Everything is up in the air for Friday’s WNBA DFS Slate. Nine players are questionable between the three games, and there is a decent chance we won’t get much clarity on many of those injuries before the first game tips off. Several of those injuries belong to the Wings and Mercury, who are two of the teams (along with Atlanta) that we can be confident will actually try to win the game.
Connecticut and Chicago don’t gain anything from a win (aside from some positive momentum) but that didn’t stop their coaches from playing key veterans a ton of minutes Wednesday. They probably shouldn’t do that again Friday, but we won’t be too shocked if they do. It is hard to trust anyone from those teams but fading them could be risky as well.
Finally, we have Seattle, which is simultaneously dealing with injuries to Sue Bird and Breanna Stewart while also having little to play for. They will get some rest no matter what thanks to the double-bye, but we don’t really know how much anyone will play as interim head coach Gary Kloppenburg balances keeping his players sharp with getting them rest.
Hopefully, we will get some clarity on these injuries prior to the tipoff of the first game between Atlanta and Connecticut. Absent that, I think my approach to the slate will be to try to stick to the Dream, Mercury and Wings wherever possible. That is true for tournaments as well as cash, though I don’t know how much I will actually be playing cash games in such a turbulent slate.
| Guards | |||||||
| Player | Team | Opp. | DK $ | DK FPPG | FD $ | FD FPPG | |
| Arike Ogunbowale | DAL | CHI | 9700 | 33.41 | 7000 | 32.68 | |
| Ogunbowale has shot worse than 27 percent from the field in three of her last four games, averaging 23.6 fantasy points in those three games. With Satou Sabally and Allisha Gray out and Katie Lou Samuelson questionable, it wouldn't shock me if even Chicago's porous defense can force Ogunbowale into bad shots. The difference is Ogunbowale will probably have to take 25 shots in this game instead of 15. I think that makes her playable for cash, but she is pretty clearly a better GPP option. | |||||||
| Marina Mabrey | DAL | CHI | 7200 | 19.44 | 5200 | 17.68 | |
| Mabrey might be the only player on the entire slate who I completely trust. She has at least 18.75 fantasy points in 11 straight games, and she should get all the minutes and shots she can halndle, especially with Allisha Gray out. | |||||||
| Courtney Williams | ATL | CON | 9200 | 29.26 | 6400 | 27.81 | |
| Atlanta is supposed to be the safe team in this slate, but Williams is the only player I actually trust. She has at least 29 minutes and 30 fantasy points in four straight games, and even if she doesn't continue to shoot 49.3 percent from the field, her floor should be pretty high. | |||||||
| Betnijah Laney | ATL | CON | 9000 | 31.51 | 6800 | 30.51 | |
| We know Laney will play heavy minutes, but that hasn't always translated into fantasy production, especially with Chennedy Carter getting a lot of minutes and shots. Carter was a -14 in 16 minutes Wednesday despite having 16 points and five assists on 6-9 shooting, and I think there is a decent chance she plays fewer than 20 minutes again. Without knowing that for sure, Laney is a better GPP play, but I think she has a decent enough floor for cash games. | |||||||
| Skylar Diggins-Smith | PHO | SEA | 10100 | 31.74 | 6800 | 30.28 | |
| Diggins-Smith has played at least 30 minutes in seven consecutive games, averaging 40.7 fppg. She is by far the safest player on the slate, and she isn't even crazy expensive. | |||||||
| Player | Team | Opp. | DK $ | DK FPPG | FD $ | FD FPPG | |
| Natisha Hiedeman | CON | ATL | 6500 | 11.54 | 3800 | 10.80 | |
| Hiedeman might be playable even if Jasmine Thomas and/or Briann January start. I doubt they would play their normal minutes, and Hiedeman remains super cheap on FanDuel. | |||||||
| Shatori Walker-Kimbrough | PHO | SEA | 6300 | 13.69 | 5300 | 14.06 | |
| She has struggled in her last two games, but I think that may be as much about the matchup with Connecticut as anything else. She has still topped 30 fantasy points in two of her last five games, and she's pretty cheap on DraftKings. | |||||||
| Tyasha Harris | DAL | CHI | 4900 | 13.76 | 4700 | 13.68 | |
| I'll like her better if she starts, but she is a GPP play with Allisha Gray ruled out. Harris is averaging 0.74 fantasy points per minute, but I think she will be even better than that without Gray and Satou Sabally around to demand the ball. | |||||||
| Forwards | |||||||
| Player | Team | Opp. | DK $ | DK FPPG | FD $ | FD FPPG | |
| Kayla Thornton | DAL | CHI | 6600 | 16.76 | 5000 | 16.34 | |
| With Satou Sabally out, Thornton will almost certainly have to go back to playing 30 minutes per game. Her fantasy production hasn't always matched her minutes, but there are plenty of shots and rebounds available with Thornton out. I like her for cash but I think she has double-double upside for tournaments. | |||||||
| Bella Alarie | DAL | CHI | 3600 | 9.2 | 4600 | 10.29 | |
| Alarie had 12.8 fantasy points in 17 minutes in her only start of the season, and that might be her floor in this game if Katie Lou Samuelson is out. Alarie is a punt play on DraftKings even if Samuelson plays, but I'll trust Alarie more if she starts. | |||||||
| Natasha Howard | SEA | PHO | 9300 | 24 | 7000 | 24.76 | |
| Howard was great last month even when she was only playing 22-25 minutes per game, and while her price has gone up considerably since then, I still consider her relatively safe if she starts. Howard averaged 1.27 fantasy points per minute last season, and she would likely be that much safer if Breanna Stewart is out. | |||||||
| Elizabeth Williams | ATL | CON | 7600 | 23.51 | 5800 | 24.74 | |
| Williams has scored 32+ fantasy points in three of her last six games, and she has played at least 28 minutes in eight of her last nine. She is better for tournaments, but with so much turmoil in the slate, she is playable for cash as well. | |||||||
| Ruthy Hebard | CHI | DAL | 5500 | 11.07 | 4800 | 11.20 | |
| She probably should play more minutes, but she's cheap enough that I think she'll be okay even if she only plays 15-20 minutes. Dallas is last in the league in fantasy points allowed to forwards. | |||||||
| Player | Team | Opp. | DK $ | DK FPPG | FD $ | FD FPPG | |
| Kia Vaughn | PHO | SEA | 7100 | 14.02 | 5800 | 13.91 | |
| Vaughn played 33 minutes despite a questionable designation Wednesday, and I think we'll likely see the same thing Friday. She has at least 18.5 fantasy points in five straight games, including 30.75 her last time out. | |||||||
| Brianna Turner | PHO | SEA | 10300 | 26.63 | 7100 | 28.21 | |
| Turner is Phoenix's only completely healthy forward, and while she struggled in the first game against Connecticut, she does have at least 29.75 fantasy points in five of her last six games, including at least 43 fantasy points in three of those. I love her in all formats. | |||||||
As always, the lineups below are examples of lineups you can make using the players in the Playbook and are not for plug and play.
