ESPORTS

CS:GO Daily Fantasy Helper: ESL Pro League, Road to Rio, Tuesday 4/28/20

We get another six-game slate for ESL Rio qualifying with some heavy favorites on the board. Who are the players you should target on Tuesday?

With traditional sports on hold for now, esports has taken the front seat in DFS, and we now have Counter-Strike: Global Offensive to play on FanDuel. Affectionately known as CS:GO, two teams of five players compete on each map until one team reaches 16 rounds. Most series are played as a best-of-three and will feature teams from the ESL Pro League in North American, South America, and Europe.

If you are new to esports DFS or CS:GO DFS, take a look at the introduction piece with a rundown of format and scoring. All matches are a best-of-three and players will receive a bonus for completing a 2-0 sweep.

MVP Considerations

NiKo, FaZe Clan ($12,200)

NiKo is arguably one of the best players in the world and makes a clear choice for the MVP spot on this slate. Through the first week of matches, FaZe have only played five maps -- where NiKo has totaled 108 kills, averaging 21 per map. He holds a positive kill to death ratio (K/D) of 1.05, along with a solid 46.3% Headshot (HS) percentage. He is up against Movistar Riders today -- who have been surprisingly strong to start qualifying -- which could push this to all three maps.

Ultimately, FaZe Clan should win this series, and, in a way, it doesn't matter how they get it done. If they win 2-0, that's great due to the bonus points for a sweep. Or, if this goes to all three maps, it simply gives NiKo extra opportunities to rack up fantasy points. Spending up for one of the most expensive players is always something to aim for, and NiKo is the player to trust on Tuesday.

device, Astralis ($11,800)

Astralis come into this series against Vitality as heavy favorites, but should we be expecting a 2-0 sweep? This should be a great series to watch and projecting the final outcome is a big question. To start this group qualifying stage, both Astralis and Vitality are 1-1 in their series, with both teams playing all three maps in each. If both teams are playing long/close series, this is the ideal spot to target fantasy points.

device has played six maps so far in this event and has piled up 127 kills, a K/D ratio of 1.18, and has a Kill or Assist (KAST) in 73.2% of his rounds. If this goes to all three maps, seeing 60+ from device wouldn't be a surprise, and there are few players on this slate that could compete with those numbers. Between NiKo or device, the top-tier of options for the MVP spot today is loaded, and you can't go wrong with either one.

Players

AZR, 100 Thieves ($9,500)

100 Thieves are very large favorites on this slate and targeting players from their lineup should lead to fantasy points. 100T are the 9th-ranked team in the world and set to take on Triumph Gaming, the 42nd-ranked team. This is quite the difference and potentially shaping up to be a 2-0 sweep. That means two things: the players on 100T are likely putting up plenty of kills and then grabbing the bonus points for not playing the final map.

Through the first five maps of this event, AZR has shown to be a bit of a volatile player, with a low floor but a high ceiling. He has a low of nine kills on a map, along with a high of 21 -- oh boy. That inconsistency never sits well with DFS players, but based on the difference between the two teams in this matchup, hopefully his floor will be raised -- along with his ceiling for that same reason.

CeRq, Evil Geniuses ($9,800)

CeRq is an interesting option on this slate for a few reasons. First off, Evil Geniuses are the favorites against Cloud9, a team that has been shaky to start this event. Next, CeRq is showing to have a higher floor compared to a player like AZR but doesn't have as high of a ceiling. He is only averaging 16 kills over his first five maps of this qualifying event. Those are average numbers across the board, but what about this matchup?

Cloud9 are an average team, and through the first two series of this event, they are 1-1 with a round count sitting even at 84-84. They are playing very close games and essentially bleeding rounds even when they win the match. If we are going to be in for a somewhat sloppy and close series, CeRq can benefit from the available fantasy points Cloud9 give up.

steel, Movistar Riders ($9,300)

As noted above, Movistar Riders are off to a strong start for this event and present some leverage today. They are the underdogs in this series against FaZe Clan, which should keep their ownership very low. Normally, you should always try to target players who will be on the winning side, but a one-off player from a losing team can still bring value. steel isn't expensive at all today and comes in averaging 22 kills per map during qualifying and has the 11th-most kills in the event.

He has a cheaper price tag for a player who is putting up big numbers but is on an underdog. That's an interesting dynamic that you should look to jump on when it comes to roster construction because he shouldn't be highly owned.

Team

100 Thieves ($6,600)

100 Thieves are the favorite in their matchup versus Triumph Gaming, and I fully expect them to win this series 2-0. They should be winning this series in a sweep 90+ times out of 100, and that is the truth. They are simply the better team and you should look to trust them in your lineups. They come in as the fourth-most expensive team on the slate, which makes them the "cheapest" option you could safely predict to pick up the sweep.

Pairing the team with a few players from their lineup brings a bit of correlation and allows you to double-dip on the bonus points if they are able to win 2-0.