3 NBA FanDuel Studs to Target on 10/18/17

James Harden, SG, Houston Rockets

Price: $11,000

It wasn't quite the absurd-usage triple-double kind of performance we saw from him so often last year, but James Harden showed last night that he's going to be an elite fantasy producer even with Chris Paul running the point for the Houston Rockets.

Harden's 31.3% usage rate and 49.2 FanDuel points were both the 2nd-highest marks on last night's two-game slate, and his 1.4 FanDuel points per minute weren't far off from the 1.5 he averaged last year.

The Beard finds himself in a terrific matchup tonight, taking on a Sacramento Kings team that allowed top-10 fantasy production to opponents at both guard spots last season while ranking 25th in defensive rating. The Kings' off-season moves -- i.e., the acquisition of senior citizen Zach Randolph -- don't look like they'll shore things up on that side of the ball.

The Sacramento defense is a particularly good matchup for the Rockets' style of play. The Kings allowed the league's 2nd-most three-point attempts per 100 possessions last season . They also allowed a top-6 mark in free throw attempts per 100 possessions, and that should translate to some easy points for Harden, who has led the league in free throw attempts per game in each of the past three seasons.