As you continue improving your fantasy basketball lineups in the 2023-23 NBA season, it's important to always stay up-to-date on the latest NBA injury news. Let's dive into this week's NBA injury report to help you keep track of the biggest fantasy basketball news. Be sure to check out the latest fantasy basketball waiver wire pickups to replace your injured NBA players. After thinking the Phoenix Suns were going to be getting even more of their injured players back in the lineup, it looks like Cameron Payne and Landry Shamet are still going to be off the basketball court for a bit. Plus, we’re awaiting an NBA injury update on Devin Booker. It wouldn’t be surprising to see the Suns make a trade over the next couple of weeks to secure some depth because they’ve had players in and out of the lineup all season. The Dallas Mavericks have an injured frontcourt and are another team to watch when it comes to the NBA trade market. Here are some of the latest NBA injuries that are impacting fantasy basketball teams, including Luka Doncic, OG Anunoby, and Ben Simmons.

 

NBA Injury Report Fantasy Basketball Week 16

NBA Point Guard Injury News

Luka Doncic, Dallas Mavericks (Heel)

Doncic hurt his heel in the Mavericks' last game and initial reports indicate that nothing is torn and just bruised – but we're awaiting more updates from the team. The Mavericks' next game is in an ideal spot for Doncic against the defenseless Warriors. We'll have to see if the pain in his heel subsides in time for him to take the court on Saturday. If he can't go, Spencer Dinwiddie will run the point and Tim Hardaway Jr will take more shots. 

Jalen Brunson, New York Knicks (Illness)

Brunson missed his last game due to a sudden illness and we'll have to see if he recovers enough to be active for the Knicks' next game on Saturday. If he isn't, then Immanuel Quickley will bring up the rock for the majority of the game and RJ Barrett will assist him by setting up the offense. The Knicks can also turn to Miles McBride off the bench to help bring up the rock.

Kevin Porter Jr., Houston Rockets (Foot)

We've been day-to-day regarding Porter's foot injury for a few weeks and we just found out that the Rockets don't know when he'll be back in action and while he's out Eric Gordon, Daishen Nix, and Jae'Sean Tate will spend more time on the ball especially with Jalen Green also out of action. 

Tre Jones, San Antonio Spurs (Foot)

Jones hurt his foot in the Spurs' previous game and if he needs time to recover from the injury, Malaki Branham and Josh Richardson will help bring up the ball and Keldon Johnson will see more shots. The injury doesn't seem serious at the moment, but it's looking like he'll be out for at least one game. 

Marcus Smart, Boston Celtics (Ankle)

Smart hasn't played in a few weeks and he's indicated in interviews that he doesn't know when he'll make it back to the floor. Until he returns, Derrick White and Jaylen Brown will help bring up the ball with Malcolm Brogdon and Payton Pritchard backing them up. The Celtics have a lot of guards and Pritchard's minutes will be up and down. White has dropped four or more dimes in four of his last five contests. 

Tyrese Haliburton, Indiana Pacers (Knee)

Haliburton is back for the Pacers now after missing a few weeks with a knee injury. Barring any setbacks, the All-Star should be starting in all fantasy basketball lineups since he's back healthy. 

 

NBA Shooting Guard Injury News

Devin Booker, Phoenix Suns (Groin)

Booker should make his return prior to the All-Star break and it wouldn't be surprising to see him back in action in a limited capacity at some point next week. The Suns will have to be careful with Booker because the last time he returned from the groin injury he re-injured it almost immediately. Expect his minutes to be monitored for at least the first week he's back. When he's back to full form, Landry Shamet (when healthy) and Damion Lee will lose out on minutes and Cameron Johnson and Mikal Bridges' shots will drop off a bit.

Jalen Green, Houston Rockets (Calf) 

Green joins backcourt mate Kevin Porter Jr. on the sidelines with a calf injury and for now, we should consider him day-to-day. While he's out, Eric Gordon will take more shots and we'll even see KJ Martin get a bump in field goals and Daishen Nix playing more. Garrison Mathews, who has played 13 minutes per game has exceeded his average minutes in four of his last six games.

Alex Caruso, Chicago Bulls (Foot)

Caruso injured his foot in the Bulls' last matchup and he's most likely going to need to sit for at least a game. With him potentially shelved, Goran Dragic and Coby White will pick up more playing time. The Bulls need all of the defensive help they can get and Caruso has been in and out of the lineup throughout the season. We also don't know when or if we'll see Lonzo Ball take the court. 

Victor Oladipo, Miami Heat (Ankle)

Victor Oladipo sprained his ankle but the injury doesn't seem severe. If he needs any more time off the floor, Gabe Vincent will see more minutes and shots. Max Strus can find himself handling the ball and shooting a bit as well. Oladipo has done a good job with the Heat's reserves since getting healthy and he's playing over 28 minutes per game and grabbing 1.7 steals per contest. 

NBA Small Forward Injury News

OG Anunoby, Toronto Raptors (Wrist)

Anunoby sprained his wrist a couple of games ago and he’ll miss at least another week of action. The Raptors run a tight rotation, so losing Anunoby is pretty impactful. They’ll shift down Scottie Barnes and even Pascal Siakam so they can insert Precious Achiuwa into the starting lineup. Gary Trent Jr. will see a bump in shots from the arc while Barnes will have even more time with the ball to set up other teammates. Hopefully, in a week we’ll have a better idea regarding how much time Anunoby will miss.

