3 NBA FanDuel Studs to Target on Monday 2/13/23
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 post 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?
Anthony Davis, PF/C, Lakers ($10,800)
We have quite a few reasons to believe that, with or without LeBron James, there aren't many reasons to believe Anthony Davis' cold spell will last too much longer.
James is once again questionable tonight in Portland due to his ankle injury, and he's truly up in the air. The Lakers' All-Star break begins on Thursday, so it's possible LeBron sits the two contests until then. With or without him, A.D. is in a tremendous spot tonight in Portland.
The Blazers, still down Jusuf Nurkic, have warmly welcomed opposing centers to Moda Center. They're allowing the sixth-most FanDuel points per game to centers.
Davis' consecutive contests under 41 FanDuel points just don't fit his overall trend. Without LeBron on the floor this year, Davis has averaged a monstrous 61.9 FanDuel points per 36 minutes. Even with him, A.D. has produced 55.6 per 36 minutes.
"The Brow" has just scuffled through 34.1% shooting in the past two games. He could easily turn it around in this favorable matchup.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, SG/PG, Thunder ($10,600)
In a breakout campaign, it feels Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is taking a further step forward this month.
SGA's 32.4% usage rate has been tremendously high all season, but it's kicked up to 32.9% during the month of February. He answered the bell -- for this salary -- with 53.4 FanDuel points per 36 minutes in that period, including two forays north of 60 FanDuel points.
Gilgeous-Alexander will be met with another top-shelf environment and matchup on Monday. There's a 236.5-point total as the Thunder host the Pelicans, and OKC's usual blowout concern isn't present. With C.J. McCollum uncertain to play through an ankle injury, the Thunder are actually two-point favorites.
Brandon Ingram and other Pels could become vital pieces of the slate if McCollum sits. SGA remains the most reliable way to stack this environment should it live up to its billing.
DeMar DeRozan, SG/SF, Bulls ($8,300)
All three of the Chicago Bulls' key stars had a great night at the office against the Orlando Magic last month.
DeMar DeRozan and Zach LaVine chipped in 32 real-life points each, and former Magic center Nikola Vucevic carved up his former team -- as he often does -- for 23 points and 16 boards himself. Any of them could emerge in tonight's rematch in Orlando, but DeRozan seems especially due for a great night.
The Nets and Cavaliers, two of the best defensive teams in the NBA by defensive rating of their current starting lineup, bottled DeRozan in the past two contests. He took just 23 total shots in them despite averaging 18.0 per game on the season.
Orlando (114.1 defensive rating) hasn't had the same success defensively. DDR should return closer to his normal role tonight, which has amounted to 40.5 FanDuel points per 36 minutes on a 28.9% usage rate.
DeRozan is numberFire's top-projected small forward over $8,000 on this 11-game slate.
