Toronto Raptors forward Chris Boucher (finger) returned to practice on Tuesday, which is a good sign for Wednesday's season opener. The Raptors are hopeful that Boucher will be cleared in time for Wednesday's matchup. Otherwise, Khem Birch and Precious Achiuwa would see more minutes, but neither is worth a look in DFS contests. Boucher is dealing with a minor finger injury, so at worst it should only cost him one game. Fantasy managers should check back for another update on Wednesday.

Toronto Raptors center Chris Boucher (finger) underwent surgery on his dislocated left middle finger last week. He was originally given a timeline of three-to-four weeks, but it sounds like he could be back sooner. On Tuesday, Raptors coach Nick Nurse was on SiriusXM NBA Radio and he stated that Boucher was about 10 days away from returning. If that timeline holds true, he might only miss about three or four games at the start of the year. The 28-year-old is coming off of his best season in the NBA. He averaged 13.6 points, 6.7 rebounds and 1.9 blocks per game while shooting 51.4% from the field. Fantasy managers should keep an eye on him as a source of blocks in the middle rounds of drafts.

Toronto Raptors power forward Pascal Siakam (shoulder) and center Chris Boucher (finger) are the two big names that are set to miss Thursday's preseason contest vs. Philadelphia. Joining them on the sidelines are Khem Birch (health and safety protocols) and Yuta Watanabe (calf), giving the team an extremely thin frontcourt. Precious Achiuwa drew the start in the preseason opener and logged 25 minutes, while Justin Champagnie notched a double-double off the bench. Scottie Barnes also stands to benefit in the short-term as Toronto acclimates its new faces to the rotation. Siakam is still set to be the primary fantasy focal point for the Raptors this year, although his timetable for a return to action remains unclear.

Toronto Raptors forward/center Chris Boucher (finger) won't suit up for the preseason opener against the visiting 76ers. The big man dislocated his left middle finger, so the team will give him the night off and likely a few others heading toward the regular season while he recovers. Pascal Siakam (shoulder) is also rehabbing from surgery, and Khem Birch will be out while adhering to the league's health and safety protocols surrounding COVID-19, leaving a significant void underneath the rim on Monday night. As a result, fourth overall selection Scottie Barnes may slide over to the power forward spot, with Precious Achiuwa holding things down in the middle. Boucher averaged 13.6 points, 6.7 boards, and 1.9 blocks during the abbreviated 2020 campaign, so hopefully, he won't miss any time when the new year officially begins in just over a few weeks.

Toronto Raptors center Chris Boucher is slated to spend time as a power forward this season. With Pascal Siakam (shoulder) likely to miss a month or two moving ahead, Boucher's fantasy stock is on the rise. Although he may not start, at least consistently, the 28-year-old still has a higher ceiling than most with a similar role. He averaged 13.6 points, 6.7 points, and 1.9 blocks while shooting 38.3 percent from deep throughout 60 games last season, so managers looking for value toward the later rounds of fantasy drafts shouldn't look past him.

LOS ANGELES (AP) — The Los Angeles Lakers were dealt another disappointing loss, this time by the short-handed Toronto Raptors. But seeing LeBron James head to the locker room early served as a reminder it could have been much worse. James left with 6:42 to play as the Raptors defeated the Lakers 121-114 on Sunday night. Los Angeles coach Frank Vogel said it was a precautionary move to pull James in his second game back after missing 20 because of a sprained right ankle. James said he would wait to see how his ankle felt before deciding if he could play against Denver on Monday, but acknowledged it has yet to hold up for an entire game. “The first half, it feels really good. Obviously warming up for the game, everything is going well,” said James, who had 19 points, seven rebounds and six assists. “Last two games at halftime, you know, after the break, it’s kind of gotten a little sore on me — a little tight. "And obviously Coach decided not to put me back in towards the end because of... [More]

