NBA Player News

Zubac is in the starting lineup for Thursday's game against Phoenix, Tony East of Forbes.com reports.

Zubac will be inserted right into the starting five for his first action since being dealt to Indiana. It's unclear as to how many minutes he may go Thursday, as he's spent a little over a month rehabbing from an ankle injury, but it's a great sign for the Pacers to get him out there on a night where a good chunk of the rotation is sidelined due to injury.

Huff will come off the bench for Thursday's game against the Suns, Tony East of Forbes.com reports.

Ivica Zubac is making his Pacers debut Thursday evening, which will result in Huff heading to the second unit, where his value figures to take a hit. As a reserve this season, Huff has posted averages of 6.9 points, 3.0 rebounds, 1.0 three-pointers and 1.7 blocks per game.

Drummond (back) has been ruled out for Thursday's game against the Pistons, Ky Carlin of USA Today reports.

Drummond's back issue appeared to flare up earlier in the day, and it's bothering him enough to keep him from playing Thursday. The Sixers will be without Drummond, Joel Embiid (oblique), Kelly Oubre (elbow) and Adem Bona (back) in the frontcourt, leaving plenty of opportunities for the likes of Dominick Barlow, Trendon Watford and Jabari Walker.

Sims (knee) is available for Thursday's game against the Heat, Stephen Watson of ESPN Milwaukee reports.

Sims is back from a one-game absence with a back injury to handle his typical role off the bench. The big man has averaged 8.1 rebounds, 5.8 points and 2.4 assists in 25.6 minutes per tilt over his last eight games, shooting an absurd 91.7 percent from the field during that period.

Sengun is questionable to play Friday versus the Pelicans due to low back pain.

Friday's contest will be the fourth game in six days for the Rockets, and with a matchup against the 19-44 Pelicans, the Rockets' medical staff may opt to give Sengun a rest day. If he is forced to the sidelines, Clint Capela would have a chance to start, and Kevin Durant could see some increased playmaking responsibilities.

Post (foot) is questionable for Friday's game against Minnesota.

Post is in danger of missing a second straight game while dealing with a foot injury. The team figures to monitor him closely during shootaround and leading up to warmups before issuing another update on his availability for Friday.

Allen (knee) is out for Friday's game in Dallas.

Allen is set to sit out his fourth straight game Friday, and it's not encouraging that he continues to get ruled out 24 hours in advance of tipoff. Thomas Bryant and Jaylon Tyson will continue to pick up the slack in Allen's absence.

Sharpe has been diagnosed with an ulnar collateral ligament tear in his left thumb and will require season-ending surgery, Erik Slater of ClutchPoints.com reports.

This is a tough blow for Sharpe, who was in the process of putting together one of the best campaigns of his young NBA career. He averaged 8.7 points, 6.7 rebounds, 2.3 assists and 1.1 steals in 62 games. Both Danny Wolf and Josh Minott should be in the mix for backup center minutes with Sharpe sidelined.

Zubac (ankle) will play Thursday against the Suns, Alex Golden of the 'Setting the Pace' podcast reports.

Zubac was upgraded to questionable ahead of Thursday's matchup, and the team has since given him the green light to take the floor for the first time as a member of the Pacers. The big man hasn't appeared in a game since Feb. 2, so it's safe to assume that Indiana will keep a close eye on his minutes until he's acclimated, which will likely take at least a few appearances.

Kleber (back) is out for Thursday's game against the Bulls, Daniel Starkand of LakersNation.com reports.

Kleber was unable to shake his questionable tag for this contest. Jaxson Hayes (back) is also unavailable for the Lakers, meaning Jarred Vanderbilt could see an uptick in minutes Thursday.