Get to the Points: Fantasy basketball playoff strategy and tips
Yahoo Fantasy basketball analyst Dan Titus and contributor Justin Henry offer several keys to being successful ahead of the fantasy playoffs.
Video Transcript
DAN TITUS: Let's talk about high-level strategy, for example. Both of us are in a competitive league. We earned those bye weeks. So there's probably a couple different strategies, depending on what your situation is, right? But I think if we're talking overall strategy here, I usually try to think about it in terms of what's going to win me the week. How do I get five categories in category leagues and how can I accumulate the most points in points leagues?
And I think at a high level, just break it down like this-- quantity matters, but quality is better. Target the lighter slates because that's where you're going to get a competitive advantage over your leaguemate or whoever team you're playing against. And then I would also say make sure you're paying attention to what your strengths and weaknesses are. Go back, look in the history of the league. How did you fare against that opponent? What areas can you improve upon via the waiver wire to get those extra edges to get you the fantasy gold? But I want to know, what other strategies do you have in mind?
JUSTIN HENRY: Yeah, no, you hit the nail on the head. Because you got to be able to understand your games and your week and plan it out accordingly. And the one thing I would say is it's also good to be mindful of where you're at in these playoffs as well. If you're a team with a bye, your strategy needs to be a little bit different than the teams that are playing during week 21, those three through six teams.
And for those teams with a bye, this isn't time to chill. This isn't time to just forget about your lineup for a week. You still need to be active. This is called silly season for a reason. And so you need to be paying attention and picking players up and getting an advantage right now while other players are stressing for their playoff lives.
You could be setting your lineups up with those pickups that Dan just talked about and getting ahead and trying to find the ideal matchups for the week. So I think especially in category leagues, that's important to know who your opponent is and be able to match up very well against your potential next matchup.
For those teams still fighting, it's all or nothing. This isn't time to plan ahead. Now, you're in a different seat. You need to try to find a way to get the win for the week. And I would also say if you have a moves limit, which some leagues do obviously, be mindful of that. If you're ahead, you have a chance to kind of play through the week, make sure that you get there, and find a way to get the win. So I think there's two different sides to that, Dan. And I think it's important to be mindful of that if you're trying to win a championship.