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Justin Carter's top daily fantasy WNBA lineup picks for 6/15/23. Expert WNBA DFS advice for DraftKings and FanDuel.
After an afternoon game yesterday between the Sparks and the Wings, we're back to night games today, with three games on the WNBA's Thursday night slate. Can the Fever pick up their third win in four games when they face the Sky? Can Atlanta follow up its upset win over New York with another upset against Connecticut? And...well, the Storm visit the Aces.
If you're looking for WNBA daily fantasy picks and some betting advice this season, then you're in the right place. I'll be here providing picks for any slate with two or more games, as well as adding a little betting advice as well.
In this article, I'll be providing you with some daily fantasy WNBA lineup picks for DraftKings and FanDuel. These lineup picks will range from elite players to mid-priced options and value plays. The slates lock on 6/15/2023 at 7:00 p.m. ET. Want to talk more about the WNBA? I'm always available on Twitter and always down to discuss women's basketball: @juscarts.
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WNBA DFS Picks: Forward
Aliyah Boston (Indiana Fever) - @ CHI - DK: $10,400, FD: $8,400
No. 1 overall pick Aliyah Boston has shown that she just didn't really have a learning curve in the WNBA. Boston is currently averaging 14.7 points, 7.9 rebounds, 2.6 assists, and 1.4 blocks per game. She's shot 67.1% from the floor, the best mark in the WNBA. Brittney Griner is the only other person shooting at least 60% among qualified players.
Last time out she faced Chicago, Boston was dominant, scoring a career-high 25 points on 12-for-15 shooting to go along with 11 rebounds and two blocks. The Sky frontcourt has some talent, but it doesn't have the size to slow down a player like Aliyah Boston.
Brionna Jones (Connecticut Sun) - vs. ATL - DK: $9,700, FD: $7,500
This one is largely about what Jones did the last time she faced the Atlanta Dream, which happened to be her most recent game.
Jones was 6-for-12 from the floor in that one, scoring 18 points while adding eight rebounds, two assists, and two steals. While her lack of blocks—she's gone four games now without one—is a little frustrating for a center, she makes up for that in fantasy with her 2.1 steals per game, the second-best mark in the league.
Like with Boston, a lot about this play just comes down to the fact that it's a mismatch. Atlanta has talent in the frontcourt, but not the raw size needed to deal with a player like Brionna Jones.
Alanna Smith (Chicago Sky) - vs. IND - DK: $8,800, FD: $6,800
Smith is having the best season of her WNBA career, and it isn't really close. The former Stanford Cardinal is currently averaging career highs in minutes, points, rebounds, assists, and blocks. It might have taken until her fifth WNBA season, but Smith looks like she's finally arrived.
The last time she faced Indiana, Smith played 39 minutes, going 7-for-9 from the floor and 2-for-3 from three with 18 points while grabbing five rebounds, five assists, two blocks, and two steals. It was one of three times over the last five games that Smith's scored at least 18 points.
WNBA DFS Picks: Guard
Chelsea Gray (Las Vegas Aces) - vs. SEA - DK: $9,400, FD: $6,700
With Jackie Young playing like an MVP candidate, it feels like people maybe have forgotten a little about how good Chelsea Gray is. But Gray continues to be one of the best guards in the WNBA, averaging 14.1 points, 4.0 rebounds, 5.9 assists, and 1.7 steals per game.
She's scored in double figures in four straight, which includes 19 on 8-for-9 shooting last time out against the Sky. In the season opener against the Storm, Gray was all over the floor in the Aces' dominant win, scoring 14 points on 6-for-13 shooting and adding six rebounds, six assists, one steal, and one block.
Ivana Dojkic (Seattle Storm) - @ LV - DK: $6,000, FD: $4,600
The Storm are rebuilding, which is definitely weird when you think about how good the Storm have been for the past...I don't know, 20ish years. But with Breanna Stewart and Sue Bird gone, there's just not a ton of high-end talent here beyond Jewell Loyd, who has done her best to shoot the Storm back into games.
Last game, the Storm really embraced their lack of size, moving Ivana Dojkic into the starting lineup and shifting wing Jordan Horston to the starting spot at the four. It resulted in a win, and Djokic came up big, scoring 14 points on 5-for-10 shooting and adding two rebounds, four assists, one block, and two steals. She's now played 20-plus minutes in consecutive games, and she's averaged 13.0 points, 4.0 assists, and 2.0 steals in those games.
AD Durr / Asia Durr (Atlanta Dream) - @ CON - DK: $5,500, FD: $4,800
The "Haley Jones is playing more" price bump has happened on DraftKings, putting her price in a pretty risky range, since she hasn't yet shown the consistency you want if you're paying $7,400 for her on that platform.
So, I'm pivoting my Dream value play to Durr now. The former New York Liberty lottery pick AD Durr took a season-high 12 field goal attempts last game, going 5-for-12 from the floor with 13 points to go along with one rebound, three assists, one block, and one steal. You need Durr to hit their shots for this to pay off, which has sometimes been an issue, but the lack of depth in Atlanta right now due to injuries means that Durr should have plenty of chances as the top wing off the Dream bench.
