Noah Clowney vs Royce O'Neale: who to draft in 2026-27
Draft Royce O'Neale in both formats: 22.7 fantasy points a game to 22.4 in points leagues, and 120th against 206th 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
- #167
- 22.4 FP/G, slot 14.11
- 9-cat leagues
- #206
- -3.9 z, slot 18.02
- Points leagues
- #166
- 22.7 FP/G, slot 14.10
- 9-cat leagues
- #120
- -1.8 z, slot 10.12, $6
The pick in points and 9-cat leagues.
The call
Points leagues: draft Royce O'Neale. 22.7 fantasy points per game against 22.4, 166th on our board to 167th.
9-cat leagues: Royce O'Neale again, -1.8 in summed z-scores against -3.9 (120th to 206th).
Category by category, Noah Clowney is ahead in 3 (PTS, BLK and FT%) and Royce O'Neale in 6 (REB, AST, STL, 3PM, FG% and TO).
Per 36 minutes, Noah Clowney produces more: 30.0 fantasy points to 28.8, on 27.0 minutes a night against 28.4. He does it in fewer minutes, so a bigger role would widen the gap.
Noah Clowney plays 3 games in Week 1 (Oct 19-25), Royce O'Neale 3. For that week alone, start Royce O'Neale: 68.0 projected fantasy points to 67.3 for Noah Clowney.
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 | Noah Clowney | Royce O'Neale |
|---|---|---|
| Fantasy points per game | 22.4 | 22.7 |
| Minutes | 27.0 | 28.4 |
| PointsPTS | 12.3 | 9.8 |
| ReboundsREB | 4.1 | 4.8 |
| AssistsAST | 1.6 | 2.7 |
| StealsSTL | 0.8 | 1.1 |
| BlocksBLK | 0.7 | 0.4 |
| Threes3PM | 2.0 | 2.7 |
| Field goal %FG% | 39.6% | 42.1% |
| Free throw %FT% | 80.4% | 71.1% |
| TurnoversTO | 1.5 | 1.3 |
| Games, 2025-26 | 66 | 78 |
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 | Noah Clowney | Royce O'Neale |
|---|---|---|
| Fantasy points | 30.0 | 28.8 |
| Points | 16.4 | 12.4 |
| Rebounds | 5.5 | 6.1 |
| Assists | 2.2 | 3.4 |
| Steals | 1.0 | 1.4 |
| Blocks | 0.9 | 0.5 |
| Threes | 2.6 | 3.4 |
| Turnovers | 2.1 | 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 | Noah Clowney | Royce O'Neale |
|---|---|---|
| PointsPTS | -0.8 | -1.2 |
| ReboundsREB | -0.8 | -0.5 |
| AssistsAST | -1.0 | -0.5 |
| StealsSTL | -0.7 | +0.2 |
| BlocksBLK | -0.0 | -0.6 |
| Threes3PM | +0.3 | +1.1 |
| Field goal percentageFG% | -1.4 | -0.9 |
| Free throw percentageFT% | +0.1 | -0.1 |
| TurnoversTO | +0.4 | +0.7 |
| Total | -3.9 | -1.8 |
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: Royce O'Neale stays ahead whichever category you give up.
| Punt | Noah Clowney | Royce O'Neale |
|---|---|---|
| PTS | -3.2 (#234) | -0.7 (#90) |
| REB | -3.3 (#216) | -1.4 (#108) |
| AST | -2.9 (#195) | -1.3 (#119) |
| STL | -3.3 (#199) | -2.0 (#141) |
| BLK | -4.2 (#236) | -1.4 (#96) |
| 3PM | -4.2 (#235) | -2.9 (#179) |
| FG% | -2.7 (#146) | -0.9 (#85) |
| FT% | -4.0 (#218) | -1.7 (#123) |
| TO | -4.5 (#190) | -2.6 (#123) |
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)
- Noah Clowney: 3 games (Wed CHA, Sat @CLE, Sun IND), 1 back-to-back.
- Royce O'Neale: 3 games (Wed @BKN, Fri ATL, Sat MIA), 1 back-to-back.
Recent games
- Noah Clowney: 17.8 fantasy points a game over his last 10 of 2025-26, against 22.4 on the board.
- Royce O'Neale: 19.7 fantasy points a game over his last 10 of 2025-26, against 22.7 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 Noah Clowney or Royce O'Neale in 2026-27?
Points leagues: draft Royce O'Neale. 22.7 fantasy points per game against 22.4, 166th on our board to 167th. 9-cat leagues: Royce O'Neale again, -1.8 in summed z-scores against -3.9 (120th to 206th).
Who wins more categories, Noah Clowney or Royce O'Neale?
Category by category, Noah Clowney is ahead in 3 (PTS, BLK and FT%) and Royce O'Neale in 6 (REB, AST, STL, 3PM, FG% and TO).
Who should I start in Week 1, Noah Clowney or Royce O'Neale?
Noah Clowney plays 3 games in Week 1 (Oct 19-25), Royce O'Neale 3. For that week alone, start Royce O'Neale: 68.0 projected fantasy points to 67.3 for Noah Clowney.
By the Parlae deskBoard updated Oct 14, 2026 at 4:23 PM ETHow this is builtReport a wrong number