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Community Shootaround: No. 1 Prospect In 2026 Draft

December 19th, 2025 at 10:20pm CST by Rory Maher

Ahead of the 2026 NBA draft, there is widely considered to be a three-player race for the top overall prospect and No. 1 overall pick. Kansas guard Darryn Peterson is ranked No. 1 on Jeremy Woo of ESPN’s latest big board, followed by BYU wing AJ Dybantsa and Duke forward/center Cameron Boozer.

Woo and Jeff Borzello of ESPN recently spoke to several NBA scouts and college coaches to get their impressions of the three freshmen, who are all viewed as “legitimate No. 1 prospects” who simply happen to be in the same class.

Peterson has been highly productive when healthy, but missed seven games with a hamstring injury and was forced to leave his most recent contest due to quad cramps. In four games, he has averaged 19.3 points, 3.8 rebounds, 2.8 assists and 1.3 steals, with a shooting slash line of .528/.423/.769.

One Eastern Conference scout said the 6’5″ combo guard, who is touted as an explosive — and consistent — offensive player, was the top prospect on his board and it was hard to envision that changing no matter how well Dybantsa and Boozer play for the remainder of the season. While one coach had questions about Peterson’s ability to run the point, a different Eastern scout said that shouldn’t be an issue at the next level.

“What a point guard is now in the NBA, he’s that,” the scout told ESPN. “Are you able to create advantages, are you able to [be a] play-maker, are you a scorer when you see a defense break down? Darryn can do all those things.”

Dybantsa, a 6’9″ forward, is generally considered to have the most upside of anyone in the class, with outside shooting and consistency viewed as his biggest question marks. In 11 games, he’s averaging 21.1 PPG, 7.0 RPG, 3.3 APG and 1.3 SPG on .556/.321/.743 shooting.

“I would have AJ No. 1 still,” one Western Conference scout told ESPN. “The positional versatility, the size, is so unique. His ability to be able to create off the dribble, be dynamic from the mid-post. The fadeaway jumpers, that style of play. I think he can make really crisp passes off one hand, really good adjusting midair. … He takes long strides on defense, someone that you can insert in very different lineups playing different positions.”

As Woo and Borzello detail, Boozer had an extremely impressive résumé prior to entering college, winning four high school state championships in Florida and two gold medals — and two MVPs — with Team USA (at the FIBA U16 AmeriCup in 2023 and the FIBA U17 World Cup in 2024).

The son of former NBA All-Star Carlos Boozer has been the most productive college player in the country in the early portion of the season (he’s averaging 23.3 PPG, 10.2 RPG, 3.7 APG and 1.6 SPG on .563/.348/.789 shooting through 11 games) and is the favorite to win Player of the Year for the 11-0 Blue Devils. However, questions persist about the younger Boozer’s athleticism and upside at the NBA level, at least relative to Peterson and Dybantsa.

“Can you put the ball in his hands and you know he’s going to be able to get a bucket or create something at the end of a game, when the game’s on the line? Is he good enough at that at the NBA level?” an Eastern Conference scout said, per ESPN. “It’s not a knock on Cam, it’s just that those other two guys have the potential to be the best player on NBA championship teams.”

We want to know what you think. In what seems to be an eye-of-the-beholder draft, which prospect would you currently rank No. 1 overall? Do you agree that any of the three would ordinarily be considered top overall prospects in their own right? Head to the comments section to weigh in with your thoughts!.

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NBA Players Who Can’t Be Traded This Season

December 19th, 2025 at 10:24am CST by Luke Adams

As we explained when we identified the players who will become trade-eligible on unique dates this season, there’s a small group of players whose trade restrictions won’t lift until sometime after the February 5 trade deadline. These players meet one of the following criteria:

  1. They signed a free agent contract or were promoted from a two-way contract after November 5.
    • A player who signs a free agent contract or is promoted from a two-way contract is ineligible to be traded for at least three months.
  2. They signed a veteran contract extension (meeting certain criteria) after August 5.
    • A player who signs a veteran extension that keeps him under contract for more than four total years (including his current contract), includes a first-year raise greater than 20%, includes a subsequent raise exceeding 5%, or includes a renegotiation is ineligible to be traded for six months.
  3. They signed a super-max contract.

We identified all the players who fell into these three categories in our previous story on unique trade dates, but they may have slipped through the cracks amid the larger list of players we discussed in that article.

With that in mind, we want to specifically single them out today to make sure it’s clear which players won’t become trade-eligible at all until sometime after the 2025/26 regular season.

