3 NBA FanDuel Studs to Target on 1/31/19

Joel Embiid, C, Philadelphia 76ers

Price: $11,600

For a six-game slate, we're fairly thin on true top-shelf options tonight. There are only two players (three if LeBron James suits up) priced above $10,500. One of them draws a brutal matchup (Giannis Antetokounmpo has had a couple big games against the Toronto Raptors this year, but taking on Kawhi Leonard and a Toronto squad that allows below-average fantasy production is not a good spot), and the other is Joel Embiid.

In fantasy points per game, Embiid is only three spots behind Giannis, ranking fifth in the NBA with an average of 52.5 FanDuel points per game on the season. He also sits fourth in the NBA in FanDuel points per minute (minimum 250 minutes played), averaging 1.57, and when he's getting big minutes, his ceiling is as high as anybody's. We've seen that with a pair of games of at least 77 fantasy points this year.

It also means, as we've seen recently, that he doesn't need huge minutes to put up big fantasy numbers, having absolutely cooked the Houston Rockets 64.8 FanDuel points in 26.5 minutes just three games ago.

Against the Golden State Warriors tonight, we can expect some of those big minutes as the Sixers will need a lot out of their stars if they hope to hang with the streaking Warriors.