The NBA never runs short on takes, but somehow these ten guys keep slipping through the cracks every season.
Buried behind trade rumours, crowded rosters, or a bigger name standing right next to them, their numbers and their impact never quite get the credit they deserve.
Heading into 2026-27, these are the names that deserve far more shine than they are getting, and the ones worth keeping an eye on when the flowers finally start getting handed out.
Zach Edey, Memphis Grizzlies
Two straight ankle surgeries in nine months would derail most careers before they even get started. Instead, in the 11 games Edey actually played last season, the 7-foot-3 former Purdue big man averaged 13.6 points, 11.1 rebounds and 1.9 blocks per game while shooting 63 per cent from the field. That is monster production in a tiny sample. Edey has now been medically cleared and is on track for opening night. Give him a full, healthy season and he could take the league by storm.
Leonard Miller, Chicago Bulls
A second-round throw-in piece the Timberwolves once gave up on without blinking. Since landing in Chicago at the trade deadline, Miller has put up a career-high 26 points and 11 rebounds, and the Bulls have already exercised his team option to keep him around. That is not what a franchise does with a guy who does not matter. Miller may not be a household name yet, but Chicago clearly sees something worth investing in.
Darius Garland, LA Clippers
Everyone is writing about the Clippers right now, and rightly so. Kawhi Leonard's expected move back to Toronto has dominated the headlines, with Brandon Ingram, Gradey Dick and a stack of picks set to head the other way if the deal is finalised. Suddenly, Garland is buried under an avalanche of noise in his own building.
He is already a two-time All-Star who signed a five-year, $197 million rookie extension back in 2022, and only ended up in LA after Cleveland shipped him out for James Harden in February. Regardless of everything swirling around him, expect Garland to quietly put together a seriously impressive points and assists stat line this season while the rest of the league is distracted by his teammates.
Coby White, Charlotte Hornets
White was putting up 18.6 points, 4.7 assists and 3.7 rebounds per game before he was traded to Charlotte in February. Now, with LaMelo Ball out of the picture, White has signed a fresh three-year, $74 million deal to become the Hornets' full-time lead guard, running the show alongside Brandon Miller and Kon Knueppel. He was a star in the Play-In games last season. This year, he gets to be the guy from tip-off.
Collin Murray-Boyles, Toronto Raptors
The ninth overall pick in 2025 quietly put together a genuinely impressive rookie season, averaging 8.5 points on 58 per cent shooting, along with 5.0 rebounds and nearly a steal and a block per game.
Offseason footage has also shown a noticeable improvement in his three-point shot. This could be the year Murray-Boyles develops into the defensive powerhouse that teams actually have to game plan around.
Kel'el Ware, Milwaukee Bucks
Ware spent last season stuck behind Bam Adebayo in Miami, but whenever he got meaningful minutes, he looked like a double-double machine, averaging 11.1 points, 9.0 rebounds and 1.1 blocks per game while shooting 53 per cent from the field and 39.5 per cent from three.
Now, as part of the return Milwaukee received for trading Giannis Antetokounmpo to Miami this offseason, Ware has a genuine opportunity to step into a much bigger role. With only Myles Turner alongside him, the frontcourt is essentially his to own. Ware has the tools to become one of the league's premier rim protectors this season.
Kasparas Jakučionis, Milwaukee Bucks
Jakučionis arrived in the exact same Giannis blockbuster that brought Ware to Milwaukee. He already showed genuine two-way upside as a rookie in Miami, even making his first career start back in December. Now, he steps into a much bigger opportunity in Milwaukee as the Bucks begin a full reset around a young core. With more responsibility and a clearer path to minutes, this could be the season Jakučionis starts showing why Milwaukee wanted him as part of the deal.
Franz Wagner, Orlando Magic
Nobody talks about Wagner enough. He is on a max contract, has dealt with a run of genuinely rotten injury luck alongside Paolo Banchero, and somehow still gets treated like the second guy in his own frontcourt. This is the year that changes. Wagner has all the tools to take another leap and establish himself as a genuine superstar. The league is sleeping on him, and that changes in 2026/27.
Sandro Mamukelashvili, LA Lakers
Mamukelashvili went from a minimum-salary bench player in Toronto to signing a four-year, $52 million deal with the Lakers off the back of a genuine breakout season. He averaged 11.2 points per game while shooting 38.9 per cent from three across all 80 games. Whether he comes off the bench or steps into the starting five, that power forward spot alongside Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves is basically his to lose. Now he gets the chance to prove that last season was not a fluke.
Ben Simmons, Sacramento Kings
A three-time All-Star, two-time All-Defensive First Team selection and former number one overall pick, Simmons spent the entire 2025/26 season on the sidelines rehabbing his back. Now, he is back on a redemption arc with a young Kings team that has handed the keys to 19-year-old rookie point guard Darius Acuff Jr.
Simmons has a chance to show real leadership, contribute across multiple positions and prove he can still be a genuinely important rotational piece in the NBA. After everything he has been through, this could be his chance to remind people what he can actually do on a basketball court.
