FanDuel Daily Fantasy Basketball Helper: Sunday 10/31/21

The NBA scene changes on a week-to-week, day-to-day, and -- depending on injury news -- even a minute-to-minute basis, making every slate a unique one that requires an ever-changing approach.

With so much changing so quickly, we're here with plenty of tools to help you out. We have daily projections, a matchup heat map, a lineup optimizer, and a bunch of other great resources to help give you an edge.

Daily fantasy NBA is very reliant on opportunity, so you'll need to make sure that you're up-to-date with key injuries. Our projections update up until tip-off to reflect current news, and we also have player news updates.

We'll be coming at you with this primer every day, breaking down a few of the day's top plays at each position.

Guards

Damian Lillard, PG, (FanDuel Salary: $8,400) - The DFS bout of the night on this four-game slate is between the Portland Trail Blazers and Charlotte Hornets. The 230.5-point total is 6.5 more than any other game's total, and the 1.0-point spread is ideal. Each side is in the top four in pace. While Dame has just one game north of 40.0 FanDuel points (45.7), Lillard is getting crushed by bad shooting. He's hitting only 37.1% of his shots, which would be a career-low mark by a mile. He was at 45.1% a year ago. The shots will start falling, and that could happen tonight versus a Hornets team that sits fifth-worst in defensive efficiency. As of early Sunday, we project Lillard for 43.6 FanDuel points (5.2 per $1,000).

LaMelo Ball, PG, $7,800 - I'm into the idea of stacking Ball and Lillard and locking in the two best plays from the Hornets-Blazers game, although with both guys being PG-only plays, it does limit your flexibility. It doesn't hurt as much on a four-gamer, though. Ball paces Charlotte in usage rate (28.4%), and prior to a pair of clunkers in his past two games, Ball had been averaging 42.7 FanDuel points per game through his first four outings. Lillard is the priority for me if I'm getting just one of he or Ball, but LaMelo is a sweet option, as well.

Bruce Brown Jr., SG, $4,500 - The Brooklyn Nets have a mouth-watering date with the Detroit Pistons. The only issue is the Nets are favored by 12.5, so there's a good deal of blowout risk. Brown might not have his minutes cut as much as Brooklyn's big two do if a blowout does occur. Over the last four games, Brown is averaging 28.7 minutes and 22.4 FanDuel points. He needs only 22.5 FanDuel points to hit 5.0 per $1,000, and we peg him to amass 24.6.

Others to Consider: James Harden ($9,900), Donovan Mitchell ($8,100), Eric Gordon ($4,200), Kent Bazemore ($4,000)

Wings

Giannis Antetokounmpo, SF/PF, $11,300 - Giannis flopped last night, scoring just 41.4 FanDuel points, and today's matchup with the Utah Jazz isn't a fun one. But with fellow high-salary forwards LeBron James ($9,800) and Kevin Durant ($10,800) in games with a lot of blowout risk, Antetokounmpo becomes more appealing. Before last night's down game, Giannis had produced 62.5 and 76.7 FanDuel points in his previous two, and last night was his first game of the year with fewer than three combined blocks/steals (he had zero). We project him for 54.1 FanDuel points, and Antetokounmpo might not be as popular as he usually is.

Kevin Durant, SF/PF, $10,800 - While I am worried about the Nets blowing out the Pistons, if they do, KD will likely play a big part in Brooklyn racking up a large lead. For the year, Durant leads the Nets in usage rate (30.7%), and he's seen at least 34 minutes in every game but one. Admittedly, our algorithm isn't high on Durant, projecting him for just 47.2 FanDuel points (4.37 per $1,000), but he should be able to torch the Pistons for as long as he's in the game.

Robert Covington, SF/PF, $4,400 - Covington is a low-salary way to get in on the action in the Portland-Charlotte affair, which should be a rising tide that lifts all boats. Covington is averaging 28.2 minutes per game but has been pretty miserable from a DFS perspective, scoring just 17.2 FanDuel points per night. He did, however, put up a season-best 24.6 FanDuel points in his last game, and we project him to generate 25.1 FanDuel points tonight, which amounts to 5.7 per $1,000. He's one of the night's best value targets, per our model.

Others to Consider: Christian Wood ($8,500), Isaiah Stewart ($5,200), Blake Griffin ($3,800)

Bigs

Rudy Gobert, C, $8,200 - The Bucks present a pace-up matchup for the Jazz, and Gobert's rim protection will be tested early and often by Giannis. Coming off a season-best output of 53.3 FanDuel points last night, Gobert won't fly under the radar at all. We have him scoring 39.7 FanDuel points, just shy of 5.0 per $1,000.

Jusuf Nurkic, C, $7,400 - At this salary, Nurkic needs 37.0 FanDuel points for 5.0 per $1,000. He's recorded 44.9 and 38.6 over his last two despite averaging a mere 22.5 minutes per game in that time. Playing in what should be a dream fantasy environment, Nurkic has a great chance to stay hot. Our projections forecast him to put up 37.2 FanDuel points (5.02 per $1,000).

Others to Consider: Mason Plumlee ($6,000), LaMarcus Aldridge ($4,800)