hachimura - Questionable
  Jaxson Hayes - Probable
• PHX:
  Devin Booker - Out
  Dillon Brooks - Out
  Haywood Highsmith - Out
  Jordan Goodwin - Out
• NOP:
  Trey Murphy - Out
  Yves Missi - Out
• UTA:
  Lauri Markkanen - Questionable
  Keyonte George - Questionable
  Jaren Jackson - Out
  Vince Williams - Out
  Jusuf Nurkic - Out
  Walker Kessler - Out
• MIN:
  None
• LAC:
  Kawhi Leonard - Questionable
  John Collins - Questionable
  Darius Garland - Out
  Bradley Beal - Out

h/t @UnderdogNBA 

NBA DFS Slate & Game Overviews

In the section below, I’m listing the most notable things we need to look at in Las Vegas, including notable O/U and spreads. Not every game is listed, but every game listed has the pace and defensive numbers listed.

NBA DFS Core Player Pool & Lineup Picks

Here are the core players I’m looking at for my NBA DFS picks tonight. You can see the full analysis of tonight’s NBA DFS projections and player pool below or skip ahead to building the best lineups possible by locking these into the aforementioned lineup generator now.

High

• Luka Doncic, Victor Wembanyama, Tyrese Maxey, Joel Embiid 

Mid

• Zion Williamson, Donovan Clingan (if active), Jalen Green, Jarace Walker, CJ McCollum, Jrue Holiday, Dyson Daniels, Matas Buzelis, Naji Marshall, Jerami Grant, Miles Bridges, Andrew Wiggins, Jonathan Kuminga, Brice Sensabaugh, Scoot Henderson, Brandon Williams

Value

• Guerschon Yabusele, Marvin Bagley, Precious Achiuwa, Collin Sexton, Zaccharie Risacher, Jordan Poole, Nick Richards, DeAndre Jordan, Rob Dillingham, Obi Toppin, Mouhamed Gueye 

Don't Miss The NBA DFS Playbook Live Show At 5:00 PM ET

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