San Antonio Spurs forward/center Victor Wembanyama may start Tuesday's NBA Cup final against the New York Knicks on the bench. The French superstar came off the bench for the first time in his career when he returned from a calf strain in Saturday's semifinal against the Oklahoma City Thunder. Wembanyama sat out the entire first quarter and played only seven minutes in the first half. He logged 13:20 after halftime, recording 22 points, nine rebounds, two assists, one steal, and two blocks in the game. Even with a limited workload, Wembanyama can make a huge impact, and his fantasy production isn't dependent on whether he starts or not.

Dallas Mavericks guard/forward Cooper Flagg had a special night on Monday, becoming the youngest player in NBA history to score 40-plus points in a game. He led all scorers with 42 points on 13-for-27 shooting in a 140-133 overtime loss. Flagg, who will turn 19 on Sunday, also had seven rebounds, six assists, one steal, and two blocks in the contest. He went 15-for-20 at the charity stripe and shot 1-for-4 from downtown. Previously, the highest points total by an 18-year-old in the NBA was 37, set by LeBron James in 2003. Although Flagg has struggled with consistency at times in his rookie year, he has still had a strong overall season. Across his first 26 career appearances, Flagg has averaged 18.4 points, 6.3 rebounds, 3.5 assists, and 1.3 steals per game.

Miami Heat forward Nikola Jovic (elbow) will undergo an MRI on Tuesday, Anthony Chiang of the Miami Herald reports. Only seconds after entering Monday's tilt against the Toronto Raptors, Jovic injured his right elbow and had to exit the game. He took an awkward fall on a dunk attempt. X-rays on Jovic's right arm came back negative on Monday night, which is good news. However, he might still have to miss time. Simone Fontecchio and Jaime Jaquez Jr. will see additional playing time if Miami loses Jovic from the rotation. The team will return to work on Thursday night against the Brooklyn Nets.

Boston Celtics forward Sam Hauser (ankle) played only four minutes in Monday's 112-105 loss to the Detroit Pistons. He left the action in the first quarter after injuring his left ankle. Initially, the team announced that Hauser was questionable to return, but he sat out the rest of the contest. In his absence, Hugo Gonzalez and Baylor Scheierman picked up more shifts off the bench. Gonzalez made a greater impact, scoring five points and recording five assists in 18 minutes. Boston will be off until Friday, when the team starts a back-to-back set, giving Hauser extra time to recover. Whether this will be enough for him to play and avoid his first absence of the season remains uncertain.

Denver Nuggets forward Peyton Watson (side) is not expected to miss extended time, Vinny Benedetto of The Denver Gazette reports. Watson played only six minutes in Monday's 128-125 overtime win against the Houston Rockets, leaving the action with a right trunk contusion. "Nothing long term as far as I can understand," Nuggets head coach David Adelman said postgame about Watson's injury, calling it a "stinger." Due to injuries, Watson has held a very important role in the rotation, starting every game over the last month. He has averaged 14.2 points, 5.7 rebounds, and 1.1 blocks in 30.0 minutes as a starter. Watson must recover by Thursday to avoid missing his first game of the season.

Memphis Grizzlies point guard Ja Morant (ankle) suffered another injury blow in Monday's 121-103 win over the Los Angeles Clippers, Damichael Cole of The Commercial Appeal reports. The enigmatic star tweaked his left ankle on a drive to the basket late in the fourth quarter. He missed the final 3:40 of action, finishing with 12 points, three rebounds, four assists, one steal, and one block in 21 minutes. This was Morant's second game back after he missed 10 contests with a calf injury. Morant also dealt with a left ankle injury during preseason and didn't play in any of the exhibition games. Memphis will re-evaluate Morant on Tuesday to determine his availability for the rest of this week's slate.

Rockets' C Alperen Sengun recorded a triple-double, finishing with 33 points, 10 assists and 10 rebounds in a 125-128 loss to Denver on Monday, Dec. 15.

Denver's C Nikola Jokic recorded a triple-double, finishing with 39 points, 10 assists and 15 rebounds in a 128-125 win over the Rockets on Monday, Dec. 15.

Mavericks' F Cooper Flagg scored 42 points on 13-of-27 shooting in a 133-140 loss to Utah on Monday, Dec. 15.

Memphis Grizzlies forward/center Brandon Clarke (knee) is not ready to make his season debut on Monday against the Los Angeles Clippers. The team has downgraded Clarke's status from doubtful to out. Clarke's next chance to return will be a matchup against the Minnesota Timberwolves on Wednesday night. With Zach Edey (ankle) ruled out for several weeks, Clarke could have a significant role in the rotation once he's available. A season ago, Clarke averaged 8.3 points and 5.1 rebounds in 18.9 minutes per game.

Los Angeles Clippers guard James Harden (calf) will play on Monday night against the Memphis Grizzlies, ESPN's Ohm Youngmisuk reports. Some confusion arose about Harden's status when he was labeled a game-time decision, despite Clippers head coach Tyronn Lue seemingly confirming his availability during his pre-game press conference with reporters. Harden has struggled to score in meetings with Memphis this season, managing just 20.5 points per game on 38.7 percent shooting. However, he has notched one of his eight double-doubles against the Grizzlies, averaging 9.0 assists per contest in the matchup.

