3 NBA DraftKings Studs to Target on 10/31/19

While building a daily fantasy basketball lineup, it's important to make sure you find the right studs to anchor your team. As the most expensive players in your lineup, they need big-time production to match their high price tag.

You may find it hard to fit some of these guys in while staying under the salary cap, but you can check out our projections to find value players for your rosters. Let's take a look at the top high-priced DraftKings plays of the day.

Kawhi Leonard, SF/PF, Los Angeles Clippers

Draftkings Price: $9,500

Last night, Kawhi Leonard received his first rest day of the year and his first as a member of the Los Angeles Clippers. His Clips fell to the Jazz in his absence, but Leonard is expected to be a full go on Thursday, and that should mean a full complement of minutes.

So far this year, in the absence of Paul George, Leonard has been asked to do a lot, and that includes playing 30 or more minutes in three games. But the thing is, he probably would have played more in two of his four games to date, as L.A. notched wins by 19 and 15 points over the Warriors and Hornets, respectively.

In a game with a five-point line against his former team, the San Antonio Spurs, we should see Leonard locked in for 32 to 36 minutes. At the fantasy pace he's operating at, that produces a range of outcomes from 58.7 to 66.0 DK points with Leonard averaging 1.83 fantasy points per minute. Oh -- and there's that narrative street thing to boot.

We project Kawhi for 52.4 DK points, but as I said, that's basically the average expectation of a rested, motivated star like him.

Brandon Ingram, SF/PF, New Orleans Pelicans

DraftKings Price: $7,900

While it's hard to pass up Jimmy Butler at just $300 more, there's a little less certainty around his role of playing as a distributor on his new team. He had just two assists to go with 21 points (34.75 DK points) in his debut, and it's for that reason that we pivot to Brandon Ingram as a now very known commodity for the New Orleans Pelicans.

Ingram appears to have made the leap many expected him to make in his time with the Los Angeles Lakers, as he's taken the lead role for the Pels so far this season in the absence of both Zion Williamson and Jrue Holiday. On a team-high 28.4% usage rate (per NBA.com), the 22-year-old is averaging 52.0 DK points (yes, five-two) courtesy of 27.3 points, 9.5 rebounds and 4.8 assists per game. He's knocked down 14 of his 28 (50%) three-point attempts en route to two straight double-doubles -- all across 34 minutes a night.

Holiday will return to the floor on Thursday, but there's no denying Ingram's production. Even before Holiday sat out the last two games, Ingram had put up 41.75 and 46.0 DK points -- worthy of 5.28- and 5.82-times value at tonight's price (he started the year at $5,800). Per NBA Wowy, Ingram is averaging a 26.6% usage rate when he's on the floor with Jrue.

Ingram's a fantasy stud, and a matchup with the Denver Nuggets isn't enough to scare off smart players. Though they're in the top half in defensive rating, Denver just gave up 109 points to Dallas on their home floor. With New Orleans likely pushing the pace tonight, Ingram should have another big game.

Bam Adebayo, C, Miami Heat

DraftKings Price: $7,600

We passed on Jimmy, but not all Miami Heat players should go overlooked tonight. Much like Ingram, Bam Adebayo is off to a breakout start to 2019, averaging a double-double (15.8 points and 10.8 rebounds) along with 4.8 assists, 1.8 blocks and 1.3 steals a game. He's filling up the stat sheet to the tune of 41.8 DK points at a rate of 1.33 DK points per minute. That's 0.3 per minute above last year's season-long average, and he's doing so on a 20.2% usage rate, compared to last year's 15.7%.

In back-to-back-to-back games, Bam has accounted for 40-plus DK points while contributing in a variety of areas. He has a really high floor every night, and his 32-plus minutes won't be going elsewhere barring foul trouble or injury.

Just last game, the Heat hosted these Atlanta Hawks, and the result was a double-double and 44.5 DK points for Adebayo. Miami scored 112 points and won by 15. This evening, they are six-point favorites in a game with a 216.5 over/under, which comes out to a 111.25 implied total for the Heat. The game environment nor the matchup will do much to slow down this dude's roll.

Brett Oswalt is not a FanDuel employee. In addition to providing DFS gameplay advice, Brett Oswalt also participates in DFS contests on FanDuel using his personal account, username BrettOswalt. While the strategies and player selections recommended in his articles are his/her personal views, he may deploy different strategies and player selections when entering contests with his personal account. The views expressed in his articles are the author’s alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of FanDuel.