Opening game of preseason is just a day away, but already there are a number of injuries you need to be aware of as your draft approaches.  Here is a quick breakdown of players you need to cross off, or continue to update on your cheat sheets:

Greg Oden- Out for the season, but for those of you in keeper and dynasty leagues, somewhere in that 7-10 round range would be a nice time to grab Oden and stash him for the season.  You will be down a player the entire season, but you will be building for the future.

Elton Brand - Out for the season.  Only draft if you are in a keeper or dynasty league and another owner dropped him to the free agent list.

Sean May- Out for the season with micro-fracture surgery.  May has simply not been able to get on track in the NBA.  Here is hoping this surgery puts him back on the hardwood full time, and not just on the golf course.

Tony Allen- Has been cleared to play full speed.  Expect him to bring Tony along slowly in the preseason (they already have a lot going on with Garnett and Ray Ray in town), but that doesn’t mean he won’t get significant minutes in the regular season.  If the knee is sound, and mentally he appears ready to go, expect Tony to be a good sleeper for the Celtics who have little depth. 

Erick Dampier- Avoid Dampier.  Coming back very slowly from injury and his timetable is anywhere within 2 months of November through January.  He has no where near enough value to take on that risk.

Nene Hilario- Nene has a bum knee again.  Just after starting to really get his game going late last season, he is hurting again.  He is worth a draft position, but I would only touch him in the later rounds.  Don’t reach for him, and the n get burned when he is constantly day-to-day.

Sam Cassell- Sam I am is in his late 30’s folks.  He is on a team that has no Elton Brand and needs someone to step up, but Cassell will do so and then be gone for a week, and then be back, and then gone.  At this point in his career if you draft Sam, do so with the understanding as soon as he starts to sit games, drop him without concern, or you will be burned by missed games and low PT. 

Lamar Odom- Odom has had shoulder trouble since his rookie year.  Surgery this offseason was suppose to finally take care of the main problems in that shoulder.  He will probably be a little slow out of the gates, but he already attended practice, so draft Odom as you normally would but taper expectations the first few weeks.

Nenad Krstic- Will be participating in contact practice before pre-season is complete.  This is a very good sign coming off ACL surgery.  I would drop Nenad down two rounds from where he normally would be drafted, but he should give you limited stats for the first month and be back up to speed by December.  I would be more concerned about what impact Magloire may have on his minutes than the knee recovery.

Sam Dalembert- Out of his walking boot and limited in practice.  Another player who I would drop a round lower than normal, but it won’t take Dalembert long to get his timing back for rebounding and blocking which is the main purpose he gets drafted.  He was never a scorer, so if that part of his game is slower to respond it has little impact on his value.

Amare Stoudamire- Not sure why knee surgery had to wait until the week before preseason, but regardless it is better than the first week of regular season.  DRaft Amare as you normally would.

Robert Swift- Is battling knee tendonitis, but those types of ailments are to be expected after a year off, and he has not been complaining about knee strength from the surgery.  Swift needs to prove himself in the rotation before earning fantasy value but he worth a look in the late rounds.  Rumors have him gaining up to 40 lbs of muscle, so if that is true it will go a long way to making him a starter for this team. Don’t let last years knee injury scare you off, if you had him targeted later in the draft.

Deron Williams- Deron has sat out some practices, but it was simply due to an oral surgery.  No need for concern.

Jorge Garbahosa- Though he was instructed to take a second surgery, Jorge did not and instead played for his national team, which is pretty much the exact opposite.   Even though he has taken his own route, so far he is showing NO effects of the injury.  Draft him as you normally would, understanding Barganani will have a bigger role in the offense this year.

Brandon Roy - Basically has a very sore heel, from bone spurs or similar irritation.  MRI was negative and he does not need surgery, but you never want to hear about an injury that may linger all season.  Expect Roy’s minutes to be limited early in some back-to-back games but unless the heel gets really bad he will play through it.

Charlie Villanueva - His shoulder is healthy and he is ready to go.  Expect a bounce back season for Charlie V, and some very good numbers on this improving Bucks squad.