Fantasy women’s basketball tips and WNBA betting picks for Sunday


Eric Moody

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Eric Moody

ESPNFormer manager at a Fortune 100 financial services company, now living my dream creating fantasy and sports betting content about the NFL, NBA, and WNBA for ESPN.

Andre Snellings

Jul 9, 2023, 11:15 AM ET

Each day of the WNBA season, our team of fantasy and betting experts breaks down every game on the slate, making note of everything from injuries and lineup changes to recent trends and more.

All odds are provided by Caesars Sportsbook. Times are ET.

Here’s what to look for in today’s games:

Washington Mystics at Connecticut Sun
3 p.m. ET, Mohegan Sun Arena, Uncasville, Conn. (watch on ESPN)

Line: Sun -4.5
Money line: Mystics (+158), Sun (-190)
Total: 161 points

BPI prediction:
Sun: 66% chance to win.
Projected margin of victory: 4.6 points

Injury report
Mystics: Natasha Cloud (day-to-day), Elena Delle Donne (day-to-day), Kristi Toliver (out), Shakira Austin (out)
Sun: DiJonai Carrington (day-to-day), Brionna Jones (out)

Fantasy streamer: Rebecca Allen (available in 66.7% of ESPN leagues) is on this list primarily for defensive purposes. She has averaged 3.8 combined steals and blocks per game in the five games she has started in place of the injured Brionna Jones. Allen is inconsistent on offense but has upside. She is coming off a game with 14 points, five rebounds and a season-high three assists. — Snellings

Best bet: Sun -3.0 The Sun have been the better team this season, both in general (Sun 72.2-win percentage, 5.2-point scoring margin vs Mystics 58.8-win percentage, 3.1-point scoring margin) and in head-to-head matchups. Connecticut has won both matchups by six and seven points, respectively. The Sun are also at home, where they have a 6-3 record while the Mystics are below .500 (4-5) on the road. — Snellings

Dallas Wings at Indiana Fever
4 p.m. ET, Gainbridge Fieldhouse, Indianapolis (watch on ESPN3)

Line: Wings -2.5
Money line: Wings (-165), Fever (+140)
Total: 169.5 points

BPI prediction:
Wings: 54.7% chance to win.
Projected margin of victory: 1.3 points

Injury report
Wings: Kalani Brown (day-to-day), Diamond DeShields (out), Lou Lopez Senechal (out)
Fever: No injuries reported

Fantasy streamer: Erica Wheeler (rostered in 37.9% of ESPN leagues) remains a reliable streamer for managers. She’s scored 18 or more fantasy points in four of her last five games. Over that time, Wheeler has averaged 27.6 minutes per game. I believe this momentum will continue against the Wings. — Moody

Best bet: Wings -2.0. There is a good chance that Dallas will continue their positive momentum against the Fever as they have been 4-0 against the spread in their last four games. They’ve also stepped up their defense. Dallas leads the league in defensive rating over that time. Indiana has lost six straight games. Over their last four games, the Fever are 0-4 against the spread. Indiana currently ranks last in defensive rating. — Eric Moody

Los Angeles Sparks at Phoenix Mercury
6 p.m. ET, Footprint Center, Phoenix

Line: Mercury -1.5
Money line: Sparks (+100), Mercury (-120)
Total: 160.5 points

BPI prediction:
Mercury: 54.5% chance to win.
Projected margin of victory: 1.2 points

Injury report
Sparks: Karlie Samuelson (Out), Nia Clouden (Out), Lexie Brown (Out), Chiney Ogwumike (Out), Layshia Clarendon (Out)
Mercury: Shey Peddy (Out), Skylar Diggins-Smith (Out)

Fantasy streamer: Zia Cooke (rostered in 6.1% of ESPN leagues) has scored 17 or more minutes in three consecutive games. The Sparks rotation remains in shambles with Chiney Ogwumike, Lexie Brown, and Karlie Samuelson all ruled out. Cooke should get all the minutes she can handle against a Mercury team that ranks 11th in defensive rating. — Moody

Best bet: Sparks +1.0: Both teams come in on losing streaks, but even after losing four straight the Sparks have been the better team this season with four more wins and three fewer losses than the Mercury. The Mercury enter with the worst record in the league and the worst scoring differential, -9.0 PPG (the Sparks have a -2.7 PPG differential). The Sparks have also won both head-to-head meetings this season, one by 23 points and one by six. — Snellings

Las Vegas Aces at Minnesota Lynx
7 p.m. ET, Target Center, Minneapolis

Line: Aces -13.5
Money line: Aces (-1100), Lynx (+700)
Total: 172 points

BPI prediction:
Aces: 77.2% chance to win.
Projected margin of victory: 8.4 points

Injury report
Aces: No injuries reported
Lynx: Aerial Powers (out), Jessica Shepard (out), Natalie Achonwa (out), Tiffany Mitchell (out)

Fantasy streamer: Dorka Juhasz (rostered in 22.6% of ESPN leagues) continues to thrive with Jessica Shepard set to miss her 11th straight game due to a non-COVID illness. Juhasz has scored 22 or more fantasy points in four of her last five games. Over that period, she has averaged 30.0 minutes per game. — Moody

Atlanta Dream at Chicago Sky
8 p.m. ET, Wintrust Arena, Chicago

Line: Sky -1.5
Money line: Dream (+105), Sky (-125)
Total: 169.5 points

BPI prediction:
Dream: 52.2% chance to win.
Projected margin of victory: 0.6 points

Injury report
Dream: Aari McDonald (out)
Sky: Rebekah Gardner (out), Isabelle Harrison (out)

Fantasy streamer: Danielle Robinson (rostered in 3.8% of ESPN leagues) continues to outplay Haley Jones in the Dream’s backcourt rotation. She’s scored 20 or more fantasy points in two of the last three games, including 36 against the Sky on Friday. Robinson may not repeat that performance on Sunday, but he’s still a viable streamer. — Moody



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