X
Lost password?

Don't have an account?
Gain Access Now

X

Receive free daily analysis

NFL
NBA
NHL
NASCAR
CFB
MLB
MMA
PGA
ESPORTS
BETTING

Already have an account? Log In

X

Forgot Password


POPULAR FANTASY TOOLS

Expert Advice
Articles & Tools
Import Your Leagues
Daily Stats & Leaders
All Pitcher Matchups
Compare Any Players
Compare Any Players
Rookies & Call-Ups
24x7 News and Alerts

An Introduction To WNBA DFS

Justin Carter offers an introduction to playing WNBA DFS contests. These contests are available on DraftKings and FanDuel for the 2021 WNBA season.

The 2021 WNBA season is just around the corner, which also means that the 2021 WNBA DFS season is just around the corner.

As RotoBaller's resident WNBA person, I'm here to get you ready for 2021. Some of you reading this have played WNBA DFS in the past, so you probably just need to be caught up on what's happened this offseason. Some of you are big WNBA fans who are just getting into fantasy, so you need to know what DFS even is. And others are DFS people who've probably never followed the W, so you need some help figuring out what this league is.

Whichever scenario you're in, great! I'm here to help ensure you get ready to win some fantasy sports contests in 2021. WNBA DFS is available on DraftKings and FanDuel, and I'll have daily lineup picks for you here at RotoBaller. Our premium subscribers will also have access to our premium Slack, where you can discuss the WNBA with me and some of our subscribers. You can use my code CARTER to get a discount on our premium services.

Featured Promo: Get any DFS Premium Bundle for for 30% off using code NEW! Win more with expert advice from proven winners and exclusive DFS tools. Get instant access to RotoBaller's Lineup Optimizers, Research Stations, daily picks and VIP chat rooms across 10 sports! Go Premium, Win More!

 

What Is WNBA DFS?

If you play a lot of fantasy sports, you can skim or skip this section, because you probably already know a lot about fantasy sports.

So, let's start with this: what is DFS?

DFS stands for "daily fantasy sports." Lots of people's experience with fantasy comes in the form of season-long leagues, where you get together with your friends and you draft teams and then you keep those teams all year. For the WNBA, Sports.WS has season-long fantasy leagues, but none of the big fantasy providers have it.

That means if you want to play WNBA fantasy, your best bet is to play on DraftKings or FanDuel, where you can do daily contests. How those work: every day you go to one of those sites, you open up a contest, and you build a lineup -- or multiple lineups -- for that day's slate of games. You'll be given a set amount of salary space to use to build a lineup for that day. Better players cost more. You earn points based on their performance. All that basic stuff.

Here's the DraftKings scoring:

A DraftKings WNBA lineup consists of six players and you have to use players from at last two games. The positional requirements are two guards, three forwards, and one utility player, who can be at either position.

As for FanDuel, here's their scoring:

Your roster on FanDuel is larger than DraftKings, with three guards and four forwards. The prices might look cheaper than the prices on DraftKings, but that's partially because you have to roster an extra player and because the salary cap is smaller than on DraftKings.

So, those are the basics. There will also be single-game contests, but we'll talk more about those when we have our first one-game WNBA slate on May 20th.

 

What Should An Outsider Know About The W?

Ahh, so you're a fantasy player who wants to win some money on the WNBA this year? Awesome. Let's chat.

Purely from a DFS perspective, one thing you need to know is that the fantasy scoring won't be as high as it is in the NBA. Why? Pretty simple: NBA games are 48 minutes. WNBA games are 40 minutes. That leaves less time for players to compile numbers.

Beyond that, you probably want to know who the league's top players are, the building blocks of your DFS lineups, right?

