NBL27 SuperCoach Sleepers & Breakout Players: 10 Value Picks Before Round 1

Updated: 10 September 2026

Everyone can find Bryce Cotton.

The point of a sleeper list is finding the player who becomes obvious three weeks too late.

NBL27 SuperCoach prices tell us plenty about what players have already done. Fantasy value is about working out what they are about to do.

A new team can change a role. A new coach can change a rotation. A young player can suddenly get 25 minutes instead of 10. An import can arrive with a price based on zero NBL history and immediately take control of an offence.

And sometimes preseason gives us just enough evidence to realise the market has not caught up yet.

This is not our NBL27 SuperCoach cheapies ranking. That guide is about squeezing the salary cap and finding playable options at the bottom of the market.

These are the players we think have the clearest chance to outgrow their current SuperCoach price, role or reputation once NBL27 begins.

Some are cheap. Some absolutely are not. Some could make serious money. One or two could eventually become genuine premiums.

And a couple could make this article look stupid by October.

That is the deal with sleepers.

SuperCoach NBL Classic opens with a $2 million cap across 10 players, with prices moving once the season begins. The first lockout is Saturday 19 September. Before you build around any of these names, it is also worth checking our NBL27 SuperCoach Top 50 rankings, Blitz winners and losers and Round 1-7 fixture guide.

Buckets' top 10 NBL27 SuperCoach sleepers and breakout players

These are not simply the ten highest preseason scorers. Price and role matter.

If someone costs $400,000 and scores like a $400,000 player, congratulations to them. They are not a sleeper.

We want the gap.

1. Dash Daniels - South East Melbourne Phoenix - $115,000

Dash Daniels is the player who best fits what this article is trying to find.

He is cheap enough to change your team structure, young enough to have genuine year-to-year improvement in him and, crucially, appears to have a real role.

Daniels moved from Melbourne United to South East Melbourne for his second Next Stars season after appearing in 35 games, including 11 starts, in his debut campaign. The Phoenix are deep, but Daniels has already been getting meaningful court time.

Then came the Blitz.

Daniels produced 55 projected SuperCoach points in 44:28 across two games, an average of 27.5 at a starting price of only $115,000. His second game against Brisbane was particularly fantasy-friendly: 14 points, four rebounds, four assists and four steals.

There has been more evidence since. Against New Zealand on 8 September he finished with nine points, four assists and two steals.

That matters. Daniels does not need to become a 20-point scorer to work in SuperCoach. Steals are worth three points, assists are worth two, and his defensive instincts give him ways to score fantasy points without dominating possession.

The Phoenix also have two games in Round 1.

Buckets verdict: our favourite breakout bet at the price. There will be bad games because he is 18. There may be frustrating rotations because South East Melbourne is deep. But $115,000 is asking us to pay for what Daniels was. We are interested in what he might be now.

2. Arnas Velička - Brisbane Bullets - $277,000

Calling Arnas Velička a sleeper already feels slightly dishonest.

The secret lasted about five minutes.

Brisbane's new point guard arrived as last season's EuroCup assists leader, and coach Will Weaver has described him as the "head of the snake" for the rebuilt Bullets. In his first Brisbane preseason appearance he produced 12 points, 13 assists, four rebounds, two steals and two blocks.

Then he went to Bendigo and averaged 50.5 projected SuperCoach points across the Blitz.

The official NBL cash-cow analysis put that production at an indicative value of roughly $523,000 against Velička's $277,000 starting price. Nobody should expect him to average 50.5 all season, but he does not need to come remotely close to that number to beat his price.

The stat we care about most is assists.

Velička has shown he can create huge fantasy production without needing to score 30 himself. That is a very useful job description in SuperCoach.

Buckets verdict: probably the safest player on this list to become substantially more expensive. The concern is not whether he has the role. He has it. The question is how much of that absurd preseason production survives once NBL27 starts.

3. Flynn Cameron - Adelaide 36ers - $241,700

Flynn Cameron won the NBL's Most Improved Player award last season.

