WNBA Weekend Preview

With the NBA Finals taking the night off on Friday and Saturday what’s a basketball bettor to do? Luckily it’s also the start of the WNBA betting season, so you can still get your hardwood fix this weekend.

If you failed to get any wagering done during the first week of the WNBA season (which started last weekend) you missed out on some big upsets which could have padded your bankroll. The first week of the season was full of upsets, not only against the spread on the WNBA odds, but also straight-up. Here’s a look at just a few of last week’s big upsets. Last Saturday the Connecticut Sun were a 7-point favorite in their game against the Washington Mystics. The Mystics must have been wearing their sunscreen because they upset Connecticut 82-70. In another unexpected rout the following day the Indiana Fever took on the Minnesota Lynx as a 6-point underdog, but pounded Minnesota 96-74. An even bigger upset was posted by the Detroit Shock. On the same night the Shock raised their championship banner they throttled the Los Angeles Sparks 81-52 as a 4.5-point underdog.

Was that first week merely a fluke, or maybe some early errors by the oddsmakers? We should get some answers this weekend with eight games on the schedule. Half of those contests are on Friday night, with the game to watch being Seattle at Minnesota. The Storm had started the season 2-0 before posting their first loss of the season on Tuesday after falling to Indiana 73-66 as a 2.5-point road underdog. The Lynx have yet to lose this season after starting out 3-0. In those three victories the Lynx have been blowing out their opponents with wins by 11 points, 22 points, and 17 points. You’ve probably already figured it out, but Minnesota is also 3-0 ATS. A lot of credit for the Lynx’s hot start has to go to Seimone Augustus, who is averaging 24 points per game so far this season. Minnesota has a bit of a score to settle with Seattle, having lost their last four games against the Storm.

Looking at the latest WNBA futures the Sparks are the current favorite to win the championship despite their slow start to the season. The Sparks are a +130 favorite on the WNBA odds, but they’re not playing like champs right now after losing their last two games. Following the Sparks are the defending champion Shock at +300, while the San Antonio Silver Stars, who lost to Detroit in last year’s final, are a +700 underdog. One of the biggest underdogs on the list are the Lynx at +6000. That may mean Minnesota is playing over their heads right now, or it’s the perfect time to risk a few bucks on them while their odds are so profitable.