Welcome to our first WNBA DFS Playbook of 2019. We normally reserve the Playbook for slates with 3+ games, but because Friday is Opening Night and I’m too excited to wait one more day, we’re pulling out all the stops. That include the FantasyAlarm WNBA DFS podcast with myself and the one-and-only Howard Bender. Be sure to check that out along with all of our WNBA DFS preseason articles.
This is a good slate for fantasy, even if two of these teams will almost certainly miss the playoffs and a third (Dallas) might as well. The only team whose starting lineup and rotation is settled is Atlanta, and for that reason, I am only using Dream players for cash. I don’t see a ton of value or upside, but you will get what you pay for.
For the other teams, a lot will hinge on the starting lineups. Just because a player is starting doesn’t mean she’ll play a ton of minutes, but it’s at least a step in the right direction. In a lot of cases, starting or coming off the bench is the difference between being a cash play and a GPP dart.
Perhaps the most important piece of advice for Friday’s slate is to not be afraid to leave a lot of money on the table on DraftKings. The first cash lineup I put together had $5600 left on the table. I kept picking solid cash plays who I thought were good values on DK, and next thing I know, I have $25600 remaining to fill two forward spots. I still might consider entering that lineup in a GPP. As Howard pointed out on the podcast, the good thing about having such soft pricing on DraftKings is that you can almost play whoever you want without really worrying about salary. On FanDuel its much tougher to play the studs like Tina Charles. Unless one or two of the min-priced players start, there just isn’t a ton of crazy value.
| Player | POS | Team | FanDuel | DraftKings | Comments |
| Tina Charles | F | NY | $8,100 | $10,700 | I expect Tina Charles to be 100 percent owned on DraftKings, and I'm okay with that. You can probably fade her for a GPP, just know that would mean leaving a ton of money on the table. |
| Jessica Breland | F | ATL | $7,500 | $10,100 | She averaged 31.6 fantasy points after Angel McCoughtry went down. I love her for cash lineups, though I would rather pay up for Tina Charles if I could. |
| Tiffany Hayes | G | ATL | $6,600 | $9,100 | She is a popular breakout candidate this season, but I'm not sure I see it. She was pretty much the same player with Angel McCoughtry out as she was when McCoughtry was in. That being said, she is the safest guard in this slate by far, and she is emminently affordable on DraftKings. |
| Elizabeth Williams | F | ATL | $6,400 | $8,900 | In the 10 games, including the playoffs, that Angel McCoughtry missed at the end of the season, Elizabeth Williams averaged 28.8 fantasy points. She is a safe cash play, though I'm not sure she has a very high ceiling. |
| Glory Johnson | F | DAL | $6,300 | $7,600 | Glory Johnson is my number one fantasy play of the day, especially with the news that Azura Stevens is out. Johnson never fit alongside Liz Cambage, but she is a two-time All-Star who is still in her prime and averaged 14.9 points and 9.1 rebounds two seasons ago. I fully expect her to get back to that production beginning Friday. |
| Kelsey Mitchell | G | IND | $6,200 | $5,300 | This offense is going to run through Mitchell. She was terribly inefficient last season, but she could easily take a leap with some more experience under her belt. This team doesn't fit together terribly well, which is the biggest reason I prefer Mitchell for GPP lineups. That being said, she's cheap enough on DraftKings to be played in cash lineups as well. |
| Kayla Thornton | F | DAL | $5,600 | $5,200 | Thornton's prospects improved with the news Azura Stevens would sit. I still want to be sure if she starts, and I'll be interested if she is at the three or the four. I would like it best if she starts at the four, but she is safe for cash games and reasonably priced. |
