We have been waiting for several WNBA players to join their teams after beginning the season overseas or nursing injuries, and now we are waiting for them to ramp up to their normal playing time. When I was researching Tuesday’s WNBA DFS slate I was surprised at how many players, especially forwards, were playing a lot fewer minutes than we would expect once they are fully up and running. Inevitably, one or two will play exactly as many minutes as they have previously, which will be disappointing. Of course, if we can find the players who will go back to playing their normal minutes Tuesday, we will have a huge advantage in this three-game slate.
| Guards | |||||||
| Player | Team | Opp. | DK $ | DK FPPG | FD $ | FD FPPG | |
| Sydney Wiese | WAS | IND | 4300 | 9.38 | 3300 | 9.05 | |
| Wiese played 27 minutes and scored 15.75 fantasy points against Indiana Sunday. Natasha Cloud is questionable and if she is out, Wiese would likely play at least that many minutes again. She would be a strong cash play, especially if she starts. | |||||||
| Leilani Mitchell | WAS | IND | 6800 | 11.5 | 4200 | 11.93 | |
| I'm ready to give up on her until Elena Delle Donne comes back but if Natasha Cloud is out, I may not be able to. Mitchell's usage is her lowest since 2011 but I have to imagine a combination of making more than one shot and Cloud being out would necessitate a bump in minutes and usage. Even so, it's difficult to trust her for cash lineups, even on FanDuel. | |||||||
| Natisha Hiedeman | CON | SEA | 7700 | 26.75 | 6300 | 27.04 | |
| I'm a bit surprised Hiedeman's price didn't drop after she scored just 14 fantasy points her last time out, but she still played 33+ minutes and had 10+ field goal attempts for the fourth straight game. With Briann January out, I think the streak continues, and I doubt she will shoot 16.7 percent like she did Sunday. | |||||||
| Tiffany Hayes | ATL | CHI | 6700 | 20.12 | 5400 | 21.80 | |
| Hayes has played at least 25 minutes in both games this season, shooting 1-10 from the field Wednesday and 3-8 with eight free throw attempts Friday. She could easily see a boost in minutes Tuesday but even if she doesn't, I think she is a nice value on DraftKings. | |||||||
| Ariel Atkins | WAS | IND | 8500 | 26.81 | 5600 | 26.27 | |
| Only Tiffany Hayes is averaging more than Ariel Atkins' 4.5 fouls per game, and Hayes has played half as many games. She has never averaged more than 2.6 fouls per game in her career, so I have to believe she will stay out of foul trouble and stay on the court at some point. It may take Elena Delle Donne returning, but Natasha Cloud missing out could help. | |||||||
| Player | Team | Opp. | DK $ | DK FPPG | FD $ | FD FPPG | |
| Courtney Vandersloot | CHI | ATL | 10400 | 32.5 | 6700 | 31.27 | |
| Vandersloot has driven the offense once again with Candace Parker out, averaging 12 assists and 41.6 fantasy points in two games. Vandersloot still hasn't shot the ball particularly well and could be really dangerous if that happens in this game. | |||||||
| Jordin Canada | SEA | CON | 6100 | 18.5 | 4900 | 18.67 | |
| After playing 31 minutes total in her first two games, Jordin Canada played 33 minutes Saturday at Dallas. Canada has averaged between 0.82 and 0.89 FPPM in all four seasons, and if she plays 25+ minutes and scores 20+ fantasy points, she will be a nice value. | |||||||
| Forwards | |||||||
| Player | Team | Opp. | DK $ | DK FPPG | FD $ | FD FPPG | |
| Myisha Hines-Allen | WAS | IND | 9600 | 11.25 | 6400 | 12.10 | |
| I kind of expected we would get more of a discount after Myisha Hines-Allen played just 14 minutes in her 2021 debut Sunday. If she has only a modest bump in playing time in her second game, she will likely be overpriced, especially on DraftKings. That being said, Hines-Allen averaged 34.4 fantasy points in 29.9 minutes per game last season. She should take Erica McCall's playing time sooner or later, and McCall played 27 minutes Sunday. If Hines-Allen gets that kind of playing time, she would be a great GPP play. | |||||||
| Azura Stevens | CHI | ATL | 7200 | 14.75 | 4400 | 15.00 | |
| She will almost certainly be ahead of Astou Ndour-Fall and Ruthy Hebert in the forward rotation sooner than later. If she starts, I will probably have her in all of my lineups. Off the bench, she is a better GPP play, but I'll have a hard time passing on her upside. He averaged over a fantasy point per minute last season, the second time she has done that in her career. | |||||||
| Mercedes Russell | SEA | CON | 4600 | 10.88 | 3600 | 10.35 | |
| I wonder if this is finally the game Russell and Ezi Magbegor split all of the center minutes. I certainly think it should be, though I suppose Candice Dupree could play center on offense and guard Brionna Jones. In any case, Russell played 20 minutes Saturday in her second game of the season, finishing with a respectable 14.5 fantasy points. Russell averaged 20.1 fantasy points in 25.6 minutes in 2019 and with Natasha Howard gone, I think she can reach that production as soon as Tuesday. That would make her a nice value, especially in cash lineups. | |||||||
| Lauren Cox | IND | WAS | 5000 | 4.25 | 3200 | 3.10 | |
| Cox is riskier than Mercedes Russell but I think she has more upside and she is cheaper on DraftKings. Last year's No. 3 overall pick averaged 0.84 fantasy points per minute last season and even coming off a knee injury, I think she will at least match that production sooner than later. She did little statistcially in 11 minutes Sunday and is no guarantee to see significantly more minutes, but Indiana is pretty clearly one of the worst teams in the league yet again and developing Cox should be one of their top priorities. She could see a bump in playing time with Bernadett Hatar out as well. | |||||||
| Teaira McCowan | IND | WAS | 8700 | 28.15 | 6700 | 28.30 | |
| I still think she is going to start playing 30ish minutes per game and dropping double-doubles consistently, but it hasn't happened yet. That being said, she has at least 28 fantasy points in three of her five games and if she can do it again against the Mystics, she'll be a nice GPP play. | |||||||
| Player | Team | Opp. | DK $ | DK FPPG | FD $ | FD FPPG | |
| Jonquel Jones | CON | SEA | 10900 | 42.3 | 8400 | 40.36 | |
| I don't think there is a wrong answer among the high-priced forwards, but Jonquel Jones is cheaper than Breanna Stewart and has been more consistent. Neither matchup is great but I think Connecticut has more options for guarding Stewart than the other way around. | |||||||
| Tina Charles | WAS | IND | 10800 | 40.75 | 7900 | 39.17 | |
| Charles is the cheapest of the stud forwards, especially on FanDuel, and she has the best matchup. Charles scored 46.25 fantasy points against Indiana Sunday and she could easily do that again, even with Myisha Hines-Allen possibly cutting into Charles's minutes. | |||||||
Core Plays
| Draftkings Core Plays | ||
Top Tier | Courtney Vandersloot | $10,400 |
| Jonquel Jones | $10,900 | |
Mid Tier | Natisha Hiedeman | $7,700 |
| Tiffany Hayes | $6,700 | |
Value Tier | Sydney Wiese | $4,300 |
| Mercedes Russell | $4,600 | |
| Fanduel Core Plays | ||
Top Tier | Courtney Vandersloot | $6,700 |
| Tina Charles | $7,900 | |
Mid Tier | Ariel Atkins | $5,600 |
| Teaira McCowan | $6,700 | |
Value Tier | Sydney Wiese | $3,300 |
| Mercedes Russell | $3,600 | |