Darius Garland vs Jakob Poeltl: who to start in Week 1
Darius Garland plays 3 games in Week 1 (Oct 19-25), Jakob Poeltl 3. For that week alone, start Darius Garland: 96.9 projected fantasy points to 75.1 for Jakob Poeltl. Over the season, Darius Garland leads in both formats: 32.3 fantasy points a game to 25.0, and 114th against 115th 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 Oct 24, 2:26 AM ET. Rechecked every 30 minutes.
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- Points leagues
- #65
- 32.3 FP/G, slot 6.05, $15
- 9-cat leagues
- #114
- -1.5 z, slot 10.06, $6
The pick in points and 9-cat leagues.
- Points leagues
- #133
- 25.0 FP/G, slot 12.01, $5
- 9-cat leagues
- #115
- -1.6 z, slot 10.07, $6
The call
Points leagues: Darius Garland. 32.3 fantasy points per game against 25.0, 65th on our board to 133rd.
9-cat leagues: Darius Garland again, -1.5 in summed z-scores against -1.6 (114th to 115th).
Category by category, Darius Garland is ahead in 5 (PTS, AST, STL, 3PM and FT%) and Jakob Poeltl in 4 (REB, BLK, FG% and TO).
Per 36 minutes, Darius Garland produces more: 38.2 fantasy points to 36.2, on 30.4 minutes a night against 24.9. He already plays as much or more, so the gap is not a role waiting to grow.
Darius Garland plays 3 games in Week 1 (Oct 19-25), Jakob Poeltl 3. For that week alone, start Darius Garland: 96.9 projected fantasy points to 75.1 for Jakob Poeltl.
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 | Darius Garland | Jakob Poeltl |
|---|---|---|
| Fantasy points per game | 32.3 | 25.0 |
| Minutes | 30.4 | 24.9 |
| PointsPTS | 19.9 | 10.0 |
| ReboundsREB | 2.2 | 7.1 |
| AssistsAST | 6.5 | 1.9 |
| StealsSTL | 1.0 | 0.9 |
| BlocksBLK | 0.2 | 0.7 |
| Threes3PM | 2.8 | 0.0 |
| Field goal %FG% | 46.9% | 70.2% |
| Free throw %FT% | 82.0% | 60.2% |
| TurnoversTO | 3.3 | 1.2 |
| Games, 2025-26 | 45 | 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 | Darius Garland | Jakob Poeltl |
|---|---|---|
| Fantasy points | 38.2 | 36.2 |
| Points | 23.5 | 14.4 |
| Rebounds | 2.6 | 10.2 |
| Assists | 7.7 | 2.7 |
| Steals | 1.1 | 1.3 |
| Blocks | 0.2 | 1.1 |
| Threes | 3.3 | 0.0 |
| Turnovers | 3.9 | 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 | Darius Garland | Jakob Poeltl |
|---|---|---|
| PointsPTS | +0.6 | -1.1 |
| ReboundsREB | -1.6 | +0.6 |
| AssistsAST | +1.5 | -0.9 |
| StealsSTL | -0.2 | -0.4 |
| BlocksBLK | -1.1 | +0.1 |
| Threes3PM | +1.2 | -1.7 |
| Field goal percentageFG% | -0.4 | +2.2 |
| Free throw percentageFT% | +0.2 | -1.3 |
| TurnoversTO | -1.8 | +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 points, assists, steals, threes and free throw percentage flips the 9-cat answer to Jakob Poeltl.
| Punt | Darius Garland | Jakob Poeltl |
|---|---|---|
| PTS | -2.3 (#182) | -0.5 (#80) |
| REB | +0.1 (#53) | -2.5 (#161) |
| AST | -3.2 (#204) | -0.7 (#83) |
| STL | -1.5 (#121) | -1.2 (#107) |
| BLK | -0.5 (#70) | -2.0 (#128) |
| 3PM | -2.9 (#180) | +0.2 (#54) |
| FG% | -1.1 (#90) | -4.5 (#237) |
| FT% | -2.0 (#139) | -0.2 (#68) |
| TO | +0.2 (#61) | -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)
- Darius Garland: 3 games (Wed SAC, Fri @LAL, Sun @OKC).
- Jakob Poeltl: 3 games (Wed CHI, Fri @WAS, Sun @MIN).
Recent games
- Darius Garland: 33.1 fantasy points a game over his last 2 of 2026-27, against 32.3 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 Darius Garland playing tonight? · Is Jakob Poeltl playing tonight?
Rookie cards: Darius Garland
Common questions
Who is better for the rest of the 2026-27 season, Darius Garland or Jakob Poeltl?
Points leagues: Darius Garland. 32.3 fantasy points per game against 25.0, 65th on our board to 133rd. 9-cat leagues: Darius Garland again, -1.5 in summed z-scores against -1.6 (114th to 115th).
Who wins more categories, Darius Garland or Jakob Poeltl?
Category by category, Darius Garland is ahead in 5 (PTS, AST, STL, 3PM and FT%) and Jakob Poeltl in 4 (REB, BLK, FG% and TO).
Who should I start in Week 1, Darius Garland or Jakob Poeltl?
Darius Garland plays 3 games in Week 1 (Oct 19-25), Jakob Poeltl 3. For that week alone, start Darius Garland: 96.9 projected fantasy points to 75.1 for Jakob Poeltl.
By the Parlae deskBoard updated Oct 24, 2026 at 2:26 AM ETHow this is builtReport a wrong number