Despite New Orleans’ losing streak, Yves Missi is progressing & moves up to No. 2 in this week’s rankings.
Guard Stephon Castle of the San Antonio Spurs held onto the Ladder’s top rung, but the Top 5 tightened with Yves Missi, Jaylen Wells, Alex Sarr and Zach Edey all generating upward momentum in a week of risers.
The leading scorer from the Class of 2024 no longer appears here: Philadelphia’s Jared McCain drops off due to surgery on a torn meniscus that severely truncated and possibly terminated his promising season.
Unlike most of the NBA’s other awards, there is no minimum for games played to earn Kia Rookie of the Year acclaim. But it’s reasonable to believe the 23 McCain got into the books before his injury wouldn’t be enough. Zion Williamson logged 24 in 2019-20 and finished a distant third in voting behind winner Ja Morant and runner-up Kendrick Nunn.
Here is a look at the current cream of the rookie crop:
• That key matchup we anticipated last week between the Draft’s No. 1 pick and the Ladder’s No. 1 rung-holder? Yawn. Atlanta’s Zaccharie Risacher scored nine points on 4-of-13 shooting and was a minus-1 in the Hawks’ overtime loss Thursday at San Antonio. Castle’s team won, but he had seven points on 3-of-10 shooting and was a minus-16 in 20 minutes.
• Toronto has a ladder of its own going, with four newbies getting rotation minutes. We already have seen Jonathan Mogbo and Jamal Shead on the Ladder, and Ja’Kobe Walter makes his debut this week. Still waiting on Jamison Battle in the Raptors’ unabashed (7-23) rebuild season.
• The Christmas slate of games should provide glimpses or better at several rookies, including Castle, the Lakers’ Dalton Knecht and the Suns’ Ryan Dunn and Oso Ighodaro. Meanwhile, McCain would have been at TD Garden facing the Boston Celtics.
The Wall. A few appear already to have hit it. Others might find a way through or around. But this is the point in the schedule each season when a rookie matches or exceeds the total number of games he played last season in college, overseas or elsewhere. Keep an eye on your favorite newcomers to see if they’re sagging, physically or mentally, as the NBA season heads into its third full month.
(All stats through Monday, Dec. 23)
1. Stephon Castle, San Antonio Spurs
Season stats: 11.6 ppg, 2.6 rpg, 3.8 apg
Last Ladder: 1
Draft pick: No. 4
Castle’s floor presence and defense keep him on top despite offensive inconsistency. He has shot worse in December than in November, and at 38.9% overall, he’s lagging compared to past ROY winners. The only trophy winner since 1958 to shoot less than 40% was Jason Kidd in 1995, who shared the ROY with Grant Hill after helping Dallas boost its victory total by 23.
2. Yves Missi, New Orleans Pelicans
Season stats: 9.7 ppg, 8.6 rpg, 1.2 bpg
Last Ladder: 3
Draft pick: No. 21
Missi had his fingerprints all over the Pelicans’ exciting but unsuccessful overtime loss to Denver on Sunday. He had 21 points on 9-of-12 shooting, nine rebounds and three blocks, including a swat of Nikola Jokić’s layup with a minute left in the extra session. At the end, like so many veterans, Missi couldn’t properly execute an intentional free throw miss. He’s progressing through all the losing.
3. Jaylen Wells, Memphis Grizzlies
Season stats: 11.4 ppg, 3.3 rpg, 1.7 apg
Last Ladder: 4
Draft pick: No. 39
Wells has started 25 games – the rest of the second-rounders in the Class of 2024 have started a total of 15. He’s the only one of the second-rounders averaging more than 6.4 points, and he ranks third overall among the rookies. He also has the best plus/minus total (107).
4. Alexandre Sarr, Washington Wizards
Season stats: 11.2 ppg, 6.4 rpg, 1.8 bpg
Last Ladder: 5
Draft pick: No. 2
One of the good things about rookies is, if you’re unhappy with something, give ‘em time. Sarr shot 37% overall and 24.4% from deep through November, but he’s hitting 45.6% and 42.9% this month.
5. Zach Edey, Memphis Grizzlies
Season stats: 10.6 ppg, 7.5 rpg, 1.1 bpg
Last Ladder: 8
Draft pick: No. 9
The big Grizzly is climbing back toward the top after a week in which he averaged 7.0 points, 9.3 boards and 1.3 blocks. He also earned respect points for not backing down vs. Warriors irritant Draymond Green.
6. Zaccharie Risacher, Atlanta Hawks
Season stats: 10.6 ppg, 3.2 rpg, 1.1 apg
Last Ladder: 6
Draft pick: No. 1
If starting in the NBA as the top pick in his class was one dream, playing for the French national team is the next. “Every competitor wants to win medals for their country,” he said recently.
7. Bub Carrington, Washington Wizards
Season stats: 8.9 ppg, 4.4 rpg, 3.8 apg
Last Ladder: 7
Draft pick: No. 14
Scored 14 with 4-of-8 from the arc Monday vs. OKC but exited early with an apparent upper-body injury.
8. Tristan da Silva, Orlando Magic
Season stats: 8.3 ppg, 3.5 rpg, 1.4 apg
Last Ladder: Not ranked
Draft pick: No. 18
Stepping up into Magic’s injury void, came up big with 18 points and 3-point dagger in W vs. Boston Monday.
9. Ajay Mitchell, Oklahoma City Thunder
Season stats: 5.7 ppg, 1.9 rpg, 1.7 apg
Last Ladder: Not ranked
Draft pick: No. 38
Good news: Overachiever contributing to winning. Bad news: He already has played more than half (28) of the 50 games allowed for guys on two-way contracts.
10. Ja’Kobe Walter, Toronto Raptors
Season stats: 8.9 ppg, 3.0 rpg, 1.6 apg
Last Ladder: Not ranked
Draft pick: No. 19
Walter is the latest of the Raptors’ kiddie corps to grab a rung after averaging 16.7 points on 11.0 shots and 25.7 minutes last this.
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Steve Aschburner has written about the NBA since 1980. You can e-mail him here, find his archive here and follow him on X.
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