The 2025-26 NBA season has officially kicked off, while the now-ongoing PBA Philippine Cup kickstarts the second-oldest pro basketball league in the world’s golden anniversary, and there are a couple of matchups that I’m looking forward to competing in.
In partnership with Daily Fantasy, I’m here to share my must-roster players for this week's slate of games in the NBA and PBA — and why you should consider making them part of your lineup.
Kings v. Lakers (Oct. 27)
Must-Roster Players:
SAC: Zach LaVine, DeMar DeRozan
LAL: Luka Doncic, Rui Hachimura, Deandre Ayton
The Sacramento Kings are looking for leaders to guide their roster on the path to success, and no one else on this team fits that description better than Zach LaVine and DeMar DeRozan. Both are capable of putting up big numbers in terms of FPs (Fantasy Points), mainly due to their scoring prowess and ability to rack up steals on any given night.
As for the Los Angeles Lakers, Luka Doncic will always have to be in my lineups. A similar thought goes for Rui Hachimura, mainly because he will slot in as the small forward while LeBron James remains out with sciatica.
The Deandre Ayton pick might be surprising given his run of performances thus far, but I’m relying on the Bahamian big man to turn in a standout performance, especially with Domantas Sabonis still projected to be out due to a Grade 1 hamstring issue.
Warriors v. Clippers (Oct. 29)
Must-Roster Players:
GSW: Stephen Curry, Jimmy Butler
LAC: James Harden, Brook Lopez
As much as I wanted to pick many top names for this game, they’re way too expensive to add to my lineup, so I had to make some concessions and go with my gut as to which players will shine.
For the Warriors, Stephen Curry and Jimmy Butler are both on my must-roster list since they will need to carry most of the load on both ends of the floor if Golden State is to emerge victorious.
I was tempted to take Kawhi Leonard and pair him with Ivica Zubac, but they would combine for too many credits. Instead, I’m making sure James Harden is there since he’s the focal point of their offense, and then drafting Brook Lopez because he’s much cheaper than Zu, but brings the same (or at least similar) impact to the box score.
Phoenix v. Magnolia (Oct. 31)
Must-Roster Players:
PHX: Jason Perkins, Kai Ballungay, Ricci Rivero
MAG: Zavier Lucero, Jerom Lastimosa
Magnolia's Zavier Lucero is already at a no-brainer level in terms of being added to my lineup since he's been super consistent in putting up high FPs this season thus far.
Jerom Lastimosa joins Lucero in this list owing to his high FP productivity despite only averaging about 28 minutes this season. Aside from scoring and setting up his teammates with ease, Lastimosa is good for one to two steals per game with extremely low turnover numbers.
Ricci Rivero is an easy pick for me also because the former UAAP standout has been relatively unstoppable thus far in a Daily Fantasy setting. At only 9 credits, he's one of the best-value picks in this matchup.
The same can be said for his teammates in the frontcourt in the form of Jason Perkins and Kai Ballungay. Granted, Perkins has yet to put up numbers similar to last season, but I believe he's due for a big game very soon — and Magnolia just might be the team he'll do it against.
