De'Anthony Melton vs Jordan Goodwin: who to start in Week 1
De'Anthony Melton plays 3 games in Week 1 (Oct 19-25), Jordan Goodwin 2. For that week alone, start De'Anthony Melton: 71.5 projected fantasy points to 43.2 for Jordan Goodwin. Over the season, De'Anthony Melton leads in both formats: 23.8 fantasy points a game to 21.6, and 141st against 143rd 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 25, 2:29 PM ET. Rechecked every 30 minutes.
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- Points leagues
- #150
- 23.8 FP/G, slot 13.06, $2
- 9-cat leagues
- #141
- -2.2 z, slot 12.09, $3
The pick in points and 9-cat leagues.
- Points leagues
- #175
- 21.6 FP/G, slot 15.07
- 9-cat leagues
- #143
- -2.2 z, slot 12.11, $3
The call
Points leagues: De'Anthony Melton. 23.8 fantasy points per game against 21.6, 150th on our board to 175th.
9-cat leagues: De'Anthony Melton again, -2.2 in summed z-scores against -2.2 (141st to 143rd).
Category by category, De'Anthony Melton is ahead in 4 (PTS, AST, BLK and FT%) and Jordan Goodwin in 4 (REB, STL, FG% and TO).
Per 36 minutes, De'Anthony Melton produces more: 37.5 fantasy points to 34.9, on 22.9 minutes a night against 22.3. He already plays as much or more, so the gap is not a role waiting to grow.
De'Anthony Melton plays 3 games in Week 1 (Oct 19-25), Jordan Goodwin 2. For that week alone, start De'Anthony Melton: 71.5 projected fantasy points to 43.2 for Jordan Goodwin.
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'Anthony Melton | Jordan Goodwin |
|---|---|---|
| Fantasy points per game | 23.8 | 21.6 |
| Minutes | 22.9 | 22.3 |
| PointsPTS | 12.2 | 8.4 |
| ReboundsREB | 3.1 | 4.7 |
| AssistsAST | 2.5 | 2.1 |
| StealsSTL | 1.6 | 1.6 |
| BlocksBLK | 0.4 | 0.2 |
| Threes3PM | 1.6 | 1.5 |
| Field goal %FG% | 42.6% | 41.3% |
| Free throw %FT% | 84.7% | 69.6% |
| TurnoversTO | 1.8 | 1.0 |
| Games, 2025-26 | 49 | 70 |
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'Anthony Melton | Jordan Goodwin |
|---|---|---|
| Fantasy points | 37.5 | 34.9 |
| Points | 19.1 | 13.5 |
| Rebounds | 4.9 | 7.5 |
| Assists | 4.0 | 3.5 |
| Steals | 2.5 | 2.6 |
| Blocks | 0.6 | 0.3 |
| Threes | 2.4 | 2.5 |
| Turnovers | 2.9 | 1.6 |
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'Anthony Melton | Jordan Goodwin |
|---|---|---|
| PointsPTS | -0.7 | -1.4 |
| ReboundsREB | -1.2 | -0.5 |
| AssistsAST | -0.6 | -0.7 |
| StealsSTL | +1.5 | +1.6 |
| BlocksBLK | -0.6 | -1.0 |
| Threes3PM | -0.1 | -0.1 |
| Field goal percentageFG% | -1.0 | -0.9 |
| Free throw percentageFT% | +0.4 | -0.2 |
| TurnoversTO | +0.1 | +1.1 |
| Total | -2.2 | -2.2 |
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, blocks, threes and free throw percentage flips the 9-cat answer to Jordan Goodwin.
| Punt | De'Anthony Melton | Jordan Goodwin |
|---|---|---|
| PTS | -1.5 (#137) | -0.9 (#101) |
| REB | -1.1 (#98) | -1.8 (#127) |
| AST | -1.7 (#132) | -1.5 (#126) |
| STL | -3.8 (#221) | -3.9 (#231) |
| BLK | -1.8 (#119) | -1.4 (#103) |
| 3PM | -2.2 (#148) | -2.1 (#143) |
| FG% | -1.2 (#93) | -1.4 (#98) |
| FT% | -2.6 (#162) | -2.0 (#138) |
| TO | -2.3 (#118) | -3.4 (#156) |
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'Anthony Melton: 3 games (Wed @LAL, Fri MEM, Sat @PHX), 1 back-to-back.
- Jordan Goodwin: 2 games (Wed @POR, Sat GSW).
Recent games
- De'Anthony Melton: 22.7 fantasy points a game over his last 3 of 2026-27, against 23.8 on the board.
- Jordan Goodwin: 19.1 fantasy points a game over his last 2 of 2026-27, against 21.6 on the board.
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Other picks at the same spot
NBA fantasy rankings · Draft cheat sheet · Sleepers
Is De'Anthony Melton playing tonight? · Is Jordan Goodwin playing tonight?
Common questions
Who is better for the rest of the 2026-27 season, De'Anthony Melton or Jordan Goodwin?
Points leagues: De'Anthony Melton. 23.8 fantasy points per game against 21.6, 150th on our board to 175th. 9-cat leagues: De'Anthony Melton again, -2.2 in summed z-scores against -2.2 (141st to 143rd).
Who wins more categories, De'Anthony Melton or Jordan Goodwin?
Category by category, De'Anthony Melton is ahead in 4 (PTS, AST, BLK and FT%) and Jordan Goodwin in 4 (REB, STL, FG% and TO).
Who should I start in Week 1, De'Anthony Melton or Jordan Goodwin?
De'Anthony Melton plays 3 games in Week 1 (Oct 19-25), Jordan Goodwin 2. For that week alone, start De'Anthony Melton: 71.5 projected fantasy points to 43.2 for Jordan Goodwin.
By the Parlae deskBoard updated Oct 25, 2026 at 2:29 PM ETHow this is builtReport a wrong number