With three impressive preseason games, John Collins matches the description of the phrase “most underrated player in the league.” He has not received much spotlight, and with Ivica Zubac slowly getting his respect over the summer from several analysts in the national media, Collins has taken the crown without having played a single regular-season game this season.
Moreover, Collins has been underrated his whole career. The LA Clippers have a big market for him to shine in, and finally obtain the recognition he deserves, but on the Atlanta Hawks and Utah Jazz, two franchises in smaller markets, he was overlooked by Trae Young and Lauri Markkanen.
On the Clippers, he brings the same game, but will perform better because of the head coach and his teammates, particularly James Harden and Chris Paul.
Even if it is in a bench role, Collins will thrive, and most fans will look back at his stats and highlights at the end of the year in shock, wondering how a player so great could fly under the radar.
John Collins’ preseason foreshadows a prominent regular season up ahead
The LA Clippers are 2-1 in the preseason, and John Collins might be the most significant reason why they won their first and third contests. He has been superior all around, but it seems like Clippers fans are the only ones praising his name.
In the preseason opener, Collins got his first bucket as a Clipper in the most predictable style: an explosive dunk. This highlight had everyone cheering, which allowed him to maintain a good rhythm, finishing with 15 points and four rebounds, shooting 75% from the floor.
In the next game against the Denver Nuggets, LA lost, and Collins did not play well. Nevertheless, this overall disappointing performance appeared to have motivated him to play better, as the feeling of losing stung.
Thus, Collins crushed the Sacramento Kings with 24 points and six rebounds in 18 minutes.
Additionally, Collins was creating highlights and finishing plays off the veteran point guard, Chris Paul. These two are first-time teammates, but on Wednesday night, they made their chemistry seem unimaginably fluid.
That said, outside of the Clipper world, and maybe fans of the Utah Jazz and Atlanta Hawks, who will be keeping up with Collins’ performances, the NBA community has not taken a second to really observe his greatness. This ultimately explains why he is the most underrated player in basketball.