2026-27 fantasy basketball injury and availability ledger

Up: 2026-27 Fantasy Basketball Encyclopedia

Related: 2026-27 fantasy basketball projection methodology · 2026-27 fantasy basketball evidence and confidence policy · How NBA injury reports should change fantasy decisions · 2026-27 NBA minutes projections

Scope and cutoff

Research cutoff: 2026-07-18, America/New_York. This is an offseason decision ledger, not a live in-season injury report. It covers all 30 teams and emphasizes injuries, rehabilitation, medical maintenance, suspensions, investigations, and rest risks capable of changing a fantasy rank or a rotation. Fringe-player injuries are included only when they create a meaningful dynasty stash, roster, or minute consequence.

“No later public clearance found” means exactly that. It does not prove that a player remains injured. Conversely, a signing, trade, workout clip, or player statement is not automatically formal medical clearance. Official team and league releases are preferred; credible reporting is labeled when it supplies the latest useful status.

Risk key

The tier is a fantasy exposure grade, not a medical diagnosis or prediction that a setback will occur.

League-wide priority board

These are the most consequential current checkpoints, ordered by the combination of role, uncertainty, and likely missed time—not by player talent.

Eastern Conference team ledger

Atlanta Hawks — Red fringe injury; yellow core availability

• Confirmed, 2026-07-16: Mouhamed Gueye fractured his left foot in a July 8 workout, underwent surgery, and was assigned a three-to-four-month reevaluation window. The report explicitly makes the start of the season uncertain. NBA/AP
• Unresolved monitor, 2026-04-16 to 2026-07-10: Jock Landale was still rehabilitating a high right-ankle sprain in April. Atlanta re-signed him in July, but the transaction release did not amount to formal clearance. April rehab report · Hawks re-signing
• Fantasy inference, 2026-07-18: Gueye is a deep-league loss rather than a standard-league one. Zuby Ejiofor, Asa Newell, and Henri Veesaar receive more preseason/development opportunity; Landale's camp status determines whether Atlanta has a stable backup-center minute floor. Jalen Johnson played 72 games after prior shoulder surgery, so he receives a normal missed-games discount rather than an active injury tag.

Boston Celtics — Orange/yellow star workload risk

• Confirmed, 2026-05-03 and 2026-05-06: Jayson Tatum returned on March 6, 298 days after a ruptured right Achilles, and played 16 regular-season games (32.6 MPG) under a progressive minutes ramp, then missed Game 7 on May 2 with left-knee stiffness. Boston said he had been playing at roughly 80–85% and would examine whether the accelerated ramp contributed to the knee problem; no later public diagnosis or clearance was located. Game 7 report · Boston exit report
• Resolved discipline, 2026-03-26: Paul George completed his 25-game anti-drug suspension and returned during 2025-26. There is no carryover 2026-27 suspension. NBA/AP return report
• Fantasy inference, 2026-07-18: Tatum retains late-first-round per-game potential, but a full 70-plus-game workload should not be assumed before unrestricted camp work. Correction 2026-07-18: the projection files carried Tatum at 72 GP, which contradicted this row. Base GP cut to 65. The evidence is the 16-game 2025-26 total off a May 2025 Achilles rupture, the progressive minutes restriction on return, and the unresolved left-knee stiffness that ended his postseason with no later diagnosis or clearance. CBS return report · NBA/Yahoo season-debut report George, Derrick White, Payton Pritchard, and Hugo González gain usage or minutes if Tatum is managed. George's age-36 knee/load history remains a totals risk, not a suspension risk.

Brooklyn Nets — Orange camp-clearance cluster

• Expected camp-ready, 2026-06-30: Nolan Traoré underwent right-knee arthroscopy, missed Summer League, and was expected by general manager Sean Marks to be fully recovered for camp. Yahoo/RotoWire report
• Unresolved, 2026-03-12: Day'Ron Sharpe had season-ending surgery for a left-thumb UCL tear; no later public return timeline was located. NBA/AP
• Unresolved/resolved split, 2026-03-19 through 2026-07-16: Michael Porter Jr. was shut down after a left-hamstring strain and lacked a later formal clearance. Danny Wolf and Egor Dëmin did return to Summer League game action, so their spring ankle and plantar-fasciitis shutdowns should not be carried as active absences. Porter injury · season shutdown · Dëmin Summer League return
• Fantasy inference, 2026-07-18: Traore needs only a camp confirmation; Sharpe and Porter deserve modest games-played discounts until full contact. Correction 2026-07-19: Sharpe's base GP cut from 68 to 60 — the discount this ledger asked for was never applied to the projection card, which instead carried a career high six games above his best-ever 62 against a base of 61, 50, 62 and three straight injury-shortened seasons. His July self-report says rehab is going well but no full-contact clearance was located. Hoops Rumors surgery report · Yahoo rehab update Noah Clowney, Wolf, Josh Minott, and Jalen Wilson are the clearest contingency beneficiaries.

