Latest / Hustle Sports Fantasy Podcast / 2026-27 Fantasy Basketball Sleepers, Breakouts & Rookie Draft Targets

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2026-27 Fantasy Basketball Sleepers, Breakouts & Rookie Draft Targets · Hustle Sports Fantasy Podcast

• 0:11
  Speaker 1: Whoa, what's going on? It's your boy T-Will.
• 0:14
  Speaker 2: Welcome back to another episode of the Hustle Sports Fantasy Podcast. Look,
• 0:19
  Speaker 2: it's time to get down to business. We're still about eight,
• 0:23
  Speaker 2: nine days away from the season. Look, it's time to
• 0:27
  Speaker 2: get after it, bro. We're getting closer. Last episode, you
• 0:30
  Speaker 2: know what I'm saying? Reset the fantasy basketball landscape by
• 0:33
  Speaker 2: talking about off-season moves. Today, I want to give y'all
• 0:37
  Speaker 2: some draft targets. Sleepers, breakouts, rookies, all that. Everything that's
• 0:42
  Speaker 2: going to help you get a dub, because you already
• 0:44
  Speaker 2: know we're only here for one reason, and that's to
• 0:47
  Speaker 2: get a dub. So let's not play with it. It's
• 0:50
  Speaker 2: going to get down to the business. Before we get
• 0:53
  Speaker 2: down to the business, follow us everywhere. On XHustleSportsNet, on
• 0:58
  Speaker 2: Instagram at TheHustleSportsNetwork.
• 1:01
  Speaker 1: Tap in.
• 1:02
  Speaker 2: Look, first player I got for you, Dag White. I'm
• 1:06
  Speaker 2: super excited about this opportunity for Dag White.
• 1:09
  Speaker 1: Listen.
• 1:10
  Speaker 2: No Jalen Brown. Paul George in year, what, 18? Derrick White,
• 1:17
  Speaker 2: I'm trusting that. It's somebody I want. That's a draft target.
• 1:21
  Speaker 1: Sleeper.
• 1:22
  Speaker 2: You know, it creates so much opportunity in Boston, not
• 1:25
  Speaker 2: just for Derrick White, but for other people as well.
• 1:28
  Speaker 2: But think about it, though. Derrick White can score. He
• 1:31
  Speaker 2: can playmake a little bit. He good defensively. Like, And
• 1:36
  Speaker 2: in category formats, you know, he could dominate a category.
• 1:39
  Speaker 2: But in the points league, he's going to go crazy.
• 1:42
  Speaker 2: He can average mid to, you know, late 30s. In
• 1:46
  Speaker 2: the fantasy points range, he'll give you threes, assists, steals, blocks,
• 1:50
  Speaker 2: whatever you want from the guard position. You want to
• 1:53
  Speaker 2: trust that low maintenance. He's going to play most nights. Look,
• 1:56
  Speaker 2: and Boston needs somebody to rely on. Hey, and Derek
• 2:00
  Speaker 2: White has shown in the past that he can, you know,
• 2:03
  Speaker 2: you can rely on him.
• 2:04
  Speaker 1: So don't get it twisted.
• 2:06
  Speaker 2: Derrick White is definitely a name that should be on
• 2:09
  Speaker 2: your draft boards because Derrick White can do a little
• 2:12
  Speaker 2: bit of everything, put his.
• 2:13
  Speaker 1: Thumbprint on the game, and he's going to help you
• 2:15
  Speaker 1: get a dub.
• 2:18
  Speaker 2: This next guy, now I mentioned him a couple times
• 2:20
  Speaker 2: on a couple different episodes, someone on the Believe in
• 2:23
  Speaker 2: Fantasy channel. Look, Walker Kessler, I think is about to
• 2:27
  Speaker 2: have a great year.
• 2:29
  Speaker 1: He got two elite playmakers.
• 2:31
  Speaker 2: Well, Austin Reeves may be above average, probably good, but
• 2:35
  Speaker 2: Luka Elite, Walker Kessler. Now, the only thing, obviously, that
• 2:39
  Speaker 2: you're worried about Walker Kessler is the injury history. We
• 2:43
  Speaker 2: hope that he's healthy, but assuming that he is, bro, hey, listen,
• 2:47
  Speaker 2: you better get him.
• 2:48
  Speaker 1: Don't play with him.
