Ace Bailey (left) and Ayo Dosunmu (middle) could be one break away from being fantasy difference-makers. AP Photo/Abbie ParrJim McCormickOct 15, 2026, 01:00 PM ETCloseJim McCormick is a contributing writer for fantasy football and men’s basketball at ESPN.Multiple AuthorsOpen Extended ReactionsMidway through the 2011-2012 season, on the heels of losing 11 of 13 games, New York Knicks coach Mike D’Antoni had seemingly no options left in his backcourt. Baron Davis was absent due to a bad back, while Iman Shumpert was sidelined with a knee ailment. The coach turned to a combo guard — averaging 3.6 points in 6.1 minutes — to save the season.Within days, the sports world, and fantasy leagues, were immersed in Linsanity. The actionable lesson in Jeremy Lin’s sudden ascent is that we should appreciate how fragile rosters and thin depth charts can produce magical fantasy basketball outcomes.
Predicting Lin would become a star wasn’t easy. Expecting someone to step up in a valuable D’Antoni offense was. Lin might never have seen the court that winter had he been part of a stable, healthy, and bankable backcourt.Ryan Rollins was, albeit with far less hype, last season’s Lin: a gifted, overlooked combo guard who scaled a thin backcourt depth chart to become a fantasy star. The Milwaukee Bucks entered last season without trusted scoring or shot creation past Giannis Antetokounmpo.
While it was surely surprising that Rollins, a player undrafted in most leagues, ended up No. 30 overall on the Player Rater, the context of his team’s roster invited a leap.The focus of this piece is to consider which players around the league might have a far higher ceiling than the market currently appreciates. Sometimes, a player is a trade, injury or promotion away from an enduring and rewarding role.A single Shams Charania post can change multiple depth charts in an instant. Consider this the contingency tier of talents: those who require some blend of luck, development, timing and trust in order to pop. What widely available players, sitting in free agency in your league or found in the twilight rounds of all drafts ahead of the 2026-27 season, can become the statistical forces that Lin, Rollins, and many others have been in seasons past?See more: Sign up | Rankings | Projections | Mock Draft Lobby Draft guide | ‘Do not draft’ list | Which league is right for you?
Ajay Mitchell and Aday Mara, Oklahoma City ThunderThe Thunder have waves of capable backups all over the roster, making it tougher to isolate who benefits if a star player misses time. We already have proof of concept, however, when it comes to Mitchell. Across just over 100 playoff minutes with Shai Gilgeous-Alexander off the court last spring, Mitchell produced 26.5 points and 7.8 assists per 75 possessions. Mitchell will likely sustain independent value even behind a healthy cast of stars, yet is also an injury update away from becoming a true force.
It’s likely Mitchell would inherit a major role if either of SGA or Jalen Williams were sidelined.Mara, a rookie with some remarkable preseason production and tape, has enough rim protection utility and paint scoring potential to surface if either Isaiah Hartenstein or Chet Holmgren misses time. Rim protection is one of the most transferable skills from college to the NBA. I’d rather be early than late to a block party. Ayo Dosunmu, Minnesota TimberwolvesLaMelo Ball has averaged just over 50 regular-season games over his six-year career and required a career-low 28 minutes per game last season as part of a deliberate maintenance routine.Dosunmu, meanwhile, made NBA playoff history with his 43-point performance against Denver this past April, recording the second-highest-scoring game ever by a playoff reserve.
In other words, Dosunmu has thrived when given power to create in both Chicago and Minnesota. Now in a high-stakes situation with a long-term contract, playing behind one of the least durable lead guards in the league, Dosunmu checks many of the Lin-like boxes. Anthony Black, Orlando MagicWith both Paolo Banchero and Franz Wagner off the floor last season, Black posted 23 points, five rebounds, four assists, and two steals per 36 minutes for the Magic. Last winter and spring, Black shifted from a player without a clear identity into an aggressive, downhill driver with a newfound ability to finish or find peers.
Can Black produce at a fantasy-relevant clip assuming the team’s two foundational forwards are healthy?It’s easy to forget that Black was the sixth pick in his draft class and is just scratching his potential. It’s possible Black doesn’t require much other than the trust of his new coach to take off. Don’t forget him when looking for a high-ceiling guard at the end of your drafts. Ace Bailey, Utah JazzLast season’s rookie class was so spectacular that Bailey’s brilliant spring was largely lost amid a lottery-bound effort for Utah.
The rangy forward averaged 19.6 points, 4.5 rebounds, and 2.4 assists in 14 games last March while shooting 45.3% from the field and 40.3% from three; including a 37-point game against a Toronto Raptors team that was among the better defensive groups in the league. Bailey should see extended opportunities to score off the bench and even contend for major minutes in smaller closing lineups.The team’s duo of star forwards, Lauri Markkanen and Jaren Jackson Jr., have each faced significant durability concerns over the past few seasons. Whether by promotion or injury, or some blend of both, Bailey’s path to scoring stardom isn’t as winding as it might seem. Collin Sexton, Los Angeles LakersWhen evaluating a top-heavy Lakers roster that leans heavily on Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves as offensive engines, it’s easy to forget Sexton, still just 27, has turned into an efficient, if nearly elite, scoring guard.
He’s bounced around the league due to a lack of size and defensive utility, all while producing nearly 24 points and five dimes per 36 minutes over the past three seasons on Durant-like shooting splits.Even if the Lakers’ star playmakers stay healthy, Sexton is positioned as an entirely viable Sixth Man of the Year candidate as a microwave off the bench for a team without much scoring or playmaking depth. If he’s ever given the keys to the offense in place of one of the team’s star creators, if only for a few weeks, Sexton would thrive. Isaiah Stewart, Memphis GrizzliesYou’ll find Zach Edey on many of my fantasy rosters. Thankfully, you’ll also find “Beef Stew.” The Grizzlies are leaning into a tougher, larger identity as a roster.
Stewart embodies this direction. In just under 23 minutes per game for the Detroit Pistons last season, Stewart posted 1.6 blocks per game, good for eighth in the entire NBA.Stewart proved capable of fantasy relevance even as a secondary big behind an All-NBA center in Detroit. Edey, for all his gifts, has yet to prove he can endure the NBA grind for even a few months at a time. Stewart is an injury update away from becoming a double-double force with difference-making defensive metrics.
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