3 NBA DraftKings Studs to Target on 3/11/20
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.
Trae Young, PG, Atlanta Hawks
DraftKings Price: $10,400
Tonight, Luka Doncic tops the board at $11,000, but not far off is the very player he was traded for on draft day: Trae Young. Young and the Atlanta Hawks are back home for a favorable matchup with the New York Knicks, who are on the skids after a third loss in four games Tuesday in Washington. That bodes well for Young's appeal on a six-game slate such as this.
The young, emerging point guard has already torn up the Knicks on two occasions this season, averaging 45.0 points, 10.5 assists, and 67.4 DraftKings points per game. His 49.2% shooting is his third-best against opponents he's squared off with at least twice, and all the while using 35.8% of his team's offensive possessions. Young now boasts a 33.8% usage rate for the full campaign.
New York has been respectable against point guards for fantasy purposes, yet they have allowed the most threes per game to the position, making up 3.1 of the 13.3 they allow on a per-game basis. Our models expect Young to take full advantage, projecting him for 3.4 threes of his own, leading to 28.2 points and 48.9 fantasy points on the night.
Bam Adebayo, C, Miami Heat
DraftKings Price: $9,000
At center, Bam Adebayo is the fourth-most expensive center despite a clean bill of health and averaging more DK points per game than Kristaps Porzingis ($9,400), the player priced immediately above him at his same position. Doesn't make much sense, right? Right.
The thing is, that doesn't even factor in the difference in matchup. Whereas Porzingis will face off with Nikola Jokic and the 12th-ranked Denver Nuggets defense, Adebayo's Miami Heat are on their home floor hosting the Charlotte Hornets and their 26th-ranked defensive unit. The Hornets are also 26th with just a 48.4% rebounding rate, which plays right into the hands of the dynamic big man in Miami. So far this season, Adebayo is grabbing 15.5% of available rebounds and 10.2 a game in home games. He posted 13 in a 46.8-DK-point outing last time against these Hornets.
Fresh off a 54.5-point game, our models expect Adebayo to keep it going on Wednesday. We have him down for 34.2 minutes and 42.3 DK points, but keep an eye on Jimmy Butler's status. If he can't give it a go, it's worth noting that Adebayo has averaged 1.24 DK points per minute in his absence.
Tobias Harris, SF/PF, Philadelphia 76ers
DraftKings Price: $8,500
Tobias Harris isn't a guy that typically runs you more than $8,000. In fact, he was just $7,900 two games ago, and in his last game before the All-Star break, he checked in all the way down at $6,200. And his average of 35.6 DK points a game? That commands the equivalent of a $7,100 price tag.
What gives here is two-fold: injury and insulting defense. For starters, the Philadelphia 76ers will still be without Ben Simmons and could very well play another game sans Joel Embiid. Embiid practiced Tuesday, but he's questionable as well. That could leave Harris as the lead dog offensively, a role he's done well in for fantasy purposes. NBA Wowy tells us that in the absence of the two Sixer stars, Harris has gone for 1.16 DK points per minute on a 27.0% usage rate and 56.5% true shooting percentage. Embiid's presence gives him a slight hit, but the Detroit Pistons help to mitigate that.
Since dealing Andre Drummond before the deadline, Detroit is 20th in defense, but they have fallen to 27th in the eight games (they've lost seven) following the break. Our projections aren't all that high on Harris right now, but that might change if Embiid is ultimately ruled out. This is another situation to monitor as we head into Wednesday night.
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.
