3 NBA FanDuel Studs to Target on Wednesday 10/27/21

Basketball is the most consistent sport for daily fantasy purposes.

A top slugger in baseball will have his fair share of 0-for-4 days, and an elite fantasy football player is at risk of having games where his team's offense as a whole is shut down. A high-salaried NBA stud is generally going to get his, though. With so many possessions in a game providing opportunities to produce, top fantasy basketball options will be posting high scores just about every night.

While this consistency puts us in a good position to identify top plays, it also means you can't afford to miss when you're paying up for someone. Even with strong value plays in your lineup, paying up and getting a dud is likely going to leave your lineup drawing pretty close to dead.

Which top players should be the focal points of your lineups today?

Kevin Durant, F, Brooklyn Nets ($11,000)

Wednesday's 10-game slate includes stars with tremendous workloads. None of them are as can't-miss because of the state of their position as Kevin Durant.

It is tough to find wings to actively get excited about on FanDuel, but Durant definitely fits that moniker. Although many expected James Harden to benefit the most from the loss of Kyrie Irving for Brooklyn, they have become "The KD Show".

Durant leads the team in usage (33.3%) and FanDuel points per minute (1.59), and his true ceiling has only been showcased once. Durant has still scored at least 25 points in all four games, and his contest against Miami in this spot should require his scoring services again. The Heat are just four-point underdogs in the contest with a healthy 220.0 total.

Until Harden hits FanDuel value literally a single time, Durant remains the top-notch priority on this efficient Nets squad.

Karl-Anthony Towns, C, Minnesota Timberwolves ($10,900)

Minnesota may not end up winning enough to solidify his candidacy, but Karl-Anthony Towns is putting up MVP-caliber numbers for the T-Wolves.

Towns wrestled the team's lead in usage (31.6%) away from D'Angelo Russell on Monday with a massive 32 points, 14 rebounds, and 7 assists against the Pelicans. That well-rounded stat-stuffing has Towns at 1.64 FanDuel points per minute overall -- a mark second to only Milwaukee's Giannis Antetokounmpo.

Ironically enough, Towns faces Giannis and the fast-paced Bucks on Wednesday. While he could draw coverage from the former MVP, the Bucks may also be shorthanded to defend bigs with Brook Lopez already ruled out with a back injury.

Teams at full health have had issues containing KAT, and he should not be ignored moving forward with the nightly production as it currently stands.

Ja Morant, G, Memphis Grizzlies ($9,500)

Surely this salary is an error on Ja Morant, correct? Morant was salaried below $7,000 in over half of last season's FanDuel contests.

It's not.

Morant has exploded onto the scene this season in an expanded role for Memphis. He is their only clear target with scoring upside at the moment (sorry, Steven Adams) because of his hefty peripherals. Morant's 35.7% usage rate is 12.5% higher than any teammate's, and his 1.41 FanDuel points per minute are still much higher than the board-producing Adams (1.21) without the concerns of getting matched off the floor by size.

The Grizz have a date with the struggling Portland Trail Blazers on Wednesday. The Clippers dismantled Portland on Monday, and the Blazers should be a top fantasy target much of the season with a below-average defensive rating tied to the current fastest pace in the NBA.

I truly don't know what to expect from Morant's draft percentage at this elevated salary, but one thing is very clear -- he is worth it.