Mark Williams vs Reed Sheppard: who to draft in 2026-27
Draft Mark Williams in both formats: 27.1 fantasy points a game to 27.0 in points leagues, and 64th against 65th in 9-cat. The two go close together on our board, which is our own ranking order from 2025-26 box scores, not ADP.
- Points leagues
- #116
- 27.1 FP/G, slot 10.08, $7
- 9-cat leagues
- #64
- -0.1 z, slot 6.04, $15
Out (Shoulder)
The pick in points and 9-cat leagues.
- Points leagues
- #117
- 27.0 FP/G, slot 10.09, $7
- 9-cat leagues
- #65
- -0.2 z, slot 6.05, $14
The call
Points leagues: draft Mark Williams. 27.1 fantasy points per game against 27.0, 116th on our board to 117th.
9-cat leagues: Mark Williams again, -0.1 in summed z-scores against -0.2 (64th to 65th).
Category by category, Mark Williams is ahead in 4 (REB, BLK, FG% and TO) and Reed Sheppard in 5 (PTS, AST, STL, 3PM and FT%).
Per 36 minutes, Mark Williams produces more: 41.3 fantasy points to 37.2, on 23.6 minutes a night against 26.2. He does it in fewer minutes, so a bigger role would widen the gap.
Mark Williams plays 2 games in Week 1 (Oct 19-25), Reed Sheppard 3. For that week alone, start Reed Sheppard: 81.1 projected fantasy points to 0.0 for Mark Williams.
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.
Per game, side by side
| Per game | Mark Williams | Reed Sheppard |
|---|---|---|
| Fantasy points per game | 27.1 | 27.0 |
| Minutes | 23.6 | 26.2 |
| PointsPTS | 11.7 | 13.5 |
| ReboundsREB | 8.0 | 2.9 |
| AssistsAST | 1.0 | 3.4 |
| StealsSTL | 0.9 | 1.5 |
| BlocksBLK | 0.9 | 0.7 |
| Threes3PM | 0.0 | 2.8 |
| Field goal %FG% | 64.4% | 43.0% |
| Free throw %FT% | 77.1% | 80.2% |
| TurnoversTO | 1.1 | 1.5 |
| Games, 2025-26 | 60 | 82 |
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 | Mark Williams | Reed Sheppard |
|---|---|---|
| Fantasy points | 41.3 | 37.2 |
| Points | 17.8 | 18.6 |
| Rebounds | 12.1 | 4.0 |
| Assists | 1.5 | 4.6 |
| Steals | 1.4 | 2.0 |
| Blocks | 1.4 | 0.9 |
| Threes | 0.0 | 3.8 |
| Turnovers | 1.7 | 2.1 |
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 | Mark Williams | Reed Sheppard |
|---|---|---|
| PointsPTS | -0.9 | -0.6 |
| ReboundsREB | +0.9 | -1.3 |
| AssistsAST | -1.3 | -0.1 |
| StealsSTL | -0.3 | +1.3 |
| BlocksBLK | +0.5 | -0.1 |
| Threes3PM | -1.7 | +1.1 |
| Field goal percentageFG% | +1.8 | -1.1 |
| Free throw percentageFT% | -0.2 | +0.0 |
| TurnoversTO | +1.0 | +0.5 |
| Total | -0.1 | -0.2 |
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 rebounds, blocks, field goal percentage and turnovers flips the 9-cat answer to Reed Sheppard.
| Punt | Mark Williams | Reed Sheppard |
|---|---|---|
| PTS | +0.7 (#40) | +0.2 (#56) |
| REB | -1.4 (#107) | +1.1 (#36) |
| AST | +1.2 (#32) | -0.2 (#67) |
| STL | +0.1 (#63) | -1.6 (#124) |
| BLK | -0.9 (#86) | -0.2 (#68) |
| 3PM | +1.5 (#31) | -1.4 (#110) |
| FG% | -2.5 (#138) | +1.0 (#46) |
| FT% | +0.2 (#59) | -0.3 (#72) |
| TO | -1.3 (#94) | -0.7 (#76) |
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 406 ranked players.
Week 1 (Oct 19-25)
- Mark Williams: 2 games (Wed @POR, Sat GSW), listed Out.
- Reed Sheppard: 3 games (Wed DAL, Fri @SAS, Sat @ATL), 1 back-to-back.
Recent games
- Mark Williams: 21.8 fantasy points a game over his last 10 of 2025-26, against 27.1 on the board.
- Reed Sheppard: 28.0 fantasy points a game over his last 10 of 2025-26, against 27.0 on the board.
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Other picks at the same spot
NBA fantasy rankings · Draft cheat sheet · Sleepers
Common questions
Should I draft Mark Williams or Reed Sheppard in 2026-27?
Points leagues: draft Mark Williams. 27.1 fantasy points per game against 27.0, 116th on our board to 117th. 9-cat leagues: Mark Williams again, -0.1 in summed z-scores against -0.2 (64th to 65th).
Who wins more categories, Mark Williams or Reed Sheppard?
Category by category, Mark Williams is ahead in 4 (REB, BLK, FG% and TO) and Reed Sheppard in 5 (PTS, AST, STL, 3PM and FT%).
Who should I start in Week 1, Mark Williams or Reed Sheppard?
Mark Williams plays 2 games in Week 1 (Oct 19-25), Reed Sheppard 3. For that week alone, start Reed Sheppard: 81.1 projected fantasy points to 0.0 for Mark Williams.
By the Parlae deskBoard updated Oct 13, 2026 at 5:20 PM ETHow this is builtReport a wrong number