Five Players Everyone Is Sleeping On After Free Agency

Towns did not sign anywhere new this offseason, which is exactly why he is being slept on. All the attention has gone to where Mitchell Robinson landed, not to how much Towns himself benefits from Robinson's exit. Last season, Robinson served as the perfect release valve for Towns, soaking up minutes whenever foul trouble hit. Towns is the active NBA leader in career disqualifications and the only active player with at least 40 career foul-out games. With Robinson gone, that safety net disappears, and Towns is now New York's unquestioned, unchallenged starting center for a full workload.

My take: This role expansion is real, not theoretical, and it should move Towns into fringe first-round consideration in fantasy drafts, up from a mid-to-late second-round player last year. He averaged 20.1 points, 11.8 rebounds, and 3.0 assists a game even with Robinson eating into his minutes. Give him a full workload without that safety net, and the counting stats should climb across the board.

Player 3: Bogdan Bogdanovic

Bogdanovic signed a one-year, minimum-salary deal with Houston after the Clippers declined his $16 million team option. On paper, that looks like a fall from grace. In reality, it sets him up with a clean role on a team that specifically recruited him for his shooting. Houston needed a floor spacer to play alongside Kevin Durant and Alperen Sengun, and that is exactly Bogdanovic's game when healthy. The honest complication here is health, not talent. He played just 23 games last season because of a hamstring injury, averaging a career-low 7.4 points on a career-worst 34.7 percent from three. This is a bet on recovery, rather than a guaranteed set of returns.

My take: Given his career mark of 38.1 percent from three across nine seasons, Bogdanovic becomes a justifiable risk starting around rounds 11 or 12 in redraft leagues. That is late enough to absorb the injury risk, but early enough to catch real shooting upside if his hamstring cooperates and Houston's crowded backcourt sorts itself out in his favor.

Player 4: Dean Wade

Wade signed a four-year, $39 million deal with Philadelphia after seven seasons in Cleveland, and the fit answers a specific need. The Sixers have struggled for years to find a real four next to Joel Embiid, cycling through options that could not defend or space the floor at the same time. Wade solves both problems. He is a physical, switchable defender who held Cade Cunningham to just 17 points on 5-of-17 shooting across 107 playoff possessions this past postseason, and he has shot better than 36 percent from three in four straight seasons. Philadelphia's roster gets talked about as crowded and messy, and that noise is drowning out how clean this specific fit actually is.

My take: I am not leaning towards all that noise. I think Wade's role is being underrated exactly because people are reacting to Philadelphia's general roster chaos instead of looking at what he individually solves. He profiles as a strong three-point and defensive stats source in deeper leagues, a low-cost frontcourt piece worth grabbing several rounds after his name would otherwise come off draft boards.

Player 5: Jose Alvarado

Alvarado declined his $4.5 million player option and re-signed with the Knicks on a three-year deal worth more than $14 million. New York's frontcourt is being reshaped around Towns following Mitchell Robinson's departure, and Alvarado's backcourt role behind Jalen Brunson stays stable and secure through that shakeup. He has posted at least one steal per game in every season of his career, peaking at 1.3 steals a night during his best year in New Orleans, and he carries the nickname Grand Theft Alvarado for a reason.

My take: Alvarado is clearly more valuable in category leagues than points leagues, and that distinction should shape where he gets drafted. In points formats, his modest scoring and low minutes cap his ceiling. In category formats, a near-guaranteed steal most nights, combined with respectable three-point volume, makes him a legitimate source of defensive stats deep into drafts, exactly the kind of specialist that points-league drafters overlook and category-league drafters should not.

Don't Guess, Follow The Math

All five players share the same thread. Each one has a specific, traceable free agency mechanism that expands his real fantasy role, even while public attention stays fixed somewhere else. Robinson gets a clean fit in Boston. Towns gets a bigger workload once the new season begins. Bogdanovic gets a clean shooting role if his body holds up. Wade gets a defined defensive job next to Embiid. Alvarado gets a stable backcourt spot on a champion. None of this is guesswork, it is all what the math and depth charts tell us. For continued ranking updates through training camp, check Athlon's ongoing 2026-27 fantasy basketball draft coverage.

Questions About Underrated Free Agents, Answered

Which fantasy basketball players are being underrated after free agency this week?
Mitchell Robinson, Karl-Anthony Towns, Bogdan Bogdanovic, Dean Wade, and Jose Alvarado each have a specific reason to be viewed more favorably after free agency. Robinson lands in an ideal rebounding fit with Boston, Towns benefits from Robinson's departure, Bogdanovic gets a fresh opportunity in Houston, Wade fills a defined need in Philadelphia, and Alvarado's role remains stable in New York.

Does Karl-Anthony Towns benefit from Mitchell Robinson leaving the Knicks?
Yes. Robinson's departure removes the primary backup who absorbed center minutes when Towns dealt with foul trouble. That leaves Towns as New York's unquestioned starting center with the potential for a larger workload, making a stronger fantasy case than many managers may currently recognize.

Is Bogdan Bogdanovic still a good fantasy basketball option after signing with Houston?
He can be if he returns to full health. Bogdanovic joins Houston in a role built around his perimeter shooting after an injury-shortened season. His long-term three-point shooting track record makes him an appealing late-round gamble if his hamstring no longer limits his production.

What is Mitchell Robinson's fantasy basketball outlook with the Celtics?
His fantasy outlook improves because Boston committed to him with a multi-year deal and provides a strong schematic fit for his elite offensive rebounding. He projects as more than a late-round flier, although his poor free throw shooting remains the primary drawback for fantasy managers.