Brandon Ingram vs Kyrie Irving: who to start in Week 3
Brandon Ingram plays 3 games in Week 3 (Nov 2-8), Kyrie Irving 4, an even 0.0 projected fantasy points each. Over the season, Kyrie Irving leads in both formats: 35.9 fantasy points a game to 35.7, and 8th against 71st in 9-cat. The two go close together on our board, which is our own ranking order from 2025-26 and 2026-27 box scores, not ADP.
Updated Nov 2, 10:35 PM ET. Rechecked every 30 minutes.
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- Points leagues
- #50
- 35.7 FP/G, slot 5.02, $19
- 9-cat leagues
- #71
- -0.4 z, slot 6.11, $13
Out (Achilles)
- Points leagues
- #49
- 35.9 FP/G, slot 5.01, $20
- 9-cat leagues
- #8
- +4.5 z, slot 1.08, $41
Out (Knee)
The pick in points and 9-cat leagues.
The call
Points leagues: Kyrie Irving. 35.9 fantasy points per game against 35.7, 49th on our board to 50th.
9-cat leagues: Kyrie Irving again, +4.5 in summed z-scores against -0.4 (8th to 71st).
Category by category, Brandon Ingram is ahead in 2 (REB and BLK) and Kyrie Irving in 6 (AST, STL, 3PM, FG%, FT% and TO).
Per 36 minutes, Kyrie Irving produces more: 45.2 fantasy points to 38.0, on 28.6 minutes a night against 33.8. He does it in fewer minutes, so a bigger role would widen the gap.
Brandon Ingram plays 3 games in Week 3 (Nov 2-8), Kyrie Irving 4, an even 0.0 projected fantasy points each.
Slots are where our board's order lands in a 12-team snake draft (round.pick), and dollars are auction value over replacement for 12 teams with $200 each. Neither is ADP: no free draft-position feed lets us republish it.
Per game, side by side
| Per game | Brandon Ingram | Kyrie Irving |
|---|---|---|
| Fantasy points per game | 35.7 | 35.9 |
| Minutes | 33.8 | 28.6 |
| PointsPTS | 21.5 | 21.4 |
| ReboundsREB | 5.6 | 3.4 |
| AssistsAST | 3.7 | 4.8 |
| StealsSTL | 0.8 | 1.2 |
| BlocksBLK | 0.7 | 0.6 |
| Threes3PM | 1.8 | 3.2 |
| Field goal %FG% | 47.7% | 52.7% |
| Free throw %FT% | 82.0% | 100.0% |
| TurnoversTO | 2.4 | 2.2 |
| Games, 2025-26 | 77 | 0 |
Bold is the better number. The line blends 2025-26 with 2026-27 games as they are played, the same numbers the rankings use.
Per 36 minutes
| Per 36 | Brandon Ingram | Kyrie Irving |
|---|---|---|
| Fantasy points | 38.0 | 45.2 |
| Points | 22.9 | 26.9 |
| Rebounds | 5.9 | 4.3 |
| Assists | 3.9 | 6.0 |
| Steals | 0.8 | 1.5 |
| Blocks | 0.8 | 0.8 |
| Threes | 1.9 | 4.0 |
| Turnovers | 2.6 | 2.8 |
Each per-game number divided by minutes and scaled to 36: the rate a bigger role would carry.
9-category z-scores
| Category | Brandon Ingram | Kyrie Irving |
|---|---|---|
| PointsPTS | +0.9 | +0.9 |
| ReboundsREB | -0.1 | -1.0 |
| AssistsAST | -0.0 | +0.5 |
| StealsSTL | -0.8 | +0.4 |
| BlocksBLK | +0.1 | -0.2 |
| Threes3PM | +0.1 | +1.6 |
| Field goal percentageFG% | -0.1 | +1.0 |
| Free throw percentageFT% | +0.3 | +1.7 |
| TurnoversTO | -0.6 | -0.3 |
| Total | -0.4 | +4.5 |
Each number is standard deviations above or below the top 156 players (a 12-team league's rosters). Field goal and free throw percentage are weighted by attempts, and turnovers count against.
If you punt a category
No punt changes the answer: Kyrie Irving stays ahead whichever category you give up.
| Punt | Brandon Ingram | Kyrie Irving |
|---|---|---|
| PTS | -1.3 (#123) | +3.6 (#9) |
| REB | -0.3 (#73) | +5.6 (#8) |
| AST | -0.4 (#71) | +3.9 (#10) |
| STL | +0.4 (#51) | +4.0 (#10) |
| BLK | -0.6 (#82) | +4.8 (#7) |
| 3PM | -0.6 (#76) | +2.6 (#14) |
| FG% | -0.4 (#68) | +3.9 (#11) |
| FT% | -0.8 (#86) | +2.6 (#17) |
| TO | +0.2 (#59) | +4.7 (#12) |
Value is the sum of the other eight z-scores, recomputed with the punted category left out of the pool that sets them; the rank is among all 432 ranked players.
Week 3 (Nov 2-8)
- Brandon Ingram: 3 games (Mon TOR, Wed MIA, Sun NOP), 1 back-to-back, listed Out.
- Kyrie Irving: 4 games (Mon SAC, Wed @SAS, Fri UTA, Sun BKN), listed Out.
Recent games
- Brandon Ingram: 33.0 fantasy points a game over his last 10 of 2025-26, against 35.7 on the board.
- Kyrie Irving: 35.9 fantasy points a game over his last 5 of 2026-27, against 35.9 on the board.
Other picks at the same spot
NBA fantasy rankings · Draft cheat sheet · Sleepers
Is Brandon Ingram playing tonight? · Is Kyrie Irving playing tonight?
Common questions
Who is better for the rest of the 2026-27 season, Brandon Ingram or Kyrie Irving?
Points leagues: Kyrie Irving. 35.9 fantasy points per game against 35.7, 49th on our board to 50th. 9-cat leagues: Kyrie Irving again, +4.5 in summed z-scores against -0.4 (8th to 71st).
Who wins more categories, Brandon Ingram or Kyrie Irving?
Category by category, Brandon Ingram is ahead in 2 (REB and BLK) and Kyrie Irving in 6 (AST, STL, 3PM, FG%, FT% and TO).
Who should I start in Week 3, Brandon Ingram or Kyrie Irving?
Brandon Ingram plays 3 games in Week 3 (Nov 2-8), Kyrie Irving 4, an even 0.0 projected fantasy points each.
By the Parlae deskBoard updated Nov 2, 2026 at 10:35 PM ETHow this is builtReport a wrong number