NBA Lineup Optimizer

What is an NBA Optimizer?

Making a DFS lineup at DraftKings or Fanduel may only take a couple of minutes, but the more successful players will tell you that a winning lineup can't be rushed. Finding an edge in a tournament with hundreds of thousands of opponents is the key to the game. Knowing about injuries, finding weaknesses in matchups, and being able to construct a lineup that fits under the given DFS budget is key to winning. Unfortunately, not everyone has time to invest in the many hours it takes to find sleepers to add to your lineups. That is why FantasyData has created our very own NBA Optimizer. 

The concept of an NBA optimizer is to be able to use expert NBA projections to create a daily fantasy lineup but allow the user some control of how the lineup roster is constructed. FanatsyData's NBA optimizer features icons that you can click to lock a player into your lineup or exclude a player by clicking on the "lock" or "x" icon. This option allows our NBA optimizer to make a unique yet personal lineup very quickly.

Do NBA Optimizers Help You Win?

While there are no guarantees in daily fantasy sports, however, an optimizer does provide the user an high edge at winning. With the combination of integrating value, our Lineup Optimizer can quickly generate dozens of lineups for you to submit that are built around our highest recommended players for the slate. Using our projections, we can find the best valued player to add to your daily fantasy lineup to maximise potential. For example, if our projections found a player that had a very low DFS cost, but we projected him to have a good game, adding him to your lineup would save you the salary spend and add player production to your lineup. This is done automatically when you click on the optimize button. 

How Many Players Should I Lock?

The best part about FantasyData's NBA optimizer is the ability to test different combinations to see if you can get a DFS lineup with the highest possible score. After you click on the "Optimize" button, a generated lineup with appear with an overall projected lineup score. Depending on how many players you have selected, your lineup's score will vary. To start we would suggest picking two to three players until you finetune a roster you're happy with. 

NBA Optimizer Better for Cash Games or GPPS?

What is the Difference Between Cash Games vs. GPPS? - As you get more into DFS, you will hear more and more Daily Fantasy Terminology. A "Cash Game" is typically where you have roughly a 50 percent chance at winning. Head to heads, 50/50s, and double-up league types are all considered cash games. A "GPP" is a Guaranteed Prize Pool. Which is a contest where the prizes are guaranteed, no matter if it completely fills or not. These are also where a small number of entrants get paid, but the payouts are quite large.  The term “GPP” is generally used interchangeably with “tournament”, although some “cash games” do have guaranteed prize pools.

Our NBA Optimizer works great for either format. However, I think you will want a different approach for each when building your lineup. For those playing cash games, you are going to want to create a lineup with safer players that have a high floor. Build around NBA players who play a lot of minutes and have a decent usage rate. Minutes usually equal better fantasy production. For GPPS, you are looking for value in price, either an injury has allowed someone to step up into a bigger role, or you are willing to take a chance on an unknown, with a lower Usage Rate Percentage in hopes of trying to play a contrarian approach

NBA Optimizer Columns and Terms

OPP - Opponent

ORK - Opponent Rank

OPRK - Opponent Position Rank

PTS - Projected Points

MIN - Projected Minutes

PER - Player Efficiency Rating: Sums up all a player's positive accomplishments, subtracts the negative accomplishments, and returns a per-minute rating of a player's performance (current season)

TS% - True Shooting Percentage: A measure of shooting efficiency that takes into account field goals, 3-point field goals, and free throws (current season)

USG% - Usage Rate Percentage: An estimate of the percentage of team plays used by a player while he was on the floor (current season)

PROJ - Projected Fantasy Points

VALUE - Projected Value based on Fantasy Points per dollar ratio

$ - Operator Salary