Portland Trail Blazers forward Deni Avdija (quadriceps) will be inactive against the Oklahoma City Thunder on Friday. Avdija re-aggravated a quadriceps injury during Wednesday's matchup against the Boston Celtics, and Friday's game comes too soon for him to be healthy enough to stay in the lineup. The team initially listed Avdija as questionable. Jerami Grant (knee) is available to return from a four-game absence and will help make up for Avdija's loss. At the same time, Kris Murray may see a bit more playing time.

Anthony Chiang of the Miami Herald reports that Miami Heat guard/forwardAlec Burks(back) is unavailable for Friday's matchup with the Minnesota Timberwolves. Burk will be out of action due to soreness in his back. The 33-year-old finished with five points, five rebounds and two assists across 25 minutes of work in a loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers on Wednesday. Davion Mitchelland Duncan Robinson will likely see a boost in minutes on the floor and fantasy value with Burks sidelined this evening.

Minnesota Timberwolves center Rudy Gobert (back) will remain out of the lineup on Friday against the Miami Heat. This will mark his 10th consecutive absence for lower back injury management. Gobert's next chance to return will be on Sunday in a matchup against the San Antonio Spurs. Naz Reid will continue to carry a heavy workload in Friday's contest as the starting center. In 16 starts across the season, he has averaged 18.5 points with 9.3 rebounds, 3.3 assists, and 1.3 blocks.

Oklahoma City Thunder forward/center Chet Holmgren (lower leg) will not play in Friday's contest against the Portland Trail Blazers. He will sit out a second consecutive game due to a right lower leg contusion. This means that the Thunder will head out on Friday without any of its regular starters available. As a result, we can expect some unusual stat lines. Jaylin Williams and Kenrich Williams will directly benefit from Holmgren's absence. OKC should be back to full strength on Sunday versus the Denver Nuggets.

Milwaukee Bucks guard Gary Trent Jr. (knee) is listed as doubtful for Saturday's game against the Orlando Magic. Trent sat out on Wednesday due to right knee soreness, but it's also worth noting that was the second game in a back-to-back set. It seemed that Trent's absence was maintenance related, but maybe his knee is bothering him more than first expected. His absence will open up additional playing time for AJ Green and Kevin Porter Jr. in the rotation. If he stis, Porter is the better streaming option between the two guards.