Charlotte Hornets — Red primary-scorer uncertainty

• Confirmed, 2026-05-07: Brandon Miller underwent surgery on May 6 for left-shoulder instability. Charlotte said a full recovery was expected but listed him out indefinitely, supplied no camp or opener timetable, and did not confirm he would be ready for 2026-27. He had played 65 games in 2025-26, including 13 missed in late October after a left-shoulder subluxation and the balance of the season in a shoulder wrap — that is, the surgery addressed a problem he had been playing through all year. NBA/AP · ESPN
• Unresolved recurrent soft tissue, 2026-02 through 2026-03-03: Coby White played 50 games in 2025-26 (29 Chicago, 21 Charlotte). A left calf strain was discovered at his trade physical and was material enough that Chicago and Charlotte renegotiated the deal, with Charlotte's outgoing second-round picks cut from three to two. He missed his first six games as a Hornet, and Charlotte was still holding him out for "left calf injury management" as late as the March 3 game against Dallas, easing him back deliberately to avoid another setback. No offseason clearance was located. Hoops Rumors — amended trade · ClutchPoints — calf update
• Fantasy inference, 2026-07-18: Miller should be ranked conditionally until he completes contact work. Kon Knueppel and Coby White inherit more creation, while Grayson Allen, Royce O'Neale, and Sion James absorb wing minutes if Miller is delayed. Correction 2026-07-18: Miller's base GP cut from 62 to 50. Shoulder-instability stabilisation typically runs six to twelve months to full strength, which places his return between November 2026 and the 2027 calendar year; a 62-game season requires a return by roughly mid-December, i.e. the optimistic tail of an indefinite, no-timetable surgery. The Red tier and the projection now agree. Correction 2026-07-18: Coby White's base GP cut from 68 to 60. He previously carried no availability discount and no rest-risk placement despite the recurrent calf above; a soft-tissue injury that recurred across a full season and altered a trade's terms is exactly the profile this ledger's risk key says should take a totals discount. Tre Mann and Kon Knueppel are the guard handcuffs.

Chicago Bulls — Orange postoperative backcourt and center checks

• Expected camp-ready, 2026-05-13: Josh Giddey underwent right-ankle arthroscopy; Chicago projected approximately three months before basketball activity and expected him ready for camp. NBA/AP
• Unresolved, 2026-02-21 through 2026-07-18: Zach Collins had season-ending right-toe surgery and no public return timetable was located. Nic Claxton finished the season with a finger sprain without a formal summer clearance. Collins player update · Claxton player news
• Low concern, 2026-07-17: Noa Essengue returned from shoulder surgery for Summer League and was held out with right-thumb soreness while expected to be ready for camp. Bulls team page
• Fantasy inference, 2026-07-18: Giddey keeps his per-game rank but carries a conditioning/GP discount. Tre Jones and Rob Dillingham gain lead-guard work if he is delayed; Jalen Smith and Leonard Miller gain frontcourt minutes if Collins or Claxton is not ready.

Cleveland Cavaliers — Green current status; yellow durability history

• Resolved, 2026-03-28: Jarrett Allen returned from a 10-game knee absence with 18 points and 10 rebounds, and Cleveland subsequently played into late May. NBA/AP
• Current search result, 2026-07-18: No material unresolved restriction was located for Allen, Evan Mobley, Donovan Mitchell, James Harden, or Max Strus. Earlier calf, knee, finger, and thumb issues are stale unless camp reporting revives them. Cavaliers team page
• Fantasy inference, 2026-07-18: Do not preserve spring “out” tags. Mobley and Allen still deserve ordinary games-played discounts because of repeated lower-body absences, but no specific beneficiary adjustment belongs in the base projection.

Detroit Pistons — Green after serious but resolved event

• Resolved, 2026-05-03: Cade Cunningham returned after a March collapsed left lung/pneumothorax and produced 32 points and 12 assists in playoff Game 7. He continued playing later in May. AP game report · Pistons team page
• Fantasy inference, 2026-07-18: The event was serious, but the subsequent playoff workload is direct return-to-play evidence. Cunningham should not carry an active injury tag; use only a normal availability discount. No current Detroit suspension or rotation-changing rehabilitation case was located.

Indiana Pacers — Red wing rehab; orange star return

• Expected opener return, 2026-06-25 to 2026-06-27: Tyrese Haliburton missed all of 2025-26 after right-Achilles repair, began five-on-five work April 8, and was described by Indiana as on schedule for the start of 2026-27. General manager Chad Buchanan warned that early “ups and downs” should be expected; Haliburton said he could do everything and felt healthy. Pacers April update · GM update · Haliburton update
• Confirmed long-term rehab, 2026-02-11 and 2026-06-30: Johnny Furphy tore his right ACL and underwent repair. A public eight-to-twelve-month range makes opening night uncertain; Indiana said in late June that recovery was going exceptionally well but that he was not ready. Kansas City Star · Sports Illustrated update
• Resolved monitors, 2026-04-29 to 2026-07-07: Obi Toppin returned after right-fifth-metatarsal surgery and was described as returning to full health. Ivica Zubac played productive FIBA minutes in July after ankle and rib problems ended his NBA season. Toppin review · Zubac review · July FIBA report
• Fantasy inference, 2026-07-18: Haliburton's per-game ceiling survives, but early efficiency, minutes, and back-to-back availability deserve a discount. Andrew Nembhard, T.J. McConnell, and Pascal Siakam benefit on rest days. Kelly Oubre Jr., Aaron Nesmith, Ben Sheppard, and Jarace Walker absorb Furphy's wing minutes.

Miami Heat — Yellow/orange superstar maintenance

• Confirmed recent injury, 2026-03-18: Giannis Antetokounmpo sustained a left-knee hyperextension and bone bruise; imaging showed no structural damage. Two right-calf absences plus the knee injury limited him to 36 games. NBA/AP
• Encouraging activity, 2026-07-16: At his Miami introduction, Giannis said he had returned to the court with the Heat staff and wanted to be ready for camp. That is basketball activity, not a formal full-contact clearance or an announced workload plan. Yahoo Sports
• No discipline, 2026-07-16: The league said it would take no further action over the Bam Adebayo–Tyler Herro offseason altercation. NBC Sports
• Fantasy inference, 2026-07-18: Giannis remains elite per game but warrants a meaningful games-played and maintenance discount; no back-to-back policy has been announced. Adebayo gains usage, while Bobby Portis and Nikola Jović gain frontcourt minutes when Giannis sits.

