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We see the commercials on our TV’s all the time, FanDuel and DraftKings have taken over the country and have given people even more of a reason to watch sports. Who wouldn’t love watching a team they constructed win them money? The daily fantasy sports world is a growing industry that just doesn’t seem like it can be stopped. This is why I’m here…to give you a 4-step guide on how to win in daily fantasy basketball.
1. Know your Sites' Scoring System
The two best DFS sites are FanDuel and DraftKings. However, they do not have the same scoring systems. For FanDuel, it's more of a simple system that punishes you for turnovers. FanDuel takes away a whole point from a player’s score for a turnover, while DraftKings only takes away 0.5 per turnover. DraftKings also gives you milestone bonuses for triple-doubles and double-doubles, while Fanduel doesn’t. So knowing that means a guy who averages a double-double could be more valuable on a site like DraftKings. Below are the scoring systems. It’s important to take notice of the differences when making a team.
2. Injuries Lead to Opportunity
Opportunity is so important when it comes to daily fantasy; without it the player in your lineup really can’t succeed. When constructing your roster it's always important to check the news and see if any big name players are out for the night. For example, if Hassan Whiteside is out, that means Bam Adebayo is likely to see a lot of minutes and do something productive with those minutes. He will have a low price since his production from the games before won’t be too much. He will then have the opportunity to put up 30+ fantasy points at a below $4,000 price tag which is great value. So you need to look up who’s going to have an impact if a certain player is out. Putting low salary guys with opportunity in your lineup allows you to add higher priced guys who are likely to put up a ton of points. I suggest downloading the Rotoworld app. It’s great for all fantasy information and can tell you who’s going to get the opportunity when players are out.
3. Value, Value, Value
In order to hit value on FanDuel and DraftKings, you need your players to hit between 5-7 times more than their price tag. That means if a guy is priced at $5,000 you at least want 25 points from him to hit value. So if you see any sites talking about 5X or 7X that means 5 times their price tag. This can make it hard for high priced guys ($10,000 and higher) to hit value, but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t use them. However, if you are getting only 5 times value aka a “50 Burger” from Anthony Davis you need to make sure you are getting 7X value from other guys. That’s where putting the guys that are lower priced with opportunity can help you out.
4. Check Over/Unders and Player Usage Rates
Vegas can play a big role in who you should be picking for your lineups. If you like two guys in the same price range, it’s probably a good idea to go with the guy who is in the game with the higher total. Vegas usually knows best, so you have to figure that the game with the higher total is your best bet. Pun was kind of intended with that last statement but I’ve never really been good with puns…. oh well. Bottom line is when building your lineups use the game totals as a guide. The same can be said with usage rate, as a players’ usage rate is a good tool to use when deciding between two players in the same price range. The higher the usage rate the more fantasy points are likely to come.