And we still think there might be another step coming.

That is because Adelaide has not recruited over him. Under Trevor Gleeson, Cameron sits firmly inside a core expected to carry major minutes alongside Bryce Cotton, John Jenkins, Zylan Cheatham, Nick Rakocevic and Isaac Humphries.

At the Blitz, Cameron averaged 32 projected SuperCoach points across his two games.

The headline outing was a 48 against Illawarra: 27 points, six rebounds, six assists, a steal and zero turnovers.

Read that again.

Zero turnovers while producing 27-6-6 is exactly the kind of line that sends a SuperCoach score north quickly.

Then there is the fixture.

Adelaide has double-game rounds in Rounds 2, 3, 4 and 7. We have already talked about what that does for Cotton's captaincy appeal in our fixture guide, but Cameron gets the same scheduling benefit for almost half the price.

Buckets verdict: maybe less "breakout" and more "still underpriced". At $241,700, Cameron does not need another Most Improved award. He just needs his expanded role to stick.

4. Luke Travers - Melbourne United - $292,900

This one might be cheating.

Luke Travers just won Blitz MVP.

Not exactly hiding in the bushes.

But $292,900 still puts him below the top premium tier, and there is a legitimate scenario where we reach November and Travers is priced alongside it.

Across Melbourne's undefeated Blitz campaign he averaged 18 points, 9.5 rebounds, 2.5 assists, 1.5 steals and 1.5 blocks, winning the Ray Borner Award.

His wider preseason has been strong too. The NBL's preseason SuperCoach tracker had Travers at a 44.5 average across two earlier games, including a 47 in 24 minutes against B.League United.

There is one obvious problem: Melbourne is ridiculously deep.

Cole Anthony, Joe Ingles, Josh Oduro, Sam Waardenburg, Shea Ili and company are all going to need the basketball. That makes Travers harder to project than his preseason box scores suggest.

But Josh Oduro's assessment of Travers was telling: Melbourne does not win without him.

Buckets verdict: the most expensive "breakout" on this list and perhaps the highest ceiling. You are paying much more than you are for Daniels or Rakocevic, but Travers has a realistic route from the mid-price band into the premium conversation.

5. Nick Rakocevic - Adelaide 36ers - $188,400

This is the boring one.

We mean that as a compliment.

Rakocevic is not a teenage Next Star, he is not the shiny new point guard running an offence and he is not likely to dominate highlight packages.

He rebounds.

A lot.

The Adelaide import averaged 27.5 projected SuperCoach points at the Blitz while costing just $188,400. Against Cairns he produced 10 points, 13 rebounds and three assists.

Rebounding is a lovely fantasy safety net because it does not require plays to be called for you.

And Rakocevic sits inside the Adelaide group expected to get significant minutes.

The fixture then pours petrol on it: four doubles by Round 7.

Buckets verdict: perhaps the best uncomplicated value selection in the article. There is not much mystery here. If his minutes resemble a genuine core player and he keeps attacking the glass, $188,400 could simply be too cheap.

6. Max Mackinnon - Brisbane Bullets - $200,000

Arnas Velička will get the Brisbane attention.

Max Mackinnon might get the Brisbane value.

Will Weaver has repeatedly used Mackinnon as a starter during the preseason, and the 22-year-old arrived with some serious momentum after winning Finals MVP at the 2026 adidas Eurocamp.

At the Blitz he averaged 28.5 projected SuperCoach points, including a 32 against Tasmania. At $200,000, that production translated to an indicative Blitz value of about $295,000.

The question is usage.

Brisbane is better than it was. Velička will have the ball. Nate Hinton, Tyrell Harrison and the rest of the rotation all need touches.

That is both the risk and the appeal. Mackinnon no longer needs to create everything himself, but he still needs enough offence to make the $200,000 investment worthwhile.

Buckets verdict: genuine breakout candidate. If the starting role is real rather than purely preseason experimentation, he is one of our favourite mid-price players.

