Los Angeles Lakers

Los Angeles Lakers F/C Anthony Davis is expected to opt out of his contract and resign with the Lakers. (Source: Shams Charania on Twitter)

Fantasy Impact: Davis was a eligible to become a free agent at the conclusion of the 2019-2020 season. After winning his first NBA title with the Lakers, he’ll resign and will likely be the cornerstone of the Lakers franchise. The seven-time All-Star played a pivotal role for the Lakers and the dynamic duo of he and LeBron James will make another run at the championship next season. Fantasy managers should expect AD to be a top-5 pick in fantasy drafts next season.

The Lakers will start G Alex Caruso over C Dwight Howard in Game 6 on Sunday night. (Source: Shams Charania)

Fantasy Impact: The Lakers are shaking things up in Game 6, as they’ll go small with Caruso in the starting lineup. Rajon Rondo could also see extended run off the bench if the Lakers are wanting to play smaller throughout the game. Caruso makes for a very good DFS play as the news of him starting came after prices were set.

Kentavious Caldwell-Pope scored 16 points (6-15 FG, 3-8 3PT, 1-1 FT) and added three rebounds, two assists, one steal, and one turnover across 31 minutes in a 111-108 loss to the Miami Heat in Game 5 of the NBA Finals.

Fantasy Impact: Caldwell-Pope played well in Game 5, hitting a couple of big shots to help the Lakers stay in the game. His plays were certainly momentum builders, but the Lakers ultimately fell short. KCP is not a target for a single game or showdown DFS competitions, but he will continue to earn minutes in the 30's as the Lakers look to close out the Heat in six games on Sunday.

LeBron James dropped a game-high 40 points (15-21 FG, 4-6 FT) while grabbing 13 rebounds, dishing out seven assists, and adding three steals, six triples, and four turnovers across 42 minutes of play in a 111-108 loss to the Miami Heat in Game 5 on Friday night.

Fantasy Impact: James went 6-for-9 from beyond the arc, his highest three-point total of the 2020 NBA Playoffs. As evidenced by his gaudy stat line, James played like a man possessed, and when it came down to crunch time, he delivered a perfect pass to Danny Green on a wide-open three-pointer to win the game (and the series), but came up short. James is one win away from his fourth title, but the Heat are not going away. King James' next opportunity to hoist the NBA trophy will come on Sunday for Game 6 of the NBA Finals.

Rajon Rondo played 25 minutes in a 116-98 win over the Miami Heat in Game 1 of the NBA Finals, scoring seven points (2-7 FG, 1-5 3PT, 2-2 FT) with four assists, three rebounds, and one turnover.

Fantasy Impact: Rondo played his role well, facilitating the second unit and delivered a highlight reel assist to LeBron James in the midst of a blowout win over the Heat. The veteran point guard has championship pedigree and will continue getting minutes in the mid 20's. He'll continue to be a cheap source of production in DFS for his ability to rack up assists, rebounds, and steals in limited minutes.

Kyle Kuzma grabbed eight rebounds off the bench in Game 1 of the NBA Finals, and shot one-for-seven from the field (one triple), scoring three points with two assists across 22 minutes in a blowout victory against the Miami Heat.

Fantasy Impact: Kuzma struggled on Wednesday missing six-of-seven attempts but found a way to contribute by attacking the glass, pulling down eight rebounds (two offensive). Kuzma had a plus/minus of +11 and will look to find his rhythm in Game 2 on Friday.

Danny Green played 30 minutes in Game 1 of the NBA Finals and scored 11 points (4-9 FG) with four rebounds, one assist, two steals, three blocks, and three triples in a 116-98 win over the Miami Heat on Wednesday night.

Fantasy Impact: Green reached double-figures for the third time in his past five games. He made the most of his opportunities, knocking down three three's but also played great defense, swatting three shots which were his highest total thus far in the 2019-2020 playoffs. Green has been known to disappear at times but if the Lakers can get this version of him in the Finals, he can be an x-factor in the series.

Dwight Howard scored nine points (3-4 FG, 3-6 FT) along with nine rebounds, two blocks, and two turnovers across 35 minutes in a Game 5 victory over the Denver Nuggets.

Fantasy Impact: Over the past two games, Howard's averaged 10.5 points and 10 rebounds and has been a force in the paint. He did a good job defending and disrupting Nikola Jokic, and his effort didn't go unnoticed. He may not see 30+ minutes often, but when given minutes, Howard's been a pretty reliable source of rebounds and blocks.