Here are the players who fall into the three aforementioned groups and who can’t be traded this season:

Players who have signed standard contracts since November 5:

There hasn’t been a ton of action on the free agent market since the regular season began, with most players who have signed with NBA teams receiving two-way contracts rather than standard deals.

Still, there are a couple players who fit this bill. Curry didn’t sign with Golden State until December 1, meaning his trade restrictions won’t lift until March 1, well after this year’s deadline. The Pacers, meanwhile, have rotated several players in and out of their 15th roster spot, signing Monte Morris and Jeremiah Robinson-Earl to standard contracts before waiving them and making Mathews their 15th man.

Both Curry and Mathews are ineligible to be moved this season, and this list will continue to grow if more free agents sign standard contracts between now and February 5.

Players who have signed veteran contract extensions meeting certain criteria since August 5:

Camara likely wouldn’t have been a trade candidate regardless of whether or not he signed an extension in recent months, since the Trail Blazers could have made him a restricted free agent in 2026. But given the way the Bucks, Pacers, and Mavericks have struggled so far this season, it’s entirely possible Green, Nesmith, and/or Washington would have become the subject of in-season trade speculation. Due to their recently signed contracts, all of them are ineligible to be dealt until the 2026 offseason.

It’s not uncommon for some players who are eligible for in-season veteran extensions to sign new deals well into the season, so it’s certainly possible more names will be added to this group before February’s trade deadline.

Players who have signed super-max contracts:

Gilgeous-Alexander signed his designated veteran extension on July 7, 2025, which means he won’t become trade-eligible until July 7, 2026.

No other players will join the reigning MVP on this list prior to February’s trade deadline, since super-max deals can’t be signed during the season.

Note: This article refers to players on standard contracts. Players on two-way contracts can’t be traded for 30 days after signing, meaning any player who signs a two-way deal after January 6 this season will be ineligible to be dealt by the deadline.

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Community Shootaround: Knicks’ Title Drought

December 18th, 2025 at 9:14pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Knicks finally stood atop the NBA world this week, even if it was just the in-season tournament. Winning the NBA Cup was a nice way to head into the holidays but the franchise and its fans are looking for something much bigger – a trip to the Finals and the Larry O’Brien trophy.

They reached the Eastern Conference Finals last season for the first time in a quarter century, only to get knocked out by the underdog Pacers. They haven’t sniffed the Finals since the 1998/99 season, when the Spurs’ Twin Towers of David Robinson and Tim Duncan bounced them in a five-game series.

As their long-time fans know, the Knicks haven’t hoisted the trophy since 1973, when the iconic starting five of Willis Reed, Walt Frazier, Dave DeBusschere, Bill Bradley and Earl “The Pearl” Monroe carried them past the Lakers.

The Eastern Conference certainly seems ripe for the taking. The Pistons have been nothing short of marvelous during the first two months of the season but they haven’t won a playoff series since 2008.

The Cavaliers, who rolled to the top seed in the conference last season, are hovering around .500. Perhaps a young team like the Magic can get hot at the right time, but currently the Knicks are a solid favorite to come out of the East.

Via trades and free agency, the Knicks have assembled a formidable starting five (or six, if you count Mitchell Robinson) in Most Valuable Player candidate Jalen Brunson, Karl-Anthony Towns, OG Anunoby, Mikal Bridges and Josh Hart.

Offensively, they rank in the top five in points and three-point shooting while keeping their turnovers down. Defensively, they rank in the top five in opponents’ field goal percentage.

Their bench may be somewhat underwhelming, though they have some veteran pieces. Their ability to make moves is severely hamstrung by the fact that they’re hard-capped and operating narrowly below the second tax apron.

That brings us to today’s topic: Is this the season the Knicks finally reach the Finals again and perhaps even win the championship for the first time in 53 years? If not, what do you think will hold them back?

Please take to the comments section to weigh in on this topic. We look forward to your input.

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The Knicks Players Who Benefited Most From NBA Cup Prize Money

December 17th, 2025 at 8:17am CST by Luke Adams

The Knicks‘ team salary this season is nearly $208MM, which is the second-highest figure in the NBA, behind only the Cavaliers ($228MM+). However, five of the 14 players on New York’s standard roster are on minimum-salary contracts, while a sixth is earning just slightly above the minimum.

So while the $530,933 bonus for winning the NBA Cup may be a drop in the bucket for the highest-paid players on the Knicks’ roster, like Karl-Anthony Towns ($53.1MM), OG Anunoby ($39.6MM), and Jalen Brunson ($34.9MM), it represents a significant pay raise for the players on the lower half of the Knicks’ cap sheet, as well as the players on two-way contracts who will receive bonuses worth $265,467 apiece (50% of the full prize share).

