Top 5 standard fantasy basketball performers from opening night of the 2021-22 NBA season

#1(tied) Anthony Davis (71)

Los Angeles Lakers v Phoenix Suns

Three NBA players managed to score exactly 71 standard fantasy basketball points between these two matchups. Anthony Davis is the first person I decided to list by going in alphabetical order of their first names.

Davis ended with 33 points, 11 rebounds, two assists, one steal and two blocks while shooting 15/26 from the field and 1/5 from three. While the NBA big man probably wishes to have knocked down a few more from beyond the arc and gone home with a victory, his fantasy owners have to be thrilled.

71 points of production is equivalent to that of a top overall selection. Health has always been a primary hesitance to drafting him too high overall, but he is capable of NBA MVP numbers if he remains on the floor as he showed.

---

#1(tied) Giannis Antetokounmpo (71)

Oklahoma City Thunder v Milwaukee Bucks

Giannis Antetokounmpo looks eager to prove that the Milwaukee Bucks should be taken seriously as potential repeat NBA Champions in the 2021-22 season. He did just that opening night by leading his squad to a 23 point victory over the hyped Brooklyn Nets.

Giannis is also commonly a top two or three overall pick in fantasy draft leagues, and opening night was a fine example of why. Tying the highest overall score with a ridiculous 71 points has got to be a comforting sight for his fantasy owners.

32 points, 14 rebounds, seven assists, one steal and two blocks while remaining efficient sounds like an outlier performance, but remember that we are talking about a two-time NBA MVP.

---

#1(tied) LeBron James (71)

Golden State Warriors v Los Angeles Lakers

LeBron James is entering his 19th season in the NBA, but you couldn't tell any signs of old age on opening night. One of the greatest players of all time managed a typically stellar statline of 34 points, 11 rebounds, five assists, one steal and one block while knocking down 13/23 from the field and 5/11 from three.

The five three-point conversions were unexpected and aided him in tying Giannis and Davis with 71 total fantasy points. With a lack of spacing on the Lakers' roster, maybe LeBron will take more responsibility himself for letting it fly from range this NBA season.

I'm sure he would have preferred to go home undefeated after game one, but LeBron James' fantasy owners have to be more than satisfied with his final production.