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- Isaac OkoroDavid Liam Kyle/NBAE via Getty Images
With Tyus Jones now off the board, we’re really down to the nitty-gritty members of the 2024 NBA free-agency class, but there are still some helpful players left.
And with most rosters filled and little spending power left around the league, those players are the ones who boast a little versatility on both ends of the floor.
Third-stringers (second-stringers in some cases) are sometimes called upon to play unfamiliar positions or roles. The ones who’ve done it before have a leg up.
And the five players below are exactly the kind of multipositional threats who could help just about any team in the league.
Evan Fournier1 of 4
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- Evan FournierGregory Shamus/Getty Images
The last couple years have certainly affected Evan Fournier’s NBA stock.
Thanks to a simple coaching decision from the New York Knicks’ Tom Thibodeau, Fournier played only 27 games in 2022-23 and just three more for that organization in 2023-24 (before he was traded to the Detroit Pistons, where he made 29 more appearances).
Thibodeau clearly didn’t think Fournier made sense in his team’s rotation, but that doesn’t mean his days of being a helpful NBA player are over.
Just one year before his minutes were slashed, Fournier started 80 games for the Knicks, averaged 14.1 points and shot 38.9 percent from three. For his career, he’s a 37.4 percent three-point shooter.
Outside shooting alone can be enough to keep a player in the league, and Fournier has hit enough threes in the NBA to warrant another contract.
Robert Covington2 of 4
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- Robert CovingtonTim Nwachukwu/Getty Images
Robert Covington’s role has been limited over the last two seasons, especially in 2023-24, when he averaged 16.8 minutes in just 29 appearances for two different teams.
But it’s too early to call a wrap on his NBA career. He’s only 33 years old, stands 6’7″ and has a 7’2″ wingspan. He never demands a ton of touches on offense and always plays with energy on the other end.
Covington has never had a negative defensive estimated plus-minus (one of the most trusted catch-all metrics in NBA front offices). In 2023-24, he ranked in the 96th percentile there.
And though he never found a rhythm from the outside this past season, he’s still hit 37.9 percent of his three-point attempts since the start of 2020-21.
At this point in the summer, no one is going to sign Covington to start, but he can add three-and-D versatility to just about any bench.
Lonnie Walker IV3 of 4
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- Lonnie Walker IVG Fiume/Getty Images
It flew under the radar, mostly because the Brooklyn Nets quickly became one of the season’s bigger disasters after the All-Star break, but Lonnie Walker IV has developed into an impactful backup combo guard.
In 2023-23, the 25-year-old averaged a career-high 1.8 threes and shot 38.4 percent from deep. When he was on the floor, the Nets were plus-0.2 points per 100 possessions, compared to minus-4.1 when he was off.
Walker showed an ability to both get to the basket or hit catch-and-shoot threes, s𝓀𝒾𝓁𝓁s that would easily translate to perhaps an even smaller role.
Isaac Okoro4 of 4
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- Isaac OkoroLauren Leigh Bacho/NBAE via Getty Images
He’s never been tasked with a significant scoring role, but Isaac Okoro is just 23 years old and coming off a season in which he shot 39.1 percent from deep.
When you combine that with a 6’9″ wingspan and back-to-back campaigns with an above-average defensive estimated plus-minus, it’s easy to become intrigued with his three-and-D upside.
For whatever reason, though, those factors don’t seem to have sold the Cleveland Cavaliers on the possibility of bringing Okoro back.
Now over a month into the offseason, the restricted free agent remains unsigned, and only the Detroit Pistons and Utah Jazz have the cap space to make him a meaningful offer.