RADIO
After two games last night, the WNBA is back with another two-game slate on Friday night, and this time it's spread out so you can watch both as part of ION's new Friday night WNBA TV package. Up first, the Sky play host to the Mystics, followed by the Wings visiting the Storm.
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 5/26/2023 at 8:00 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
Satou Sabally (Dallas Wings) - @ SEA - DK: $8,900, FD: $7,200
Sabally showed a lot of improvement in her three-point shooting while playing overseas this offseason. Obviously, a one-game WNBA sample is really small, but that improvement continued against the Dream last weekend, with Sabally going 3-for-5 from deep, scoring 25 points. She also added seven rebounds, three assists, two blocks, and two steals.
The Wings have a great starting lineup, but injuries have sapped their bench depth. Provided Sabally can stay healthy—which, to be fair, has been a concern during her career—then she'll get heavy minutes each night and will be counted on to be a huge part of the team's offensive attack. Her stock goes up for this game because...well, if what we saw from the Storm defense in their opener is an indication of things to come, you'll want to stack players going up against them all year.
Shakira Austin (Washington Mystics) - @ CHI - DK: $8,600, FD: $6,600
A little quiet in the season opener, Austin has now scored in double figures in Washington's past two games. After putting up 21 points and 11 rebounds against Connecticut, she followed that up with 14 points on 5-for-10 shooting in a rematch with the Sun, grabbing eight rebounds and adding one assist and three steals.
It's early, but the second-year forward is playing a little over four more minutes per game than she did last season, and her scoring average has jumped from 8.7 to 13.7, while she's shooting 3.4% better from the floor. The signs are there for a second-year breakout.
Morgan Bertsch (Chicago Sky) - vs WAS - DK: $6,800, FD: $5,100
Rookie Morgan Bertsch has jumped around WNBA training camps for a few years, but she finally made her WNBA regular-season debut last weekend. Two games into that career, she's posting some solid averages: 7.0 points per game on 53.8% shooting with 4.5 rebounds, 3.0 assists, and 1.5 blocks per night.
Bertsch's defense is going to ensure she's on the floor a good bit every game, especially if she can stay out of foul trouble like she did last time out, when she played 24 minutes in a win over the Mercury. She's an intriguing value option right now.
WNBA DFS Picks: Guard
Arike Ogunbowale (Dallas Wings) - @ SEA - DK: $10,800, FD: $8,600
While the efficiency faded in the second half, Ogunbowale posted a big scoring line in the Wings season opener, scoring 27 points on 9-for-25 shooting. She was 4-for-14 from deep.
The biggest thing that makes Arike appealing in fantasy, though? She doesn't leave the floor. She played 39 of 40 minutes in that first game, including all of the first half. Her non-scoring numbers could have been better—four rebounds, one assists, three steals—but as long as she's getting this kind of volume, she'll be one of the W's top scorers.
Courtney Williams (Chicago Sky) - vs WAS - DK: $8,000, FD: $6,400
The Sky went through a lot of changes this offseason, losing the bulk of their team in free agency. One of the moves they made to replace that lost production was to bring in Courtney Williams. While she was a little quiet on the scoreboard in the team's first game, she showed last time out why Chicago brought her in, as she scored 12 points on 5-f0r-11 shooting and added six rebounds and seven assists as well.
Never afraid to just let it fly, Williams should have the ball in her hands a lot for this team. She leads the team in assists so far and has just one fewer rebound than Elizabeth Williams, the team leader in that category, and while she's only fourth on the team in field goal attempts, she's the only Sky player with double-digit three-point attempts so far.
Jordan Horston (Seattle Storm) - vs DAL - DK: $6,200, FD: $4,600
The Storm aren't going to be very good this season, as they have to replace the vast majority of their non-Jewell Loyd scoring from last season. One player that's already benefitting is rookie Jordan Horston. The Storm only scored 64 points in the season-opening loss to the Aces, with Horston scoring eight of those on 4-for-13 shooting.
She also added five rebounds, three assists, and three steals in that game while playing 24 minutes. The general state of this roster isn't great, and that should mean extended minutes every night for Horston. If she can do a little better job finishing at the basket, she's going to consistently post some good fantasy numbers this year.
WNBA Bet of the Day
Every day, I'll provide my favorite bet. I'll be using DraftKings Sportsbook for the odds.
Season Record: 1-2
Felt good about last night's Sparks/Aces U 172 bet, especially after the Sparks ruled Nneka Ogwumike out, but Los Angeles was able to just get us past the mark, largely because the team put up 25 points in the first quarter.
Dallas Wings -6.5
Teaira McCowan exited the Wings' first game just after the start of the second half with a knee injury, but she's expected back tonight. The Wings led Atlanta by 17 points at halftime of that game. Meanwhile, the Storm lost to the Aces by 41 in their first game. Dallas will be competing for a finish in the top half of the W this year. Seattle will be competing for a spot in the lottery. I'd probably take the Wings side of this even if it went up to -8.5 by game time, just because I don't trust this Storm team to score points.
