The second night of the 2026-27 NBA season gave us an 11-game slate and a whole lot of basketball on a Wednesday night. Here are the five fantasy takeaways from Night 2 of opening week in the Association:

Best performances: Anthony Edwards and Ty Jerome

Edwards put on a show in his season opener, lighting up Miami for 45 points on 16-of-29 shooting with 9 3s in 33 minutes. He added 10 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 steals and a block for 66.5 fantasy points, the most on the slate. Ant-Man was in attack mode all night. He scored 23 of his 45 points unassisted and he finished the contest with an absurd 40.2% usage rate. That's the volume I was betting on when I predicted he'd win the scoring title and finish top-12 in 9-cat formats. 

Jerome was the night's surprise star. He went nuclear, posting 64.4 fantasy points after scoring a career-best 45 points on an uber-efficient 17-of-25 shooting in Wednesday's win over the Jazz. The shot-making was incredible — hitting from all three levels and putting on a clinic of tough heat-check buckets. He added 7 boards and 6 assists, 5 3s and a block in 32 minutes. Fourteen of his 17 field goals were self-created, showcasing how dynamic he was as the primary scorer for the Grizz. Congrats if you landed Jerome at his wildly low ADP after pick 100 on Yahoo. If he can stay healthy, we could be looking at the value of the season.

Welcome back, Tyrese Haliburton and Damian Lillard

Haliburton scored 23 points on 8-of-15 shooting and went 5-of-5 at the line, with 12 assists, a steal and 3 turnovers in 34 minutes. That's 43.4 fantasy points in a 123-120 win over New Orleans. He was the engine of the offense, with 7 of his 8 made baskets unassisted, and his 12 assists led to 26 points for Indy.

He was clutch too, making two driving floaters in the final 2 minutes to help seal the win. Pascal Siakam (30 points) and Ivica Zubac (16 points, 15 rebounds, 2 blocks) both delivered, while Obi Toppin scored 20 off the bench with 4 3s. This is the version of Haliburton we wanted to see. He looked every bit worth a late-first, early-second-round pick.

Lillard led the Blazers' rout of the Suns with 25 points on 7-of-12 shooting, 6-of-10 from beyond the arc, plus 6 assists, 3 rebounds and a steal in just 23 minutes. The blowout kept his minutes down, but his efficiency and playmaking were on point. Like many, I doubted how Dame and Ja Morant would fit together. On Wednesday night, it looked seamless. With so many ball-handlers and creators on the floor, Portland constantly pressured the Suns' defense inside and out. They dominated the paint and hit 19 3s at a 40% clip. Jrue Holiday will be the odd man out, but Lillard's role looks secure and he's poised to put up the numbers we're used to seeing before his Achilles injury.

Walker Kessler was perfect in his Lakers debut

The prized free-agent center proved his worth in his first night as a Laker against a super light Golden State frontcourt. Kessler went 12-of-12 from the field for 26 points, 9 rebounds and 2 blocks in 29 minutes in a 127-105 rout of the Warriors. These were the easiest looks Kessler's received, with 8 of his 12 baskets coming from either Luka Dončić or Austin Reaves in the paint.

The Warriors looked awful, but the way Kessler migrated and hovered around the paint has me thinking he could push for the league's highest FG% this season. It could be an overreaction, but if Shaq believes he's the best true big man in the game, I'm taking some stock in that (he rarely says anything complimentary about any big man, even Dwight Howard). The Lakers paid Kessler to be that guy to hold down the paint and he more than checked the box in his debut. 

Dončić (28 points on 7-of-18, 5-of-12 from 3, 9-of-9 at the line, 8 rebounds, 7 assists and 3 steals) and Reaves (23 points, 6 assists, 10-of-10 at the line) did the rest. The loudest part of Luka's game was chirping at Yaxel Lendeborg all game. Golden State never got going. Stephen Curry scored 23 in 21 minutes on 7-of-15 shooting, but the rest of the Dubs looked mediocre. The Warriors face a long season. Fantasy managers better hope Curry can last.

Worst performance: the Phoenix Suns

Portland jumped out to a 21-0 lead in the opening frame and didn't look back; the Suns didn't score until 5:54 left in the quarter, and Phoenix lost 124-83, trailing by as many as 52. The Suns shot 36% and went 6-of-31 from 3. Devin Booker was the lone bright spot (if we even want to call it that), scoring 34.8 fantasy points. He went for 23 points, 4 rebounds, 2 assists, with a steal and block in 29 minutes. All seven of his field goals were unassisted and he finished -43. That's a concern: nobody was setting him up. Dillon Brooks (10 points on 4-of-11), Miles Bridges (8 points on 3-of-11, 0-of-5 from 3) and Jalen Green (10 points on 4-of-12) all shot poorly, and Collin Gillespie went 0-of-8 from 3. Blowout minutes make everyone's line look worse than it is. But this team struggled to score against a Portland group led by Lillard and Morant, big yikes.

Kings rookie Darius Acuff Jr. shot 5-of-24 (20.8%) and 0-of-7 from 3, the second-lowest field goal percentage in a rookie debut in NBA history among players with at least 20 attempts, according to Underdog NBA. Only Sidney Wicks (18.5% in 1971) was worse. He did add three steals and three assists for 25.1 fantasy points. Not all hope is lost; they'll be fine — probably just nerves from their respective debuts.

Late-round bigs make an impact: Missi, Diabaté and Hayes

Yves Missi had 13 points, 14 rebounds, 5 assists, 2 steals and 3 blocks in 30 minutes in Wednesday's loss to the Pacers. Missi scored 51.3 fantasy points and he is still available in the majority of leagues. Shallow league managers, you know what to do.

Like Missi, Moussa Diabaté's ADP was around 115 in Yahoo drafts, but he overdelivered in his season opener. Coming out to 17 points, 8 boards and 5 steals, tallying 42.1 fantasy points. 

Jaxson Hayes came out of nowhere, swatting 6 shots in 26 minutes as the Jazz starter. With that kind of rim protection, he'll continue to start in place of the injured Jusuf Nurkić. 

I think Diabaté (33% rostered) is the best add of the group, followed by Missi (31% rostered) and Hayes (3% rostered). The trio of centers is rangy and athletic bigs who get stocks. That's what you want out of your late-round players.