• 2:49
  Speaker 2: You better get him, because you're talking about offensively, and
• 2:53
  Speaker 2: he don't need crazy amount of, like, ISO post-touches, you
• 2:56
  Speaker 2: know what I'm saying? Give him lives, you know, easy,
• 2:59
  Speaker 2: real quick stuff, stuff that Luka and Reeves can thrive
• 3:02
  Speaker 2: in when it comes to playmaking. So, you're talking about
• 3:05
  Speaker 2: A player like Kessler could definitely benefit. You're talking about
• 3:09
  Speaker 2: a points lead guy going crazy. You know what I mean?
• 3:12
  Speaker 2: So don't play with it. Walker Kessler from the Los
• 3:16
  Speaker 2: Angeles Lakers is a guy that need to be on
• 3:19
  Speaker 2: your draft boards.
• 3:21
  Speaker 1: Seriously. All right, look.
• 3:26
  Speaker 2: And I like all these, obviously, because they're on the list.
• 3:31
  Speaker 2: But this... It's probably one of my favorite ones that
• 3:34
  Speaker 2: I saw in the preseason. He's shooting more threes. Khalil Ware,
• 3:39
  Speaker 2: another big, listen, no Giannis, no Bobby Portis, still got
• 3:46
  Speaker 2: Miles Turner, but he more perimeter base. When you talk
• 3:49
  Speaker 2: about rebounding, blocks, finishing ability, and now, like I said,
• 3:54
  Speaker 2: in the preseason, he's stepping out shooting more threes. You're
• 3:57
  Speaker 2: talking about an uptick in scoring that's been a, listen,
• 4:01
  Speaker 2: He averaged 11 last year in, like, 25 to 27 minutes. So,
• 4:08
  Speaker 2: if he about to get 30 to 35 minutes, you
• 4:11
  Speaker 2: best believe he.
• 4:11
  Speaker 1: Could be a 17 and 11 guy.
• 4:14
  Speaker 2: Like, that's numbers that you could bank on that, bro. Like,
• 4:18
  Speaker 2: that's what gets you to the chips when you got
• 4:21
  Speaker 2: players like this, especially when you talk about some of
• 4:23
  Speaker 2: the draft capital you have to spend on somebody like Welch.
• 4:27
  Speaker 1: You know what I mean?
• 4:27
  Speaker 2: So, once the minutes show, once the production catch up,
• 4:32
  Speaker 2: which I believe in this situation with Milwaukee, this is
• 4:35
  Speaker 2: an awesome opportunity.
• 4:37
  Speaker 1: So if you got a chance to get.
• 4:39
  Speaker 2: Him in that 75 to 85 range, you're not overspending
• 4:46
  Speaker 2: for him there. You're really not. So lock that in, bro.
• 4:49
  Speaker 2: Khalil Ware, listen, he finna do his thing. The opportunity
• 4:53
  Speaker 2: right here. The time is now.
• 4:57
  Speaker 1: Now, this next one, bro, Campbell, we all know he
• 5:01
  Speaker 1: a hoop. Right. And me personally, I'm not even going
• 5:03
  Speaker 1: to lie to you.
• 5:05
  Speaker 2: I ain't really big on taking rookies unless they got
• 5:07
  Speaker 2: a situation like this guy right here. Cam Boozer might
• 5:11
  Speaker 2: be one of the most intriguing, most exciting fantasy players
• 5:16
  Speaker 2: for the rookies this season.
• 5:19
  Speaker 1: Think about it, bro. The rookie class. He the only one.
• 5:23
  Speaker 2: I ain't going to say only one, but he's one
• 5:27
  Speaker 2: of the few that don't have a major bet on
• 5:30
  Speaker 2: his team. So he can come in day one and
• 5:32
  Speaker 2: it's his squad. Because think about it. At Duke, he
• 5:35
  Speaker 2: averaged 22 and a half, 10 rebounds, four assists, one steal,
• 5:40
  Speaker 2: and did that on 55% field goal shooting. And then,
• 5:47
  Speaker 2: not to show you that he's a pro, at summer league,
• 5:51
  Speaker 2: he got you 18 points, seven rebounds, almost four assists,
• 5:55
  Speaker 2: one and a half steals.
• 5:56
  Speaker 1: So look, he not a scoring only guy.
• 6:00
  Speaker 2: And this young bull, hey, you're not reaching on him
• 6:05
  Speaker 2: if you get him in the sixth, fifth.
• 6:09
  Speaker 1: Some mocks I've done, he went fifth.
• 6:12
  Speaker 2: But between that sixth and eighth round range, bro, you're
• 6:15
  Speaker 2: not overspending on him. And I'm going to be honest, like,
• 6:21
  Speaker 2: this one is going to, hey, this name, and I'm
• 6:24
  Speaker 2: logging this in right now, this name is going to
• 6:26
  Speaker 2: be on a lot of league winners lists.