Milwaukee Bucks — Orange knee rehab; yellow lead-scorer durability

• Confirmed rehab, 2025-11-05 and 2026-04-07: Kevin Porter Jr. had right-meniscus surgery in November, then a second arthroscopic right-knee procedure in April after recurrent synovitis. No camp timetable or full clearance was located. Bucks medical update · NBA/AP second surgery
• History rather than active restriction, 2025-09-19 through 2026-04-14: Tyler Herro underwent left-ankle/foot posterior-impingement surgery and later dealt with toe and rib trouble, limiting him to 33 games. He nevertheless played 34 minutes in Miami's April finale and had no announced July restriction. NBA/AP surgery report · official April 13 injury report
• Administrative monitor, 2026-07-16: The NBA opened an investigation into Gary Trent Jr.'s new contract; no player suspension or availability penalty had been announced at the cutoff. Reuters
• Fantasy inference, 2026-07-18: Porter receives a material ramp discount; Ryan Rollins and Kasparas Jakučionis gain the most ballhandling if he is limited. Herro should be treated as entering camp healthy but with elevated durability risk, not a preset minutes cap. Correction 2026-07-19: Herro's base GP is trimmed from 60 to 55. The last three seasons ran 42, 77, 33, and the same-side ankle/foot pattern now spans three separate seasons; 60 sat above the three-season mean plus a recovery allowance while implicitly treating the one 77-game outlier as the norm. 55 matches both his seven-year average and the mean of his last four seasons. Hoops Rumors surgery report · NBA on the toe absence

New York Knicks — Orange short-term postoperative check

• Confirmed, 2026-07-07: Jalen Brunson underwent left-wrist surgery. AP expected basketball activity later in the summer and availability for the title defense; a separate report relayed an estimate of at least two months of rehabilitation. NBA/AP · NBC Sports/SNY timeline
• Resolved monitors, 2026-05 through 2026-07-18: OG Anunoby completed the Finals after a May hamstring strain. Josh Hart had finger/nerve trouble but no July operation or announced camp restriction.
• Fantasy inference, 2026-07-18: The published timetable points toward opening-night availability, so Brunson needs a modest—not catastrophic—discount unless the ramp stalls. Miles McBride and Jose Alvarado gain point-guard minutes if delayed; Hart and Mikal Bridges gain creation.

Orlando Magic — Orange/red primary-wing recovery

• Confirmed, 2026-02-18 through 2026-05-03: Franz Wagner required renewed rehabilitation for recurring soreness after a December left high-ankle sprain, then strained his right calf in playoff Game 4 and missed Orlando's final three games. Magic ankle update · NBA calf update · Magic season recap
• Current recovery signal, 2026-07-08: Wagner said he would skip Germany's summer schedule, avoid playing, and focus on becoming completely healthy. No formal NBA clearance or return date had followed by the cutoff. Sky Sport Germany
• Resolved monitor, 2026-05-03: Jalen Suggs played all seven playoff games after missing 25 regular-season contests; no current restriction was located.
• Fantasy inference, 2026-07-18: Wagner deserves a real GP/ramp discount until full practice. Paolo Banchero and Desmond Bane gain usage, while Anthony Black and Tristan da Silva gain creation and wing minutes when he sits.

Philadelphia 76ers — Yellow/red chronic maintenance, not an active appendectomy

• Resolved acute procedure, 2026-04-09 through 2026-04-26: Joel Embiid had an emergency appendectomy and returned 17 days later for 34 minutes. The appendectomy itself should not be projected as a current absence. NBA surgery report · NBA/AP return
• Material chronic context, 2026-02-18 through 2026-05-10: Embiid played 38 regular-season games, developed right-shin soreness during a right-knee management program, then had right-ankle and right-hip trouble in May before returning for the elimination game. He said after the season that Philadelphia had “figured out” the knee; no July surgery or rehab restriction was announced. shin/knee report · ankle/hip report · AP exit report
• Resolved monitor, 2026-03-10 through postseason: Tyrese Maxey returned from a right-pinky tendon injury with a splint and played through the postseason. NBA/AP
• Fantasy inference, 2026-07-18: Embiid's per-game ceiling remains elite, but his totals projection requires one of the league's largest GP/load-management discounts. Tyrese Maxey, Jaylen Brown, and VJ Edgecombe gain usage when he sits; Adem Bona, Ariel Hukporti, and Johni Broome compete for center minutes. Correction 2026-07-19: Embiid's dossier GP cut from 44 to 40. The 44 sat above every season since 2022-23 against a 39/19/38 three-year record, a formalized no-back-to-backs policy, and this ledger's own Very-high rest-risk placement; the June no-surgery statement and the appendectomy's fluke truncation support the top of the recent range, not a four-year high. Myers statement, June 8, 2026

Toronto Raptors — Orange point-guard recurrence; expected-ready wing

• Expected camp-ready, 2026-05-08: Brandon Ingram had a right-heel spur removed. Toronto expected full recovery and readiness for September camp. NBA/AP
• Unresolved, 2026-04-25: Immanuel Quickley aggravated a right-hamstring strain during rehabilitation after dealing with right-foot plantar fasciitis and was ruled out for the rest of the first round. No later official clearance was located. NBA/AP
• Yellow monitor, 2026-04-17: Jakob Poeltl said he felt good after a lower-back strain cost 24 games and required a minutes restriction. Raptors Republic
• Fantasy inference, 2026-07-18: Do not downgrade Ingram if he completes camp on schedule. Quickley's recurrence justifies a GP discount; Jamal Shead, Jaden Bradley, and Scottie Barnes gain ballhandling if he is limited. Poeltl's back lowers totals confidence and creates more center minutes for Collin Murray-Boyles.
• Applied, 2026-07-19: the GP discount this ledger called for is now in Quickley's projection card — base lowered from 68 to 63, reflecting the chronic plantar fasciitis plus the unresolved April hamstring aggravation with no clearance located by 2026-07-19. Correction 2026-07-19: Poeltl's dossier GP cut from 60 to 55; the projection sat above his three-season base (50/57/46, mean 51) despite this ledger's own back monitor and the Murray-Boyles minutes pressure.

