Short slates are always tough. Despite some best efforts to be contrarian, ownership on most players is almost always higher that you'd like.

However, getting a handle on the injuries, no matter how small, can give even the average player an edge. Below is a list of the injuries for Thursday -- both big and small -- and a look at how they affect the NBA DFS slate for tonight.

Notable Injuries

Ian Mahinmi, Washington Wizards

Ian Mahinmi had surgery roughly a week ago to repair a partially torn meniscus, and he will miss the first month of the season. This being the Washington Wizards' first game, it is worth noting that their thin frontcourt is now much thinner. Marcin Gortat will likely play as many minutes as he can handle until Mahinmi gets back, and Jason Smith is a very interesting target as he will man both the backup power forward and center spots. Markieff Morris might even see a slight bump in value, along with Andrew Nicholson.

Danny Green, San Antonio Spurs

We touched on the Danny Green injury on opening night, but after the night that Jonathon Simmons had off the bench against the Golden State Warriors, it's worth noting that Simmons is once again in a great spot. Last season, the Kings gave up 0.83 fantasy points per minute to opposing shooting guards (second-worst in the league) and almost that much to small forwards, too. Kyle Anderson still played 22 minutes, so this is likely still a timeshare, but after 29.3 FanDuel points from Simmons on Tuesday, expect him to be a popular pick on tonight's short slate.

Festus Ezeli, Portland Trail Blazers

The Festus Ezeli injury also had some DFS impact on Tuesday, and it should once again open up some value in Portland for tonight's clash with the Los Angeles Clippers. Meyers Leonard received a mere nine minutes as Ed Davis and Noah Vonleh were the two bigs who performed well off the bench on opening night. All three of the Blazers' bigs are decent tournament plays, and each has nice upside if they see big minutes.

Lesser Injuries

Mike Scott and Tiago Splitter, Atlanta Hawks

Mike Scott and Tiago Splitter are both out tonight for the Atlanta Hawks, and it should open up some frontcourt value. Besides Dwight Howard and Paul Millsap being asked to potentially play a few more minutes, Mike Muscala and Kris Humphries are both potential options off the bench. All it takes is Millsap or Howard getting into foul trouble, and Muscala or Humphries might end up as a great contrarian play.

Marcus Smart and Kelly Olynyk, Boston Celtics

Both Marcus Smart and Kelly Olynyk missed last night's game and are both still a few weeks away from returning. Amir Johnson and Tyler Zeller played well in the absence of Olynyk, while Jonas Jerebko likely deserves a bump in minutes, as well. Smart's injury gives a slight boost to Isaiah Thomas and possibly Terry Rozier, who saw 28 minutes Wednesday night.

Paul Pierce, Los Angeles Clippers

It's still kind of a shock that a player like Paul Pierce is in the 'lesser injuries' section, but the Truth's retirement tour is likely going to see him playing limited minutes. With that said, Wesley Johnson and Luc Mbah a Moute should both see some expanded run on Thursday while Pierce is out.