
Caldwell-Pope (hamstring) is available in Thursday's game against the Nuggets, Jason Beede of the Orlando Sentinel reports.
Caldwell-Pope is available after initially being questionable with a sore left hamstring. He'll play both ends of a back-to-back for the first time since early January, so the veteran guard only playing 22 minutes on Wednesday may have factored into KCP's availability. He'll occupy his usual place in the Magic starting lineup.
KCP logged 22 minutes in their win in Sacramento on Wednesday night, and now there is a chance that he sits out the second leg of this back-to-back. This is their first back-to-back set since early January, but KCP was able to play in both of those games. That doesn't guarantee that he will suit up in his return to Denver. He spent the last two seasons there and helped them win a championship in 2023. If Caldwell-Pope sits out, Anthony Black and Tristan da Silva will be candidates to move into the starting unit, with both of them taking on extra minutes.
The lone change to the Magic starting lineup is Anthony, who replaces the ineffective Anthony Black. While efficiency can be an issue for the 2020 first-round pick, moving into the starting lineup raises his fantasy ceiling. Black will remain in the rotation, but there's little to gain from rostering him, even with Jalen Suggs (quad) still sidelined.
While Houstan's absence from Monday's loss to the Warriors did not impact fantasy basketball, it did leave Orlando light on wing options. He won't be worth rostering for Wednesday's action, especially with Kentavious Caldwell-Pope available.