As we enter the third week of the WNBA season, I am still struggling to identify viable punt plays on most WNBA DFS slates. It seems like every time it looks like someone has earned a rotation spot, they go right back to playing five minutes the next game. One thing I’ve noticed, however, is that when I get very little production from a min-priced player, my lineups are usually quite competitive. In a lot of cases, the ability to play A’ja Wilson and Jewell Loyd together is worth the potential goose egg you’ll get from another lineup spot. That is the reason I continue to chase benchwarmers who pop for one game or proven players returning from an injury. One of these times that player will hit, but it is nice to know I don’t necessarily need them to.
| Guards | ||||||
| Player | Team | Opp. | DK $ | DK FPPG | FD $ | FD FPPG |
| Kahleah Copper | CHI | IND | 8500 | 29.61 | 6900 | 28.53 |
| I have no idea why Copper is the cheapest starting Sky guard on DraftKings. She has been less consistent than I would like but at the end of the day, the Sky need her to score and Indiana doesn't have anyone who can defend her. | ||||||
| Layshia Clarendon | LA | SEA | 6800 | 24.06 | 5600 | 25.45 |
| I couldn't tell you to save my life why Clarendon is $1,400 cheaper than Lexie Brown on DraftKings. Clarendon is the safest guard in her price range and it isn't particularly close. She's probably going to turn into a pumpkin sooner than later but it almost certainly won't be against the team that is allowing 7.2 more ppg than any other team in the league. | ||||||
| Jade Melbourne | SEA | LA | 4200 | 12.75 | 4200 | 13.13 |
| I think the most likely outcome for Seattle is that none of their guards emerge as a consistent fantasy option alongside Jewel Loyd. That being said, Melbourne scored 23.8 fantasy points in 20.5 minutes against Los Angeles Saturday and I like her chances of a repeat performance in what is pretty clearly a favorable matchup. | ||||||
| Dana Evans | CHI | IND | 5800 | 16.04 | 4300 | 15.15 |
| Evans struggled against the Liberty her last time out, scoring just 10 fantasy points in 14 minutes. I have no idea if she was affected by the migraine that forced her to miss the rematch on Sunday, but I do know she had averaged 20.3 fppg in her previous four games. If she returns to that form, she is too cheap, especially on FanDuel. | ||||||
| Jordin Canada | LA | SEA | 8400 | 28.56 | 6800 | 29.88 |
| Canada scored 32 fantasy points against her former team Saturday, her third straight game with at least 30 fantasy points. If she ever shoots the ball well, the sky is the limit. Until then, she is getting enough steals, assists and rebounds to make up for her lack of shooting. | ||||||
| Player | Team | Opp. | DK $ | DK FPPG | FD $ | FD FPPG |
| Courtney Williams | CHI | IND | 8700 | 28.68 | 6300 | 27.14 |
| All things being equal, I might prefer Kahleah Copper. That being said, Williams is cheaper on FanDuel and she has been more consistent overall. Williams has at least 20 FD fantasy points in all seven games, with at least 28 fantasy points in five of those. Only two teams have allowed more assists per game than Indiana, and Williams is sixth in the league in assists per game. | ||||||
| Jewell Loyd | SEA | LA | 10900 | 42.69 | 8400 | 40.75 |
| I think Loyd is going to turn into a pumpkin. Her 34.5 percent usage the highest in the league among players with more than eight minutes this season. It is seven percent higher than her previous career-high, but she still has the second-highest effective field goal percentage of her career. I don't think that is sustainable, especially while she is playing the most minutes of her career. Even so, the Sparks are 10th in fantasy points allowed to guards. Rather than try to guess which Aces guard breaks through against the team that has allowed the fewest points to guards, I will just pay up for Loyd. | ||||||
| Forwards | |||||||
| Player | Team | Opp. | DK $ | DK FPPG | FD $ | FD FPPG | |
