Tonight, we have a what we would call in the WNBA a decent size slate with 3 games on deck. For our first-time readers my name is Zo and I’m going to do things a little different today in tonight article and go over tonight’s games in a game by game breakdown. With that said let’s dig in!
*All fantasy points are in reference to DraftKings
Strom vs Dream
This will now be the Strom 3rd game of the season and their 1st game of a back to back set as they play again tomorrow night vs the Chicago Sky. With Sue Bird and Breanna Stewart out for the foreseeable future we have seen Jewell Loyd and Natasha Howard carry the offensive load. Howard had a monster game opening night but fell back down to earth in the 2nd game, with a tough match up down low she just has a price tag I’m not willing to play tonight but may look at tomorrow vs a weaker team. Another hit to Howard would be the probable tag on Alysha Clark who we don’t know what she will bring and who’s usage she will eat into outside of Howards. Clark makes for an interesting GPP play if we get word she is in tonight.
Loyd has been chucking the ball a ton to start the season and we should start to soon she more of her shots fall. A big scoring night is inevitable with someone who takes close to 20 shots a game. Jordin Canada is another option at guards for the storm, she had a very down game after a great performance in game one but is looking for a bounce back game tonight. With the news of Sami Whitcomb expecting to miss tonight due to rest that leaves only 3 guards in play for the Strom in Loyd, Canada and Zellous.
On the Dream side of things, we have Tiffany Hayes coming off a horrible game where she was also in foul trouble. Hayes is a PPM player who burned a lot of people opening night. We should take game one as a floor game for Hayes and go back to the well on Hayes in a perfect low ownership opportunity. We’ve seen that guards have done well vs this storm team with January getting 6 steals, along with Bonner (who plays point sometimes as well) getting whatever shots she wanted scoring a game high 31pt, and O. Sims last time out carving up this Storm team inside and outside dropping 15pt, 5ast and 4reb.
Brittney Sykes makes for a great value play again but do not expect a 27-fantasy point outing if we get Hayes back into the flow of things. Jessica Breland lead the dream in game one with 35-fantasy points, but I don’t expect that kind of production tonight with her matching up with Howard. Instead Elizabeth Williams who has a fair match up and can go off at any moment makes for a good pivot in a better match up down low and help you get the exposer to the Dream.
Aces vs Mercury
Tonight, we finally get to see the backcourt of Liz Cambage and A’ja Wilson? Well maybe we get to see it in limited fashion with Cambage expecting to make her season debut after being traded from the Dallas Wings and coming off an achilles injury that kept her out of game 1. It has already been noted Cambage will not be starting but coming off the bench and play in limited minutes (possibly 15-20). At her price she is in all honesty not worth it just yet unless you really can’t wait to plug her into a line.
A’ja Wilson is the better play as she should see her normal minutes and shouldn’t be matched up with Brittney Griner, which is a huge plus. In her 4 matchups with the Mercury last season Wilson has only 1 game with less than 40 fantasy points, showing us, she can perform in this spot. McBride makes for an interesting GPP option along with Young and Plum.
For the Mercury it is starting to look like a 2 man show between DeWanna Bonner and Brittney Griner who combined for 42 shots last game. Bonner is showing she can pick right back up where she left off last season with an impressive 50-fantasy point game. Griner on the other hand looks like she will have some increased usage for the Mercury and the 19-shot attempts are there to prove it. Griner gets a match up she has done well in last season with two 40-fantasy point games and a 50-fantasy point game. With Cambage on a minute limit this match up is a better one for Griner as she will be dealing with Swords and Hamby, 2 centers she can dominate down low just as Vadeeva did for the Sparks.
Yvonne Turner played 28 minutes due to Camille Little and Sancho Lyttle being out. With those minutes she failed to return any kind of value making her a GPP play at best. Lyttle is expected to play tonight but will be limited in her return. Essence Carson is still trying to find her way with her new team and saw minutes in the mid-twenties. If she is getting this kind of minutes, it’s only a matter of time before the production follow.
Sun vs Sparks
With 2 games in the books we have seen 2 great performances from Alyssa Thomas and Jonquel Jones. Both players put up respected highs with 20+ point outings and are reasonably priced and not bad options again tonight. Outside of Jones and A. Thomas we can also consider Jasmine Thomas and Courtney Williams as these 4 are the main offensive production for this Sun team. Williams is a bit cheaper than J. Thomas and has about the same upside if you are looking for savings between the 2.
New head coach Derek Fisher seems to still be figuring out his team as he played 10 players opening night with 7 of them seeing at least 20-minutes. Those who play NBA DFS know this is a landmine and a disaster waiting to happen to our DFS lines. Maria Vadeeva was the best player for the Sparks dropping 40-fantasy points, but she is not expected to be with the team for the next 5 games due to oversea commitments. This should open more minutes for both the Ogwumike sisters especially Chiney, who looked out of sorts in her 1st game with her new team. She was the only bench player to come anywhere close to taking double digits in shot attempts but only made 1. Chiney will be playing her former team tonight giving some added motivation and what we like to call in DFS revenge NARRITIVE!
Nneka should bounce back tonight from her rough outing in game one as she was also in foul trouble hindering her from finding any flow to the game, but still managed to take 16 shots which is a good sign. With Candace Parker still out, we should also see a usage bump to Chelsea Gray, who didn’t have the best outing as well but can be a great 2-way player if she gets the minutes and her shot is falling.
With Vadeeva gone, Candace Parker still out, and Chiney possibly in the starting line-up we might also get to see more minutes for rookie Kalani Brown as a value play to fit some studs. Brown had a solid outing on the defensive end with 1 steal and 2 blocks, if she can add a few more points and rebounds she can easily return value.
Good luck everyone and see you at the top!
