10 most underrated NBA free agents of 2016

Moe Harkless (RFA)

Remember when the Orlando Magic shipped Moe Harkless to the Portland Trail Blazers for a heavily protected second-round pick? That move went from “scratch-your-head bad” to “hilariously, egregiously awful” as the 2015-16 campaign progressed, particularly once he worked his way into Portland’s starting lineup toward the end of the regular season.

Upon becoming a starter in late March, Harkless reeled off eight double-digit scoring outings in his first nine games, averaging 13.8 points on 50.5 percent shooting, 7.6 rebounds, 1.3 assists, 1.2 steals, 0.9 blocks and 0.8 three-pointers in 28.2 minutes per game. Lest you chalk that increased production up to regular-season garbage time, the St. John’s product proceeded to average 12.7 points on 47.6 percent shooting, 6.2 rebounds and 1.3 triples in 28.7 minutes per game during Portland’s first-round upset of the Los Angeles Clippers in the playoffs.

Harkless is only a career 30.0 percent shooter from deep, so he’s not a quintessential three-and-D forward, but he did thrive in a small-ball stretch-4 role with Portland late in the year. If the Blazers cash in on a big free-agent splash (Hassan Whiteside?) while retaining fellow restricted free agent Allen Crabbe, they may not have enough money left over to keep Harkless around as well. Any team that’s aggressive with an offer sheet right when the July Moratorium lifts could land itself one of the steals of this free-agent class.

Next: The shockingly available stretch-4