{"id":684852,"date":"2026-05-21T20:21:14","date_gmt":"2026-05-21T20:21:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/684852\/"},"modified":"2026-05-21T20:21:14","modified_gmt":"2026-05-21T20:21:14","slug":"top-wnba-dfs-picks-and-strategies-for-may-21-optimize-your-lineup","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/684852\/","title":{"rendered":"Top WNBA DFS Picks and Strategies for May 21: Optimize Your Lineup"},"content":{"rendered":"

Best WNBA DFS Picks and Lineup Strategy for May 21<\/p>\n

After a light start to the week, Thursday’s three-game slate is the second such slate in a streak of five consecutive three-game slates between Wednesday and Sunday. The matchup between the Valkyries and Liberty is a must-watch game, especially if Sabrina Ionescu<\/a> (foot) and Satou Sabally<\/a> (illness) are cleared to play. Despite shorthanded frontcourts, the matchup between the Tempo and Lynx features plenty of talented guards, while the Sparks and Mercury also feature plenty of talent and are expected to engage in the closest matchup of the night.<\/p>\n

WNBA Schedule TodayGolden State Valkyries at New York LibertyToronto Tempo at Minnesota LynxLos Angeles Sparks at Phoenix MercuryRotoWire WNBA DFS Tools<\/p>\n

WNBA News<\/a><\/p>\n

WNBA Lineup Optimizer<\/a><\/p>\n

Daily Matchups<\/a> (Vegas Odds, Team Efficiency, Pace, Opposing Stats)<\/p>\n

WNBA Daily Lineups<\/a><\/p>\n

Value Report<\/a><\/p>\n

Team Trends<\/a><\/p>\n

Opponent Averages<\/a><\/p>\n

Golden State Valkyries \"GSV\"\/ at New York Liberty \"NYL\"\/<\/p>\n

Line: Liberty -7.0
O\/U: 169.5<\/p>\n

Injury Updates and Impact on WNBA DFS Lineups – Valkyries vs. Liberty<\/p>\n

Note: All return dates are just estimates<\/p>\n

Golden State<\/p>\n

New York<\/p>\n

Team Previews and DFS Implications for Valkyries vs. Liberty<\/p>\n

The Valkyries and Liberty have been two of the strongest teams in the league early in the season, and each club could get a boost Thursday, as Tiffany Hayes<\/a> isn’t on the injury report for Golden State, while Sabrina Ionescu<\/a> (foot) and Satou Sabally<\/a> (illness) are game-time decisions.<\/p>\n

While it’s not yet clear whether Hayes will face any limitations following her two-game absence due to a finger injury, she’s one of my favorite values on FanDuel with a $3,100 salary. Even if she’s limited, she should have plenty of opportunities to exceed expectations at that salary, while her $7,900 salary on DraftKings that ranks third on the team is much riskier. One of my favorite Golden State values on DraftKings is Kiah Stokes<\/a> with a $4,000 salary. The Valkyries’ frontcourt has been somewhat inconsistent in terms of usage between Stokes and Janelle Salaun<\/a> recently, but Stokes’ salary on DraftKings is reasonable enough to be a fairly safe pick.<\/p>\n

While Ionescu and Sabally returning would help the Liberty significantly as a team, their statuses as game-time decisions for Thursday’s matchup creates risk for DFS managers. Both players have high-tier salaries on DraftKings, while Sabally’s $5,800 salary on FanDuel is a bit more in the middle of the pack. Marine Johannes<\/a> and Pauline Astier<\/a> would be decent DFS values on both platforms if Ionescu and Sabally are unavailable, but I’d probably fade most of the Liberty’s roster if Ionescu and\/or Sabally suit up, as it’s not yet clear how the workload could be distributed.<\/p>\n

Toronto Tempo \"TOR\"\/ at Minnesota Lynx \"MIN\"\/<\/p>\n

Line:\u00a0Lynx -6.5
O\/U: 172.5<\/p>\n

Injury Updates and Impact on WNBA DFS Lineups – Tempo vs. Lynx<\/p>\n

Note: All return dates are just estimates<\/p>\n

Toronto<\/p>\n

Minnesota<\/p>\n

Team Previews and DFS Implications for Tempo vs. Lynx<\/p>\n

Marina Mabrey<\/a> and Brittney Sykes<\/a> have the Tempo’s highest salaries on both platforms. On DraftKings, Sykes has the second-highest salary at $9,300, and I like her value more than Mabrey’s potential due to Sykes’ recent dominance, including three consecutive games with at least 50 DraftKings fantasy points. Both players have decent value on FanDuel, but I view Mabrey’s $6,700 salary more favorably than Sykes’ $8,300, as the discount would give DFS managers flexibility elsewhere. Among players with mid-range salaries, I like Kiki Rice<\/a> and Laura Juskaite<\/a>, as they’ve consistently outperformed their salaries in recent matchups.<\/p>\n