Let's just run through some key players to know, list style:

  • A'ja Wilson: The MVP last year, Wilson is the best traditional big in the league. Last year, she averaged 20.5 points and 8.5 rebounds per game.
  • Breanna Stewart: Stewie is probably the best women's basketball player in the world. Last year, she came off a torn Achilles and averaged 19.7 points, 8.3 rebounds, and 3.6 assists per game on 45.1/36.8/89/4 shooting. She led the Storm to the 2020 championship.
  • Arike Ogunbowale: Last season, Ogunbowale led the WNBA in scoring, averaging 22.8 points per game. That was the eighth-best single-season average in league history. She wasn't particularly efficient, posting the worst field goal percentage of any player to ever average 22 points in a season, but when it comes to fantasy, field goal percentage isn't a stat!
  • Sabrina Ionescu: Ionescu probably would have won Rookie of the Year last year, but she sprained her ankle in the third game of the year and wouldn't play again. In her second career game, Ionescu went all the way off, with 33 points, seven assists, and seven rebounds. She has the potential to be one of the league's best players, assuming she's healthy this season.
  • Elena Delle Donne: EDD might be the best player in the league when healthy, but she's been dealing with back injuries and sat out last season because of concerns about COVID, since she had a pre-existing medical issue because of her long-term impact from Lyme Disease. But at her best, she's a two-time MVP who averaged 20.3 points in 2019 and shot 43 percent from three. She's the only player in league history to have a 50/40/90 season.
  • Brittney Griner: If you don't know a lot about the WNBA, you probably at least know who Brittney Griner is, because she was a legend in college at Baylor. Griner is one of the W's best centers. In 12 games last season, she averaged 17.7 points and 7.5 rebounds per game. She's averaged 20-plus points per game three times in her career, and she's the active leader in blocks with 658. She's led the league in blocks per game seven times in her career.
  • Diana Taurasi: Griner's Mercury teammate, Taurasi is regarded by many as the greatest women's basketball player ever. I'm not going to take a stance on that position, but I will say that no active WNBA player has had a career as good as Taurasi. The 38-year-old still shot over 40 percent last season, averaging 18.7 points per game for Phoenix. Despite her age, she's still a very, very good player.

 

What's Changed Since Last Season?

Let's say you closely followed the league last year because of fantasy, but then didn't pay attention in the offseason since there wasn't fantasy to play. That's fine. Let's talk about things that are new.

The big one is that Candace Parker is now on the Chicago Sky. The former MVP had spent her entire career in Los Angeles, but the Sparks had their whole big three hit free agency this offseason. Two of them departed for elsewhere. Parker had a resurgent 2020 season, winning Defensive Player of the Year while averaging 14.7 points, 9.7 rebounds, and 4.6 assists per game. She also added 1.2 steals and 1.2 blocks per contest and upped her three-point percentage to 39.6. It was a huge year for Parker, who now joins a really fun Sky team and makes them one of the title favorites.

Some other changes:

  • Players who sat out last year are back. There's the aforementioned Elena Delle Donne, but there's also Aces center Liz Cambage, who holds the record for most points in a WNBA game. Her ceiling isn't as high in Vegas since she's sharing a frontcourt with A'ja Wilson, but she's going to have some really good games and is just such a dominant force inside.
  • The Mystics get a lot of players back in the fold. Aside from EDD, Natasha Cloud and Tina Charles return. Charles was traded to the Mystics last year but hasn't played for them yet. I'm really, really interested to see how she fits into things there.
  • The Sun get Jonquel Jones back. I thought Jones was a top-three player in the league back in 2019, and while A'ja Wilson has surpassed her since then, she's still one of the league's best players.
  • Now to free agency. Parker wasn't the only big name to change places. She wasn't even the only C. Parker on the move, as Cheyenne Parker moved from the Sky to the Dream. Cheyenne is a really intriguing player whose role should grow with the Dream.
  • Natasha Howard moved from Seattle to New York, where she'll be playing a lot of minutes at the five in a versatile Liberty lineup.
  • Chelsea Gray moves from the Sparks to the Aces, giving Vegas a high-end point guard for the first time since the team moved to Vegas.
  • Vegas' best shooter, Kayla McBride, moved to the Lynx. Will Cheryl Reeve use her more effectively than Bill Laimbeer did?
  • Some key players who will miss the season because of injury: Alysha Clark and Jocelyn Willoughby.
  • Oh, yeah, there was a draft! The Wings had the first two picks, using them on a pair of bigs: Charli Collier out of Texas and Awak Kuier from Finland.


