Overrated & Underrated NBA Players

there are also players who fit a system or were able to play better because they had a superstar on the team to draw attention. many times we have seen players become over rated because they played really well in the system and then when they went to a new team were quickly exposed

I don't know if Gordon Hayward is underrated but more or less adequately rated. This guy is kinda like Joe Johnson. Kid can do everything but it's tough to pick one area he's above everyone else.

Ofc he has good potential tho. He's only 26.

being above everyone else in 1 area should not be a perquisite to be a top player.

I always thought Mike James was really underrated. Nobody ever really talked about him, he always played really strong on ball D, and was a consistent scorer (even averaging 20 a game once) I went to a Celtics game years back against Toronto and Mike James played for them at the time. He was amazing.

I also think Mo Williams had his fair share of being a strong PG (starter material even when he was a bench player for awhile), but he never seemed to get his fair share of credit. He has gotten worse at D over the last couple years, but he used to be a decent defender to go with his scoring abilities.

http://www.basketball-reference.com/box ... 20LAL.html

Check the stats of Mike James. He had lots of these in mid-2000s

http://www.basketball-reference.com/boxscores/200601220LAL.html

Check the stats of Mike James. He had lots of these in mid-2000s

That's the year I saw him play the Celtics.

http://www.basketball-reference.com/boxscores/200601220LAL.html

Check the stats of Mike James. He had lots of these in mid-2000s

Check this one out.

http://www.basketball-reference.com/box ... 60TOR.html

there are also players who fit a system or were able to play better because they had a superstar on the team to draw attention. many times we have seen players become over rated because they played really well in the system and then when they went to a new team were quickly exposed

Trevor Ariza is an example of a player who got that treatment for a while after winning a title with the Lakers in 2009, and then going to the Rockets in the offseason. He had a couple of big games very early on in the 2010 season which got people talking, and then that was pretty much it. I think most people got over that excitement not long after his noteworthy performances fizzled, so he's certainly not overrated these days.

Harden was 4th last year in vorp only behind LeBron, Curry, and Westbrook. You can't be overrated if you average 29-6-7and still don't make an all NBA team.

A guy who used to get a bad rap and now is simply forgotten is Brandon Jennings. He's always been a solid starting point guard, and would still be a starter if not for that gruesome injury suffered a couple seasons ago. While he never lived up to expectations after that red-hot start to his rookie year, he did almost make an all-star team in 2013 (edged out by Jrue Holiday of all people) and played well in Detroit prior to that aforementioned injury. If D-Rose gets hurt, I could see Jennings winning the starting spot and keeping it.

there are also players who fit a system or were able to play better because they had a superstar on the team to draw attention. many times we have seen players become over rated because they played really well in the system and then when they went to a new team were quickly exposed

Trevor Ariza is an example of a player who got that treatment for a while after winning a title with the Lakers in 2009, and then going to the Rockets in the offseason. He had a couple of big games very early on in the 2010 season which got people talking, and then that was pretty much it. I think most people got over that excitement not long after his noteworthy performances fizzled, so he's certainly not overrated these days.

Yeah definitely agree with Ariza, he turned into a bricklayer in the first years with the Rockets after being touted as a #1 option....

Good solid player, great defender, not a top 3 offensive option on your team.

Same thing happened with Flip Murray when he had some big games while Ray Allen was out at the beginning of the season back in...2003? 2004? Somewhere around that time.

I also remember getting heaps of requests to constantly boost Smush Parker's ratings when he was on the Lakers, and I was making the NBA Live roster updates.

I also remember getting heaps of requests to constantly boost Smush Parker's ratings when he was on the Lakers, and I was making the NBA Live roster updates.

Now THAT is what overrated means

I feel like Jeremy Lin is another one who was overrated during his Linsanity run but then quickly turned into a player who's been massively underrated since then, whether its from coaching staffs, media, or fans in general. The perception of having no left hand and no defense stuck with him until last season when he was solid for the Hornets and now getting some respect from Kenny Atkinson on the Nets.

A guy who used to get a bad rap and now is simply forgotten is Brandon Jennings. He's always been a solid starting point guard, and would still be a starter if not for that gruesome injury suffered a couple seasons ago. While he never lived up to expectations after that red-hot start to his rookie year, he did almost make an all-star team in 2013 (edged out by Jrue Holiday of all people) and played well in Detroit prior to that aforementioned injury. If D-Rose gets hurt, I could see Jennings winning the starting spot and keeping it.

Agreed. He went from overrated to underrated pretty quickly

In my experience a player is only viewed as underrated until he gets a big pay day, then the balance shifts quickly to being called overrated.

Are Chris Paul and James Harden the most underrated players so far for the season?

CP3 and Harden have been the two best players in this league so far imho but we still don't hear much about them but it's mostly Westbrook, LBJ, or Lillard.



People hate Harden for his defense and they forget entirely how fuqin amazing his offense is(as he's in prime age). If a player is great on one end, the team can usually work around his weakness on the other end. Historically a lot of HOFs weren't much of defenders either.

CP3's number simply tops everyone else. His efficiency atm is outta this world. This forgotten aging point god is still very much alive and well. PER 32, ws/48 .410

I'm seeing Harden's numbers receive a bit of buzz. Among fans, he's probably going to be overlooked because of his...let's say, casual approach to defense, but his numbers haven't gone completely unnoticed.

Speaking of players who are flying under the radar, DeMar DeRozan is scoring 34 points per game to lead the league, with only three three-pointers on the season, and shooting over 50% from the field.

Mason Plumlee is very underrated. I have seen him carry the Blazers for stretches, and sometimes he is the motor for the whole team.

This year, hes averaging over 4 APG, and about a steal and a block a game in only 26 MPG.Per 36 mPG hes averaging over 8 RPG and 5.7 APG. Hes also shooting 51.9% from the floor.

I don't consider him just a serviceable big man, I think he could be a starter in this league for a long time as long as teams continue to value his all around effort on the floor. I see in headlines that Lillard carries the team night in and night out, but I hardly ever hear about the big contributions from Plumlee.

Speaking of Plumlee, hot damn his gene. 3 brothers are all 7 foot and athletic.