It’s almost that time again!
Fantasy Women’s Basketball is back for its fourth year. After a power-packed season from wire-to-wire last year, we expect even bigger and better for 2026.
Fantasy Women’s Basketball is similar to others fantasy games you might’ve played before: this is a points, head-to-head format that crowns a champion in an end-of-season playoffs.
Here is the scoring system for the game:
Points, rebounds and assists are all potentially high-volume categories, so they earn one fantasy point each. Steals and blocks are harder to come by, so they are worth twice as much. Made 3-pointers give you a bonus fantasy point in addition to the three FP you get for the points themselves. This also allows you to build your fantasy rosters with player types who contribute in different ways.
For example, A’Ja Wilson won the 2025 WNBA MVP. Her 23.4 PPG, 10.2 RPG, 3.1 APG, 2.3 BPG, 1.6 SPG and 0.6 3PG were worth 23.4 + 10.2 + 3.1 + 4.6 + 3.2 + 0.6 = 45.1 FP/G.
Meanwhile, Napheesa Collier was a top-three ranked player for most of the season. Her 22.9 PPG, 7.3 RPG, 3.2 APG, 1.5 BPG, 1.6 SPG and 1.5 3PG were worth 22.9 + 7.3 + 3.2 + 3.0 + 3.2 + 1.5 = 41.0 FP/G.
And Caitlin Clark, in an injury-shortened season, averaged 16.5 PPG, 5.0 RPG, 8.8 APG, 1.6 SPG, 0.5 BPG and 2.2 3PG. That stat line was worth 16.5 + 5.0 + 8.8 + 3.2 + 1.0 + 2.2 = 36.7 FP/G.
WNBA stars will likely be among the elite fantasy scorers regardless of their production style. There is room for lower-volume players to shine if they contribute significantly in the more difficult to garner categories. This includes “glue players” that control the paint, defensive anchors and long-range shooters.
Here’s a rundown of everything you need to get ready for the Fantasy Women’s Basketball season.
The basics: What you need to know
The WNBA regular season starts on May 8. After the new collective bargaining agreement was signed March 18, details about the schedule, the All-Star break, and the duration of the season will come shortly..
The most important — and for many, the most fun — part of putting together a fantasy team is the draft. Snake drafts and Salary Cap drafts are the most popular of the four methods available, but choose the one that works best for you:
Snake: Players are chosen in a set order in the first round and then the draft order is reversed for each round thereafter. (Example: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 then 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1).
Salary cap: Team managers use a fictional budget to nominate and sign players until their roster is filled. Suggested values are listed in the draft room, with $1 being the minimum.
Autopick: The system automatically drafts players to each team in the league on a scheduled draft date so team managers don’t have to be online during the draft.
Offline: Team managers conduct their own draft without the use of ESPN’s online draft system, then manually input the offline draft results into the system.
The game plan: How to win your league
Being a successful team manager means taking an active role in running your team throughout the WNBA season.
At a minimum, that means:
1. Making adjustments to your starting lineup from the start of the season until the end.
2. Adding free agents or trading for players that can help your team and cutting or trading away players who are ineffective.
3. Moving injured players to the injured reserve to open up an available roster spot that can be filled.
Good luck this season and have a blast! Be sure to check back throughout the WNBA season for plenty of analysis to help you build a championship roster.