7. Elijah Pepper - Perth Wildcats - $202,700

Elijah Pepper is closer to the traditional definition of a sleeper.

He opened the preseason at only 3.2 per cent ownership despite coming off a 19.55 SuperCoach average, and then Perth handed him serious responsibility.

At the Blitz, Pepper averaged 31 projected SuperCoach points in 32:50 per game, including a 40 against Cairns. Among the players around his price, that workload matters nearly as much as the score.

His form continued in Japan this week, where he finished with 12 points, five rebounds and two assists in Perth's win over the Chiba Jets.

Perth's roster situation is the wrinkle. The Wildcats have been shaping their point-guard mix through the preseason, and another high-usage creator would naturally change Pepper's fantasy projection.

Their early SuperCoach fixture is also less attractive than Adelaide's or Cairns'.

Buckets verdict: exactly the kind of player who can be missed because there are louder names around him. Watch the role, not the reputation. If Pepper keeps getting 30-plus minutes and meaningful usage, $202,700 is attractive.

8. Akech Aliir - South East Melbourne Phoenix - $125,300

If this article were ranked purely on preseason points per dollar, Akech Aliir would be much higher.

His first Blitz outing was ridiculous.

Aliir generated 37 projected SuperCoach points in 18:54 at a $125,300 price. Across the Blitz he finished with 46 in only 33:11.

That is serious per-minute production.

Now for the cold water.

South East Melbourne is stacked. Jordan Hunter is there. Yannis Morin is there. Hunter Goodrick is there. The Phoenix have a lot of legitimate rotation players fighting for minutes.

Aliir's output is not the question.

His court time is.

Buckets verdict: potentially one of the most mispriced players in NBL27, but also one of the hardest to project. At $125,300 with FWD/CTR eligibility and a Round 1 double, he is exactly the kind of calculated swing a sleepers list should contain.

9. Jayden Stone - Sydney Kings - $100,000

Jayden Stone absolutely smashed the audition.

He scored 58 projected SuperCoach points across Sydney's two Blitz games, averaging 29 while sitting right on the $100,000 line. He played 55:37 across the two games.

That is the good part.

Now look at Sydney.

Kendric Davis. Matthew Dellavedova. Tyler Robertson. Torrey Craig. Xavier Cooks. A championship roster with very little interest in giving somebody minutes because it would be nice for our fantasy team.

The talent and preseason production say buy. The depth chart says calm down.

Buckets verdict: one of our favourite players to monitor but one of the hardest to lock into a Round 1 SuperCoach side without more evidence. If his regular-season minutes are real, $100,000 will look silly. If they are not, the Blitz score becomes trivia.

10. Nick Marshall - Tasmania JackJumpers - $203,400

Nick Marshall is here because nobody is talking about Nick Marshall.

That is usually helpful in a sleepers article.

While Taran Armstrong attracted the attention in Tasmania, Marshall quietly averaged 24.5 projected SuperCoach points across the JackJumpers' two Blitz games, playing 55:01.

He is not suddenly Tasmania's first option.

Armstrong will run the show, and the JackJumpers have experienced bodies across the roster. But Marshall does not need to lead Tasmania in scoring to become useful.

Buckets verdict: our proper deep-cut sleeper. He will not be the first name you build around, but if his role takes another step, $203,400 gives him room to appreciate without needing a star-level season.

The three players we deliberately left out

Josh Oduro - Melbourne United

Josh Oduro was incredibly close. In fact, his numbers are better than most players above. He averaged 44 projected SuperCoach points at the Blitz from a $277,000 price and was one of the biggest projected cash cows in the competition.

The problem is that everybody now knows.

We are not going to call the bloke who just dominated the Blitz for the tournament champions a hidden sleeper.

Milton Doyle - Illawarra Hawks

Milton Doyle is another excellent value candidate. At $274,700, his move to Illawarra could give him more responsibility and he averaged 35.5 projected SuperCoach points in Bendigo.

