Jakob Poeltl vs John Collins: who to start in Week 1
Jakob Poeltl plays 3 games in Week 1 (Oct 19-25), John Collins 3. For that week alone, start Jakob Poeltl: 75.1 projected fantasy points to 75.0 for John Collins. Over the season, Jakob Poeltl leads in points leagues (25.0 fantasy points a game to 25.0) and John Collins in 9-cat leagues (86th against 113th). 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, 4:26 AM ET. Rechecked every 30 minutes.
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- Points leagues
- #132
- 25.0 FP/G, slot 11.12, $5
- 9-cat leagues
- #113
- -1.5 z, slot 10.05, $6
The pick in points leagues.
- Points leagues
- #133
- 25.0 FP/G, slot 12.01, $4
- 9-cat leagues
- #86
- -1.0 z, slot 8.02, $10
The pick in 9-cat leagues.
The call
Points leagues: Jakob Poeltl. 25.0 fantasy points per game against 25.0, 132nd on our board to 133rd.
9-cat leagues: John Collins instead, -1.0 in summed z-scores against -1.5 (86th to 113th), because the categories pay for a different mix.
Category by category, Jakob Poeltl is ahead in 5 (REB, AST, STL, FG% and TO) and John Collins in 3 (PTS, 3PM and FT%).
Per 36 minutes, Jakob Poeltl produces more: 36.2 fantasy points to 33.1, on 24.9 minutes a night against 27.2. He does it in fewer minutes, so a bigger role would widen the gap.
Jakob Poeltl plays 3 games in Week 1 (Oct 19-25), John Collins 3. For that week alone, start Jakob Poeltl: 75.1 projected fantasy points to 75.0 for John Collins.
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 | Jakob Poeltl | John Collins |
|---|---|---|
| Fantasy points per game | 25.0 | 25.0 |
| Minutes | 24.9 | 27.2 |
| PointsPTS | 10.0 | 13.7 |
| ReboundsREB | 7.1 | 5.4 |
| AssistsAST | 1.9 | 1.0 |
| StealsSTL | 0.9 | 0.8 |
| BlocksBLK | 0.7 | 0.7 |
| Threes3PM | 0.0 | 1.4 |
| Field goal %FG% | 70.2% | 55.1% |
| Free throw %FT% | 60.2% | 76.6% |
| TurnoversTO | 1.2 | 1.3 |
| Games, 2025-26 | 46 | 69 |
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 | Jakob Poeltl | John Collins |
|---|---|---|
| Fantasy points | 36.2 | 33.1 |
| Points | 14.4 | 18.1 |
| Rebounds | 10.2 | 7.2 |
| Assists | 2.7 | 1.3 |
| Steals | 1.3 | 1.1 |
| Blocks | 1.1 | 0.9 |
| Threes | 0.0 | 1.9 |
| Turnovers | 1.7 | 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 | Jakob Poeltl | John Collins |
|---|---|---|
| PointsPTS | -1.1 | -0.5 |
| ReboundsREB | +0.6 | -0.2 |
| AssistsAST | -0.9 | -1.3 |
| StealsSTL | -0.4 | -0.5 |
| BlocksBLK | +0.1 | +0.0 |
| Threes3PM | -1.7 | -0.2 |
| Field goal percentageFG% | +2.2 | +1.1 |
| Free throw percentageFT% | -1.3 | -0.2 |
| TurnoversTO | +0.9 | +0.7 |
| Total | -1.5 | -1.0 |
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, threes and free throw percentage flips the 9-cat answer to Jakob Poeltl.
| Punt | Jakob Poeltl | John Collins |
|---|---|---|
| PTS | -0.5 (#81) | -0.6 (#84) |
| REB | -2.5 (#163) | -0.9 (#90) |
| AST | -0.8 (#89) | +0.2 (#47) |
| STL | -1.3 (#108) | -0.6 (#76) |
| BLK | -2.0 (#130) | -1.2 (#98) |
| 3PM | +0.1 (#58) | -0.9 (#90) |
| FG% | -4.6 (#237) | -2.3 (#136) |
| FT% | -0.2 (#68) | -0.9 (#89) |
| TO | -2.6 (#129) | -1.8 (#105) |
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)
- Jakob Poeltl: 3 games (Wed CHI, Fri @WAS, Sun @MIN).
- John Collins: 3 games (Tue BOS, Fri @MIA, Sun @PHI).
Recent games
- Jakob Poeltl: 20.5 fantasy points a game over his last 2 of 2026-27, against 25.0 on the board.
- John Collins: 25.7 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 Jakob Poeltl playing tonight? · Is John Collins playing tonight?
Rookie cards: John Collins
Common questions
Who is better for the rest of the 2026-27 season, Jakob Poeltl or John Collins?
Points leagues: Jakob Poeltl. 25.0 fantasy points per game against 25.0, 132nd on our board to 133rd. 9-cat leagues: John Collins instead, -1.0 in summed z-scores against -1.5 (86th to 113th), because the categories pay for a different mix.
Who wins more categories, Jakob Poeltl or John Collins?
Category by category, Jakob Poeltl is ahead in 5 (REB, AST, STL, FG% and TO) and John Collins in 3 (PTS, 3PM and FT%).
Who should I start in Week 1, Jakob Poeltl or John Collins?
Jakob Poeltl plays 3 games in Week 1 (Oct 19-25), John Collins 3. For that week alone, start Jakob Poeltl: 75.1 projected fantasy points to 75.0 for John Collins.
By the Parlae deskBoard updated Oct 24, 2026 at 4:26 AM ETHow this is builtReport a wrong number