Griffin Wong dives into Thursday’s two-game WNBA slate to find three players who need to be in your fantasy lineups.
The WNBA is back for its biggest season ever, and already, excitement has been at an all-time high. The Portland Fire and Toronto Tempo have each won their first games in franchise history, and the Fire could pick up their second tonight.
It’ll be a relatively small slate of action tonight when Portland hosts the New York Liberty and the Dallas Wings host the Minnesota Lynx, but several of the WNBA’s biggest stars will be available as part of tonight’s featured DFS contest.
Set your DraftKings fantasy basketball lineups here: WNBA $80K Shootaround [$20K to 1st]
PG/SG Olivia Miles, Minnesota Lynx at Dallas Wings, $9,400
So much for Miles’ readiness for the WNBA; although much of the attention will be on 2025 first overall pick Paige Bueckers ($10,600) and 2026 first overall pick Azzi Fudd ($6,600), Miles has had quite the start to her rookie season, averaging 17.0 points, 4.5 rebounds, and 7.5 assists per game through the first two games of her career. There’s reason to think that this could be sustainable; she was one of the most well-rounded players in college basketball during her senior season, averaging 19.6 points, 7.2 rebounds, and 6.6 assists per game during TCU’s run to the Elite Eight.
Miles could have a great matchup against the Wings, who have made some strides but still have the foundation of a team that ranked second-to-last in defensive rating in 2025 and allowed the second-most points, sixth-most rebounds, and most assists per game. To boot, they haven’t been that much better so far in 2026, giving up 104 points in the season opener to the Indiana Fever, and they didn’t entirely resolve their center situation during the offseason. Jessica Shepard ($7,700) is a decent rebounder, ranking 10th in total rebounding percentage this season, but she often operated in a more traditional power forward role in double-big Minnesota lineups.
PG/SG Carla Leite, Portland Fire vs. New York Liberty, $7,100
The Fire clearly saw Leite’s potential when they selected her with the third overall pick in the expansion draft, and so far, Portland’s investment in her has paid dividends. In her first two games with the Fire, she’s averaged 19.5 points, 3.5 rebounds, and 4.5 assists per game, and in part because of her aggressive, drive-heavy offensive style, she’s lived at the free throw line, going 16-for-17 (94.1%) from the charity stripe so far. Leite hasn’t even shot the three-ball well yet in her WNBA career despite shooting 40.0% from downtown in her final season in France, but her ability to get to the rack should allow her to open up efficient looks for herself and for her teammates.
To be fair, Leite has a pretty difficult matchup in a Liberty team that finished a solid sixth in defensive rating last season, but New York is badly banged up, with Sabrina Ionescu ($11,000) and Satou Sabally ($10,000) both out with injuries. The Liberty should eventually improve as a rim-protecting team, given that they allowed the sixth-lowest percentage within five feet last season and still have Jonquel Jones ($9,900), but their perimeter defense has taken a hit with three-time All-Defensive honoree Natasha Cloud now off the team. Leite had 21 points in the teams’ first matchup of the season on Tuesday.
SF/PF Pauline Astier, New York Liberty at Portland Fire, $5,700
Astier has also made a flash early in her WNBA career, averaging 15.7 points, 4.0 rebounds, and 4.7 assists per game in her first three career games. Her overall production probably isn’t sustainable, given that she’ll likely lose her spot in the starting lineup once Ionescu and Sabally return, but she was one of the best playmaking wings in France last season for Bourges, as well as an adept defender. Astier had 24 points on 10-for-14 shooting when these teams matched up on Tuesday, and while she shouldn’t be expected to produce that much tonight, her ability to generate efficient shots at the rim has been impressive, especially at just five-foot-11.
Portland, meanwhile, has struggled defensively so far, ranking dead last in defensive rating and giving up at least 96 points in both of its games. Of course, it’s difficult to look too much into a two-game sample size, but no player on its roster has an All-Defensive appearance, and most are relatively inexperienced. Bridget Carleton ($6,000) is probably the Fire’s best defender, as she was a starter on a Lynx team that finished with the league’s best defensive rating last season, but she’ll have her hands full with Breanna Stewart ($11,800), leaving Astier with a comparatively easy matchup.