Luguentz Dort, Oklahoma City Thunder (Hamstring)

The Thunder have been trying to downplay Dort’s strained hamstring until yesterday when the coaching staff came out and said that he could be out for a while. Jalen Williams is also hurt, meaning Kenrich Williams should see a boost in minutes while Aaron Wiggins should see a lot more reserve run and possible starts. Considering the comments we’ve seen, Dort doesn’t have a timetable to return to action and there are a lot of shots to go around for the Thunder. They are still missing Aleksej Pokusevski and Jeremiah Robinson-Earl up front.

Caris LeVert, Cleveland Cavaliers (Hamstring)

LeVert's hamstring is sore and missed the Cavaliers' last game. The good news is that they don't play again until Sunday so LeVert has a few days to rest his legs. If he needs another game off, Cedi Osman will take more shots and spend more time with the ball and Darius Garland should see a small uptick in shots as well. 

Austin Reaves, Los Angeles Lakers (Hamstring)

Reaves hasn't played in nearly a month as he's had to deal with an injured hamstring but it looks like his return is near and the Lakers coaches are telling us that he could make it back to the Lakers lineup in the next couple of games. He was playing nearly 29 minutes per outing, but we have to wonder whether or not Reaves' minutes will tail off a bit with the Lakers healthier and acquiring more depth up front – especially with Lonnie Walker IV healthy as well. He averages nearly 11 points per outing. 

 

NBA Power Forward Injury News

Jaren Jackson Jr., Memphis Grizzlies (Thigh)

The Grizzlies are already missing Steven Adams clogging the lane and Jackson has a few days to rest his injured thigh before the Grizzlies take the court again. The Grizzlies have tried figuring out the right combination of frontcourt players to best fill the void that Adams left behind, but with Jackson hurt too, Brandon Clarke and Santi Aldama will get more playing time at both power forward and center and they'll rotate between the two positions along with Xavier Tillman. 

Jerami Grant, Portland Trail Blazers (Concussion)

Grant suffered a concussion a few days ago, but there's a chance that he can make it back for the Blazers' next game on Friday. If he can make it back to the court, he will be in line for even more shots after Jusuf Nurkic re-injured his hamstring in the same game. If Grant sits, the Blazers' frontcourt will be anchored by Drew Eubanks and Trendon Watford. Watford will fill in more at power forward. The Blazers can always shift up Nassir Little to play a few power forward minutes if needed.

Ben Simmons, Brooklyn Nets (Knee)

There's a chance that Simmons can make his return in the Nets' next game after sitting out his last three, but it's not looking great. The Nets host the Wizards on Saturday and once Simmons gets the green light to play, it wouldn't be surprising seeing his minutes monitored over the next few games as he's very delicate and the Nets want to make sure they keep him as healthy as possible. If he needs to sit, Joe Harris and Seth Curry will indirectly benefit. Yuta Watanabe should see a slight minutes increase as well.

Jeremy Sochan, San Antonio Spurs (Back)

Sochan hurt his back last game and he'll miss at least one contest. It wouldn't be shocking to see him sit out longer as back soreness can linger. Doug McDermott will see more playing time and shots with Sochan out. The Spurs can always shift down Zach Collins to power forward as well and go with a bigger lineup of Jakob Poeltl and Collins. That's especially true if the Spurs are potentially shopping Poeltl as they need to stud him out there to try to sell him. 

T.J. Warren, Brooklyn Nets (Leg)

The Nets will handle Warren like they will Simmons because both have been banged up for the last couple of years and if Warren can't suit up Joe Harris and Seth Curry will see an uptick in shots and Yuta Watanabe should see more minutes up front with Kevin Durant still recovering. He could potentially return in the Nets' next game. 

Aaron Gordon, Denver Nuggets (Ankle)

Gordon missed his last game with a sprained ankle. If he continues to miss time, the Nuggets can either shift Michael Porter Jr. up to power forward – which they don't seem to want to do – or go with a combination of Jeff Green and Vlatko Cancar at the position. Cancar played 32 minutes last game and should be looking at between 20-30 if Gordon needs more time to recover. 

Orlando Robinson, Miami Heat (Thumb)

Robinson fractured his thumb and he's been playing 10-13 minutes recently anyway. While he's out, we should see Dewayne Dedmon receive more playing time. Haywood Highsmith could see some reserve power forward run as well with Robinson hurt. It's uncertain when we'll see him back on the court.

NBA Center Injury News

Rudy Gobert, Minnesota Timberwolves (Groin)

After playing through the groin pain initially, Gobert sat out the Timberwolves' last game. If he needs to sit another game, Naz Reid will step in his place and start at center. The Timberwolves can also turn to Nathan Knight if they need any extra size.

Christian Wood, Dallas Mavericks (Thumb)

Wood's recovery is coming along and he has been cleared to take contact in practice and should be on track to return in the next couple of weeks. After being day-to-day with his fractured thumb for days, Wood needed weeks to recover. With Maxi Kleber still out, it will be up to Dwight Powell and Dorian Finney-Smith to guard the post.

Jusuf Nurkic, Portland Trail Blazers (Calf)

Nurkic's calf has been bothering him over the last few weeks and after re-injuring it the other night, he'll likely be out for a few games. Drew Eubanks will start in Nurkic's place until he's ready to return to action. Trendon Watford can help a bit as well clogging up the paint so opposing teams don't have clear lanes to drive to the rim.

Maxi Kleber, Dallas Mavericks (Hamstring)

Kleber has missed a month and a half with this hamstring injury, but he should be able to practice in full over the next week or two. We're unsure whether he'll make it back to the court before the all-star break in a few weeks and the Mavs may want to hold him out to preserve his hamstring and Dwight Powell will help guard the middle of the paint until he or Christian Wood returns. 

 

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