The NBA season kicked off in October, but many don’t pay much attention to it until around Christmas (or when the NFL season ends).
This year’s rookie class has been fun to watch and we already have a tight race for the Rookie of the Year award.
This year’s class looked top-heavy early, but players like Orlando’s Franz Wagner and Oklahoma City’s Josh Giddey are jumping up the leaderboard.
Here are the top ten NBA rookies (so far) this season.
1. Evan Mobley – Cleveland Cavaliers (Picked #3) – Mobley and Barnes have been the two-best rookies so far and have jockeyed between #1 and #2 so far. I wouldn’t put up a fuss if you think Barnes is better, but Mobley has improved every month. His ceiling is really high, and once the Cavs group of young players are 100% healthy next year, they could be a really fun team to watch. He may even lead the Cavs to a playoff berth this year.
2. Scottie Barnes – Toronto Raptors (Picked #4) – Barnes jumped to #1 at the start of the year, but he had a rough stretch of games in November that are hard to forget. He struggled from the field and he didn’t even attempt a shot from deep for nearly half the month. He bounced-back in December and made some adjustments to become a better all-around player. I look forward to seeing how much he will improve in the second-half of the season.
3. Cade Cunningham – Detroit Pistons (Picked #1) – Cunningham was the consensus best overall player in his draft class, but he has been overtaken early in his rookie season. He struggled to shoot with consistency until he got hot in December. He would have been farther down if I made this list earlier this season. I wouldn’t be surprised if he improves a lot and battles Barnes and Mobley for Rookie of the Year.
4. Franz Wagner – Orlando Magic (Picked #8) – Wagner has been unbelievable since mid-December. He’s 6’10 with good-to-great ball-handling skills and can stretch the floor with his range. I didn’t expect him to be this good at this point in his career. I thought he may need a year or two, especially on a young Magic team. He’s very good and the Magic are putting together an exciting young nucleus to build around.
5. Josh Giddey – Oklahoma City Thunder (Picked #6) – As a Pacers fan, I had my eye on Giddey early on in the draft process last year. He was expected to be a late-Lottery pick at that time, but after a strong Olympic outing, his draft stock went to the moon. His length and passing ability makes him a triple-double threat. He has three triple-doubles in the last three weeks. The Thunder area a fun team to watch and Giddey could develop into a Luka Doncic clone.
6. Jalen Green – Houston Rockets (Picked #2) – Green struggled to find his shot early this year, but he has shot above 40% from three since Christmas. He is an elite scorer, but he isn’t filling up the rest of the box score, at least not yet. The Rockets aren’t very good right now and that could be delaying his development a tad. The talent is there, but he needs some help in Houston.
7. Bones Hyland – Denver Nuggets (Picked #26) – Hyland is the first true surprise on this list. He was selected near the bottom of the first round and it looks like the Nuggets got a steal. He isn’t playing a ton of minutes, but he has shined when given 25+ minutes a game. I would love to see a back-court of Facundo Campazzo as their starting duo, but that could be a year or two away.
8. Chris Duarte – Indiana Pacers (Picked #13) – Duarte was one of the oldest draft-eligible players, and at 24 years old, it was expected that he could contribute right away, and he’s done just that. Duarte would have been a top-four rookie if I had made a list in late-November, but his three-point percentage dropped to 32% in December. Duarte’s ceiling isn’t as high as many on this list, but he’s a solid player right out of the gate.
9. Alperen Sengun – Houston Rockets (Picked #16) – Sengun is turning into a fan favorite in Houston. He fills the box score and he rarely cracks 20 minutes on the floor. He hasn’t developed much of a shot from deep, but his shot is fluid, so it’s just a matter of time. If the Rockets drafts another player with some size in the next draft, they could have a solid starting-five, but they need way more depth, so they are a few years away from being competitive.
10. Jalen Suggs – Orlando Magic (Picked #5) – Orlando has a handful of talented guards and Cole Anthony took a big leap in Year Two. The Magic may have went in another direction if they had known Anthony’s development would progress this fast. You can see the talent Suggs possesses, but his three-point shot hasn’t been there this year. The Magic have one of the worst records in the NBA, so they will most likely focus on just developing their young talent, so he will get plenty of time to improve.
Honorable Mention
Davion Mitchell – Sacramento Kings (Picked #9)
Cam Thomas – Brooklyn Nets (Picked #27)
Ayo Dosunmu – Chicago Bulls (Picked #38)
Herbert Jones – New Orleans Pelicans (Picked #35)
Jeremiah Robinson-Earl – Oklahoma City Thunder (Picked #)
Aaron Wiggins – Oklahoma City Thunder (Picked #55)
Kessler Edwards – Brooklyn Nets (Picked #44)
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About the Author…
Bobby Roberts (otherwise known as Sweetbob) is the creator of ‘America’s White Boy’ and contributor at Project Shanks. His writing has been featured on ESPN’s ‘SportsNation’, Sports Illustrated’s Hot Clicks, Guyspeed, and various other sites. You can follow him on Twitter at @Sweetbob.