• 6:28
  Speaker 1: And redraft leagues.
• 6:29
  Speaker 2: I'm calling that not because Cam Boozer, what he did
• 6:33
  Speaker 2: in summer league, what he done at Duke, the situation
• 6:36
  Speaker 2: that he's entered, the roster that he's around, he about
• 6:41
  Speaker 2: to do big fantasy things, locking in. I know, you know,
• 6:47
  Speaker 2: said I wasn't big on rookies. And in somebody in A.J.
• 6:50
  Speaker 2: DeBonce's situation, I'm typically not, not even going to lie
• 6:54
  Speaker 2: to you.
• 6:55
  Speaker 1: A.D. there, Trey there, Koshun, George.
• 6:59
  Speaker 2: Alex saw, like, those are people who are very instrumental
• 7:04
  Speaker 2: into what the Wizards trying to do. However, the good
• 7:09
  Speaker 2: thing about playing with AD and Trey is they end
• 7:13
  Speaker 2: your history. Now, Trey, I think most people could play
• 7:18
  Speaker 2: with Trey, personally. Like, I just don't think we've ever
• 7:21
  Speaker 2: seen him play with somebody like the Bronx, the type talent.
• 7:25
  Speaker 1: You know what I mean?
• 7:26
  Speaker 2: He's had bigs in the past, but this, you know,
• 7:29
  Speaker 2: this is the first time he got a true score
• 7:32
  Speaker 2: with him. So I think Trey ain't gonna affect AJ
• 7:36
  Speaker 2: as much. I mean, cause Trey gonna get his attempts,
• 7:39
  Speaker 2: but we know he's shared a rock. It's the AD
• 7:42
  Speaker 2: packaging that I, that kind of worries me about taking
• 7:46
  Speaker 2: the Bonta, you know, if he's healthy, if AD stay healthy.
• 7:51
  Speaker 2: But if AD is not healthy, like he's typically is,
• 7:55
  Speaker 2: the Bonta opportunity.
• 7:58
  Speaker 1: His stock is going crazy. So, yeah, he on the
• 8:01
  Speaker 1: draft boards.
• 8:03
  Speaker 2: I know we bought the draft, but listen, this is
• 8:05
  Speaker 2: a long-term play because if, and not even just the injuries,
• 8:09
  Speaker 2: not even just the injuries with AD.
• 8:11
  Speaker 1: What if he get traded? What if he get traded?
• 8:15
  Speaker 2: You talking about a guy who averaged 25 and a
• 8:18
  Speaker 2: half at college.
• 8:20
  Speaker 1: Almost seven rebounds, four assists, one steal at BYU.
• 8:25
  Speaker 2: So you talking about If AD get traded and you
• 8:29
  Speaker 2: got this kind of production coming in that's ready to go,
• 8:33
  Speaker 2: you know, like, the stock is crazy. The stats, the
• 8:38
  Speaker 2: game is there. We've seen it with our own two.
• 8:41
  Speaker 2: He wasn't the number one pick for no reason. So, look,
• 8:43
  Speaker 2: on your draft board, lock in AJ. Like I said,
• 8:47
  Speaker 2: I typically don't do rookies, especially, like, Or I'll draft
• 8:52
  Speaker 2: a rookie. I don't want to overspend on a rookie.
• 8:54
  Speaker 2: That's the better way for me to put it because
• 8:56
  Speaker 2: that's how I feel about it. But listen, A.J. is
• 9:01
  Speaker 2: going to be like that. He's going to be like that.
• 9:04
  Speaker 2: So it might start off slow, but definitely be patient
• 9:09
  Speaker 2: with A.J.
• 9:09
  Speaker 1: Because it's coming this year.
• 9:13
  Speaker 2: Hey, I mentioned his teammate earlier, Derrick White. Now I
• 9:16
  Speaker 2: got Peyton Pritchard on here, MP. You know, pretty much
• 9:20
  Speaker 2: for the same reasons Derrick White was on here.
• 9:22
  Speaker 1: No Jalen.
• 9:24
  Speaker 2: Boston going to need more production from a lot of
• 9:27
  Speaker 2: players around. It's going to be more of a unit
• 9:29
  Speaker 2: than anything. Peyton Pritchard is next up. Listen, he got
• 9:36
  Speaker 2: a jumper. He can shoot it.
• 9:39
  Speaker 1: Play make. Play hard. You know what I mean? Create. Defense.
