Welcome to the Fanspaper, the newspaper of Fanspo! There will be one article and grid for every paper and we will most likely post these weekly or twice a week.
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Article 1
Every team’s most underrated player and why
Celtics:Derrick White
When I say this there is absolutely 0 bias, Sam Hauser is a great option but Derrick White could be a superstar this year, he is a great defender who also plays great offense and is a fun guy, there is nothing to hate about Derrick White
Knicks:Josh Hart
He is a fun guy who is the size of a point guard, standing at 6’4 and plays like a center, he grabs rebounds better than most bigs and can play great offense, he is like White, a hustle beast who is very fun to watch
76ers:Paul George
This one may be controversial but Paul George has become criminally underrated, he missed a ton of time last year due to injury so he wasn’t really able to take off and get used to the offense, he needs time and even then, 17 points isn’t even that bad for a 3rd option
Raptors:Brandon Ingram
This one is tough since they don’t have many underrated players but what is with the hate on Ingram? He is a solid 20-5-5 player when healthy and only had no success because he was stuck in New Orleans where all stars go to die before greatness
Nets:Michael Porter Jr.
MPJ is still good, I would argue that he is better than Cam Johnson, he is a great shooter and a good rebounder, it is just his passing and defense which Cam Johnson can’t do either, MPJ could go for 25-8-2 with the Nets if Cam Thomas can’t stay healthy
Cavaliers:Jarrett Allen
Jarrett is a great rebounder and brings a sneaky offensive presence to the Cavs which is great, he is a good defender and fits perfectly with Mobley, they are both great shot blocking rebounding bigs who can score when needed while letting Mitchell and Garland lead the charge
Bucks:Kyle Kuzma
This sounds wrong but Kuzma isn’t even that bad, I understand hating him because he is an absolute corn ball with the instagram outfits but still he is a solid 12-18 point scorer as a starter and can come as 6th man in certain spots, he is a starter for the Bucks, he can’t be that bad
Pacers:Bennedict Mathurin
No one talks about Mathurin, it is easy to say Nembhard since he is great and overshadowed by Haliburton but Mathurin is great offensively, he may lack in defensive skill but that doesn’t matter when he is still able to score 15 every night, he just needs to be the glue guy and get everything together as the 6th man or low end starter
Pistons:Tobias Harris
This one is tough since most of their players are overrated but Harris is still the second option, you could go Duncan Robinson but I think people have figured out that he is a good player and now able to start but some people think Harris has no value, he is still a starting forward on most NBA teams, you can’t say that about most players
Bulls:Josh Giddey
Giddey signed a huge extension showing how much he is truly worth, he is a great defender and can easily drop 20-8-8 any night, his size mixed with his agility and speed gives him a great build, just because public opinion is bad doesn’t mean he plays bad, he is a great player
Magic:Desmond Bane
5 firsts really changed public opinion on how he was valued and most people said it was an overpay which they aren’t wrong but Bridges went for similar value and no one batted an eye, I would argue that Bane is better, Bane is the good shooter that the Magic need and he can get some assisted to lighten Suggs’ load
Heat:Bam Adebayo
I feel like most people forgot about how solid Bam was last year because he was so quiet, the spotlight was on the rising star, Kelel Ware, but Bam was still going for 18-10 on most nights and stayed consistent, he was a defensive force as always and didn’t really have a big dip in production, just a loss of one or two points and maybe a rebound
Hawks:Kristaps Porzingis
Porzingis is a crazy being, 7’2 and skinny but at the same time an absolute truck, you don’t see people in the NBA who are like a train and a butterfly, he can shoot and play in the post while playing great defense and offense, he was in the perfect scheme with Boston as a 3&D player, like Tatum, White, and Holiday
Hornets:Miles Bridges
Not many choices here but how about the glue guy on a young team, Bridges has experience but is still young and despite some interesting and controversial things is still a good player, he and Giddey and similar players are often downgraded due to their actions off the court but it doesn’t make them bad athletes
Wizards:CJ McCollum
CJ has been underrated for years now, he is a star shooter who can play both guard positions while shooting well, adding passing, and a bit of rebounding, he a good all around offensive player and despite having a weaker defense, can still pack a punch anywhere else, I feel like he is an upgrade over Jordan Poole
Thunder:Isaiah Hartenstein
Hartenstein can score a solid 15 points when needed and can grab 10 rebounds too, he is a great compliment to Chet, it is similar to Mobley and Allen where there is a young power forward with a veteran center taking over their side of the country while grabbing plenty of boards and scoring at a solid level
