Fantasy Tips: "Crunch Time" Playoff Player Injuries

With the NBA fantasy season coming to an end, there are many injured players that are relied too heavily upon to help fantasy owners win their league.

Most of these players’ statuses are up in the air and are not definite to return anytime this week.

Below is a list of these players and whether or not they will be healthy enough to play come fantasy playoff time.

Danny Granger (SF, IND)

Granger has now missed the last nine games due to a foot injury that he suffered during last month. He is not expected to return to the court until he is 100 percent healthy, says the Pacers organization.

Suggestion— It looks like this could be a serious injury that lingers on until playoff time for Danny Granger. The best advice is to bench him during the upcoming scoring period until he can prove to be back to himself.

The Pacers are only two games out of the eighth seed and need Granger back if they want a chance at making the playoffs this season. Granger will most likely return to the floor before the playoffs begin in fantasy.

Baron Davis (PG, LAC)

Baron Davis suffered a hamstring injury that forced him to miss Saturday night’s game. Davis missed 13 straight games earlier this season and has always been an injury-prone type of fantasy player.

Suggestion— Davis is reportedly listed as day-to-day, but could definitely miss a good amount of time with this hamstring injury.

Since the Clippers have no hope in making the playoffs this season, Davis has a high chance of being shut down for the rest of the year.

This would be horrible news for fantasy owners, so the greatest advice is to pick up a guard off of the waiver wire just in case this scenario turns into a reality.

Greg Oden (C, POR)

Oden has missed the last 10 games with a chipped bone in his left kneecap. It is being reported that he could miss the remainder of the season due to this injury.

Suggestion—Oden had knee surgery last year that forced him to miss his entire rookie season. In his first career game this season he injured himself and has had the injury bug ever since.

Oden should not be relied upon as a solid fantasy player until he can prove to be healthy. My advice would be to drop him and pick up a consistent center off of the waiver wire.

Marvin Williams (SF, ATL)

Williams missed Monday night’s game due to a lower back injury that could force him to miss the rest of the season. He is putting up mediocre fantasy numbers this season and is currently looked at as a number four forward in all leagues.

Suggestion— Williams should be benched in all fantasy leagues at this time until more news is updated on his current situation.

If this injury turns out to be a serious one, fantasy owners will be obligated to drop Williams. This is bad news, especially because of how close the playoffs are approaching.

Kevin Garnett (PF, BOS)

Garnett has now been out for the last eight games and is not expected to return until sometime next week after spraining his right knee.

Suggestion—Since the Celtics have already clinched playoff berth, the organization may shut down Garnett for the rest of the year. This knee injury could lag deep into the playoffs and possibly ruin the Celtics chances at winning the championship this year.

Garnett should be reserved until he can prove to get back onto the court. Even if he does return, his fantasy impact may be minimal. Do not expect Garnett to help your fantasy team immensely in the playoffs this season.

Manu Ginobili (SG, SA)

Ginobili has now been out for 11 straight games and is reportedly in no rush to return to the court. The Spurs are the second seed in the Western Conference as of right now and will work with the players that are healthy until playoff time.

Suggestion—This is awful news for Manu owners, as he could possibly be rested for the rest of the season. The best suggestion is to wait and hope Ginobili can be healthy enough to give it a go come fantasy playoff time.

Although it seems highly unlikely for the Spaniard to return, fantasy owners have no other option than to pray to the fantasy gods for a quick come back.

Luol Deng (SF, CHI)

Deng is reported to miss the next two weeks because of a stress fracture in his right leg. He re-aggravated his leg and believes that the injury will heal in time.

Suggestion—This is horrific news for fantasy owners because the playoffs are quickly approaching. It seems like Deng will not be 100 percent healthy by playoff time and should be benched with hope that he can return.

John Salmons owners should be crossing their fingers that Deng does not come back to the court so he can continue his breakout fantasy season.