De'Anthony Melton vs Kyle Filipowski: who to start in Week 1
De'Anthony Melton plays 3 games in Week 1 (Oct 19-25), Kyle Filipowski 3. For that week alone, start Kyle Filipowski: 71.7 projected fantasy points to 71.5 for De'Anthony Melton. Over the season, Kyle Filipowski leads in points leagues (23.9 fantasy points a game to 23.8) and De'Anthony Melton in 9-cat leagues (141st against 170th). 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, 8:28 AM 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 9-cat leagues.
- Points leagues
- #149
- 23.9 FP/G, slot 13.05, $2
- 9-cat leagues
- #170
- -2.9 z, slot 15.02
The pick in points leagues.
The call
Points leagues: Kyle Filipowski. 23.9 fantasy points per game against 23.8, 149th on our board to 150th.
9-cat leagues: De'Anthony Melton instead, -2.2 in summed z-scores against -2.9 (141st to 170th), because the categories pay for a different mix.
Category by category, De'Anthony Melton is ahead in 5 (PTS, AST, STL, 3PM and FT%) and Kyle Filipowski in 4 (REB, BLK, FG% and TO).
Per 36 minutes, Kyle Filipowski produces more: 39.8 fantasy points to 37.5, on 21.6 minutes a night against 22.9. He does it in fewer minutes, so a bigger role would widen the gap.
De'Anthony Melton plays 3 games in Week 1 (Oct 19-25), Kyle Filipowski 3. For that week alone, start Kyle Filipowski: 71.7 projected fantasy points to 71.5 for De'Anthony Melton.
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 | Kyle Filipowski |
|---|---|---|
| Fantasy points per game | 23.8 | 23.9 |
| Minutes | 22.9 | 21.6 |
| PointsPTS | 12.2 | 10.2 |
| ReboundsREB | 3.1 | 6.4 |
| AssistsAST | 2.5 | 2.3 |
| StealsSTL | 1.6 | 1.0 |
| BlocksBLK | 0.4 | 0.4 |
| Threes3PM | 1.6 | 0.8 |
| Field goal %FG% | 42.6% | 48.8% |
| Free throw %FT% | 84.7% | 75.6% |
| TurnoversTO | 1.8 | 1.6 |
| Games, 2025-26 | 49 | 77 |
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 | Kyle Filipowski |
|---|---|---|
| Fantasy points | 37.5 | 39.8 |
| Points | 19.1 | 17.1 |
| Rebounds | 4.9 | 10.6 |
| Assists | 4.0 | 3.8 |
| Steals | 2.5 | 1.6 |
| Blocks | 0.6 | 0.7 |
| Threes | 2.4 | 1.4 |
| Turnovers | 2.9 | 2.7 |
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 | De'Anthony Melton | Kyle Filipowski |
|---|---|---|
| PointsPTS | -0.7 | -1.1 |
| ReboundsREB | -1.2 | +0.3 |
| AssistsAST | -0.6 | -0.7 |
| StealsSTL | +1.5 | -0.2 |
| BlocksBLK | -0.6 | -0.5 |
| Threes3PM | -0.1 | -0.8 |
| Field goal percentageFG% | -1.0 | +0.0 |
| Free throw percentageFT% | +0.4 | -0.3 |
| TurnoversTO | +0.1 | +0.3 |
| Total | -2.2 | -2.9 |
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 steals, threes and free throw percentage flips the 9-cat answer to Kyle Filipowski.
| Punt | De'Anthony Melton | Kyle Filipowski |
|---|---|---|
| PTS | -1.5 (#137) | -1.9 (#156) |
| REB | -1.1 (#98) | -3.4 (#217) |
| AST | -1.7 (#132) | -2.3 (#166) |
| STL | -3.8 (#221) | -2.8 (#174) |
| BLK | -1.8 (#119) | -2.7 (#158) |
| 3PM | -2.2 (#148) | -2.1 (#141) |
| FG% | -1.2 (#93) | -3.4 (#171) |
| FT% | -2.6 (#162) | -2.6 (#160) |
| TO | -2.3 (#118) | -3.4 (#152) |
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.
- Kyle Filipowski: 3 games (Wed @MEM, Fri NOP, Sun LAL).
Recent games
- De'Anthony Melton: 22.7 fantasy points a game over his last 3 of 2026-27, against 23.8 on the board.
- Kyle Filipowski: 3.6 fantasy points a game over his last 2 of 2026-27, against 23.9 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 Kyle Filipowski playing tonight?
Common questions
Who is better for the rest of the 2026-27 season, De'Anthony Melton or Kyle Filipowski?
Points leagues: Kyle Filipowski. 23.9 fantasy points per game against 23.8, 149th on our board to 150th. 9-cat leagues: De'Anthony Melton instead, -2.2 in summed z-scores against -2.9 (141st to 170th), because the categories pay for a different mix.
Who wins more categories, De'Anthony Melton or Kyle Filipowski?
Category by category, De'Anthony Melton is ahead in 5 (PTS, AST, STL, 3PM and FT%) and Kyle Filipowski in 4 (REB, BLK, FG% and TO).
Who should I start in Week 1, De'Anthony Melton or Kyle Filipowski?
De'Anthony Melton plays 3 games in Week 1 (Oct 19-25), Kyle Filipowski 3. For that week alone, start Kyle Filipowski: 71.7 projected fantasy points to 71.5 for De'Anthony Melton.
By the Parlae deskBoard updated Oct 25, 2026 at 8:28 AM ETHow this is builtReport a wrong number