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Donovan Clingan vs RJ Barrett: who to start in Week 3

Donovan Clingan plays 4 games in Week 3 (Nov 2-8), RJ Barrett 3. For that week alone, start Donovan Clingan: 131.5 projected fantasy points to 98.5 for RJ Barrett. Over the season, Donovan Clingan leads in both formats: 32.9 fantasy points a game to 32.8, and 41st against 161st 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 Nov 3, 12:36 AM ET.

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Donovan Clingan
CPORage 22
Points leagues
#66
32.9 FP/G, slot 6.06, $15
9-cat leagues
#41
+0.7 z, slot 4.05, $19

The pick in points and 9-cat leagues.

RJ Barrett
SFPFSGTORage 26
Points leagues
#67
32.8 FP/G, slot 6.07, $15
9-cat leagues
#161
-2.6 z, slot 14.05

The call

Points leagues: Donovan Clingan. 32.9 fantasy points per game against 32.8, 66th on our board to 67th.

9-cat leagues: Donovan Clingan again, +0.7 in summed z-scores against -2.6 (41st to 161st).

Category by category, Donovan Clingan is ahead in 5 (REB, BLK, FG%, FT% and TO) and RJ Barrett in 4 (PTS, AST, STL and 3PM).

Per 36 minutes, Donovan Clingan produces more: 45.6 fantasy points to 38.5, on 25.9 minutes a night against 30.7. He does it in fewer minutes, so a bigger role would widen the gap.

Donovan Clingan plays 4 games in Week 3 (Nov 2-8), RJ Barrett 3. For that week alone, start Donovan Clingan: 131.5 projected fantasy points to 98.5 for RJ Barrett.

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 gameDonovan ClinganRJ Barrett
Fantasy points per game32.932.8
Minutes25.930.7
PointsPTS11.219.4
ReboundsREB10.95.5
AssistsAST1.93.6
StealsSTL0.50.7
BlocksBLK1.80.3
Threes3PM1.11.6
Field goal %FG%52.3%48.9%
Free throw %FT%65.1%69.0%
TurnoversTO1.11.7
Games, 2025-267757

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 36Donovan ClinganRJ Barrett
Fantasy points45.638.5
Points15.622.8
Rebounds15.26.5
Assists2.74.2
Steals0.70.8
Blocks2.50.4
Threes1.51.9
Turnovers1.62.0

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

CategoryDonovan ClinganRJ Barrett
PointsPTS-1.0+0.5
ReboundsREB+2.2-0.1
AssistsAST-0.9-0.1
StealsSTL-1.5-0.9
BlocksBLK+2.2-0.7
Threes3PM-0.6-0.0
Field goal percentageFG%+0.5+0.2
Free throw percentageFT%-1.2-1.7
TurnoversTO+1.0+0.3
Total+0.7-2.6

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

No punt changes the answer: Donovan Clingan stays ahead whichever category you give up.

PuntDonovan ClinganRJ Barrett
PTS+1.6 (#20)-3.2 (#231)
REB-1.9 (#129)-2.7 (#179)
AST+1.5 (#26)-2.7 (#185)
STL+2.1 (#22)-1.8 (#137)
BLK-1.9 (#129)-2.1 (#139)
3PM+1.4 (#33)-2.5 (#175)
FG%-0.4 (#66)-3.4 (#178)
FT%+1.9 (#29)-1.0 (#97)
TO-0.6 (#75)-2.9 (#139)

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 432 ranked players.

Week 3 (Nov 2-8)

  • Donovan Clingan: 4 games (Mon @DEN, Wed @PHX, Fri @LAL, Sat SAS), 1 back-to-back.
  • RJ Barrett: 3 games (Mon @LAC, Wed @DEN, Fri @MIL), 1 back-to-back.

Every team's games this week · Week 3 streamers

Recent games

  • Donovan Clingan: 31.4 fantasy points a game over his last 6 of 2026-27, against 32.9 on the board.
  • RJ Barrett: 33.8 fantasy points a game over his last 7 of 2026-27, against 32.8 on the board.

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Other picks at the same spot

NBA fantasy rankings · Draft cheat sheet · Sleepers

Is Donovan Clingan playing tonight? · Is RJ Barrett playing tonight?

Rookie cards: Donovan Clingan, RJ Barrett

Common questions

  • Who is better for the rest of the 2026-27 season, Donovan Clingan or RJ Barrett?

    Points leagues: Donovan Clingan. 32.9 fantasy points per game against 32.8, 66th on our board to 67th. 9-cat leagues: Donovan Clingan again, +0.7 in summed z-scores against -2.6 (41st to 161st).

  • Who wins more categories, Donovan Clingan or RJ Barrett?

    Category by category, Donovan Clingan is ahead in 5 (REB, BLK, FG%, FT% and TO) and RJ Barrett in 4 (PTS, AST, STL and 3PM).

  • Who should I start in Week 3, Donovan Clingan or RJ Barrett?

    Donovan Clingan plays 4 games in Week 3 (Nov 2-8), RJ Barrett 3. For that week alone, start Donovan Clingan: 131.5 projected fantasy points to 98.5 for RJ Barrett.

By the Parlae deskBoard updated Nov 3, 2026 at 12:36 AM ETHow this is builtReport a wrong number