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Kyle Lowry had 37 points and 11 assists, Pascal Siakam had 39 points and 13 rebounds and the short-handed Toronto Raptors defeated the Los Angeles Lakers 121-114 on Sunday night. LeBron James had 19 points, seven rebounds and six assists before going back to the locker room with 6:42 to play. It was the second game back for James after missing 20 because of a sprained right ankle. Toronto ended a three-game losing streak despite not having Fred VanVleet, OG Anunoby, Chris Boucher or Gary Trent Jr. available because of injuries or to rest after losing at Utah on Saturday. DeAndre’ Bembry had 14 points off the bench and the Raptors led by as many as 21 to hand the defending NBA champion Lakers another baffling defeat. Kyle Kuzma had 24 points for Los Angeles, Anthony Davis chipped in with 12 and Andre Drummond had 19 points and 11 rebounds. After trailing by as many as 12 points in the first quarter, the Raptors led 72-59 at the half after blitzing the Lakers for 40 points... [More]

TAMPA, Fla. (AP) — The Toronto Raptors got another big lift from their bench and won consecutive games for the first time this season. Chris Boucher, Kyle Lowry and Fred Van Fleet converted eight straight free throws in the final two minutes Saturday night, helping Toronto beat the Charlotte Hornets 116-113. Norman Powell led the Raptors with 24 points, and Boucher added 20 points and nine rebounds. Both came off the bench. “I think we're starting to understand what we have to do,” said Powell, who played 28 minutes and made six 3-pointers. “Guys are getting more comfortable with the flow of the game. That's what you try to do early in the season.” Gordon Heyward scored 25 points and Terry Rozier added 24 for the Hornets, losers of three straight, two of them against the Raptors in the last three nights. P.J. Washington finished with 14 points and 12 rebounds, and Devonte Graham had 20 points and seven assists.. The Hornets had a chance to tie or take the lead but were called for a 24-second... [More]

TAMPA, Fla. (AP) — Chris Boucher, Kyle Lowry and Fred Van Fleet converted eight straight free throws in the final two minutes Saturday night, helping Toronto beat the Charlotte Hornets, 116-113 for the Raptors first two-game win streak of the season. Norman Powell led the Raptors with 24 points, and Boucher added 20 points and nine rebounds. Gordon Heyward scored 25 points and Terry Rozier added 24 for the Hornets, losers of three straight. P.J. Washington finished with 14 points and 12 rebounds. The Hornets had a chance to tie or take the lead but were called for a 24-second violation with 14.8 seconds left. Van Fleet's two free throws with 13.3 seconds left put the Raptors up 114-110, and after Devonte Graham's 3-pointer brought Charlotte within a point, Boucher answered with two free throws. Rozier missed a long 3-point try just before the final horn. After missing eight of their first nine shots and falling behind 14-2, the Raptors got the 3s to drop, as seven players hit 13 from long... [More]

TAMPA, Fla. (AP) — Chris Boucher had 25 points and 10 rebounds, Kyle Lowry had 16 points and 12 assists, and the Toronto Raptors beat the Charlotte Hornets 111-108 on Thursday night. Pascal Siakam added 15 points and seven rebounds as Toronto ended a two-game skid and improved to 3-8. “I'm just trying to figure out a way to get us going,” said Boucher, who is averaging 20.8 points and 8.5 rebounds in the last four games, all in a reserve role. “Playing defense and bringing energy is what you're there for. It's pretty much what I do.” “As good as the numbers look, there's a lot of room for improvement,” Raptors coach Nick Nurse said. “He's really close to being a really solid defensive player.” Terry Rozier led the Hornets with 22 points and P.J. Washington had 20 points and 11 rebounds. LaMelo Ball had 14 points and 11 assists as Charlotte played without leading scorer Gordon Heyward, who strained his left hip in Wednesday night's 104-93 loss to Dallas that ended a four-game winning streak.... [More]

TAMPA (AP) — Chris Boucher had 25 points and 10 rebounds, Kyle Lowry had 16 points and 12 assists, and the Toronto Raptors beat the Charlotte Hornets 111-108 on Thursday night. Pascal Siakam added 15 points and seven rebounds as Toronto ended a two-game skid and improved to 3-8. Terry Rozier led the Hornets with 22 points and P.J. Washington had 20 points and 11 rebounds. LaMelo Ball had 14 points and 11 assists as Charlotte played without leading scorer Gordon Heyward, who strained his left hip in Wednesday night's 104-93 loss to Dallas that ended a four-game winning streak. Fred Van Fleet's 3-pointer with 1:52 left in the first quarter launched a 34-11 Toronto run over the next 8 1/2 minutes that put the Raptors ahead to stay. They led 71-62 at halftime after shooting 13 for 25 (52%) from behind the arc. Boucher had 16 points in the first half, including a layup that left the Raptors with a 15-point lead, their largest of the half. After Toronto missed its first seven shots of the fourth... [More]

