With Monday Night Football now a distant memory, the NBA is back in action with a small two-game slate, beginning at 7:30 p.m. ET on both DraftKings and FanDuel. Using Stokastic’s NBA DFS projections, let’s take a deeper dive into the player pool to discuss the top NBA DFS high-priced studs for today.
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NBA DFS High Priced Studs: Tuesday, October 24
Stud No. 1 — Nikola Jokic: Los Angeles Lakers-Denver Nuggets
- Stokastic’s Preliminary Point Projections: DraftKings: 61.00 | FanDuel: 57.63
- Stokastic’s Preliminary Rostered Projections: DraftKings: 61.10% | FanDuel: 32.50%
- DFS Salary: DraftKings: $10,000 | FanDuel: $11,500
The clear starting point on tonight’s slate, Jokic is simply too cheap on DraftKings at $10,000. With an average salary of $11,486 last season, Jokic is almost $1,500 cheaper tonight, and it’s no surprise he’s projected to be optimal 58.80% of the time on DraftKings. While he’s more expensive on FanDuel at $11,500, he’s not getting nearly the ownership and he comes with a ton of leverage, as he’s projected to be optimal 42.60% of the time on the blue site.
Unless you think Jokic has a minutes cap to start the season, the case to fade him on DraftKings is small. He is projected to be slightly over-owned, and there are surely other studs to spend up on; however, his price tag is just too cheap for his floor/ceiling combination. On FanDuel he’s definitely less of a must-play, but he’s still projected for 10 more fantasy points than Anthony Davis, the next-highest-projected player on the slate.
Stud No. 2 — Kevin Durant: Phoenix Suns-Golden State Warriors
- Stokastic’s Preliminary Point Projections: DraftKings: 45.66 | FanDuel: 44.69
- Stokastic’s Preliminary Rostered Projections: DraftKings: 32.80% | FanDuel: 16.10%
- DFS Salary: DraftKings: $8,400 | FanDuel: $10,800
Speaking of players who are priced too cheaply on DraftKings, enter Durant, whose $8,400 salary is down almost $2,000 from his average price tag in 2022-23. With Bradley Beal doubtful and Devin Booker questionable, a lot can change from this writing until lock, but as it stands now, Durant is emerging as the top overall play on the slate. While he’s projected significantly less than Jokic, he’s also much cheaper, and if Booker doesn’t play, Durant has as good of a chance as anyone to be the highest-scoring player on the slate. Similar to Jokic on FanDuel, he’s much more expensive but still an elite play if Booker is out.
Stud No. 3 — Stephen Curry: Phoenix Suns-Golden State Warriors
- Stokastic’s Preliminary Point Projections: DraftKings: 46.66 | FanDuel: 43.49
- Stokastic’s Preliminary Rostered Projections: DraftKings: 18.90% | FanDuel: 35.50%
- DFS Salary: DraftKings: $9,200 | FanDuel: $10,000
While there’s no doubt that Jokic and Durant look like the top two plays on tonight’s slate, Curry is the best contrarian option, priced exactly in the middle of them at $9,200. Projected to be optimal 27.80% of the time on DraftKings, Curry is falling through the cracks as Jokic, Durant and potentially Booker continue to pick up ownership. With multiple players underpriced tonight, Curry isn’t getting love, as his salary is more in line with price tags from seasons past. That doesn’t mean Curry is overpriced, however, and given he is projected as one of the highest-leveraged plays on the slate, there’s a ton to like about him in GPP’s.
There are only four teams in play tonight, so while there will be news leading up to lock, it should easily be enough to handle. Be sure to check out Stokastic Deeper Dive and Live Before Lock shows to see who is in and who is out on tonight’s slate.