| DK Cash | Pivot | DK Pivot Cash | ||||||||||
| Pos. | Player | Team | Opp | FPPG | Salary | Pos. | Player | Team | Opp | FPPG | Salary | |
| G | Courtney Williams | ATL | @CON | 29.26 | $9,200 | G | ||||||
| G | Arike Ogunbowale | DAL | CHI | 33.41 | $9,700 | To | G | Marina Mabrey | DAL | CHI | 19.44 | $7,200 |
| F | Kayla Thornton | DAL | CHI | 16.76 | $6,600 | To | F | Natasha Howard | SEA | PHO | 24 | $9,300 |
| F | Bella Alarie | DAL | CHI | 9.2 | $3,600 | F | ||||||
| F | Brianna Turner | PHO | SEA | 26.63 | $10,300 | F | ||||||
| Util | Skylar Diggins-Smith | PHO | SEA | 31.74 | $10,100 | Util | ||||||
| Total | $49,500 | Total | $16,500 | |||||||||
| DK GPP | Pivot | DK Pivot GPP | ||||||||||
| Pos. | Player | Team | Opp | FPPG | Salary | Pos. | Player | Team | Opp | FPPG | Salary | |
| G | Tyasha Harris | DAL | CHI | 13.76 | $4,900 | To | G | Shatori Walker-Kimbrough | PHO | SEA | 13.69 | $6,300 |
| G | Betnijah Laney | ATL | @CON | 31.51 | $9,000 | G | ||||||
| F | Kayla Thornton | DAL | CHI | 16.76 | $6,600 | F | ||||||
| F | Brianna Turner | PHO | SEA | 26.63 | $10,300 | F | ||||||
| F | Natasha Howard | SEA | @PHO | 24 | $9,300 | To | F | Elizabeth Williams | ATL | @CON | 23.51 | $7,600 |
| Util | Arike Ogunbowale | DAL | CHI | 33.41 | $9,700 | Util | ||||||
| Total | $49,800 | Total | $13,900 | |||||||||
| FD Cash | Pivot | FD Pivot Cash | ||||||||||
| Pos | Player | Team | Opp | FPPG | Salary | Pos | Player | Team | Opp | FPPG | Salary | |
| G | Marina Mabrey | DAL | CHI | 17.68 | $5,200 | G | ||||||
| G | Skylar Diggins-Smith | PHO | SEA | 30.28 | $6,800 | G | ||||||
| G | Natisha Hiedeman | CON | ATL | 10.80 | $3,800 | To | G | Tyasha Harris | DAL | CHI | 13.68 | $4,700 |
| F | Kayla Thornton | DAL | CHI | 16.34 | $5,000 | F | ||||||
| F | Brianna Turner | PHO | SEA | 28.21 | $7,100 | F | ||||||
| F | Natasha Howard | SEA | PHO | 24.76 | $7,000 | To | F | Elizabeth Williams | ATL | CON | 24.74 | $5,800 |
| F | Ruthy Hebard | CHI | DAL | 11.20 | $4,800 | F | ||||||
| Total | $39,700 | Total | $10,500 | |||||||||
| FD GPP | Pivot | FD Pivot GPP | ||||||||||
| Pos | Player | Team | Opp | FPPG | Salary | Pos | Player | Team | Opp | FPPG | Salary | |
| G | Marina Mabrey | DAL | CHI | 17.68 | $5,200 | To | G | Tyasha Harris | DAL | CHI | 13.68 | $4,700 |
| G | Natisha Hiedeman | CON | ATL | 10.80 | $3,800 | G | ||||||
| G | Arike Ogunbowale | DAL | CHI | 32.68 | $7,000 | G | ||||||
| F | Kayla Thornton | DAL | CHI | 16.34 | $5,000 | F | ||||||
| F | Elizabeth Williams | ATL | CON | 24.74 | $5,800 | F | ||||||
| F | Kia Vaughn | PHO | SEA | 13.91 | $5,800 | F | ||||||
| F | Brianna Turner | PHO | SEA | 28.21 | $7,100 | To | F | Natasha Howard | SEA | PHO | 24.76 | $7,000 |
| Total | $39,700 | Total | $11,700 | |||||||||