The Deep League Pairing Guides are now the Deep League Fast Starts Guides! It didn’t seem fair to map out the early rounds for standard league players but not for deep league players.
Here are 65 four-player combinations built around Nikola Jokic, Victor Wembanyama, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Luka Doncic, Cade Cunningham, Giannis Antetokounmpo, Tyrese Maxey, and Jayson Tatum. Part 2 will feature teams built around eight more potential first-round picks.
Victor Wembanyama (Pick 1-3)
Punt FG%
Wembanyama/Brunson/Murphy/Dejounte Murray – This group comes with no per-game weaknesses. It is about average in rebounds and is dominant in points, threes, blocks, and FT%. Markkanen and Bam both work well in place of Murphy. This is a great target combination in auction leagues. If there are no point guards available at the 2/3 turn, consider switching to punt assists. In deeper leagues, it will be very hard to make a comeback in dimes if you don’t pair Wembanyama with at least one 6.5+ APG player early.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (Pick 2-4)
Punt Threes
Gilgeous-Alexander/Giddey/Duren/Wagner – You can do better than Giddey in the second round in standard leagues, but in deeper leagues, he’s a solid second-round target for SGA teams aiming to punt threes because he offsets the MVP’s relatively modest output in rebounds and assists. SGA’s dominance of points, both percentages, and turnovers also offsets the main issues with the Australian’s line. This group is a touch light on swats, but is above average in the remaining seven categories. If Wagner isn’t available, Dejounte Murray works well as a replacement.
Luka Doncic (Pick 3-4)
Punt FT%
Doncic/Murphy/Kessler/Dejounte Murray – Grabbing Kessler and another point guard in rounds two or three is the best way to start a deep-league punt FT% squad. However, with there not being a ton of point guard options between picks 30 and 50 this year, you may not always have one available to you. If there are no point guards available in your range, don’t reach. Grab a player like Murphy or Williams instead. You do have some wiggle room with dimes due to how dominant Luka is in the category. This is still an above-average start in assists. With Williams in place of Murphy, it is a very strong start in the category. This group is a touch light on points and below average in turnovers, but is elite in threes, rebounds, steals, and blocks.
2026-2027 Deep League Fast Starts Guides – Part 1
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