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WNBA Daily Fantasy preview – June 20, 2019

By Eric Thiel

ARLINGTON, TX - JUNE 15: Imani McGee-Stafford #34 of the Dallas Wings reacts to a play during the game against the Atlanta Dream on June 15, 2019 at College Park Center in Arlington, Texas. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2019 NBAE (Photo by Tim Heitman/NBAE via Getty Images)
ARLINGTON, TX - JUNE 15: Imani McGee-Stafford #34 of the Dallas Wings reacts to a play during the game against the Atlanta Dream on June 15, 2019 at College Park Center in Arlington, Texas. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2019 NBAE (Photo by Tim Heitman/NBAE via Getty Images) /
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Queen Elizabeth

Yesterday’s slate went very well! Teaira McCowan was a huge success in her first starting role, and the Atlanta point guard situation unfolded like I predicted. This led to a second place finish on DraftKings, so hopefully today we can move on up today and grab first prize. Thankfully, today is not another morning slate, but does feature a heavy pace split. Let’s look at the June 20 DFS Preview.

Phoenix Mercury @ Dallas Wings

Phoenix comes into this game on a cold streak, having lost 3 of their last 4 games, Fortunately (for them), they draw Dallas, who is even worse, but is coming off of their first win of the year. For daily fantasy purposes, however, playing Dallas is horrible. Dallas operates at the slowest pace in the league, and also forces their opponents into playing the longest possessions in the league. With that in mind, there are a couple of Phoenix players to consider.

The first is Brittney Griner (10.5k, 8.1k), who has seen a huge number of minutes to start the year. This has been DeWanna Bonner’s (11.1k, 8.3k) team so far this year, but she is nursing a back injury (but is expected to play), and has missed her last two practices. This may mean increased usage for Griner (and reduced minutes for Bonner). As well, Leilani Mitchel (4.4k, 4.8k) has continued to be productive in her backup point guard minutes and is a solid value. Lastly, Sancho Lyttle (4.1k, 3.8k) is also a solid bargain play, as she drew back into the starting lineup last game, and could see more than the 18 minutes she played as she works her way back from a knee injury.

Dallas, on the other hand, comes into this game riding high, after their first win of the year. Unfortunately, they lose a big piece of their team, as Glory Johnson has gone overseas for EuroBasket. As well, to make matters worse (fantasy-wise), Phoenix is the second slowest-paced team in the league. This game has all the makings of a defensive battle, with neither team putting up a huge amount of points.

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The tricky part with Dallas is going to be figuring out who takes Glory Johnson’s minutes. Azura Stevens (5.9k, 5k) seems to be a likely candidate, but coach Brian Agler has not shown trust in her, as she is still playing a low amount of minutes. Imani McGee-Stafford (4.7k, 4k) started last game, and could draw another, in which case she would be a solid value. Likewise, rookie Arike Ogunbowale (6.4k, 4.7k) continues to have absurd usage, and is very cheap on FanDuel. Lastly, the starting lineup is going to be key, and should inform as to who will play big minutes. It should come out on the Dallas Wings’ twitter account around 30 minutes before tip-off.

Washington Mystics @ Las Vegas Aces

This should be a much more exciting game between two of the top teams in the WNBA. Washington holds the best offense in the league (by offensive rating), while Las Vegas holds the highest pace in the league. There should be fireworks here. This makes for almost all players (especially on Washington) as solid plays. I’ll highlight a few of my favorites.

LaToya Sanders (8.3k, 5.8k) has stepped into ~30 minutes without Emma Meesseman, and has returned to her 2018 form. She put up 6 steals and 2 blocks in her last game, on her way to 25+ fantasy points. Natasha Cloud (8.8k, 7k), while expensive, is one of the top minute-getters on the Mystics, and has improved this year, averaging 27 fantasy points per game. A value play on the Mystics could be Aerial Powers (4.8k, 4.8k) who actually played less than her minutes average last game, due to a Shatori Walker-Kimbrough explosion. She should get back to high-teens minutes, and pay off her low salary in a fast-paced game.

On the other side of the court, the Aces come in, led by Liz Cambage (10.3k, 7.7k). While she was disappointing (by her standards) last game, the important thing to look at is the number of minutes played. A season-high 33 minutes were played, and it seems as though she has shaken off her achilles injury and is back to full strength. Cambage will be a cornerstone in my lineups.

A’ja Wilson (10k, 7.8k), Kayla McBride (9.7k, 7.5k) and Kelsey Plum (7.9k, 6.4k) all present viable options as well, the latter of which hit a season high with 37 minutes in her last game. All of these three have a shot to do quite well, but I would caution against using more than two of the “big four” in a lineup, as there may not be enough fantasy points to go around.

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