But Doyle has already shown across multiple NBL seasons that he can be an elite player. That is a role-change bet, not really a breakout.

Jaylin Galloway - Cairns Taipans

Jaylin Galloway might have been on the main list if healthy.

He moved to Cairns seeking a bigger opportunity, but he will miss the start of the season while recovering from off-season surgery to his left shoulder. That makes him more interesting as a later target than a Round 1 selection.

So who is the best NBL27 SuperCoach sleeper?

For price, upside and immediate opportunity, Dash Daniels is our No. 1 NBL27 SuperCoach sleeper heading towards Round 1.

Velička is the stronger fantasy player right now, but he costs $162,000 more and is increasingly becoming consensus.

Daniels is the bet.

If he gives South East Melbourne 20-plus minutes with assists, rebounds and his natural defensive production, he does not need huge scoring nights to outperform $115,000.

Who is the best NBL27 SuperCoach cash cow?

Arnas Velička has the strongest case.

His $277,000 import price contains no previous NBL production, while his role already looks enormous. An average anywhere near his preseason output would cause that starting price to look very cheap very quickly.

Nick Rakocevic and Flynn Cameron are the two cheaper alternatives we like most.

Who is the best cheap breakout player?

Dash Daniels, followed closely by Akech Aliir.

Daniels has the clearer route to consistent minutes. Aliir may have the better raw fantasy production per minute.

That distinction matters.

A player cannot score SuperCoach points from the bench.

Who is the best mid-price sleeper?

Nick Rakocevic at $188,400.

There are sexier picks. There are not many with such an appealing combination of price, likely role, rebounding and early double-game rounds.

Max Mackinnon and Elijah Pepper are the alternatives if you would rather attack the guard positions.

One final warning before Round 1

Preseason matters.

Preseason also lies.

Rotations expand. Stars sit. Coaches test combinations. Players rack up 30 minutes one night and disappear behind veterans a week later.

That is why we do not simply sort the Blitz SuperCoach table and press publish.

What we are looking for is where three things overlap: price, production and a believable regular-season role.

Dash Daniels has it.

Arnas Velička has it.

Flynn Cameron and Nick Rakocevic have it.

The further down this ranking you go, the more we are betting on the third part.

And that is where the fun starts.

There are still preseason games to come before the first NBL27 lockout, including Melbourne against New Zealand and Perth's continuing Japan trip on 10 September, followed by Tasmania-Sydney and Brisbane-Cairns on 12 September. We will update this ranking if those games materially change a role, injury or rotation.

What to read next

• NBL27 SuperCoach Top 50 rankings - our overall player power rankings using SuperCoach scoring.
• NBL27 SuperCoach Cheapies - our best cash cows, bargains and cap savers under $100,000.
• NBL27 SuperCoach Blitz winners and losers - who rose, who created concern and what Bendigo changed.
• NBL27 SuperCoach fixture guide - every team's game count and double-game rounds through Round 7.

Sources and methodology

This ranking uses NBL27 SuperCoach starting prices and scoring, official NBL roster and depth-chart information, preseason injury reporting, official NBL box scores, the completed CODE Sports NBL Blitz and Basketball.com.au's projected SuperCoach calculations from those box scores.

Blitz SuperCoach figures in this article are projected scores, not official SuperCoach scores. SuperCoach NBL does not score the preseason, so the Blitz itself does not move player prices. Basketball.com.au calculates its projections from the official box scores using the published SuperCoach scoring table.

Key references:

• Blitzing the Blitz: Player-by-Player - Part 1
• Blitzing the Blitz: Player-by-Player - Part 2
• Cash Cows: SuperCoach NBL Classic
• Pre-season player-by-player scores: SuperCoach NBL Classic
• NBL27 roster tracker
• NBL27 schedule

Buckets is an independent fantasy basketball platform and is not affiliated with SuperCoach or the National Basketball League. SuperCoach is referenced for analysis and scoring comparison.