Daniel Gafford vs Jakob Poeltl: who to start in Week 1
Daniel Gafford plays 3 games in Week 1 (Oct 19-25), Jakob Poeltl 3. For that week alone, start Jakob Poeltl: 75.1 projected fantasy points to 73.0 for Daniel Gafford. Over the season, Jakob Poeltl leads in points leagues (25.0 fantasy points a game to 24.3) and Daniel Gafford in 9-cat leagues (111th against 112th). 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 Oct 25, 2:28 AM ET. Rechecked every 30 minutes.
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- Points leagues
- #145
- 24.3 FP/G, slot 13.01, $3
- 9-cat leagues
- #111
- -1.5 z, slot 10.03, $7
The pick in 9-cat leagues.
- Points leagues
- #132
- 25.0 FP/G, slot 11.12, $4
- 9-cat leagues
- #112
- -1.6 z, slot 10.04, $6
The pick in points leagues.
The call
Points leagues: Jakob Poeltl. 25.0 fantasy points per game against 24.3, 132nd on our board to 145th.
9-cat leagues: Daniel Gafford instead, -1.5 in summed z-scores against -1.6 (111th to 112th), because the categories pay for a different mix.
Category by category, Daniel Gafford is ahead in 2 (BLK and FT%) and Jakob Poeltl in 5 (PTS, REB, AST, STL and FG%).
Per 36 minutes, Daniel Gafford produces more: 41.0 fantasy points to 36.2, on 21.4 minutes a night against 24.9. He does it in fewer minutes, so a bigger role would widen the gap.
Daniel Gafford plays 3 games in Week 1 (Oct 19-25), Jakob Poeltl 3. For that week alone, start Jakob Poeltl: 75.1 projected fantasy points to 73.0 for Daniel Gafford.
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.
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Per game, side by side
| Per game | Daniel Gafford | Jakob Poeltl |
|---|---|---|
| Fantasy points per game | 24.3 | 25.0 |
| Minutes | 21.4 | 24.9 |
| PointsPTS | 8.9 | 10.0 |
| ReboundsREB | 6.6 | 7.1 |
| AssistsAST | 1.3 | 1.9 |
| StealsSTL | 0.9 | 0.9 |
| BlocksBLK | 1.4 | 0.7 |
| Threes3PM | 0.0 | 0.0 |
| Field goal %FG% | 64.3% | 70.2% |
| Free throw %FT% | 66.8% | 60.2% |
| TurnoversTO | 1.2 | 1.2 |
| Games, 2025-26 | 55 | 46 |
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 | Daniel Gafford | Jakob Poeltl |
|---|---|---|
| Fantasy points | 41.0 | 36.2 |
| Points | 15.0 | 14.4 |
| Rebounds | 11.0 | 10.2 |
| Assists | 2.2 | 2.7 |
| Steals | 1.4 | 1.3 |
| Blocks | 2.3 | 1.1 |
| Threes | 0.0 | 0.0 |
| Turnovers | 2.0 | 1.7 |
Each per-game number divided by minutes and scaled to 36: the rate a bigger role would carry.
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9-category z-scores
| Category | Daniel Gafford | Jakob Poeltl |
|---|---|---|
| PointsPTS | -1.3 | -1.1 |
| ReboundsREB | +0.4 | +0.6 |
| AssistsAST | -1.1 | -0.9 |
| StealsSTL | -0.5 | -0.4 |
| BlocksBLK | +1.4 | +0.1 |
| Threes3PM | -1.7 | -1.7 |
| Field goal percentageFG% | +1.5 | +2.2 |
| Free throw percentageFT% | -1.1 | -1.4 |
| TurnoversTO | +0.9 | +0.9 |
| Total | -1.5 | -1.6 |
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
Punting blocks and free throw percentage flips the 9-cat answer to Jakob Poeltl.
| Punt | Daniel Gafford | Jakob Poeltl |
|---|---|---|
| PTS | -0.3 (#70) | -0.5 (#82) |
| REB | -2.2 (#147) | -2.5 (#164) |
| AST | -0.4 (#69) | -0.8 (#86) |
| STL | -1.2 (#105) | -1.3 (#109) |
| BLK | -3.4 (#189) | -2.0 (#132) |
| 3PM | +0.2 (#59) | +0.1 (#60) |
| FG% | -3.7 (#194) | -4.6 (#233) |
| FT% | -0.4 (#75) | -0.2 (#67) |
| TO | -2.6 (#127) | -2.6 (#129) |
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 392 ranked players.
Week 1 (Oct 19-25)
- Daniel Gafford: 3 games (Wed @HOU, Fri @IND, Sat SAS), 1 back-to-back.
- Jakob Poeltl: 3 games (Wed CHI, Fri @WAS, Sun @MIN).
Recent games
- Daniel Gafford: 24.7 fantasy points a game over his last 3 of 2026-27, against 24.3 on the board.
- Jakob Poeltl: 20.5 fantasy points a game over his last 2 of 2026-27, against 25.0 on the board.
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Other picks at the same spot
NBA fantasy rankings · Draft cheat sheet · Sleepers
Is Daniel Gafford playing tonight? · Is Jakob Poeltl playing tonight?
Common questions
Who is better for the rest of the 2026-27 season, Daniel Gafford or Jakob Poeltl?
Points leagues: Jakob Poeltl. 25.0 fantasy points per game against 24.3, 132nd on our board to 145th. 9-cat leagues: Daniel Gafford instead, -1.5 in summed z-scores against -1.6 (111th to 112th), because the categories pay for a different mix.
Who wins more categories, Daniel Gafford or Jakob Poeltl?
Category by category, Daniel Gafford is ahead in 2 (BLK and FT%) and Jakob Poeltl in 5 (PTS, REB, AST, STL and FG%).
Who should I start in Week 1, Daniel Gafford or Jakob Poeltl?
Daniel Gafford plays 3 games in Week 1 (Oct 19-25), Jakob Poeltl 3. For that week alone, start Jakob Poeltl: 75.1 projected fantasy points to 73.0 for Daniel Gafford.
By the Parlae deskBoard updated Oct 25, 2026 at 2:28 AM ETHow this is builtReport a wrong number