3 NBA FanDuel Studs to Target on 10/17/17

LeBron James, SF, Cleveland Cavaliers

Price: $10,400

One of the select few who outdid Durant in fantasy production last year, LeBron James' 49.4 FanDuel points per game were good for 4th in the NBA. He showed that he was more than capable of continuing to shoulder a massive workload, leading the league with 37.8 minutes per game in the regular season. Despite the addition of Jae Crowder, the Cleveland Cavaliers are still not a very deep team, meaning LeBron should continue to get plenty of usage.

We're also likely to see him play an increased role on the offensive side of the ball with the departure of Kyrie Irving. Looking at James' numbers with Irving off the floor compared to when he was on the court last year, LeBron saw his usage rate jump from 31.2% to 35.6% and his FanDuel points per minute (under the new scoring) from 1.4 to 1.6.

The Boston Celtics struggled with forwards in fantasy last year, allowing top-10 FanDuel points per game to both small forwards and power forwards. With Jae Crowder and his strong defensive abilities gone from the lineup, that looks like it will continue to be a valuable fantasy matchup to target.

LeBron is questionable with an ankle injury tonight, so be sure to check on his status closer to lock before you set your lineup in stone.