Now over a week into NBA free agency, it’s understandable to think all the true impact players are already off the market. That is mostly true, but as history has taught us, there are usually still one or two diamonds hiding in the rough.
For instance, in 2023, the Dallas Mavericks didn’t end up signing Derrick Jones Jr. until mid-August, yet he started all of their playoff games en route to the NBA Finals. There are plenty of examples like this littered across past seasons.
And if I had to wager, this class could produce another case study. So, here are four available free agents who may end up following in Jones’ footsteps.
*For this exercise, I will not be including restricted free agents like Jonathan Kuminga, Josh Giddey, Quentin Grimes and Cam Thomas.*
Al Horford
It’s funny, Al Horford may hold the world record for the most times being referred to as “underrated.” And yet, here we are nearly two decades into what should be a Hall of Fame career and we’re still forgetting about Big Al.
There’s a chance Horford could decide to call it quits after 18 seasons. But if he stays in the NBA, he is easily the best per-minute player left on the market. Given the Boston Celtics’ recent taste for frugality, he probably won’t be re-signing with them. That leaves him up for grabs for 29 other teams.
The sales pitch for Horford is simple. He’s a Swiss Army Knife defender with the ability to still shadow multiple positions who can also credibly space the floor (career 37.7 percent from three) at the five spot. He also managed to place in the 83rd percentile in Estimated Plus-Minus (EPM) during his age-38 season last year.
Amir Coffey
If the Monstars invaded Earth, put one of their laser beams to my head and asked me which remaining free agent has the best chance of being the next Jones, my answer would be “Amir Coffey” without any hesitation.
Coffey is the best available three-and-D wing in this class. He’s hit 39.7 percent of his 431 threes over the last two years and played significant minutes (24.3 per game) on the third-best defense in the league in 2024-25. He’s also got a favorable frame (6 feet 7 inches, 210 pounds) for the modern game.
Amir Coffey’s 2024-25 stats
9.7 PPG
2.2 REB
1.1 AST
0.6 STL
47/41/89 splits
Great & versatile defenseOne of the most underrated players in the NBA pic.twitter.com/eKPNfCeZX3
— ZubacSZN (@213clipset) May 4, 2025
One may point to his lack of playing time in the back half of the season/postseason as cause for concern. However, Coffey was simply cursed with playing for the Los Angeles Clippers, the deepest team in the NBA after acquiring Ben Simmons and Bogdan Bogdanovic at the trade deadline. But just because Coffey didn’t factor into their rotation (a questionable decision by head coach Ty Lue, by the way) doesn’t mean a handful of other contenders wouldn’t be blessed to have his services.
Landry Shamet
For awhile, Landry Shamet appeared to be a part of a dying breed. He was a long-range assassin who struggled on defense and wasn’t lethal enough at his greatest strength to overpower the side effects of this weakness.
That was the old Shamet, though. Realizing where the league was going, he worked diligently to become a better defender. This past postseason, he got the opportunity to show the basketball world how far he’s come.
That growth allowed Shamet to be a viable rotation option for the New York Knicks during the Eastern Conference Finals. In fact, his two-way contributions were so helpful to the Knicks that Shamet led them in plus-minus over the final four games of the series.
Shamet is still a hell of a shooter (39.7 percent from three last season), and now, he won’t kill you on defense either. Players who can provide above-average or neutral impact are in high-demand, making the fact Shamet hasn’t been signed yet very confusing.
Trey Lyles
Trey Lyles’ stock is suffering from a case of recency bias. Last year was the worst statistical campaign of his career since he joined the Sacramento Kings in 2021-22, finishing with his lowest points per game, true shooting and EPM of the last four seasons.
But a down season can’t let us forget Lyles has two things the game of basketball loves most: size and the ability to shoot. At 6 feet 9 inches with a 7-foot-1 wingspan, Lyles can play power forward or center in small-ball configurations (he spent 41 percent of his minutes at center last year, per Basketball Reference).
He also hit 37.2 percent of his threes during his first 2.5 years with the Kings. But more than the other three guys on the list (who can all also shoot), Lyles knows how to get buckets. In each of the three seasons prior to 2024-25, Lyles surpassed 59 percent true shooting, including 2022-23, when he posted a 61.1 percent mark (73rd percentile).
Lyles isn’t the best defender, but his combination of size and shooting help him slot in perfectly alongside more traditional, rim-running/rim-protecting big men.
Honorable mentions go to the veterans, Russell Westbrook, Chris Paul, Ben Simmons and Malcolm Brogdon
