Pa Rory Maher | on October 8, 2026 at 9:24 pm
John Hollinger of The Athletic lists 10 unheralded players who can change their teams’ seasons. Hawks security guard Dyson Danielswhose shaky jump shot makes him a difficult hitter, is one player Hollinger will be keeping a close eye on in 2026/27.
Peyton Watson (Cavaliers), Tobias Harris (Spurs), Colin Murray-Boyles (Predators) and Cason Wallace (Thunder) are among the other players who could play a critical role in their teams’ success, according to Hollinger.
We have more from around the world of basketball:
- What is the biggest need for each of the NBA’s 30 teams? ESPN’s Ben Golliver addresses the issue, writing that backup center is the biggest hole on the defending champion’s roster Nix. The Wizardswho finished last season with the worst record in the league, doesn’t have much of a hole on the roster, but rather needs to show “a winning mentality,” as Golliver puts it.
- After the NBA and FIBA released a joint statement confirmed on Thursday that they still intend to move forward with their plans for a European NBA, regardless of whether they have a deal with EuroLeague or not, the NBA’s head of Europe and the Middle East criticized the structure of EuroLeague, for Amelie Claydon and Joe Vardon of The Athletic. “There are times when a team has won a domestic league, say in Spain, and they will never play in the Euroleague“, George Ayvazoglu – said at the Leaders Week London conference. “There are other cases where sometimes teams play in the Euroleague but they are relegated in their national leagues.” Ayvazaglu added that NBA Europe’s goal is not only to “retain die-hard European basketball fans,” but also to attract global interest in European basketball.
- Isaiah HortensteinContract with Art Thunder was the first transaction with a mutual option—when both players and ESPN’s Bobby Marks previously noted that the team has an option to opt in (or opt out) after 25 years. Jake Fisher of The Stein Line (Link to substack) takes a closer look at why the mutual option emerged from relative obscurity and returned to contracts after three other players received a clause in their deals in the offseason. According to Fisher, several agents have said they plan to use mutual options in the future if they can’t get player options for their clients.