Last week we sorted out the point guard board. This week it’s the middle of the floor, where the offseason did more damage to draft-day assumptions than at any other position. Walker Kessler went from Utah to the Lakers in a sign-and-trade. Kel’el Ware went to Milwaukee as part of the Giannis Antetokounmpo deal with Miami. Nic Claxton landed in Chicago, Ivica Zubac is set for his first full season in Indiana, and Boston has a two-man race for its starting job. With the season tipping off Tuesday, October 20, here is how we’d stack the position for 2026-27, built for category leagues with notes where points formats change the picture.
Tier 1: The Two-Man Island
- 1. Nikola Jokic, Nuggets
- 2. Victor Wembanyama, Spurs
Jokic averaged a triple-double again last season, but he did it in 65 games, the fewest of his career. That is the only crack in the profile, and it is a small one. Wembanyama, entering his fourth season, swatted more than three shots a night and is the rare player who can carry blocks for your entire roster while still scoring like a first option. In points leagues, Jokic is the cleaner No. 1. In nine-category builds, the gap is close enough that roster construction should break the tie: if you are punting nothing and want the defensive cushion, Wembanyama is a perfectly defensible first pick.
Tier 2: Elite Production, Different Shapes
- 3. Karl-Anthony Towns, Knicks
- 4. Alperen Sengun, Rockets
- 5. Bam Adebayo, Heat
- 6. Domantas Sabonis, Kings
- 7. Walker Kessler, Lakers
Towns remains the best floor-spacing big in the format, a center who scores, rebounds and hits threes and free throws at a rate that keeps him from dragging your percentages. Sengun is the passing hub in Houston: 20.4 points, 8.9 rebounds and 6.2 assists across 72 games last season, plus 1.2 steals and 1.1 blocks. His 69 percent free-throw mark is the one category tax, and it is worth paying.
Adebayo is the most interesting projection in this tier. Antetokounmpo’s arrival in Miami changes the shot diet, and there will be nights when Bam is the third option. But his defensive stats and steady rebounding don’t depend on touches, and Giannis drawing two defenders should mean easier looks around the rim. We’d draft him as a stable building block rather than a ceiling play.
Sabonis played only 19 games last season around knee, back and rib problems and spent the summer in trade rumors that never materialized. He has said he is 100 percent, and when healthy he is a rebounds-and-assists machine that no other center replicates outside of Jokic. The discount is real; take it.
Kessler is where we break from the consensus. Some boards have him in the top five, and the upside is obvious: a double-double, multiple blocks a night and a lob partner in Luka Doncic. But he played five games last season after surgery on a torn labrum in his left shoulder, then missed the first three preseason games with a left pinky injury. His Lakers debut on October 13 was encouraging — 11 points, 9 rebounds and a block in roughly 16 minutes against Golden State — yet one preseason outing doesn’t erase a lost year. At seven, you get the upside without paying a top-five price for the risk.
Tier 3: Category Builders and High-Score Swings
- 8. Jalen Duren, Pistons
- 9. Donovan Clingan, Trail Blazers
- 10. Ivica Zubac, Pacers
- 11. Alex Sarr, Wizards
- 12. Joel Embiid, 76ers
Duren had his breakout: 19.5 points and 10.5 rebounds over 70 games for the Pistons, with efficient shooting from the floor. He doesn’t give you much in threes, steals or assists, so pair him with guards who do. Clingan averaged a double-double in his second season and showed a willingness to step out and shoot, which makes him one of the best category values in this range. Zubac arrived in Indiana at the February 5 deadline and now gets a full season alongside Tyrese Haliburton, who is expected back from a torn Achilles; a healthy Haliburton should mean a steadier diet of easy finishes.
Sarr’s shot-blocking and scoring touch are real, but injuries limited his sophomore year, and his free-throw and three-point percentages make him a better fit in points leagues. Embiid is the highest-variance pick on the board. Philadelphia has managed him carefully this preseason, sitting him for rest in the October 5 opener and again on October 10, and his debut on October 8 produced six points in 24 minutes. Take him only if your roster can absorb missed games — and plan on them.
Tier 4: Middle-Round Values
- 13. Onyeka Okongwu, Hawks
- 14. Rudy Gobert, Timberwolves
- 15. Jarrett Allen, Cavaliers
- 16. Nic Claxton, Bulls
Okongwu is the category-league darling of this tier. He made 1.9 threes per game on 5.2 attempts last season, hitting 37.6 percent from deep across 74 games. A center who adds threes without hurting your percentages is a cheat code for punt-free builds. Gobert and Allen are the steady rebounds, blocks and field-goal-percentage anchors they have been for years. Claxton gets a fresh start in Chicago after the draft-week trade from Brooklyn, and his all-around game fits any format.
Tier 5: Sleepers Worth a Late Pick
- 17. Kel’el Ware, Bucks
- 18. Zach Edey, Grizzlies
- 19. Day’Ron Sharpe, Nets
- 20. Neemias Queta, Celtics
Ware is our favorite late-round center. He opened the preseason with 14 points and 12 rebounds off the bench against Minnesota, then moved into the starting lineup next to Myles Turner on October 7 and posted 18 and 13 against Oklahoma City. Those are preseason numbers, but the role is the story: if new coach Taylor Jenkins keeps the two-big look, Ware’s floor rises considerably, and Turner’s future in Milwaukee is a live question.
Edey has had two procedures on his left ankle, the second ending his season in March, and he logged just 10 minutes in his preseason debut. Memphis is targeting the October 21 opener against Utah. When he plays, the rebounding and field-goal percentage are elite, but price in some load management. Sharpe has been a bench big his whole career and is expected to start in Brooklyn, which makes him a cheap per-minute bet. Queta was Boston’s full-time starter last year, but Mitchell Robinson arrived in free agency and the job is not settled. Monitor the final preseason games before committing.
How to Attack the Position
The depth here is real, and that should shape your draft. If you miss on Jokic or Wembanyama, there’s no need to reach for a center in the second or third round; Okongwu, Clingan and Duren all go much later and can anchor the boards and blocks for a team built around guards. The managers who get burned at center are the ones who stack injury risk — Embiid, Kessler, Sabonis, Edey — on the same roster. Pick one of those swings, back it up with a durable tier-four anchor, and grab Ware with one of your final picks. If he wins the full-time job in Milwaukee, he’ll pay off well above his draft slot.