3 NBA FanDuel Studs to Target on Friday 1/6/23
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 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 an excellent 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 will likely leave your lineup drawing pretty close to dead.
Which top players should be the focal points of your lineups today?
LeBron James, SF/PF, Lakers ($11,200)
One of the best -- maybe the best -- fantasy environments on the slate is the clash between the Los Angeles Lakers and Atlanta Hawks. The game boasts a slate-leading 242.5-point total and 1.5-point spread. Both sides rank in the top six in pace. It's pretty perfect for DFS.
LeBron James is an excellent way to get exposure to this juicy game environment. He can have a field day against a Hawks team that ranks 10th-worst in defensive rating over the last 10 games while sitting 4th in pace in that span. Atlanta is permitting the 10th-most FanDuel points per night to small forwards (41.5) and the 7th-most to power forwards (46.3).
James has produced 70.5 and 65.2 FanDuel points in his last two games, with the 70.5-point explosion coming against these same Hawks. He sports a 35.2% usage rate across his last five games.
LeBron checks a lot of boxes tonight.
Giannis Anteokounmpo, SF/PF, Bucks ($12,000)
Giannis Antetokounmpo has a mouth-watering matchup with the Charlotte Hornets.
The salary is up there, but it's deserved for the Milwaukee Bucks' star. Giannis needs 60.0 FanDuel points to reach five-times value (5.0 points per $1,000 in salary). Well, he's gone for 61.2, 78.5, 78.5 and 79.9 FanDuel points over his past four appearances.
He can keep it rolling in this one. Charlotte is allowing the 6th-most FanDuel points per night to power forwards (46.4), and the Hornets are 26th in defensive rating for the season.
Milwaukee's 120.5-point implied total is the slate's second-highest clip. While the Bucks' status as a 10.0-point favorite brings some blowout risk into the equation, Giannis still rates out with the slate's top projection, per our model, as we peg him to score 57.7 FanDuel points (as of early Friday).
Damian Lillard, PG, Blazers ($9,100)
We could see a spike outing from Damian Lillard today against the Indiana Pacers.
This game sets up well for fantasy goodness from both sides. It has a 235.5-point total and 1.5-point spread. The Pacers (8th in pace) are a huge pace-up spot for the Portland Trail Blazers (25th).
Lillard is averaging just 43.3 FanDuel points per night for the year, but he's flashing more upside of late. Across his last five games, Dame has scored at least 51.1 FanDuel points on three occasions, and he's done it despite some meh shooting, going only 14 for 51 from three (27.4%) during that span.
If Lillard's jumper starts falling, he could post a slate-breaking score in what should be a high-scoring, back-and-forth affair. We have him generating 45.9 FanDuel points (5.04 per $1,000).
