3 NBA DraftKings Studs to Target on 1/10/20
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.
Giannis Antetokounmpo, SF/PF, Milwaukee Bucks
DraftKings Price: $11,100
Giannis Antetokounmpo hasn't been really wowing anyone of late -- at least for his lofty standards. After missing back-to-back games in late December, Giannis has only (yeah, only) hit 60 DK points in one of five games with two below 50. However, what that doesn't show is that he's played an average of just 31.0 minutes, failing to even reach 30 in two of those contests. On a per-minute basis, he's averaging 1.85 DK points per minute on the season and 1.77 over the last five.
The elite ceiling is still there for the Greek Freak in the right situations. According to FanDuel Sportsbook, here tonight his Milwaukee Bucks are favored by a mere eight on the road against the Sacramento Kings, making for what should be a tight enough game and one in which the matchup shouldn't keep you from locking him in. The Kings are way down at 28th in NBA.com's pace ranks, but it's hard to imagine Milwaukee not pushing it to their own league-leading tempo. They're also 18th in defensive rating.
The fact that Giannis' price is down by $400 from last game and $1,300 off his season-high makes him all the more attractive. In the five games he's been listed at or below this salary, he has gone for an average of 62.0 DK points for a return of 5.66 points per $1,000. Sign me up for that -- and maybe more -- in this spot.
Kawhi Leonard, SF/PF, Los Angeles Clippers
DraftKings Price: $9,900
The Los Angeles Clippers are at home against the Golden State Warriors and their 21st-ranked defense. They're also whopping 13-point favorites, which provides them the second-highest team total heading into this evening. That's great news for Paul George and Kawhi Leonard, right? Normally, that would be spot on, but George has been diagnosed with a hamstring strain and will sit out Friday's matchup.
Give us all the Kawhi. The on/off splits over at NBA Wowy tell us that Leonard's per-minute fantasy numbers increase from 1.32 with PG to 1.61(!) in his 429 minutes without. In the 12 games he has played without him entirely, the Klaw has managed 51.5 DK points per game with six of those above the 50-point threshold.
The increased usage and efficiency would figure to be enough, but the Warriors have also allowed 107 or more points in three straight games. On Wednesday, they allowed Milwaukee to score 107 with Giannis going for 54.75. Expect Kawhi to mirror that production as the focal point of the L.A. offense. We project him for 48.0 DK points in 34.1 minutes.
Devin Booker, PG/SG, Phoenix Suns
DraftKings Price: $8,400
Tonight, a lot of people will gravitate to Nikola Vucevic in an appealing head-to-head with Deandre Ayton and the Phoenix Suns. But on the other side of that, you can snag a scorching hot Devin Booker at a $400 discount and a shooting guard position with few healthy options at the top.
In his last seven games, the young star has popped off for 30-plus points in each game en route to 49.6 DK points per game and five showings of 50-plus. He's shot 54.8% from the floor in that span despite hitting only 24.1% from beyond the arc. And his usage rate is up to 33.6% even in five games with Ayton in the lineup.
But, it just so happens Booker is better with Ayton -- another weapon -- on the floor. He's averaging 1.45 DK points per minute on a 33.5% usage rate compared to 1.13 and 28.5%, respectively, in the absence of the big man.
Phoenix is favored by 2.5 in a game they're expected to tally 109.75 points. This might just be that close game which goes to overtime on a crazy 10-game slate like tonight. All signs point to another monster night for Booker.
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__14. 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.
