This article is part of our FanDuel NBA series.
Tuesday's two-game slate features a Hawks-76ers clash in Philadelphia that comes on the heels of a memorable Game 1 on Sunday where the teams combined for 252 points. Then, the nightcap is the opener of a Clippers-Jazz semifinal round clash that follows first-round series L.A. and Utah won a combined eight of their last nine games. The injury report is fairly light, but it does include a couple of very notable names.
Slate Overview
Here's a closer look at the two games on Tuesday's slate:
Atlanta Hawks at Philadelphia 76ers (Projected total: 223.0 points)
Game 1 turned into a close, high-scoring affair after it appeared the Hawks were set for a comfortable victory at one point. However, as long as Joel Embiid is able to take the court again for the 76ers, Philadelphia is likely to get off to a much better start than the one that saw them score just 54 first-half points Sunday. Meanwhile, the Hawks found surprisingly little resistance defensively from a Philadelphia squad that had been particularly stingy on its home court all season, but Atlanta may be hard-pressed to duplicate the 54.2 percent success rate from three-point range they generated in Game 1.
Los Angeles Clippers at Utah Jazz (Projected total: 220.0 points)
Two of the three regular-season games between these teams were particularly low scoring, finishing with totals of 206 and 210 points. Two were also decided by a total of 10 points, so the potential for a grind-it-out defensive battle is certainly there. The Clippers come into this game off their best offensive showing of the postseason yet, as they put up 126 points against the Mavericks in Game 7. Meanwhile, the Jazz were even more prolific in their four straight wins over the Grizzlies to close out the first round, putting up between 120 and 141 points in those games. Utah is also the Western Conference's best home-floor defense on a points-per-game basis, as they're surrendering just 105.2 points per game in that split, including the postseason.
Injury Situations to Monitor
NOTE: Injury reporting is especially fluid in the NBA, where the status of multiple players can change during the course of a day. Therefore, although the following serves as a foundation for the latest injury report as of the time the article is written, check back throughout the course of the day with RotoWire for the latest news regarding the status of all players on that night's slate.
Joel Embiid, PHI (knee)/ Status: QUESTIONABLE
Embiid managed to play 38 minutes in Game 1 with his knee issue and scored 39 points, so there would seem to be a good chance he's available Tuesday. However, if he were to sit, Mike Scott and Dwight Howard would likely be the most direct beneficiaries, while Ben Simmons, Seth Curry and Tobias Harris would particularly see major bumps in usage.
Mike Conley, UTA (hamstring)/ Status: QUESTIONABLE
Conley remains a 50/50 proposition with the hamstring injury that caused his early exit from Game 5 against the Grizzlies. If he's unable to go, Jordan Clarkson and Joe Ingles would likely be the biggest beneficiaries.
De'Andre Hunter, ATL (knee)/ Status: GTD
If Hunter were to sit out, Solomon Hill is likely due for another start at small forward.
Other notable injuries:
Serge Ibaka, LAC (back)/ Status: DOUBTFUL
Kris Dunn, ATL (illness)/ Status: OUT
Cam Reddish, ATL (Achilles)/ Status: OUT
Elite Players
We have three players with five-figure salaries on Tuesday's slate – Kawhi Leonard ($11,000), Joel Embiid ($10,500) and Trae Young ($10,200).
Leonard finished the first-round series against the Mavericks on fire, averaging 63.6 FD points over the last two games while shooting 70.0 percent, including 50.0 percent from three-point range. He was a lot less efficient against Utah in three regular-season games, however, draining just 41.9 percent of his attempts (25.0 percent from distance) but still averaging 24.5 points, 10.5 rebounds, 6.5 assists and 2.0 blocks.
Embiid's status will have to be closely monitored ahead of tip-off, but if he's able to go, it would have be assumed he'll be ready to take on another heavy workload after scoring 63.8 FD points across 38 minutes in Game 1.
Young had no problem carrying over all of his momentum from the first round into Sunday's Game 1, scoring 54.4 FD points on the strength of a 35-point, 10-assist double-double in 39 minutes. Over six postseason games, Young is now averaging 47.4 FD points, making his current salary a reasonable one.
Two other players with salaries in the high four figures capable of delivering elite scores are Paul George ($9,400) and Donovan Mitchell ($9,000), with each undoubtedly set for high usage in their respective contests Tuesday. That would be even truer than usual for Mitchell if Conley sits, as he owns a 33.3 percent usage rate with the latter off the floor this season/postseason.
Expected Chalk
In addition to the players just mentioned in the prior section, other likely chalk plays include:
Rudy Gobert, UTA ($8,800)
Gobert averaged 43.0 FD points over the five-game first-round series against Memphis and remains a highly reliable option at center.
Tobias Harris, PHI ($8,800)
Harris enjoyed another strong game with a 20-point, 10-rebound double-double over 36 minutes in Game 1 and is now averaging 45.5 FD points per game during this postseason.
Ben Simmons, PHI ($8,600)
Simmons has stepped up his offensive contributions thus far in the postseason, averaging 45.0 FD points over the first six games while shooting 68.4 percent.
Bogdan Bogdanovic, ATL ($6,800)
Bogdanovic has scored over 30 FD points in each playoff game thus far even though he's shooting just 41.4 percent, and his steady role (14.5 shot attempts per contest) will continue making him very popular.
John Collins, ATL ($6,500)
Collins has one dud thus far in the postseason but he's responded with an average of 28.4 FD points on 61.5 percent shooting over the four playoff games since that point.
Key Values
Jordan Clarkson, UTA vs. LAC ($5,800)
Clarkson is an intriguing play whether or not Conley is able to play, although if the latter does sit out, it's worth noting the former boasts a 28.7 percent usage rate and averages 36.6 FD points per 36 minutes with his teammate off the floor. Clarkson averaged 25.3 FD points in the first-round series against the Grizzlies despite shooting just 40.8 percent, and he encouragingly put up 15.2 shot attempts per contest over an average of 25.2 minutes. His second-unit role is secure, and he also averaged a solid 15.3 points, 3.3 rebounds, 1.7 assists and 1.7 steals across 27 minutes in three regular-season meetings versus the Clippers.
Seth Curry, PHI vs. ATL ($5,200)
Curry popped off for 30.3 FD points in Game 1 against the Hawks, his fourth game with at least 27 FD points thus far in the postseason. The veteran sharpshooter had no problem finding success from behind the arc, draining five of his nine attempts from behind the arc. Curry has actually had a hot hand the entirety of the playoffs, shooting 53.5 percent, including 39.5 percent from three-point range. With the Sixers out to ensure there isn't a repeat of a lackluster first half in Game 1 and Curry's ability to pile up scoring from distance, he's highly appealing at his salary.
Terance Mann, LAC at UTA ($3,900)
Mann is much more of a tournament play due to his fluctuating role off the bench, but he does have a pair of tallies of greater than 20 FD points thus far this postseason and capped off the first-round series against the Mavs with 23.5 FD points in the strength of a 13-point, five-rebound effort. He's logged 19 and 26 minutes in two of his postseason appearances thus far, and factoring in the postseason, he's provided more than a 5x return on his currently salary on 26 occasions already since the start of the regular season.