Download Our Free News & Alerts Mobile App

Like what you see? Download our updated fantasy basketball mobile app for iPhone and Android with 24x7 player news, injury alerts, lineup notifications & DFS articles. All free!

More DFS Lineup Picks and Analysis




POPULAR FANTASY TOOLS

Expert Advice
Articles & Tools
Import Your Leagues
Daily Stats & Leaders
All Pitcher Matchups
Compare Any Players
Compare Any Players
Rookies & Call-Ups
24x7 News and Alerts

REAL-TIME FANTASY NEWS

Griffin Conine

To Have Shoulder Surgery On Tuesday
Luke Keaschall

Twins Prospect Luke Keaschall Suffers Broken Forearm
Logan Gilbert

Leaves Friday's Start With Forearm Tightness

Vikings Select Tai Felton To Finish Day 2

Seahawks Select Quarterback Jalen Milroe With The 92nd Pick Overall

Browns Select Dillon Gabriel 94th Overall

Packers Pick Savion Williams At No. 87 overall

Steelers Snag Kaleb Johnson In Round 3

Broncos Select Wide Receiver Pat Bryant With The 74th Overall Pick

Texans Select Jaylin Noel With 79th Pick

Lions Select Wide Receiver Isaac TeSlaa With The 70th Overall Pick
Jack Leiter

To Start On Sunday

Patriots Add Wide Receiver Kyle Williams In Round 3

Browns Draft Harold Fannin Jr. With 67th Pick
Garrett Mitchell

Makes Early Exit
Luke Keaschall

Removed Early On Friday
Blake Snell

Likely Avoids Major Injury
Cole Ragans

Dealing With Mild Groin Strain

Broncos Add RJ Harvey To Backfield With 60th Pick

Raiders Select Jack Bech With 58th Pick

Chargers Add Wide Receiver Tre Harris In Round 2
Detroit Lions

Lions Acquire 57th Pick From Broncos

Seahawks Draft Elijah Arroyo 50th Overall
Carolina Panthers

Panthers Acquire 51st Pick From Broncos
Arizona Cardinals

Cardinals Snag Will Johnson At No. 47

Jets Add A Pass-Catcher With Mason Taylor At No. 42

Rams Select Terrance Ferguson With 46th Pick
Houston Texans

Texans Acquire 48th Pick From Raiders, Draft Aireontae Ersery

Saints Snag Tyler Shough At No. 40
Brenton Doyle

Out For Personal Reasons On Friday
Brandin Podziemski

Not On Injury Report For Game 3
Jimmy Butler III

Warriors Optimistic About Jimmy Butler III Playing Saturday
Jae'Sean Tate

To Remain Out Saturday
Jock Landale

Unavailable For Game 3
Terry Rozier

Out On Saturday
Jrue Holiday

Ruled Out For Friday Night's Game 3 Against Orlando
Kevin Love

To Miss Saturday's Game
Jaylen Brown

Available For Friday Night's Game 3 Against Magic
Gary Payton II

Iffy For Saturday's Action
Jayson Tatum

Officially Available On Friday For Game 3 Against Magic
Will Smith

Back From Injury On Friday
Luke Kennard

Questionable For Game 4 On Saturday
Darius Garland

Listed As Questionable For Game 3
Ja Morant

To Miss Game 4 On Saturday
Rui Hachimura

Available For Game 3 In Minnesota
Aaron Ekblad

Available To Return Saturday
Erik Swanson

Ryan Burr Progressing
Daulton Varsho

To Return On Tuesday At The Latest
Max Scherzer

Takes Positive Step On Friday
Aleksander Barkov

Questionable For Saturday
Gabriel Landeskog

Set For Larger Role In Game 4
Calvin Pickard

To Start Game 3 For Oilers
Randy Arozarena

Resting For First Time This Year
Jonas Siegenthaler

To Play Limited Minutes In Game 3
MLB

Red Sox-Guardians Game Postponed On Friday
