WNBA betting got a bit of a break after the opening weekend, and is back with two contests on the board Tuesday night.
The Washington Mystics are out to avenge a loss to the Connecticut Sun this past weekend, while the Atlanta Dream visit the Minnesota Lynx, with both teams trying for their first win of the season.
I jump into Tuesday’s WNBA odds and dish out my best WNBA picks and predictions for player props on May 23.
WNBA player prop bets for May 23
- Delle Donne Over 6.5 rebounds
- MacDonald Over 10.5 points
- Shepard Over 3.5 assists
Read full analysis of each pick.
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Today's best WNBA player props bets
R-E-B’s With EDD
The Mystics have a bone to pick with the Sun after losing in Connecticut on Sunday afternoon. Washington kept things close despite a down day for the offense, thanks to the work of one of the WNBA’s best defenses.
Leading the charge on that end of the floor was Mystics veteran Elena Delle Donne, who blew away her rebounding prop total of 5.5 boards with 11 rebounds in the loss. Delle Donne, who enters the 2023 season at the healthiest she’s been since 2019, snatched just four rebounds in the opening night win over New York last Friday.
Those mixed results have anchored her rebound total for Tuesday at 6.5 (Over -145). Player projections are once again high on EDD’s work on the glass, pegging the 6-foot-5 forward with 8.8 rebounds for this return matchup with Connecticut.
Delle Donne talked about her weight training regimen entering the season and told reporters she’s the strongest she’s ever been in her basketball career. The former MVP average 8.3 rebounds per game in 2019 before suffering through back pain and missing time the past two seasons.
Her boost in health and strength showed on the boards this past weekend. And with the Mystics still missing fellow forward Myisha Hines-Allen, Washington needs EDD to continue to crash the glass.
Elena Delle Donne Total Rebounds: Over 6.5 (-145 at bet365)
Mac Attack
Atlanta third-year guard Aari MacDonald didn’t have the season debut she was hoping for. The Dream lost their opener in Dallas and MacDonald struggled to find her shooting touch, making only two of 11 field goal attempts and finishing Saturday’s contest with just six points in 30 minutes.
Atlanta stays on the road Tuesday, traveling to Minnesota as a short road underdog. MacDonald, who averaged more than 11 points per game for the Dream last season, has a modest point total of 10.5 (Over -115) tonight.
Saturday’s results weren't what MacDonald wanted, especially after putting in work this summer with a demanding offseason program and an emphasis on her shooting from in and around the key. The Lynx are coming off a 77-66 loss to the Chicago Sky in which the Sky scored 36 points in the paint.
MacDonald’s player projections for Tuesday’s tilt inside the Target Center have her pegged for just short of 15 points. She averaged 12.3 points in three matchups with Minnesota last year, including an 16-point performance in the final meeting in August.
Aari MacDonald Total Points: Over 10.5 (-115 at bet365)
Don’t Mess With Jess
Minnesota forward Jessica Shepard stuffed the stat sheet in the Lynx’s opening game loss to Chicago, finishing with eight points, eight rebounds and seven assists in 32 minutes of action Saturday.
Tuesday’s player props are calling for a similar output from the fourth-year standout, but books seems to be selling Shepard’s assist total a little short, pegging her for 3.5 dimes and offering EVEN money on the Over.
Even the player projections are shy on Shepard’s assists, sitting just below 3.5 for Tuesday but she’s taking a much larger role in this offense. She’s finding her form as a point forward, facilitating the attack at the top of the key while also being able to run up and down the floor in transition.
“Passing is something I love to do,” Shepard told reporters at Monday’s practice. “For me, it’s really important to know the whole offensive playbook. Not just my position but the other possessions, because that’s what you’re reading at the end of the day when you have the ball in your hands.”
Shepard averaged three assists in 2022, watching her minutes jump from 10.5 per game in 2021 to more than 26 average minutes last year. With her floor time expanding beyond 30 minutes a night in 2023, expect her offensive output to continue at this pace, including four or more dimes against the Dream tonight.
Jessica Shepard Total Assists: Over 3.5 (+100 at bet365)
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