Olivia Miles<\/a> has the highest DFS salary for the Lynx on both platforms, but I prefer some of the team’s players slightly down the board. On FanDuel, Courtney Williams<\/a>, Kayla McBride<\/a>, Natasha Howard<\/a> and Nia Coffey<\/a> are all intriguing options at their current salaries. Coffey is coming off a lackluster performance against Chicago on Sunday, but her $4,600 salary is the lowest of that group. Coffey is among my favorite Lynx options on DraftKings with a $5,700 salary, while Natasha Howard<\/a> is also intriguing at $8,200.<\/p>\n

Los Angeles Sparks \"LAS\"\/ at Phoenix Mercury \"PHO\"\/<\/p>\n

Line:\u00a0Mercury -3.0
O\/U: 177.5<\/p>\n

Injury Updates and Impact on WNBA DFS Lineups – Sparks vs. Mercury<\/p>\n

Note: All return dates are just estimates<\/p>\n

Los Angeles<\/p>\n

Phoenix<\/p>\n

Team Previews and DFS Implications for Sparks vs. Mercury<\/p>\n

The Sparks will get a boost during Thursday’s matchup since Ariel Atkins<\/a> has been cleared to return from a two-game absence due to a concussion. Her $7,700 salary on DraftKings feels somewhat high during her first game back, but I like her value at $3,900 on FanDuel. I’m not heavily targeting any of the players who have salaries above $10,000 on DraftKings (Kelsey Plum<\/a>, Nneka Ogwumike<\/a> and Dearica Hamby<\/a>), but I like Cameron Brink<\/a>‘s value at $3,900. I also like her value at $4,200 on FanDuel. Brink’s early-season bench role has led to deflated DFS salaries, but she’s delivered value for DFS managers. Elsewhere on FanDuel, Erica Wheeler<\/a> should provide decent value, while Ariel Atkins<\/a> is one of my favorite plays on the slate at $3,900. Even if Atkins faces some limitations during her first game back, her salary is low enough to provide some leeway in case she’s brought back into action slowly.<\/p>\n

The Mercury have plenty of players with intriguing value on FanDuel, including at the top of the salary leaderboard. Alyssa Thomas<\/a>‘ $7,900 salary is the highest on the team but falls at third on the entire slate, and she’s one of my favorite values among Thursday’s three matchups. Kahleah Copper<\/a> ($5,400) and DeWanna Bonner<\/a> ($5,300) are also relatively intriguing, and Natasha Mack<\/a> is a tremendous value at $4,900, as she’s recorded at least 28.5 FanDuel fantasy points in four of her five regular-season appearances this year. Mack is also an appealing option on DraftKings at $5,800, while Jovana Nogic<\/a> is also intriguing at $4,700.<\/p>\n

Top WNBA DFS Picks: Key Players to Watch<\/p>\n

FanDuel<\/p>\n

Among the top-tier DFS on FanDuel for Thursday’s slate, Thomas is one of my favorite values since she would have provided at least 4x value in four of her five appearances to begin the 2026 campaign. Mabrey had a pair of lackluster performances over the weekend, but she bounced back with a season-high 30 points on the road against Phoenix on Tuesday. Howard has posted at least 40 FanDuel fantasy points in her last two appearances and should have ample opportunities to maintain her production against a depleted Tempo frontcourt.<\/p>\n

Unlocking Value: WNBA DFS Sleeper Picks<\/p>\n

DraftKings<\/p>\n

Sykes has logged at least 50 DraftKings fantasy points in each of her last three appearances, making her a strong value for Thursday, especially since her DFS salary falls under the $10,000 mark. There’s plenty of mid-range salary value to be found on Thursday’s slate, including Mack, who would have provided over 5x value in four of her five regular-season appearances this year at her current salary. Coffey is intriguing on both platforms and has the potential to bounce back after she had limited production against Chciago on Sunday.<\/p>\n

Unlocking Value: WNBA DFS Sleeper Picks<\/p>\n

The author(s) of this article may play in daily fantasy contests including \u2013 but not limited to \u2013 games that they have provided recommendations or advice on in this article. In the course of playing in these games using their personal accounts, it’s possible that they will use players in their lineups or other strategies that differ from the recommendations they have provided above. The recommendations in this article do not necessarily reflect the views of RotoWire. Jason Shebilske plays in daily fantasy contests using the following accounts: DraftKings: FavreFanatic, FanDuel: Favre_Fanatic. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Best WNBA DFS Picks and Lineup Strategy for May 21 After a light start to the week, Thursday’s…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":684853,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[629],"tags":[49,48,193229,82,630],"class_list":["post-684852","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-wnba","tag-ca","tag-canada","tag-minor-league-stats","tag-sports","tag-wnba"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/684852","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=684852"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/684852\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/684853"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=684852"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=684852"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=684852"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}