After a couple easy wins to start the NBA Summer League, things finally got tougher for the Miami Heat.Tyler Herro and Kendrick Nunn made sure they got through it.Herro scored 25 points, Nunn added 19 and the Heat edged the Orlando Magic 96-92 on Tuesday to remain undefeated in Las Vegas.Miami is joined by Boston, Memphis, Detroit and Minnesota at 3-0, in good shape for seeding purposes when the 32 teams are trimmed to eight for the tournament.The Heat can thank their backcourt that has played so well on the campus of UNLV. There wasn't too much to do in the opener, when Miami led by 51 points in a 103-62 rout of China, when Herro and Nunn combined for 38 points. They put up 38 more against Utah, when Miami led by as much as 19 in an eventual 12-point victory.They were even better when Miami was finally tested against Orlando (1-2), which had a 12-point lead. But Herro, the No. 13 pick out of Kentucky, poured in 15 points in the second quarter before Nunn, who spent last season with the... [More]

With Zion Williamson and Ja Morant out with injuries and R.J. Barrett struggling, the opportunity has presented itself for lesser-known players to get noticed during Las Vegas Summer League.Chris Clemons, an undrafted rookie from Campbell, has made an impact. In a loss to the Dallas Mavericks on Saturday, he scored 25 points on 9-for-20 shooting , made 7 of 13 3-pointers and launched his muscular 5-foot-9 frame for an alley-oop. The next day, he scored 22 points and made 5 of 11 3-pointers in a loss to Portland.He ranked third overall in Las Vegas scoring after Sunday's games — not bad for someone who wasn't even invited to the draft combine."I know I can play with these guys at this level," Clemons said.He just needs one NBA team to agree.Clemons achieved notoriety for his college scoring, leading the nation with 30 points per game this past season. He tied for the scoring title and won MVP honors at the Portsmouth Invitational in April, then earned an invitation to the G League Select... [More]

With Zion Williamson and Ja Morant out with injuries and R.J. Barrett struggling, the opportunity has presented itself for lesser-known players to get noticed during Las Vegas Summer League.Chris Clemons, an undrafted rookie from Campbell, has made an impact. In a loss to the Dallas Mavericks on Saturday, he scored 25 points on 9-for-20 shooting , made 7 of 13 3-pointers and launched his muscular 5-foot-9 frame for an alley-oop. The next day, he scored 22 points and made 5 of 11 3-pointers in a loss to Portland.He ranked third overall in Las Vegas scoring after Sunday's games — not bad for someone who wasn't even invited to the draft combine."I know I can play with these guys at this level," Clemons said.He just needs one NBA team to agree.Clemons achieved notoriety for his college scoring, leading the nation with 30 points per game this past season. He tied for the scoring title and won MVP honors at the Portsmouth Invitational in April, then earned an invitation to the G League Select... [More]

With Zion Williamson and Ja Morant out with injuries and R.J. Barrett struggling, the opportunity has presented itself for lesser-known players to get noticed during Las Vegas Summer League.Chris Clemons, an undrafted rookie from Campbell, has made an impact. In a loss to the Dallas Mavericks on Saturday, he scored 25 points on 9-for-20 shooting , made 7 of 13 3-pointers and launched his muscular 5-foot-9 frame for an alley-oop. The next day, he scored 22 points and made 5 of 11 3-pointers in a loss to Portland.He ranked third overall in Las Vegas scoring after Sunday's games — not bad for someone who wasn't even invited to the draft combine."I know I can play with these guys at this level," Clemons said.He just needs one NBA team to agree.Clemons achieved notoriety for his college scoring, leading the nation with 30 points per game this past season. He tied for the scoring title and won MVP honors at the Portsmouth Invitational in April, then earned an invitation to the G League Select... [More]

