Wednesday brings a full slate of WNBA games with the first tipping off at 11 a.m. EST. Shortly after that early window begins, the league’s biggest name takes on a scrappy expansion franchise as Caitlin Clark and the Indiana Fever host the Golden State Valkyries at 12 p.m. EST.
This should be a fun matchup as the All-Star break approaches. Here’s a Fever vs. Valkyries prediction and pick on DraftKings Sportsbook for the outing.
Fever vs. Valkyries preview, prediction
Indiana Fever
The Indiana Fever sit 9-9 this year, a bit of a disappointment considering where expectations were set for Caitlin Clark’s second second. Yes, the superstar has missed plenty of time due to injury, but their results have still felt underwhelming for the most part. The good news is that she expects to return to the lineup after a five-game absence on Wednesday, per ESPN’s Kendra Andrews.
Indiana ranks fifth in points per game at 84.1 on the league’s most efficient FG% and fifth-best 3P%. Kelsey Mitchell paces the team in scoring with 19.3 PPG followed closely by Clark’s 18.2 and Aliyah Boston’s 16.6. Whereas Mitchell essentially only contributes in the scoring column, the latter two stars tack on 8.9 assists and 8.3 rebounds, respectively. Together, they form one of the WNBA’s top trios of talent.
While the Fever defense ranks fourth in opponent points per game, they’re lacking in some of the peripheral categories. Indiana falls ninth in rebounding, 11th in steals and 10th in blocks, so they miss opportunities to create extra possessions on that side of the ball.
Golden State Valkyries
Meanwhile, the Valkyries have turned some heads by hanging around to keep games competitive in their first WNBA season. Expansion teams bring plenty of doubts when they’re formed, but Golden State sits 9-9 on the campaign themselves and there’s plenty to be excited about in the future.
This team truly hangs its hat on defense rather than offensive creation. They limit opponents to the second-fewest points per game while pulling down the second-most rebounds. The offense falls 10th in scoring and 12th in both FG% and 3P%, so games sometimes do get ugly for the Valkyries. However, they’re 10th in pace, so slowing games down and dragging opponents into the mud seems to be working for them to this point.
As for individual contributions, leading scorer Kayla Thornton drops 14.9 PPG while also leading the team in rebounds with 7.1. Tiffany Hayes sits second with 13.8 PPG while Veronica Burton is third at 10.3 while dishing out a team-high 5.2 assists per outing.
Fever vs. Valkyries pick, best bet
DraftKings Sportsbook lists the Fever as 8.5-point favorites at home in this one with -395 odds to win on the Moneyline. As for the Valkyries, they hold +310 odds of taking the victory on the road. The game total also sits at 163.5 combined points.
There’s a couple of options bettors can take in this game. Valkyries +8.5 does hold some appeal since their defense tends to excel at slowing opponents down. I wouldn’t personally take them to win in an upset, but the -110 odds on GS +8.5 make it a worthy play.
The other option that I’ll be targeting is under 163.5. As mentioned earlier, Golden State plays at a very slow pace as they bog opponents down and control the tempo. The same actually goes for Indiana since the Fever rank just slightly ahead of the Valkyries in pace. Between two capable defenses and the respective pace stats, the under makes tons of sense at -110 as well.
Top Pick: Under 163.5 (-110)