Lakers C JaVale McGee will re-enter the starting lineup for Game 1 against the Nuggets Friday night. (Source: Dave McMenamin on Twitter)

Fantasy Impact: The thought process here is that the Lakers need McGee’s size to compete with Nikola Jokic on the defensive end. He should see more minutes this series than he did in the series against the small-ball Houston Rockets.

Lakers G Dion Waiters is listed as doubtful for Game 1 of the Western Conference Finals on Friday due to a sore left groin. (Source: NBA Injury Report)

Fantasy Impact: Waiters has not appeared for the Lakers since Game 2 of the Western Conference semi-finals against the Houston Rockets. With Rajon Rondo listed as questionable, the Lakers will likely give more minutes to JR Smith and Talen Horton-Tucker off the bench.

Markieff Morris registered 14 points (5-9 FG, 4-5 3PT), five rebounds, and one assist in Thursday's loss to the Kings.

Fantasy Impact: Morris was traded to the Lakers at the end of February and did little on his new team averaging just 4.6 points, 3.1 rebounds, 0.5 assists, 0.5 blocks, and 0.4 steals over 13.8 minutes. Morris is a talented player that proved he can stuff the statsheet in Detroit. If he goes into the 2020-2021 season on the Lakers though, don't expect him to be on the fantasy radar.

Quinn Cook scored 21 points (8-14 FG, 5-9 3PT) with one rebound in Saturday night’s 116-111 loss to the Indiana Pacers.

Fantasy Impact: Cook benefited from the absence of Danny Green and DNP - Coach’s Decision of J.R. Smith and Dion Waiters, to provide his best performance since the restart. Cook did exactly what the Lakers wanted from him, catch and shoot. With a full healthy lineup, expect Cook to stay on the bench behind Green, J.R. Smith, Waiters and Alex Caruso.

Talen Horton-Tucker saw the court for the first time since play resumed, scoring 10 points (4-6 FG, 2-4 FT, 0-2 3PT) with two rebounds, one assist, four steals, and three turnovers in 19 minutes off the bench in a 113-97 loss to the Rockets.

Fantasy Impact: The Iowa State rookie had impressed the coaching staff early on in Disney World, but hadn't received any playing time to show for it until tonight. He played well in 19 minutes and was tenacious on the defensive end of the floor, evidenced by his four steals. The minutes were likely a result of LeBron James and Alex Caruso being out, but it was fun to see Horton-Tucker get some much deserved run against the Rockets.

Devontae Cacok was named to both the NBA all-G League first-team and all-rookie team. (Source: Dave McMenamin on Twitter)

Fantasy Impact: Two-way forward, Cacok was named to the all-G League first-team and all-rookie team. The undrafted rookie out of North Carolina-Wilmington dominated as he averaged a double-double for the season. In 33 games with the South Bay Lakers, he managed 19.4 points, .8 assists, 1.1 steals, and 11.9 rebounds per game and shot 65.9 percent from the floor and 57.9 percent from the free-throw line. Cacok did not register a game with the Lakers this year; however, with his outstanding play, it would not be surprising if that changed for next season. If Cacok continues his strong play by capitalizing on his strengths of scoring and crashing the boards, a direct pathway into the Lakers rotation could open for this young player, especially as the Lakers continue to define and tighten their front-court. Although his fantasy relevance is zero at this time, he could be worth a look later down the line.

C DeMarcus Cousins (knee) has not ruled out signing with a team and playing in Orlando, per his agent Jeff Schwartz. (Source: Tania Ganguli on Twitter )

Fantasy Impact: It was reported that Cousins would focus on rehabbing his torn left ACL and sit out the remainder of the 2019-20 season. He was waived by the Lakers in February and has focused on returning at 100 percent for the 2020-21 campaign. With the conflicted reports, he has not ruled out signing with a franchise and playing in Orlando. If a team does sign Cousins for the remainder of the season, expect the 29-year old to be on a minutes restriction. He averaged 16.2 points, 8.2 rebounds, 3.5 assists, 1.3 steals and 1.4 blocks across 30 games for the Warriors in the 2018-19 season.

Lakers guard Avery Bradley has told ESPN that he is opting-out of the NBA restart in Orlando for personal reasons. (Source: Adrian Wojnarowski on Twitter)

Fantasy Impact: Bradley has a 6-year old son who struggles with respiratory issues, so for the safety of his family he has decided to opt-out of joining the Lakers in the bubble. Bradley was a nice depth piece and solid rotational player for the Lakers and his defensive ability will certainly be missed. Guys like Alex Caruso, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and Rajon Rondo will likely pick up some of the minutes vacated by Bradley. Bradley was averaging 8.6 points, 2.3 rebounds, and 1.3 assists in 24 minutes per game this season for the Lakers.