Coming off a 51-31 regular season in which they finished just two games in back of the NBA finalist Denver Nuggets in the Western Conference standings, the second-seeded Memphis Grizzlies had an unexpected first-round ouster by the seventh-seeded Los Angeles Lakers in the NBA Playoffs.
The sudden ouster was frustrating for fans of Grizzlies and Tennessee sports betting.
The Grizzlies still managed to have a very successful regular season, overcoming the drama and in-and-out status of star player Ja Morant with the help of some players who are not prominent names.
At least not just yet.
BetTennessee.com — your home for Tennessee sports betting apps — sought to measure the most underrated players in the NBA.
We started by utilizing Basketball-Reference.com to find the cap hit and point shares of every NBA player during the 2022-23 NBA regular season. After doing the math of the $ per point share for each player in the league, we were able to determine the 25 most value-driven players from this season. Salary and point shares were included for all teams the player was on during the 2022-23 season.
The analysis determined that Memphis had the most players (three) in the Top 25, one more than the Minnesota Timberwolves, Utah Jazz, New York Knicks and the New Orleans Pelicans.
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Most Underrated NBA Players of 2022-23 Season
| Rank | Player Name | Cap Hit (2022-23) | Point Shares (2022-23)* | $ Per Point Share* |
| 1 | Warriors F Anthony Lamb | $694,878 | 2.4 | $289,533 |
| 2 | Lakers F Austin Reaves | $1,563,518 | 5.4 | $289,540 |
| 3 | Wizards F/C Daniel Gafford | $1,930,681 | 6.1 | $316,505 |
| 4 | Knicks G Immanuel Quickley | $2,316,240 | 6.7 | $345,707 |
| 5 | Rockets F Kenyon Martin Jr. | $1,782,621 | 4.9 | $363,800 |
| 6 | Grizzlies G Desmond Bane | $2,130,240 | 5.8 | $367,283 |
| 7 | Jazz F/C Walker Kessler | $2,696,400 | 7.1 | $379,775 |
| 8 | Pelicans F Trey Murphy III | $3,206,520 | 7.6 | $421,911 |
| T-9 | Hornets F/C Nick Richards | $1,782,621 | 4.2 | $424,434 |
| T-9 | Grizzlies F/C Xavier Tillman | $1,782,621 | 4.2 | $424,434 |
| 11 | Pelicans F Herbert Jones | $1,785,000 | 4.2 | $425,000 |
| 12 | Trailblazers F/C Drew Eubanks | $1,968,175 | 4.4 | $447,313 |
| 13 | Clippers G/F Terance Mann | $1,930,681 | 4.3 | $448,996 |
| 14 | Grizzlies F Santi Aldama | $2,094,120 | 4.6 | $455,243 |
| 15 | T-Wolves F/C Luka Garza | $508,891 | 1.1 | $462,628 |
| 16 | Knicks G Quentin Grimes | $2,277,000 | 4.8 | $474,375 |
| 17 | Nuggets F/C Thomas Bryant | $1,968,175 | 4.1 | $480,042 |
| 18 | Celtics F Sam Hauser | $1,637,966 | 3.4 | $481,755 |
| 19 | Thunder G Isaiah Joe | $1,836,090 | 3.8 | $483,182 |
| 20 | T-Wolves F Jaden McDaniels | $2,161,440 | 4.4 | $491,236 |
| 21 | 76ers G Tyrese Maxey | $2,726,880 | 5.4 | $504,978 |
| 22 | Spurs G Tre Jones | $1,782,621 | 3.4 | $524,300 |
| 23 | Jazz G Kris Dunn | $1,000,001 | 1.9 | $526,316 |
| 24 | Heat G Max Strus | $1,815,677 | 3.4 | $534,023 |
| 25 | Bulls G Ayo Dosunmu | $1,563,518 | 2.9 | $539,144 |
* — Rounded up for visual purposes.
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Memphis Players in Top 25
Another quick exit in the playoffs only fortified a recent BetTennessee.com story on Memphis being one of the NBA’s most snake-bitten teams.
Maybe there is some solace and hope for the future in having three of the league’s most underrated players.
Guard Desmond Bane was one of two Memphis players who finished inside the top 10. Bane, who averaged 21.5 points per game this season, raised his scoring average by two points (23.5) in six postseason games and finished sixth on the list with a more than $2.13 million cap hit (5.8-point shares at $367,283 per point share).
Teammate Xavier Tillman tied for ninth on the list with Charlotte Hornets forward/center Nick Richards. Both came in at more than $1.78 million (4.2-point shares at $424,434 per point share). Tillman played in 61 games and averaged seven points and five rebounds per game this season.
Power forward Santi Aldama finished inside the top 15. He placed 14th with over $2.09 million (4.6-point shares at $455,243 per point share). This season, Aldama averaged nine points and close to five rebounds.
More on the Findings
- There are 11 teams without a player in the Top 25 (Atlanta Hawks, Milwaukee Bucks, Cleveland Cavaliers, Sacramento Kings, Orlando Magic, Dallas Mavericks, Brooklyn Nets, Indiana Pacers, Detroit Pistons, Toronto Raptors and Phoenix Suns).
- Surprisingly, six of the 11 teams not featured above were in the NBA Playoffs. However, all four Conference Finals teams feature a player in the Top 25.
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