| Aliyah Boston | IND | CHI | 9000 | 26.8 | 7500 | 27.62 | |
| I might pivot to NaLyssa Smith, especially on FanDuel where she is cheaper. That being said, I'm not penalizing Boston for struggling against the best team in the league on Sunday. Elizabeth Williams is a good defender but not scary enough to fade Boston, and if she gets into any kind of foul trouble, Boston should feast. | |||||||
| Robyn Parks | CHI | IND | 3100 | 6.5 | 3100 | 6.84 | |
| Chasing Sky backup bigs after they have scored 20+ fantasy points has been a good way to throw away money on this young season. And Parks is even riskier now that Dana Evans is no longer on the injury report. That being said, Parks played 20 minutes and scored 20.25 fantasy points against New York Sunday. She is $2,700 cheaper than Sika Kone, who played just two minutes in that game. This is a calculated risk, but it certainly helps that Chicago is hosting one of the worst teams in the league. Any garbage time would almost certainly benefit Parks. | |||||||
| Nneka Ogwumike | LA | SEA | 9900 | 40.06 | 8300 | 39.63 | |
| Ogwumike is coming off consecutive 20-point double-doubles. She is head-and-shoulders above the forwards in her price range and she has the best possible matchup. | |||||||
| Alanna Smith | CHI | IND | 7700 | 22.29 | 6300 | 22.46 | |
| You can pivot to Elizabeth Williams if you need to save some money but Alanna Smith is averging more fantasy points per minute than Williams and she has played more minutes than Williams in four consecutive games. Both have a good matchup with Indiana allowing the second-most fantasy points to forwards but I think NaLyssa Smith will guard Alanna Smith, which would be another point in her favor. | |||||||
| A'ja Wilson | LV | CON | 11400 | 42.75 | 9000 | 44.73 | |
| This should be a tough matchup. Connecticut is fifth in defensive rating, second in rebounding rate and last in pace. She should be guarded mostly by Alyssa Thomas, who has made one of the two WNBA All-Defensive teams in four of the last six seasons. That being said, most of the top forwards have tough matchups, and Connecticut is ninth in fantasy points allowed to forwards. If you find yourself with a lot of money to spend, Wilson is your best target. | |||||||
| Player | Team | Opp. | DK $ | DK FPPG | FD $ | FD FPPG | |
| Ezi Magbegor | SEA | LA | 10100 | 32.75 | 7400 | 33.63 | |
| Magbegor struggled in the season-opener against Las Vegas but she had at least 30.25 fantasy points in each of her three games since, including Saturday against the Sparks. There are other strong post options if you don't have enough money but I will pay up for Magbegor if I'm able. | |||||||
| Azura Stevens | LA | SEA | 6500 | 0 | 3500 | 19.99 | |
| The Sparks' four best players are all bigs, and I have no idea how they are going to navigate that. If Stevens is only going to get the five minutes that would have gone to Joyner Holmes, then this is pretty clearly a mistake. That being said, Stevens has averaged 0.90 fppm in her five-year career. If she plays just 15 minutes in this game, she is a great punt play on FanDuel. | |||||||
| Queen Egbo | IND | CHI | 6400 | 16.2 | 4400 | 17.54 | |
| I don't like relying on someone averaging 13.6 mpg but Egbo is ninth in the entire league with 1.11 fppm. She's risky, but she has at least 20 fantasy points in two of her last three games. If you need another cheap big, Egbo is an option with a good matchup. | |||||||
Core Plays
| Draftkings Core Plays | ||
| Top Tier | Kahleah Copper | $8,500 |
| Nneka Ogwumike | $9,900 | |
| Mid Tier | Layshia Clarendon | $6,800 |
| Alanna Smith | $7,700 | |
| Value Tier | Jade Melbourne | $4,200 |
| Robyn Parks | $3,100 | |
| Fanduel Core Plays | ||
| Top Tier | Jewell Loyd | $8,400 |
| Ezi Magbegor | $7,400 | |
| Mid Tier | Courtney Williams | $6,300 |
| Alanna Smith | $6,300 | |
| Value Tier | Dana Evans | $4,300 |
| Azura Stevens | $3,500 | |
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