Memphis Grizzlies point guard Ja Morant will continue to have his minutes monitored in Monday's matchup against the Los Angeles Clippers, Janis Carr of The Orange County Register reports. On Friday against the Utah Jazz, Morant returned from a 10-game absence and was limited to 25 minutes. He will likely have a similar workload on Monday. Even with the restriction, Morant recorded a double-double versus Utah, finishing with 21 points, 10 assists, four rebounds, and one block. Monday presents another favorable matchup for Morant, as the Clippers give up the 10th-most fantasy points this season to point guards.

Los Angeles Clippers guard James Harden (calf) may not be available after all on Monday against the Memphis Grizzlies. Clippers head coach Tyronn Lue reportedly misspoke when he said Harden would definitely play against Memphis. According to Janis Carr of The Orange County Register, the former MVP is actually considered a game-time decision. If Harden is unavailable, Kris Dunn and Bogdan Bogdanovic are likely to take on larger roles.

Memphis Grizzlies guard/forward John Konchar (thumb) will be re-evaluated in three weeks, the team announced on Monday. Due to a UCL tear in his left thumb, Konchar will miss a second consecutive game on Monday night against the Los Angeles Clippers. Konchar has averaged 13.0 minutes per game this season, posting 3.0 points and 2.7 rebounds. He has recently enjoyed a slightly larger workload due to Memphis' injury situation. Konchar has joined Brandon Clarke (knee), Zach Edey (ankle), Ty Jerome (calf), Scotty Pippen Jr. (toe), and Javon Small (toe) on the shelf.

Denver Nuggets guard/forward Julian Strawther (back) has been cleared to return to the lineup on Monday versus the Houston Rockets. He has missed 12 games due to a back problem and was initially listed as questionable for the matchup. Strawther's return adds another body to the Nuggets' rotation, but he likely won't play a large role for the team, even with Aaron Gordon (hamstring) and Christian Braun (ankle) on the shelf. This season, Strawther has been limited to 3.7 points and 1.6 rebounds in 7.9 minutes per game.

Los Angeles Clippers guard James Harden (calf) will suit up on Monday night against the Memphis Grizzlies. Due to a calf contusion, the former MVP was in danger of missing his second game of the season. However, Clippers head coach Tyronn Lue has confirmed that Harden will play. Recently, Harden dropped 34 points on the Minnesota Timberwolves, but he has been sluggish overall this month. In five December outings, Harden has posted 22.4 points, 3.2 rebounds, 6.4 assists, and 2.0 steals per game. The veteran superstar met the Grizzlies only a couple of weeks ago, settling for 16 points in 36 minutes and handing out seven assists.

Houston Rockets forward Tari Eason (oblique) has been ruled out for Monday's clash against the Denver Nuggets, ESPN's Vanessa Richardson reports. He has been out of action since Nov. 14 due to a right oblique strain and isn't ready to return on Monday night after carrying a questionable tag on the initial injury report. Jabari Smith Jr. has taken on some heavy minutes during Eason's absence, with the Rockets also relying more on Josh Okogie and Jae'Sean Tate. Eason's next opportunity to return will come on Thursday night in a matchup against the New Orleans Pelicans.

Utah Jazz forward/center Kyle Filipowski will make his eighth start of the season in Monday's matchup against the Dallas Mavericks, Andy Larsen of The Salt Lake Tribune reports. A spot in the starting five opened up after Jusuf Nurkic (rest) was ruled out for the contest. Filipowski posted a nice 21-point, 10-rebound double-double in his last start on Dec. 7 against the Oklahoma City Thunder. Overall, he has averaged 9.7 points, 5.7 rebounds, and 3.0 assists in a starting role this season. Filipowski is in a great spot to perform on Monday, as the Mavericks won't have Anthony Davis (calf) in the lineup, and they are a team that allows the fifth-most fantasy points in the league to centers.

Dallas Mavericks center Daniel Gafford (ankle) will be limited to 17-20 minutes in Monday's contest against the Utah Jazz, Mike Curtis of The Dallas Morning News reports. The athletic big man has featured in only one of Dallas' six games, missing time due to a lingering ankle injury. The Mavericks are without Anthony Davis (calf) on Monday, and with Gafford on a minutes restriction, Dwight Powell could have a larger workload. Moussa Cisse is also an option to get some work at the five spot.

Dallas Mavericks point guard Brandon Williams (Achilles) will miss Monday's meeting with the Utah Jazz. Earlier in the day, Williams was added to the injury report due to right Achilles soreness, and the team has downgraded him from questionable to out. Williams has been ever-present in the Mavericks lineup since November, averaging 10.8 points, 4.2 assists, and 1.4 steals in 21.8 minutes this season. Rookie Ryan Nembhard, who was promoted to the first unit late last month, looks set for a busy night in Dallas' backcourt, with Jaden Hardy potentially also having a significant role to play.