Washington Wizards — League-high orange volatility

• Confirmed current rehab, 2026-06-16: Alex Sarr underwent June 15 surgery for a right-foot fracture suffered in an offseason workout. Washington expected full recovery before the season but gave no detailed timeline or later clearance. NBA/AP
• Strong self-report after injury, 2026-03-21 and 2026-07-10: Trae Young was ruled out indefinitely after a recurrent right-quadriceps contusion and lower-back irritation, both treated conservatively. At his July contract press conference he said he was ready to play immediately, but that was not a formal medical bulletin. NBA/AP injury report · July readiness report
• Season-ending shutdown, 2026-01-08 through 2026-04: Anthony Davis's left-hand ligament injury, suffered against Utah on January 8, did not require surgery and carried an approximately six-week healing estimate. Washington later cleared him for light contact, but that was not the last step: the Wizards subsequently shut him down for the entire remainder of 2025-26 with hand and groin injuries, explicitly so he could be fully recovered for 2026-27. He played 20 games all season, none of them for Washington, and has not appeared in an NBA game since January 8, 2026. NBA/AP hand injury · Wizards light-contact update via Yahoo · Yahoo season-ending shutdown
• Serious unresolved return-to-play process, 2026-01-15 through 2026-05-15: Cam Whitmore was ruled out for the season with an upper-extremity DVT near his right shoulder. He later described three procedures, said he felt fine, and expected to return, but no formal basketball clearance or camp timeline was located. Wizards player update · Monumental Sports Network
• Fantasy inference, 2026-07-18: Sarr has camp-ramp rather than confirmed regular-season absence risk; Deandre Ayton is the main center beneficiary. Young should not be labeled presently injured, but a 15-game season demands a GP discount; Bub Carrington, AJ Dybantsa, Kyshawn George, and Tre Johnson gain creation on absences. Correction 2026-07-19: Sarr's dossier GP cut from 64 to 57. The camp-ramp risk this row already carried was never reflected in the projection: 64 sat above his two-season base (67, then 48) while he rehabilitates a June 15 foot fracture — his third lower-body problem in twelve months — with no clearance located. NBA/AP surgery report Correction 2026-07-18: Young's base GP cut from 62 to 55. The ledger asked for a discount that the projection never applied — 15 games (ten Atlanta, five Washington) is by far his career low against a prior floor of 54, and the quad/back problems were managed conservatively rather than resolved by a procedure. His July "ready to play" press-conference remark is a self-report, not a medical bulletin. NBA/AP injury report Davis is the roster's largest maintenance/rest risk; Sarr/Ayton and Dybantsa benefit when he sits. Correction 2026-07-18: the ledger now carries Davis at the dossier's 44 GP base rather than the 50 still present in the projection snapshot. The evidence chain previously ended at "light contact," which overstated his recovery state; it actually ends at a season-ending hand-and-groin shutdown, a 20-game season, zero Washington appearances, and a roughly ten-month layoff into an age-33 season on a team with no incentive to push him. Whitmore is a deep-league/dynasty medical monitor.

Western Conference team ledger

Dallas Mavericks — Red center uncertainty; orange star return

• Expected camp-ready, 2026-02-18 to 2026-02-19: Dallas ruled Kyrie Irving out for all of 2025-26 while he continued rehabilitation from March 2025 left-ACL reconstruction. A team report expected the longer runway to make him fully ready for 2026-27 camp; that expectation is not a July clearance or proof of restored burst. Mavericks medical decision · team outlook
• Confirmed high-risk rehab, 2025-12-10 and 2026-06-26: Dereck Lively II underwent season-ending right-foot surgery. On June 26 he said he was out of the boot but not cleared to run or jump and had no timetable. NBA/AP surgery report · Dallas Hoops Journal update
• Expected recovery, 2026-03-16: Santi Aldama underwent right-knee arthroscopy plus an orthobiologic injection; Memphis expected full recovery before 2026-27, but no later public clearance was located after his Dallas trade. Grizzlies medical update
• Fantasy inference, 2026-07-18: Irving's per-game guard value is viable, but minutes, back-to-backs, and efficiency require a ramp discount; Cooper Flagg, Ryan Nembhard, Marcus Sasser, and Sergio De Larrea gain creation if he is managed. Correction 2026-07-19: Irving's dossier GP cut from 60 to 55. The projection had him above either of his last two active seasons (58, 50) in his first year back from ACL reconstruction at 34; his July update — "definitely close to being over at 100%" — is progress, not clearance. ClutchPoints, July 2026 Lively is Dallas's clearest opener risk; Daniel Gafford and Morez Johnson Jr. are the direct beneficiaries, with Aldama and P.J. Washington available at small-ball center.

Denver Nuggets — Orange/yellow recurrent soft-tissue risk

• Unresolved recurrent sequence, 2026-03-04 through 2026-05-09: Aaron Gordon missed 39 of Denver's first 62 games with a recurrent right-hamstring injury, then missed most of the first round with left-calf tightness. Denver's May postmortem still referred to getting him healthy; no July clearance was located. hamstring report · calf report · season postmortem
• Medical and contract uncertainty, 2026-06-29 through 2026-07-18: Peyton Watson missed the first round with a right-hamstring strain and remained an unsigned restricted free agent at the cutoff. Nuggets player page
• Resolved, 2026-01-30: Nikola Jokić returned after missing 16 games with a hyperextended/bone-bruised left knee and played through the postseason. NBA/AP
• Fantasy inference, 2026-07-18: Gordon is Denver's principal GP/recurrence discount; Cameron Johnson and the young forwards/bigs gain when he sits. Jokić should not carry an active injury tag, but 65 regular-season games in 2025-26 make an automatic 70-plus assumption less secure.

Golden State Warriors — Two red long-term rehabs plus veteran maintenance

• Confirmed active rehab, 2026-02-10 through 2026-06-25: Jimmy Butler III underwent right-ACL repair after a January tear. In late June he said he was still not running and estimated roughly six weeks to that step; local reporting said Golden State was planning around a possible midseason return while the club maintained there was no firm timetable. NBA medical report · NBC Bay Area update · San Francisco Chronicle
• Confirmed active rehab, 2026-03-28: Moses Moody underwent surgery after rupturing his left patellar tendon. The team promised a camp update but supplied no 2026-27 return date. NBA.com
• Unresolved chronic cluster, 2026-01-16 through 2026-07-18: Kristaps Porziņģis was limited to 32 games across Atlanta and Golden State, the lowest full-season total of his career, and only 15 after the February 5 trade. Two separate conditions drive it: left Achilles tendinitis, which cost him a long January–February stretch with the Hawks, and postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome (POTS), the autonomic condition diagnosed in Boston that flared again in 2025-26 and delayed his Warriors debut past his own February 19 target. He averaged 23.7 minutes for Golden State under a deliberate cap. No offseason clearance for either condition was located. Hoops Rumors — return delayed by illness · Boston.com — Achilles tendinitis · Yahoo — Warriors 2025-26 player grade
• Resolved but material maintenance risk, 2026-04-05 through 2026-07-18: Stephen Curry returned after missing 27 straight games with right patellofemoral pain syndrome and later sat for knee management. No new active diagnosis was found. Official Warriors game notes
• Fantasy inference, 2026-07-18: Do not project Butler for opening night; a midseason return is a planning case, not a guaranteed date. Brandin Podziemski, Gui Santos, Will Richard, and Yaxel Lendeborg gain before his return. De'Anthony Melton, Richard, Santos, and Lajae Jones gain Moody's wing minutes. Curry retains elite per-game upside but needs an age-38 games/rest discount. Correction 2026-07-19: Curry's dossier GP raised from 52 to 58. July reporting expects no limitations and no surgery — the knee episode was overuse with no structural damage, and he is running a deliberately lighter summer to protect it — so 52 was pricing a second 27-game interruption into the median of a fully cleared player; 58 keeps the rest discount below every healthy season of his last six (63-74). ClutchPoints, July 2026 Porziņģis is a Red/Orange exposure: the POTS component recurs without a discrete injury event, so a ledger organised around dated injury dates structurally under-counts it. Correction 2026-07-18: his base GP cut from 54 to 48. He was previously absent from this ledger entirely despite being named in the uncertainty ledger's own health-cluster watchlist row; 54 sat above his own three-year mean of 65/57/32 with two unresolved conditions and a stated Warriors intent to cap center minutes. Al Horford, Graham Ike, and Charles Bassey are the center handcuffs.

Houston Rockets — Orange ACL/ankle returns

• Opening-night optimism without formal clearance, 2025-09-25 through 2026-07-08: Fred VanVleet underwent right-ACL reconstruction and repairs involving both menisci. July local reporting pointed toward him starting from the jump, but no formal full-contact clearance was located. Rockets medical update · Houston Chronicle rehab detail · July lineup report
• Expected full recovery, 2026-01-28: Steven Adams had season-ending left-ankle surgery after a Grade 3 sprain. Houston expected a full recovery but supplied no public return date. NBA/AP
• History only, 2026-07-08: Bogdan Bogdanović's signing report noted a 59-game hamstring absence in 2025-26 but announced no current restriction. Kevin Durant's April knee bruise was not reported as structural. NBA signing report
• Fantasy inference, 2026-07-18: VanVleet deserves a ramp/GP discount until unrestricted five-on-five; Reed Sheppard, Marcus Smart, and Amen Thompson absorb creation if limited. Clint Capela takes Adams's center minutes; Jabari Smith Jr. and Tari Eason gain small-ball frontcourt time. Durant's age-37 rest risk is inference, not a team policy.

Los Angeles Clippers — Red reserve-center rehab; administrative star uncertainty

• Confirmed active rehab, 2026-03-06: Yanic Konan Niederhauser suffered a right-foot Lisfranc injury requiring surgery. The Clippers ruled him out for 2025-26 but supplied no 2026-27 timetable. NBC Sports
• Administrative, not medical or disciplinary, 2026-07-09: Kawhi Leonard's agreed Toronto trade was placed on hold pending an NBA investigation. No suspension, penalty, or resolution timetable had been announced. He played 65 games and had no current injury restriction at the cutoff. NBA.com
• Resolved monitor, 2026-04-10: Darius Garland was cleared from the injury report after recurrent left-toe management and played the Play-In. NBA player page
• Fantasy inference, 2026-07-18: Niederhauser's opener should not be assumed; Brook Lopez and Isaiah Jackson are the center-minute winners. Leonard's fantasy team and role remain unsettled, but assigning a suspension would be invented. Garland receives only a recurrence/maintenance discount; Keaton Wagler and Kris Dunn gain when he sits.

Los Angeles Lakers — Green current status; yellow hamstring recurrence

• Recent but not confirmed active, 2026-04-03 through 2026-05-12: Luka Dončić suffered his second left-hamstring strain of 2025-26, a Grade 2 injury, and was running/shooting but not yet in contact work in mid-May. The reported timeline has long elapsed, but no later public clearance was located. NBA regular-season update · May recovery report
• Publicly cleared, 2026-07-13: Walker Kessler said he was 100% cleared after November 2025 left-shoulder labrum surgery. Jazz surgery release · July clearance report
• Resolved, 2026-04-30: Austin Reaves returned for playoff Game 5 after a Grade 2 oblique injury. NBA/AP
• Fantasy inference, 2026-07-18: Do not label Dončić actively injured in July, but repeated left-hamstring trouble justifies a GP/maintenance discount. Reaves, Collin Sexton, and Quentin Grimes gain creation on absences. Kessler should be modeled as available unless camp contradicts his clearance; Kevon Looney and Sandro Mamukelashvili are setback-only beneficiaries.

Memphis Grizzlies — Orange multi-player rehabilitation cluster

• Expected full recovery, 2026-03-03 and 2026-03-24: Zach Edey underwent left-ankle surgery for persistent discomfort/bone stress and then a left-elbow procedure. Memphis expected him fully recovered before 2026-27 but had not issued formal clearance. ankle update · elbow update
• Expected full recovery, 2026-03-17: Scotty Pippen Jr. underwent a right-big-toe sesamoidectomy after an earlier operation on the opposite big toe. Memphis expected him ready for 2026-27, but no full clearance was located. Action News 5 · prior left-toe surgery
• Camp monitor, 2026-04-12: Ty Jerome played only 15 games in 2025-26. A calf sprain diagnosed in October cost him the first half of the season — his debut was January 31 — and he never played more than three consecutive games all year, ending the season on an 11-game absence with a left-ankle sprain. No summer clearance was located. Grizzlies player page · official game notes
• Deep-dynasty red rehab, 2026-02 through 2026-07-18: Rookie Richie Saunders's official profile confirms a February ACL tear; Memphis supplied no return timetable. NBA draft profile
• Fantasy inference, 2026-07-18: Edey requires an early workload discount; Isaiah Stewart and Quinten Post benefit during any ramp. Correction 2026-07-19: Edey's dossier GP cut from 57 to 48. The early workload discount this row calls for was absent from a projection that assumed near-rookie availability (66 GP in 2024-25) directly off a second operation on the same left ankle in ten months, the second for bone stress, with no formal clearance and no summer game action against a 66/11 two-season record. SI second-surgery report Jerome, Walter Clayton Jr., and Javon Small benefit if Pippen is delayed. Correction 2026-07-18: the earlier "missed 57 games, including the first 46" line was wrong — Jerome missed 67 and played 15 — and his base GP is cut from 58 to 45. A 58-game base was close to a four-fold jump off the actual sample, and the pattern that matters is not one long absence but the inability to string together more than three consecutive appearances once he was back. Saunders is an IL/dynasty stash, not an opening-night role projection.

Minnesota Timberwolves — Red Achilles absence; yellow bilateral-knee history

• Confirmed active rehab, 2026-04-26 through 2026-05-21: Donte DiVincenzo ruptured his right Achilles and underwent surgery. Minnesota listed him out indefinitely; president Tim Connelly said the club expected him back but did not know when. No 2026-27 timetable was available. Timberwolves medical update · NBA offseason report
• Resolved but material recurrence risk, 2026-03-17 through 2026-05-05: Anthony Edwards returned from right-knee inflammation/patellofemoral pain, then hyperextended and bruised his left knee in April before returning in ten days. No active restriction was located. right-knee report · return report · left-knee return
• Current search result, 2026-07-18: No material active restriction was located for LaMelo Ball, Jaden McDaniels, or the other principal rotation players.
• Fantasy inference, 2026-07-18: DiVincenzo should not be included in the healthy opening rotation; a late return is possible but not bankable. Ayo Dosunmu, Josh Green, and Terrence Shannon Jr. gain perimeter minutes, while Ball and Edwards absorb creation. Edwards merits a modest GP/rest discount, not an active injury tag.

New Orleans Pelicans — Yellow Achilles and durability discounts

• Returned, 2026-02-25: Dejounte Murray made his season debut against Golden State after 13 months rehabilitating a ruptured right Achilles and was limited to 14 regular-season appearances. He did not play out the schedule: he missed New Orleans's final five games with a bruised left hand. NBA/AP · Yahoo return report
• Improved but still material history, 2026-04-14: Zion Williamson played 62 games, including a personal-best 35 straight, and was rested rather than injured for the final three. NBA/AP exit interview
• Unresolved minor monitor, 2026-04-12: Trey Murphy III's latest public game status was out for the finale with a right-ankle sprain; no later medical update was located. Pelicans player page
• Fantasy inference, 2026-07-18: Murray has no active injury tag but deserves a post-Achilles GP/back-to-back discount; Jeremiah Fears and Jordan Poole gain lead-guard work on maintenance days. Correction 2026-07-18: the previous "played the remaining schedule" phrasing was factually wrong and was the load-bearing reason Murray carried no availability discount. Base GP cut from 64 to 55 on the corrected 14-game sample plus the late-season hand absence. Source as above. Williamson's 2025-26 availability was real progress, not proof of durability; Murphy, Derik Queen, and Saddiq Bey gain usage/frontcourt minutes when he sits. Correction 2026-07-19: Murphy's base GP cut from 68 to 62. The 68 sat more than eight games above his 57/53/66 three-season base while the surgically repaired right shoulder had already flared again in February 2026 within a year of the March 2025 labrum-and-rotator-cuff operation, and his last public status remains the unresolved right-ankle monitor above. ESPN surgery report · Pelicans player page

Oklahoma City Thunder — Orange/red hamstring recurrence plus expected-ready surgeries

• Unresolved material recurrence, 2026-05-29: Jalen Williams was inactive for West finals Game 7 with a left-hamstring injury after multiple right- and left-hamstring setbacks. No subsequent public clearance was located. NBA/AP
• Expected camp-ready, 2026-06-13: Nikola Topić underwent a minimally invasive lumbar microdiscectomy; Oklahoma City expected him ready for 2026-27 camp. ESPN
• Expected full activity before camp, 2026-07-01: Thomas Sorber had minor right-knee arthroscopy after missing 2025-26 following ACL surgery and was expected to resume full basketball activity in about four weeks. Yahoo/Thunder Wire
• Fantasy inference, 2026-07-18: Williams deserves one of the league's larger GP discounts relative to his healthy top-30 rate ceiling; Shai Gilgeous-Alexander gains usage and Cason Wallace, Jared McCain, and Alex Caruso gain minutes on absences. Topić needs a camp workload check; Sorber's immediate fantasy impact is limited behind the established bigs.

Phoenix Suns — Orange/red starting-center foot risk

• Unresolved, 2026-04-27 through 2026-07-07: Mark Williams missed all four first-round games with left-foot soreness after a third-metatarsal stress reaction. His July return to Phoenix was confirmed contractually, but the announcement did not supply medical clearance. Suns Game 4 preview · NBA/AP re-signing
• Returned, 2026-04-17 through 2026-06-03: Jalen Green returned from recurrent right-hamstring trouble and played through the postseason, including a 36-point Play-In performance. Suns season review · original NBA hamstring report
• Fantasy inference, 2026-07-18: Williams is Phoenix's material camp-clearance case and needs a games/minutes discount; Khaman Maluach and Oso Ighodaro are the center handcuffs. Green should not carry an active tag, but recurrent hamstrings justify a modest GP discount.
• Applied, 2026-07-19: Williams' projection-card GP lowered from 55 to 48 — three-season mean of 41, a stress reaction that re-aggravated on both April returns in the same foot as the 2024-25 tendon strain, and no medical clearance in the July re-signing news. Revisit toward the mid-50s only on a confirmed unrestricted camp.

Portland Trail Blazers — Orange veteran return and multi-guard volatility

• Unresolved workload plan, 2026-04-30: Damian Lillard missed 2025-26 while rehabilitating his surgically repaired left Achilles and discussed returning next season at his exit interview. No firm opening-night clearance, minutes cap, or back-to-back policy was located. Trail Blazers exit interview
• Expected full recovery, 2026-03-25 and trade confirmed 2026-06-30: Ja Morant was shut down with a left-elbow UCL sprain and received PRP treatment; Memphis expected full recovery before Portland acquired him. His last 2025-26 appearance was January 21 and he finished the season with 20 games played; reporting at his Portland introduction noted he had been limited to roughly 70 games across the previous two seasons. NBA/AP medical report · ESPN season-ending report · NBA/AP trade report
• Returned, 2026-04-10 and 2026-02-07: Shaedon Sharpe returned after a left-fibula stress reaction, and Scoot Henderson returned after missing 51 games with a torn left hamstring. Sharpe injury and return context · Scoot return
• Fantasy inference, 2026-07-18: At age 36, Lillard requires ramp, minutes, and rest discounts even if ready. Correction 2026-07-19: Lillard's base GP cut from 58 to 52. A 58-game base exceeded his 73/58/0 three-season mean plus eight while the workload plan above remains unresolved — zero NBA games since the 2025-04-27 rupture, an on-track but uncleared July rehab, and this ledger's own "very high" risk tier; carrying him at 58 was also inconsistent with the Morant (50) and Murray (55) corrections for comparable open return cases. NBC Sports recovery report Morant's elbow prognosis is favorable, but his long availability history still lowers totals confidence. Correction 2026-07-18: Morant's base GP cut from 60 to 50. A 60-game base was a three-fold jump off a 20-game season with no clearance event to justify it; the favorable non-surgical elbow prognosis is why the cut stops at 50 rather than lower. No active Morant suspension was found. Lillard, Morant, Henderson, Sharpe, Jrue Holiday, and Deni Avdija form the league's most role-volatile guard/creator cluster.

Sacramento Kings — Orange multi-starter postoperative cluster

• Unresolved pre-camp rechecks, 2026-02-19: Domantas Sabonis had left-meniscus surgery and was due for reevaluation before camp; Zach LaVine had right-pinky tendon repair. Both were ruled out for the rest of 2025-26, and no later public clearance was located. NBA/AP
• Unresolved promised update, 2026-02-21: De'Andre Hunter had retinal-detachment surgery after a left-eye injury. Sacramento expected a full recovery and said another update would follow in approximately eight weeks; no later update was located. NBA.com
• Expected camp-ready, 2026-05-14: Keegan Murray underwent arthroscopy to remove loose bodies from his left ankle, with a reported six-to-eight-week recovery and camp-ready expectation. NBC Sports
• Fantasy inference, 2026-07-18: Sabonis is the largest rank/minute uncertainty; Maxime Raynaud, Dylan Cardwell, and Murray gain frontcourt opportunity if he ramps slowly. Malik Monk, Devin Carter, and Nique Clifford gain if LaVine or Hunter is delayed. No active Kings suspension was located.

San Antonio Spurs — Green core; red deep-dynasty rookie

• No material core restriction, 2026-04-26 through 2026-06-13: Victor Wembanyama cleared concussion protocol, returned, and played through the Finals. De'Aaron Fox and Dylan Harper were cleared from West finals ankle/adductor issues and subsequently played in the Finals. Wembanyama clearance · Fox/Harper clearance · official Spurs game notes
• Confirmed current rehab, 2026-07-15: Rookie Jayden Quaintance underwent right-knee surgery; San Antonio provided no return timetable. Spurs medical update
• Fantasy inference, 2026-07-18: Do not apply an active injury downgrade to the core. A long playoff run permits only an ordinary maintenance assumption unless the team announces one. Quaintance is a dynasty/IL case and should not be assigned redraft minutes until cleared.

