NBA

3 NBA DraftKings Studs to Target on 1/27/21

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 salaries.

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-salaried DraftKings plays of the day.

Giannis Antetokounmpo, PF/C, Milwaukee Bucks

DraftKings Salary: $10,700

Typically, we don't have to dive too far into the details of the matchup when it comes to Giannis Antetokounmpo. The Milwaukee Bucks' superstar's production speaks for itself, as he averages 27.0 points, 10.5 rebounds, 5.3 assists, and 52.5 DraftKings points per game. That comes over 32.2 minutes a game, bringing his per-minute average to 1.63 DK points a clip. And when he's played 35-plus minutes that's translated to massive games, particularly of late.

Over the last three games, Giannis has played an average of 37 minutes on his way to three straight double-doubles with six assists a night. He's turned that into 55.7 DK points a game despite a pair of high-turnover, high-foul outings.

The matchup does bode well for a top-tier Giannis game, too. The Toronto Raptors -- who could be without Pascal Siakam -- are a shell of what they once were, now rated 16th in NBA.com's defensive efficiency ranks. More importantly, FantasyPros' positional data tells us that they are being hammered for 23.2 points, 11.7 rebounds, and 50.7 DK points by opposing power forwards.

Nikola Vucevic, C, Orlando Magic

DraftKings Salary: $9,200

Quietly, Nikola Vucevic is having an all-star year for the Orlando Magic. Leading his team in points (23.5) and rebounds (11.1) per game, he's knocking down 48.7% of all shots and 43.5% of his attempts from deep. That type of elite efficiency, combined with a team-high 28.1% usage rate, has him averaging a very steady 48.0 DK points per game.

With Vooch in your lineup, you're almost expecting at least 45 DK points with a ceiling of 50 or more on any given night. In fact, he's come up short of 40 DK points just twice this year, and beyond that, he's put up at least 45.25 in all others. And he has really excelled in up-and-down games, which is what a clash with the Sacramento Kings should mean for the Magic.

At home, Orlando will get a boost of nearly two possessions per game in pace, while Sacramento allows the second-most points per game (121.2). An opening total of 221 points provides Vooch and company with a 111.25 implied total, according to Online Sportsbook.

Jayson Tatum, SF/PF, Boston Celtics

DraftKings Salary: $8,700

At long last, Jayson Tatum made his return to the Boston Celtics' lineup on Monday night. And though he was limited to 31 minutes, that's all it took for him to remind us just how impactful he can be on a night-to-night basis. On a 10-for-21 shooting night, he went for 24 points, 5 assists, and 4 rebounds. His 39 DK points were enough for 4.4-times value at his salary, but that figure has fallen $200 in the last 48 hours.

That should be music to your ears if you're someone who likes to play Tatum in DFS. It was just over a month ago that he would run you $9,300, which he completely justified with his 45.4-DK-point average. But don't sleep on the fact that Tatum's had a few games where his workload was limited for one reason or another. Accounting for that, he's averaged a gaudy 1.33 DK points per minute this season.

There's no reason Tatum shouldn't be back to his usual 35 to 38 minutes in what should be a close game, supported by a three-point spread in Boston's favor as they battle San Antonio. A 225 over/under and 114-point implied total could push the young star to a 50-point fantasy night in his second game back.



Brett Oswalt i
s 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 BRO14THEKID. 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.