With Zion Williamson and Ja Morant out with injuries and R.J. Barrett struggling, the opportunity has presented itself for lesser-known players to get noticed during Las Vegas Summer League.Chris Clemons, an undrafted rookie from Campbell, has made an impact. In a loss to the Dallas Mavericks on Saturday, he scored 25 points on 9-for-20 shooting , made 7 of 13 3-pointers and launched his muscular 5-foot-9 frame for an alley-oop. The next day, he scored 22 points and made 5 of 11 3-pointers in a loss to Portland.He ranked third overall in Las Vegas scoring after Sunday's games — not bad for someone who wasn't even invited to the draft combine."I know I can play with these guys at this level," Clemons said.He just needs one NBA team to agree.Clemons achieved notoriety for his college scoring, leading the nation with 30 points per game this past season. He tied for the scoring title and won MVP honors at the Portsmouth Invitational in April, then earned an invitation to the G League Select... [More]

MIAMI (AP) — Jeremy Lin is on the move again, with the veteran guard getting waived by the Atlanta Hawks and intending to sign later this week playoff-contending Toronto Raptors.The Hawks waived Lin on Monday and Jim Tanner, one of his agents, confirmed Lin's plan to join Toronto, which was first reported by ESPN.Lin and the Hawks worked out a buyout agreement."The future is bright for Atlanta!!! I truly mean that!" Lin posted Monday on Instagram . "Everyone who knows me knows how big my dreams are and that I have so much left to give to the game. Hyped to join the Raptors!!"Lin thanked the Hawks, saying they helped him "become myself again on the basketball court and allowed me to experience the joy of hoops again!"Toronto will become Lin's eighth NBA franchise, after stints with Golden State, New York, Houston, the Los Angeles Lakers, Charlotte, Brooklyn and this season Atlanta. He appeared in 51 games for the Hawks, all but one of those as a reserve, averaging 10.7 points this season... [More]

MIAMI (AP) — Jeremy Lin is about to be on the move again, with the veteran guard in the process of getting bought out by the Atlanta Hawks so he can sign with the playoff-contending Toronto Raptors.Jim Tanner, one of Lin's agents, confirmed the pending move to The Associated Press. ESPN first reported Lin's plan to join the Raptors.Toronto will become Lin's eighth NBA franchise, after stints with Golden State, New York, Houston, the Los Angeles Lakers, Charlotte, Brooklyn and this season Atlanta. He appeared in 51 games for the Hawks, all but one of those as a reserve, averaging 10.7 points this season on nearly 47 percent shooting.Lin gives the Raptors obvious depth at both guard spots, and will likely — once he clears waivers and joins Toronto — spend time backing up point guard Kyle Lowry and shooting guard Danny Green. And he will be needed soon, with the Raptors announcing Monday that backup guard Fred VanVleet is expected to miss at least three weeks with a partial ligament injury... [More]

MIAMI (AP) — Jeremy Lin is about to be on the move again, with the veteran guard in the process of getting bought out by the Atlanta Hawks so he can sign with the playoff-contending Toronto Raptors.Jim Tanner, one of Lin's agents, confirmed the pending move to The Associated Press. ESPN first reported Lin's plan to join the Raptors.Toronto will become Lin's eighth NBA franchise, after stints with Golden State, New York, Houston, the Los Angeles Lakers, Charlotte, Brooklyn and this season Atlanta. He appeared in 51 games for the Hawks, all but one of those as a reserve, averaging 10.7 points this season on nearly 47 percent shooting.Lin gives the Raptors obvious depth at both guard spots, and will likely — once he clears waivers and joins Toronto — spend time backing up both point guard Kyle Lowry and shooting guard Danny Green.The plans to enter into an agreement with Lin comes one day after the Raptors finalized the conversion of two-way player Chris Boucher's contract to an NBA standard contract.The Raptors entered Monday 41-16 and second in the Eastern Conference behind only NBA-leading Milwaukee.Lin has averaged 11.8 points in 457 career games. He's been part of three previous playoff runs, in 2013 and 2014 with Houston and in 2016 with Charlotte.___More AP NBA: https://apnews.com/NBA and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports