Category Studs: Blocks And Steals Targets For Fantasy Basketball (2025-2026)

September 23, 2025

Andrew Ball takes a look at players who can help you out in blocks and steals in the 2025-26 fantasy basketball season.

It's about that time of the year to check in on the Stock Market.

Oh, you thought we were heading to Wall Street? No, we're forecasting the NBA regular season to predict which players will lead the league in blocks and steals this season.

Finding the right player who stacks up "stocks" (steals + blocks) can tilt the odds in your favor in categories and Roto leagues. Here are some targets to give you the edge for defensive stats.

Fantasy Basketball Studs for Stocks (Steals Plus Blocks)

*minimum 45 games played

The 1 + 1 Club (steals, blocks)

• Wembanyama
• Davis
• Jackson Jr.
• Thompson
• Gilgeous-Alexander
• Jalen Johnson (1.6, 1.0)*
• Draymond Green (1.5, 1.o)
• Scottie Barnes (1.4, 1.0)
• Jakob Poeltl (1.2, 1.2)
• P.J. Washington (1.1, 1.1)
• John Collins (1.0, 1.0)**

*36 games played

**40 games played

Wembanyama continues to break the game, averaging 1.4 blocks more per game than the next best player, Kessler. Toss in another steal per contest, and the defensive alien is a consensus top-three selection in fantasy drafts. And we're not even going to cover his ever-improving offensive arsenal in this article.

Wembanyama blocks Giannis two plays in a row 👀 pic.twitter.com/FY5pfh9wLp

— Kevin O'Connor (@KevinOConnor) February 1, 2025

Davis and Chet Holmgren are the Wembanyama consolation prizes. Davis is the only other player who averaged more than two blocks and one steal per game. His steal numbers did dip in his brief, nine-game regular season stint in Dallas after the blockbuster trade of the century. It's difficult to predict how it would have played out over the back half of the season if Davis stayed healthy. However, that's always the concern with AD, who has played over 55 games once since 2020.

Holmgren was one of five players to average two blocks or more per game, and he added 0.7 steals. That would place him second on the list, albeit still a full stock behind Wemby. He only played in 32 games last season.

Turner is the wildcard as he switched teams this offseason. Turner averaged two blocks and 0.8 steals per game for the Indiana Pacers last year. The Bucks signed him to replace Brook Lopez, who is now backing up Ivica Zubac in Los Angeles. Lopez averaged similar numbers (1.9 blocks, 0.6 steals) as the man in the middle for the Bucks. Turner's defensive stats shouldn't suffer.

There are only three point-guard eligible players who averaged one block per game: Gilgeous-Alexander, Thompson, and Derrick White. Defensive stats are icing after all the other benefits managers get for rostering the reigning NBA MVP. Thompson may be a future Defensive Player of the Year (unless Wembanyama sweeps for the next decade). He's a top 30 pick in nine-cat leagues, as his Derrick White, who will take on more of the offensive responsibilities with Jayson Tatum (Achilles) sidelined.

200 3's - 70 Blocks - NBA History

Paul Pierce, 2002
Robert Covington, 2018
DERRICK WHITE, 2025

End of list

— Sean Grande (@SeanGrandePBP) March 26, 2025

Jackson shifted back to the four in Memphis' starting lineup last season, but it didn't make an impact on his stocks. 1.2 steals and 1.5 blocks (down 0.1 from 2024-25) are nothing to scoff at, but it's a far cry from the dominant 2.3 and three-block averages in 2021-22 and 2022-23, respectively. It's looking more and more like his Defensive Player of the Year campaign was an outlier.

Johnson built on his breakout 2023-2024 season, averaging 19-10-5 in 36 games before a season-ending shoulder injury. He even improved upon his steals and blocks averages. He'll return to the Atlanta starting lineup in October and will stuff the stat sheet, although his three-point and free-throw efficiency could use some work.

The perpetually underappreciated Poeltl has averaged one steal, 1.3 blocks, nine boards, nearly 13 points, and a couple of assists to boot over three seasons in his second stint in Toronto.

And, of course, we can't forget about the reigning Defensive Player of the Year, Evan Mobley, who averages a very consistent 2.4 stocks per game in his four-year career.

Fantasy Basketball Studs: Blocks Specialists

Walker Kessler - C, Utah Jazz

The Utah Jazz have invested heavily in frontcourt options with Lauri Markkanen, Ace Bailey, Taylor Hendricks, Kyle Filipowski, and Cody Williams (to a lesser extent) fighting for playing time. Some of them, particularly Markkanen and Filipowski, may spin down to play the five, but Kessler doesn't face much other competition for playing time.

Jusuf Nurkic is the backup center on the depth chart, putting Kessler in line for another 30-minute average this season. He'll light up the box score in rebounds (12.4 last season) and blocks (2.4), but isn't a strong free-throw shooter (52%) and projects to average around 10 points per game.

Hopefully, the Jazz won't implement load management as often this season, which will keep Kessler in the lineup with more consistency.

Daniel Gafford, Dereck Lively II - C, Dallas Mavericks

If Davis is pulled away from the paint, he has two centers to clean up for him. Gafford blocked 1.8 shots per game last year. Lively wasn't too far behind at 1.6.

Unfortunately, they are both part of Dallas' big rotation and only play 21-23 minutes per night. Gafford has averaged double-digit points since he arrived in Dallas. Lively is a slightly better passer, but doesn't score at the same clip as his center counterpart.

Both Dallas centers will give fantasy managers a great field goal percentage and blocks, but little else. Their per-36 rebounding rate is fantastic, but the limited playing time keeps the actual averages around seven boards.

Rudy Gobert - C, Minnesota Timberwolves

What more is there to say about Gobert at this point in his career? The four-time Defensive Player of the Year averaged two blocks per game in his career, a threshold he's surpassed all but twice since 2015. Unfortunately, one of those occasions was last season. The same three-big rotation remains from last year, meaning the Stifle Tower will split minutes with Naz Reid and Julius Randle. Gobert won't take a shot outside of the paint, leading to a great field goal percentage. Just don't count on free throws.

Donovan Clingan - C, Portland Trail Blazers

Clingan may be the American version of Gobert. With the now-departed Deandre Ayton clogging center minutes in Portland, Clingan played less than 20 minutes per game last year. Toward the end of the season, when the rookie was a staple in the starting lineup, he posted some absurd rebounding and block totals. He failed to reject a shot just five times since he became the starting center in mid-February. He averaged 10 rebounds per game over that stretch in just over 25 minutes per game.

EVERY. DONOVAN. CLINGAN. BLOCK.

enjoy 👀🍿 pic.twitter.com/7wLzzfFFmo

— Portland Trail Blazers (@trailblazers) April 17, 2025

Clingan's fantasy outlook may hinge on how ready first-round pick Yang Hansen is to play in the NBA. If the Chinese center contributes right away, Clingan's minutes won't drastically change. If he's not, Clingan will be the defensive anchor for the Trail Blazers and post great rebounding and block numbers.

Fantasy Basketball Studs: Steals Specialists

Dyson Daniels - PG/SG/SF, Atlanta Hawks

Daniels is to steals as Wembanyama is to blocks. The Great Barrier Thief, a popular breakout candidate last season, exceeded expectations on both ends of the court. In his first season in Atlanta, he upped his points per game from 5.8 to 14.1 and led the league with three swipes per game. Although his other per-36 stats stayed mostly consistent, the increase in minutes led to the Most Improved Player award.

Just don't dribble around Dyson Daniels pic.twitter.com/GcK8zdMdji

— NBA ClipWork 🎞️ (@NBAclipwork) September 19, 2025

Daniels still isn't an efficient shooter (34% from three, 59% from the charity stripe), but will give fantasy managers double-digit combined rebounds and assists, while giving (potentially) the best steals boost league-wide.

Herbert Jones - SF/PF, New Orleans Pelicans

Don't forget about the defensive menace Jones because of his injury-shortened 2024 season. He hasn't averaged fewer than 1.4 takeaways in his four professional seasons, and topped out at 1.9 per game in his 20 appearances last season. Unfortunately, Jones won't make much of an impact anywhere else in the box score, despite the 30+ minutes per game he's projected to play alongside Trey Murphy III and Zion Williamson. Hopefully, the multiple shoulder injuries won't impact his three-point shot, and he can get back to the 40+ percent he shot in 2023-2024.

Cason Wallace - PG/SG, Oklahoma City Thunder

If SGA isn't going to take the rock, and Alex Caruso isn't being a pest, well, offenses still have to worry about Wallace. The part-time starter stole 1.8 basketballs per game last year for the NBA champions. It's fair to project that the 2023 10th-overall pick takes a step forward entering his third season, but the Thunder roster is so crowded that his per-game metrics may not rise. Wallace, Caruso, Aaron Wiggins, Isaiah Joe, and Nikola Topic all deserve minutes off the bench.

Toumani Camara - SF/PF, Portland Trail Blazers

Camara, the late second-round pick in 2023, is now an established part of the Trail Blazers' rotation and earned an All-Defense nod after shadowing the opposition's best scorer and picking up a steal-and-a-half per contest.

But, much like Jones, that's his role. The scoring falls on the shoulders of Shaedon Sharpe and Deni Avdija. Clingan cleans up the glass, while veteran newcomer Jrue Holiday will facilitate the offense. It doesn't leave much room, barring a massive offseason improvement, for Camara to be more than fantasy basketball bench depth.

Ausar Thompson - SF/PF, Detroit Pistons

Right now, twin brother Amen can sing "Anything You Can Do (I Can Do Better)" to Ausar. Houston's Thompson has better stats in every department, except steals. Detroit's Thompson nabbed 1.7 steals per game and is the defensive stalwart for the Pistons. He'll play a big part of the rotation in 2025-2026, and could be more like his brother. Remember, Ausar was in recovery mode during his first professional offseason due to blood clots. Fantasy managers can bank on improvement across the board, except for a reliable three-point shot. The Thompson twins haven't figured that one out yet.

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