Timberwolves:Julius Randle
Randle can bring stuff to both sides of the table, he is a good defender and a good offensive player, he can score 20-10 on any night and can add 1 or 2 blocks, his defense may be shadowed by Gobert but it is still great and he is a good second option offensively, he isn’t the best on his team for either but is definitely second best for both
Nuggets:Nikola Jokic
This man averages a triple double and still is underrated, I could make a whole article about this but how is SGA better? Jokic almost averaged 30-12-10 and Shai’s 32-6-6 is better? Jokic is a better rebounder, passer, shot blocker, maybe even stealer, and he is a chill dude who’s favorite thing isn’t even his job, you can’t say he is worse than Shai
Trail Blazers:Jrue Holiday
Not only is Holiday a good offensive player, he is also one of the best defenders in the league, he can steal the ball better than most NBA players while shooting at an elite level, passing well, having a solid inside game, and being voted as one of the best teammates, he is a great guy and an even better basketball player, you don’t see people like him
Jazz:Walker Kessler
Walker brings solid offense to the table, not great but enough to get by while also bringing good rebounding and being a defensive player of the year candidate, he is one of the best shot blockers in the league and only has more room to grow, he is a great glue guy and once fully developed will be a force down low and offensively too
Pelicans:Dejounte Murray
Dejounte is a 20 point per game scorer who still brings good defense to the table, he is the oldest player on the Pelicans at the age of 29 (This team is insanely young) and he isn’t showing it, he isn’t as good of a defender as he was in San Antonio but it still a great one, he can bring 5 rebounds and 5 assists as well
Grizzlies:Jaren Jackson Jr.
Jaren is a defensive player of the year candidate every year unless he is injured, he is an elite defender with the ability do send shots into the stands, he brings 15-20 points offensively while grabbing 10 rebounds and blocking 1 or 2 shots, he is an elite two way player which is rare in this NBA
Spurs:Luke Kornet
This one is one of the deepest pulls of the bag but it is true, Kornet is a 7’2 stick who can get 5 blocks whenever he wants, he is basically Wemby but 3 inches shorter, he has a decent offensive game and his defense is great, if he can go to the power forward and start with Wemby then that will be trouble
Mavericks:Daniel Gafford
Gafford is a great center who can rebound, score, and play solid defense, he is a perfect glue guy down low with AD and he is just what any team would want if they wanted a solid game down low to contend, he is in one of the best front courts in the league so he has help but he still provides the spark needed for wins
Rockets:Jabari Smith Jr.
Jabari is a great defender with the ability to score in the post and some sneaky shooting, he is a great shot blocker and overall defender and can put up 12-8 when needed, he fits perfectly with his big team with Sengun, KD, and Steven Adams, all being around 7 feet tall, he is the perfect fit for Houston
Suns:Mark Williams
A lot of people kind of forgot about Mark Williams this offseason, he is still the crazy athletic shot blocking center and now is playing with Khaman Malauch, another large shot blocking center, they may not share the court much but no matter what there will likely be plenty of blocks to be shared
Warriors:Buddy Hield
Buddy was off to a crazy start last year averaging around 20 and being his team’s leading scorer, he did slow down but he is still an elite sharpshooter and he is perfect to be the sneaky guy who comes out of no where with a 3 point kamikazee and closing the game out
Kings:Domantas Sabonis
The guy had 77 double doubles in one season and still people don’t know if he is top 25, he can average 20-12-8 and people would still say that he isn’t a superstar, there isn’t much more you can do than that to be such a good player, he is one of the best passers and rebounders in the league
Clippers:Bradley Beal
Most of the hate on Beal probably happened because of his contract but people are forgetting that he can still average 20, like Paul George he had plenty of injuries and couldn’t get set with Booker and KD since they were almost never all healthy, just because the contract is bad doesn’t mean the player is bad
Lakers:Bronny James
You may think this is a joke but it actually isn’t, JJ Redick plans to have Bronny in the top 10 of the rotation and he has had a good preseason for his standards, he was getting around 8-4-4 and hasn’t shown signs of being anything like last year, he might actually take a huge jump this year and so might his team
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Grid 1
https://fanspo.com/nba/s/general/grids/bTtnO9CjmHPG_m/fanspo-news-grid-1
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Please make sure to check other articles to come and do the grid!