• 9:44
  Speaker 1: Or on ball, rather. Nah. Listen.
• 9:50
  Speaker 2: Regardless of that, though, he can give you the stats
• 9:52
  Speaker 2: that you need.
• 9:55
  Speaker 1: To make him fantasy relevant, to make him worth drafting.
• 9:58
  Speaker 1: Peyton Pritchett.
• 10:00
  Speaker 2: He's consistent, bro. He's been doing it. He's been doing it.
• 10:03
  Speaker 2: He's been knocking on the door each year. Year after year,
• 10:06
  Speaker 2: you see a little bit more of the game. You
• 10:08
  Speaker 2: see he's been in the lab. That time is now.
• 10:11
  Speaker 2: Peyton Pritchett is going to have a career year, and
• 10:13
  Speaker 2: he better be on your draft boards because the opportunity–
• 10:17
  Speaker 2: that has created in Boston because of Jalen Brown leaving,
• 10:21
  Speaker 2: Peyton Pritchard is going to be one of the main
• 10:22
  Speaker 2: recipients of that new opportunity. Lock that in for sure,
• 10:27
  Speaker 2: for sure. And last on this list, but not least,
• 10:30
  Speaker 2: Tyler Hero. Now, I know injuries has always been his thing,
• 10:37
  Speaker 2: but here's another guy that got a, and I mentioned
• 10:40
  Speaker 2: his teammate earlier, here's another guy that's going to be
• 10:44
  Speaker 2: worth drafting. You talk about the opportunity that's up there
• 10:48
  Speaker 2: in Milwaukee, hometown kid. He's looking to be the guy. Now,
• 10:52
  Speaker 2: he's going to have some competition. So I say this, too.
• 10:55
  Speaker 2: If you don't get Tyler Hero, Ryan Rollins and KPJ,
• 11:00
  Speaker 2: equally as worthy. But Tyler Hero coming in, he was
• 11:04
  Speaker 2: in the Giannis trade. He was the centerpiece. So he
• 11:09
  Speaker 2: can really score. He's proved that.
• 11:11
  Speaker 1: He can shoot.
• 11:12
  Speaker 2: He's proved that. We already know that. But fantasy value
• 11:16
  Speaker 2: going to jump for sure. When he's healthy, he get
• 11:18
  Speaker 2: a lot more minutes, being a lot more involved as
• 11:22
  Speaker 2: being the guy. And Tyler Hero got a major opportunity,
• 11:26
  Speaker 2: go to Milwaukee, be something bigger than he ever was
• 11:30
  Speaker 2: in Miami, and he can have a career.
• 11:32
  Speaker 1: Year this year as well.
• 11:33
  Speaker 2: So listen, do not think I'm telling y'all to overspend
• 11:38
  Speaker 2: on these guys, to reach on these guys.
• 11:41
  Speaker 1: I ain't saying that.
• 11:42
  Speaker 2: But if the market telling you these are mid-round guys,
• 11:45
  Speaker 2: six to eight, six to nine, you can get in.
• 11:49
  Speaker 2: Some of these probably going to fall to ninth round. But, hell,
• 11:54
  Speaker 2: five to eight. Let's go five to eight. If some
• 11:56
  Speaker 2: of these players available at five to eight, that's not
• 11:59
  Speaker 2: an overspend. That's not an overspend. These guys are going
• 12:02
  Speaker 2: to have big years. And, look, don't let the ADP
• 12:05
  Speaker 2: suggest where you should take these guys. Don't do that
• 12:08
  Speaker 2: because we already know your job is to find the
• 12:11
  Speaker 2: value first. Apply that pressure and go get a dub.
• 12:16
  Speaker 2: And the only way to go get dubs is to
• 12:18
  Speaker 2: find the value first. Listen, preseason is going on right now.
• 12:23
  Speaker 2: Make sure y'all tap in. Just, you know, even if
• 12:26
  Speaker 2: you could just watch a quarter. Go watch the full
• 12:31
  Speaker 2: game highlights the day out. Whenever you got time. That's
• 12:33
  Speaker 2: really what it's about. Go watch that. Go tap in.
• 12:37
  Speaker 2: See how these players are scoring. See how the teams
• 12:39
  Speaker 2: are using them. But I promise you, These seven people
• 12:42
  Speaker 2: that's on this list, you're going to wish you would
• 12:44
  Speaker 2: have drafted them. And if you found this helpful, make
• 12:49
  Speaker 2: sure y'all check out my fantasy basketball content, 2026-2027 playlist
• 12:52
  Speaker 2: on my page.