Luke Hughes

Remains Out On Friday
MLB

Tigers-Orioles Postponed On Friday
Patrik Laine

A Game-Time Decision Friday
Yainer Diaz

Out On Friday Against Royals
Iván Herrera

Ivan Herrera Hopes To Start Rehab Assignment Next Week
Salvador Perez

Sitting Out For First Time This Season
Jaylen Brown

Questionable For Game 3 On Friday
Brendan Donovan

Back In Action On Friday
Jimmy Butler III

Could Miss Game 3 On Saturday
Coby Mayo

Getting On A Roll At Triple-A
Carlos Prates

Looks To Remain Undefeated In The UFC
Ian Machado Garry

Set For UFC Kansas City Main Event
Cade Cunningham

Collects Double-Double In Loss
Jalen Brunson

Drops 30 Points In Game 3
Karl-Anthony Towns

Leads All Scorers In Game 3 Victory
Zhang Mingyang

Scheduled For Co-Main Event
Anthony Smith

Set For His Final UFC Bout
David Onama

Set For Featherweight Bout
Giga Chikadze

Looks To Bounce Back
Abus Magomedov

Looks For His Third Consecutive Win
Michel Pereira

Returns To Action At UFC Kansas City
Nicolas Dalby

An Underdog At UFC Kansas City
Randy Brown

A Favorite At UFC Kansas City
Andre Muniz

Set To Open Up UFC Kansas City Main Card
Ikram Aliskerov

Looks To Get Back In The Win Column
Sergei Bobrovsky

Shuts Out Lightning In Game 2
Cam Fowler

Finishes Thursday's Win With Five Points
Robert Thomas

Posts Four Assists In Game 3 Win
Pavel Buchnevich

Celebrates Hat Trick During Four-Point Performance
Dylan DeMelo

Battling An Illness
Marcus Johansson

Exits Early Thursday
Aleksander Barkov

Hurt In Game 2
Jrue Holiday

Tagged As Questionable For Friday
Jayson Tatum

Likely Out Again On Friday
Anthony Cirelli

Good To Go Thursday
Andrei Vasilevskiy

Looks To Bounce Back In Game 2
Rasmus Ristolainen

To Miss Training Camp
Jonas Siegenthaler

Returns To Practice
Aliaksei Protas

Traveling With Capitals
Gabriel Vilardi

Still Out On Thursday
Max Pacioretty

Set To Join Maple Leafs Lineup For Game 3
Cam Davis

Looking For Better Fortunes At TPC Louisiana
Adam Svensson

Making Third Apperence At Zurich Classic
Max Greyserman

Aiming For Similar Success At TPC Louisiana
Lee Hodges

A High-Upside Player In New Orleans
PGA

Nico Echavarria Looks To Ride Off Of Elite Putting In New Orleans
Gary Woodland

A Player Worth Watching In New Orleans
Max McGreevy

Returns To The Zurich Classic Of New Orleans
Rasmus Hojgaard

In Search Of Consistency Ahead Of Zurich Classic
Sam Stevens

A Boom-Or-Bust Candidate In New Orleans
Nicolai Hojgaard

Looking To Turn Season Around At Zurich Classic
Christiaan Bezuidenhout

Looks To Sway A Hot Putter In Teams Favor At Zurich Classic
Akshay Bhatia

Looking To Bounce Back At TPC Louisiana
Carson Young

Looks To Turn Things Around At TPC Louisiana
Erik Van Rooyen

Looking For Momentum In Louisiana
Andrew Novak

Making Start At TPC Louisiana After Near Miss At Harbour Town
Ben Griffin

Making Third Career Start At Zurich Classic
Taylor Moore

Competing With A New Teammate In New Orleans
Wyndham Clark

Making Return To New Orleans
Kurt Kitayama

Teeing It Up Again In New Orleans
Collin Morikawa

Back At Zurich Classic For Fifth Time
Thomas Detry

Making Third Appearance At New Orleans Team Event
RANKINGS
C
1B
2B
3B
SS
OF
SP
RP

RANKINGS

QB
RB
WR
TE
K
DEF