NBA Player News

Kleber (rib) tallied zero points (0-1 FG) and two rebounds in 13 minutes in Thursday's 118-95 loss to the Clippers.

Kleber had missed the Mavericks' previous three games with a fractured rib and an illness, but he was given the green light to play Thursday after putting in a full practice earlier this week. The 32-year-old has logged fewer than 20 minutes in each of his last three appearances and will likely struggle to see meaningful playing time so long as Dereck Lively, Daniel Gafford and P.J. Washington are all available in the frontcourt.

Vucevic racked up 16 points (7-9 FG, 2-3 3Pt), 14 rebounds, four assists and one block across 33 minutes during Thursday's 117-108 win over the Celtics.

Vucevic notched his 15th double-double of the season Thursday, cleaning the glass for a game-high 14 boards and supplying an efficient 16 points. The 34-year-old star big man has reached double-digit scoring figures in each of his last 13 games, a stretch in which he's averaging 21.8 points, 9.8 rebounds, 3.5 assists 0.9 blocks, 0.8 steals and 2.6 three-pointers per contest. Vucevic has long been a dependable fantasy asset due to his strong production across the board, but he's taken a big leap in efficiency during his 15th season, shooting a career-high 59.2 percent from the field and 48.0 percent from deep in 2024-25.

Porzingis provided 20 points (7-17 FG, 2-7 3Pt, 4-4 FT), eight rebounds and three blocks over 36 minutes during Thursday's 117-108 loss to the Bulls.

Porzingis made his usual impact on the boards and in the scoring column while also blocking a game-high three shots, but it wasn't his best night shooting the ball. The All-Star big man is now averaging an efficient 19.1 points, 7.1 rebounds, 1.6 assists, 1.5 blocks, 0.8 steals and 2.1 three-pointers in 27.5 minutes per game through eight appearances so far this year. Perhaps Thursday's most important takeaway is that Porzingis played a season-high 36 minutes, which is an encouraging sign for the Celtics and fantasy managers as the center becomes further removed from offseason foot surgery this past summer.

Davis (shoulder) has been cleared to return to Thursday's game against Sacramento, Jovan Buha of The Athletic reports.

Davis made a quick visit to the locker room during the second quarter of Thursday's matchup but was quickly given the green light to continue. The team will undoubtedly monitor his shoulder injury closely moving forward.

Davis went to the locker room during the first half of Thursday's game against the Kings with an apparent left shoulder injury, Dan Woike of the Los Angeles Times reports.

Davis suffered a shoulder injury during Sunday's matchup with Memphis, and it appears the issue is still bothering him. He'll be considered questionable to return until the team reports otherwise.

Clingan is not in the starting lineup for Thursday's game against the Nuggets.

Clingan returns to the bench with Deandre Ayton back in the starting unit. The rookie is averaging 4.9 points and 5.0 rebounds per game when coming off the bench this season (12 appearances).

Davis (foot) has been cleared to play Thursday against the Kings, Jovan Buha of The Athletic reports.

Davis continues to be a frequent presence on the injury report, but he hasn't missed a game since Nov. 6. He should be a full-go for Thursday's clash.

Claxton was ejected with 8:46 remaining in the second quarter of Thursday's game against the Raptors, Blake Murphy of Sportsnet.ca reports. He'll finish the game with seven points (3-5 FG, 1-2 FT), five rebounds and one block across 11 minutes.

Claxton was tossed from the game for throwing a ball in the stands after he was intentionally fouled on a drive to the basket. Day'Ron Sharpe and Noah Clowney will likely pick up the slack the rest of the way.

Ayton (illness) will play Thursday against the Nuggets.

Ayton has been battling an illness for over a week, but it won't keep him out of Thursday's matchup. He'll presumably return to the starting lineup after gaining clearance to play, which would bump Donovan Clingan back to a bench role.

Clarke will come off the bench in Thursday's game against the Warriors.

With Zach Edey returning to the starting five, Clarke will slide to the bench. The 28-year-old came off the bench in his first nine outings this season, during which he averaged 5.1 points and 2.7 rebounds across 14.7 minutes per contest.