De'Aaron Fox vs Josh Hart: who to start in Week 1
De'Aaron Fox plays 3 games in Week 1 (Oct 19-25), Josh Hart 3. For that week alone, start De'Aaron Fox: 104.2 projected fantasy points to 92.8 for Josh Hart. Over the season, De'Aaron Fox leads in both formats: 34.7 fantasy points a game to 30.9, and 55th against 56th 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, 8:26 AM ET. Rechecked every 30 minutes.
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- Points leagues
- #51
- 34.7 FP/G, slot 5.03, $19
- 9-cat leagues
- #55
- +0.1 z, slot 5.07, $16
The pick in points and 9-cat leagues.
- Points leagues
- #75
- 30.9 FP/G, slot 7.03, $13
- 9-cat leagues
- #56
- +0.1 z, slot 5.08, $16
The call
Points leagues: De'Aaron Fox. 34.7 fantasy points per game against 30.9, 51st on our board to 75th.
9-cat leagues: De'Aaron Fox again, +0.1 in summed z-scores against +0.1 (55th to 56th).
Category by category, De'Aaron Fox is ahead in 6 (PTS, AST, STL, 3PM, FG% and FT%) and Josh Hart in 3 (REB, BLK and TO).
Per 36 minutes, De'Aaron Fox produces more: 40.0 fantasy points to 36.5, on 31.2 minutes a night against 30.5. He already plays as much or more, so the gap is not a role waiting to grow.
De'Aaron Fox plays 3 games in Week 1 (Oct 19-25), Josh Hart 3. For that week alone, start De'Aaron Fox: 104.2 projected fantasy points to 92.8 for Josh Hart.
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 | De'Aaron Fox | Josh Hart |
|---|---|---|
| Fantasy points per game | 34.7 | 30.9 |
| Minutes | 31.2 | 30.5 |
| PointsPTS | 18.3 | 12.0 |
| ReboundsREB | 4.0 | 7.6 |
| AssistsAST | 6.4 | 4.7 |
| StealsSTL | 1.3 | 1.2 |
| BlocksBLK | 0.2 | 0.3 |
| Threes3PM | 1.7 | 1.6 |
| Field goal %FG% | 49.6% | 49.4% |
| Free throw %FT% | 77.6% | 71.5% |
| TurnoversTO | 2.4 | 1.8 |
| Games, 2025-26 | 72 | 66 |
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 | De'Aaron Fox | Josh Hart |
|---|---|---|
| Fantasy points | 40.0 | 36.5 |
| Points | 21.1 | 14.1 |
| Rebounds | 4.6 | 9.0 |
| Assists | 7.4 | 5.6 |
| Steals | 1.5 | 1.5 |
| Blocks | 0.3 | 0.3 |
| Threes | 2.0 | 1.9 |
| Turnovers | 2.8 | 2.2 |
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 | De'Aaron Fox | Josh Hart |
|---|---|---|
| PointsPTS | +0.4 | -0.7 |
| ReboundsREB | -0.8 | +0.8 |
| AssistsAST | +1.4 | +0.6 |
| StealsSTL | +0.7 | +0.6 |
| BlocksBLK | -0.9 | -0.8 |
| Threes3PM | +0.1 | -0.1 |
| Field goal percentageFG% | +0.2 | +0.1 |
| Free throw percentageFT% | -0.2 | -0.5 |
| TurnoversTO | -0.7 | +0.0 |
| Total | +0.1 | +0.1 |
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, field goal percentage and free throw percentage flips the 9-cat answer to Josh Hart.
| Punt | De'Aaron Fox | Josh Hart |
|---|---|---|
| PTS | -0.3 (#74) | +0.7 (#39) |
| REB | +0.8 (#39) | -0.9 (#88) |
| AST | -1.4 (#121) | -0.6 (#77) |
| STL | -0.6 (#78) | -0.6 (#75) |
| BLK | +1.0 (#37) | +0.7 (#43) |
| 3PM | -0.2 (#64) | +0.1 (#61) |
| FG% | -0.4 (#73) | -0.4 (#69) |
| FT% | +0.2 (#52) | +0.5 (#48) |
| TO | +0.8 (#49) | -0.1 (#63) |
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)
- De'Aaron Fox: 3 games (Tue OKC, Fri HOU, Sat @DAL), 1 back-to-back.
- Josh Hart: 3 games (Tue PHI, Fri @BOS, Sun ORL).
Recent games
- De'Aaron Fox: 36.1 fantasy points a game over his last 2 of 2026-27, against 34.7 on the board.
- Josh Hart: 35.9 fantasy points a game over his last 2 of 2026-27, against 30.9 on the board.
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Other picks at the same spot
NBA fantasy rankings · Draft cheat sheet · Sleepers
Is De'Aaron Fox playing tonight? · Is Josh Hart playing tonight?
Rookie cards: De'Aaron Fox
Common questions
Who is better for the rest of the 2026-27 season, De'Aaron Fox or Josh Hart?
Points leagues: De'Aaron Fox. 34.7 fantasy points per game against 30.9, 51st on our board to 75th. 9-cat leagues: De'Aaron Fox again, +0.1 in summed z-scores against +0.1 (55th to 56th).
Who wins more categories, De'Aaron Fox or Josh Hart?
Category by category, De'Aaron Fox is ahead in 6 (PTS, AST, STL, 3PM, FG% and FT%) and Josh Hart in 3 (REB, BLK and TO).
Who should I start in Week 1, De'Aaron Fox or Josh Hart?
De'Aaron Fox plays 3 games in Week 1 (Oct 19-25), Josh Hart 3. For that week alone, start De'Aaron Fox: 104.2 projected fantasy points to 92.8 for Josh Hart.
By the Parlae deskBoard updated Oct 24, 2026 at 8:26 AM ETHow this is builtReport a wrong number