| Arike Ogunbowale | G | DAL | $5,700 | $6,400 | With Skylar Diggins-Smith and Moriah Jefferson out, Ogunbowale should play most of the point guard minutes for Dallas. She is a proven scorer, having scored at least 20 points in every game of Notre Dame's run to the NCAA title game. Her ceilingi is as high as anyone's, but she should be safe as well so long as she starts. |
| Brittney Sykes | G | ATL | $5,400 | $5,600 | Sykes averaged 13.9 points and 4.1 rebounds in 25.4 minutes per game as a rookie in 2017 with Angel McCoughtry out, and I think that is her floor with McCoughtry out this season. |
| Kia Nurse | G | NY | $5,200 | $6,900 | She should be second or third on this team in usage, but she should have been last year, too. I expect her to start and at least be a safe cash play, but she proved last season she has a high ceiling as well. |
| Asia Durr | G | NY | $5,100 | $5,500 | I think Asia Durr is a lot riskier than Arike Ogunbowale, who was taken three picks later in this year's draft, but Durr is also cheaper, especially on DraftKings. The Liberty should give the keys of the offense to Durr right away, but I don't think we can really trust her until we see it. |
| Alex Bentley | G | ATL | $5,000 | $7,300 | She is a FanDuel play only. Bentley has been a scoring machine off the bench with Angel McCoughtry out. Bentley had at least 13 field goal attempts in all five playoff games last season, and she averaged 10.0 FGA per game in the preseason. She doesn't provide a ton for fantasy outside of scoring, which mostly limits her value to cash games. |
| Shenise Johnson | G | IND | $4,300 | $4,900 | Johnson missed half of 2017 and all of 2018 due to a torn ACL, but by all accounts, she is healthy now. Johnson averaged 11.3 ppg in 24.9 mpg in 2017, and if she is the same player now, she is a very nice value, especially for cash. |
| Betnijah Laney | G | IND | $3,100 | $3,300 | Laney has started all three preseason games for Indiana, playing 30 minutes Sunday against Dallas. If she starts again Friday she should be a solid punt play for cash lineups, even though her ceiling isn't particularly high. |
| Isabelle Harrison | F | DAL | $3,100 | $5,400 | With Azura Stevens out, Harrison has a chance to play pretty decent minutes Friday even if she comes off the bench. She's a punt play on FanDuel if she comes off the bench, and a must-play if she starts. On DraftKings, there's no reason to mess around with her unless she starts. |
| POS | FanDuel Cash | $ | POS | FanDuel GPP | $ | POS | DraftKings Cash | $ | POS | DraftKings GPP | $ |
| G | Shenise Johnson | $4,300 | G | Kia Nurse | $5,200 | G | Tiffany Hayes | $9,100 | G | Kelsey Mitchell | $5,300 |
| Pivot | Alex Bentley | $5,000 | G | Arike Ogunbowale | $5,700 | G | Kelsey Mitchell | $5,300 | G | Asia Durr | $5,500 |
| G | Brittney Sykes | $5,400 | G | Asia Durr | $5,100 | F | Glory Johnson | $7,600 | F | Tina Charles | $10,700 |
| Pivot | Kia Nurse | $5,200 | F | Candice Dupree | $7,100 | F | Tina Charles | $10,700 | F | Elizabeth Williams | $8,900 |
| G | Betnijah Laney | $3,100 | Pivot | Kayla Thornton | $5,600 | F | Jessica Breland | $10,100 | F | Candice Dupree | $10,400 |
| F | Kayla Thornton | $5,600 | F | Glory Johnson | $6,300 | Pivot | Elizabeth Williams | $8,900 | Pivot | Jessica Breland | $10,100 |
| F | Glory Johnson | $6,300 | F | Jessica Breland | $7,500 | UTIL | Arike Ogunbowale | $6,400 | UTIL | Arike Ogunbowale | $6,400 |
| F | Tina Charles | $8,100 | Pivot | Tearia McCowan | $4,700 | Pivot | Alex Bentley | $7,300 | Pivot | Tiffany Hayes | $9,100 |
| F | Elizabeth Williams | $6,400 | F | Isabelle Harrison | $3,100 | | | | | | |
| | | | Pivot | Elizabeth Williams | $1,000 | | | | | | |