Utah Jazz — Orange knee and hamstring rechecks

• Unresolved, 2026-02-17 through 2026-03-27: Jaren Jackson Jr. underwent surgery to remove a localized PVNS growth from his left knee, later began individual on-court work, and was due for another reevaluation. No later public clearance was located. NBA/AP · Salt Lake Tribune
• Unresolved but ample recovery time, 2026-03-12: Keyonte George sustained a Grade 2 right-hamstring strain and missed the final 16 games; no explicit summer clearance was located. KSL Sports · official Jazz game notes
• Functionally cleared, 2026-07-03 and 2026-07-06: Lauri Markkanen played 29 and 26 minutes for Finland after the right-hip problem that ended his NBA season. Official FIBA player log
• Fantasy inference, 2026-07-18: Jackson and George need unrestricted-camp confirmation. Kyle Filipowski, Jaxson Hayes, Ace Bailey, and Brice Sensabaugh gain frontcourt opportunity if Jackson ramps slowly; Darryn Peterson and Isaiah Collier gain creation if George is limited. Markkanen should not carry an active medical downgrade, though ordinary Utah shutdown risk remains a team-outcome inference. Correction 2026-07-19: Markkanen's projection-card GP cut from 65 to 55. The FIBA clearance removes the active-injury tag but does not license a projection above every season since 2022-23 against a 55/47/42 three-year record with the hip ending 2025-26 on February 23; 55 is the top of the recent range with the shutdown risk retained. ESPN hip-injury report

Discipline and non-medical availability

Search result through 2026-07-18: no confirmed suspension was found that is scheduled to carry into the 2026-27 regular season.

• Paul George, served by 2026-03-25: his 25-game anti-drug suspension ended during 2025-26. It must not reduce Boston's 2026-27 games projection as a carried penalty. NBA return report
• Kawhi Leonard, investigation active 2026-07-09: the Toronto trade is held pending an NBA investigation, but no suspension or discipline has been announced. Treat this as team/role uncertainty, not missed games already imposed. NBA.com
• Ja Morant, 2026-07-18: no active suspension was reported after his Portland trade. Prior discipline is historical availability context, not a current penalty.
• Miami altercation, no action 2026-07-16: the NBA declined further action in the Adebayo–Herro matter. NBC Sports
• Justin Champagnie, served 2026-03-22: his one-game Washington suspension was announced and served in 2025-26. NBA Communications
• Gary Trent Jr., contract investigation opened 2026-07-16: no player suspension or availability sanction had been announced. Reuters

Fantasy rest-risk board

These are inferences as of 2026-07-18, not announced rest plans. They should change season-total projections more than healthy per-game projections.

Do not convert these bands into automatic back-to-back absences. When the 2026-27 schedule is released, the correct next step is to map each player to actual back-to-backs, three-in-four stretches, travel clusters, and fantasy-playoff weeks.

Camp recheck protocol

1. Medical milestone: Look for running, change of direction, controlled contact, full five-on-five, unrestricted practice, preseason game participation, and removal from the official report—in that order. “Working out” alone is weak evidence.
2. Workload milestone: Record announced minutes caps, practice-day rest, back-to-back rules, and whether the player starts both halves of preseason games.
3. Role transfer: When an absence remains, move minutes and usage to named beneficiaries in the team page; do not merely lower the injured player's projection and leave team totals short.
4. Return does not mean full baseline: Post-Achilles, ACL, patellar-tendon, Lisfranc, and recurrent hamstring cases can be active while still below normal minutes, burst, or schedule density.
5. Stale-label purge: A player who returned to playoffs, FIBA, or Summer League has direct game-action evidence. Remove the old “out” label unless a new setback is reported, while retaining an appropriate recurrence discount.
6. Opening-week reset: Replace this offseason ledger with the first official 2026-27 injury reports. Team game notes, league injury PDFs, and official medical releases supersede summer fantasy blurbs.

Source and modeling limits

• This pass used publicly reachable English-language material. Private medical information, subscriber-only beat reporting, unauthenticated social posts, and undisclosed team workload plans are necessarily absent.
• Official releases often provide recovery expectations rather than clearance. The ledger preserves that difference.
• Surgery dates and return windows do not establish individual outcomes. No generalized medical timetable is used to overrule a player's or team's stated status.
• Trades and unsigned contracts can change which beneficiary matters. The team named beside each player reflects the roster snapshot at the cutoff.
• “No active suspension found” is a documented search result, not a guarantee that later league discipline will not occur.
• The ledger supports projections; it is not medical advice.

Open questions

• Which of Butler, Moody, DiVincenzo, Furphy, Gueye, Lively, Miller, Wagner, and Mark Williams reaches unrestricted five-on-five before the first preseason game?
• Will Indiana, Dallas, Houston, and Portland announce opening-week minutes caps or back-to-back restrictions for Haliburton, Irving, VanVleet, and Lillard?
• Does Oklahoma City issue a clean summer update on Jalen Williams's bilateral hamstring sequence?
• Does Sacramento publish the promised follow-up on Hunter's eye and the pre-camp reevaluation of Sabonis's knee?
• Does Washington formally clear Davis, Sarr, and Whitmore for contact, and how aggressively will a development-focused team rest its veterans?
• Does Charlotte provide a contact and opener timeline for Miller's repaired shoulder?
• Does Orlando clear Wagner after his full summer away from competition?
• When does Golden State move Butler from non-running rehabilitation to court work, and what return window follows?
• Does the NBA resolve the Leonard investigation and held trade before fantasy draft season, and is any discipline actually announced?
• Which official 2026-27 back-to-back and fantasy-playoff schedule clusters should be translated into additional games-played discounts once the schedule is published?