Production has shifted away from the center position, but in FanDuel NBA leagues, DeMarcus Cousins has proven to be the top performer in this young season.
The name entrenched atop the list of top FanDuel NBA performers in the early portion of the 2017-18 campaign is a bit unexpected.
In an era with dominant point guard play, exceptional abilities on the wing and traditional power forwards routinely shifting to the center position, traditional big men are often overlooked in fantasy basketball.
Only through the first month of the NBA season, centers have emerged as some of the most dominant players, with seven of the top-25 FanDuel NBA scorers lining up at the 5-spot and New Orleans big man DeMarcus Cousins leading all fantasy point scorers.
In his first full season with the Pelicans, Cousins is dominating in several categories, ranking third in rebounding (13.8 per game), fifth in scoring (28.2 points) and fifth in blocks (1.8) per game.
Cousins leads the league in several categories, including minuets played (460), defensive rebounds (140) field goal attempts (249) and free throw attempts (102) after 12 games.
The 11 double-doubles Cousins has tallied is the most in the league and he is one of just six players to register a triple-double this year.
Any player is susceptible to an off-night, but Cousins has nearly been flawless. During the one game he failed to pour in 20 points this year, he supplemented his output by totaling 12 rebounds, seven assists, three steals and a block.
The 27-year-old has failed to post a double-double just once, when the Timberwolves limited him to nine rebounds, but he still finished with 73.8 points in FanDuel NBA tournament play, as he logged 35 points, six assists, six steals and three blocks.
The accelerated production from Cousins has boosted his value to $11,800 in FanDuel NBA leagues, but with his elevated statistics, he is worth every penny.