[RELATED: Details On NBA Cup Prize Money For 2025]

The NBA Cup prize money results in at least a 14% raise for each of the following Knicks players, whose 2025/26 base salaries are noted in parentheses:

Players receiving a $530,933 bonus:

Players receiving a $265,467 bonus:

The bonuses for Diawara and the Knicks’ two-way players represent a raise of more than 40% on their respective base salaries.

None of this prize money will count against the salary cap, so the Knicks’ team salary for cap, tax, and apron purposes remains unchanged, as do the team salaries for San Antonio and the other six clubs who made the knockout round of the NBA Cup. Their prize money is as follows:

  • Spurs: $212,373 per player ($106,187 for two-way players)
  • Magic and Thunder: $106,187 per player ($53,094 for two-ways)
  • Heat, Raptors, Lakers, and Suns: $53,093 per player ($26,547 for two-ways)
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Players Traded After Tuesday Can’t Be Re-Aggregated By Feb. 5 Deadline

December 16th, 2025 at 8:01am CST by Luke Adams

As we explain in our glossary entry on salary aggregation, when a team trades for a player by matching salaries or using a cap exception, that team is typically ineligible to aggregate the player’s salary in a second trade for the next two months.

However, the NBA’s current Collective Bargaining Agreement includes one exception to that rule. A player traded on or before December 16 can always be “re-aggregated” on the day before – or the day of – that season’s trade deadline.

Any player who is acquired in a trade via salary-matching or an exception after Tuesday will be ineligible to be aggregated at this season’s Feb. 5 trade deadline.

We saw this rule in action during the 2024/25 season when the over-the-cap Warriors acquired Dennis Schröder from Brooklyn on December 15, then re-aggregated him at the February 6 trade deadline as part of their package for Jimmy Butler. If Golden State had acquired Schröder from Brooklyn on December 17, his salary couldn’t have been aggregated with those of Andrew Wiggins, Kyle Anderson, and Lindy Waters to match Butler’s incoming cap hit.

Now, there are two important points worth clarifying here. The first is what exactly it means to “aggregate” a contract.

Our glossary entry covers this rule in more depth, but aggregating a player’s salary with another salary means combining the two cap figures for matching purposes. For instance, a team operating over the cap and below the tax aprons can’t trade a $15MM player for a $35MM player, but that team could aggregate its $15MM player with a $20MM player in order to legally acquire the $35MM player.

Crucially, sending out multiple players in the same trade doesn’t necessarily mean they have to be aggregated. For example, if a team sends out a $15MM player and a $5MM player for a single player earning $15MM, there’s no need to aggregate the two outgoing salaries, since the $15MM player is enough to legally match the incoming $15MM salary on his own. So a player traded on Dec. 20 could still be flipped at the deadline in a multi-player trade — his salary simply couldn’t be combined with another player’s for matching purposes within that deal.

Only teams operating below the second tax apron are permitted to aggregate salaries, meaning this rule – and the Dec. 16 exception to it – won’t matter much for the Cavaliers, the NBA’s lone second-apron team this season. Even if the Cavs were to trade for a player today, that player couldn’t be aggregated at the deadline unless Cleveland was able to shed enough salary to move below the second apron.

The second point worth clarifying is that this restriction doesn’t apply to players who are acquired using cap room. The Nets are the only club currently operating under the cap, but they have more than $15MM in space, meaning they’re in a great position to trade for one or more players without sending out any matching salary.

Let’s say the Nets use their remaining cap room to acquire a player earning $14MM. Even if they make that trade on February 5, they could turn around and aggregate their new player’s salary with, say, Terance Mann‘s $15.5MM cap hit the very next day in order to acquire a player earning $30MM. Because the $14MM player was acquired using cap room and not using an exception or by salary-matching, Brooklyn wouldn’t face the two-month aggregation restriction.

There has been no indication that any trades are on the verge of being completed in the next 15 hours, but if they are, it’s worth keeping this rule in mind, since it could be a key reason for the timing of the move.

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79 NBA Players Newly Eligible To Be Traded

December 15th, 2025 at 7:04am CST by Luke Adams

Today is December 15, which means that – by our count – 79 NBA players who signed as free agents this offseason have officially become eligible to be traded.

The list of newly trade-eligible players, which can be found right here, features a number of guys who almost certainly aren’t going anywhere this season, like Trail Blazers guard Damian Lillard.

However, it also includes some players whose names have already popped up in trade speculation in the months since they were signed. The most obvious name in that group is Clippers point guard Chris Paul, who has unofficially parted ways with the team but remains on the roster for the time being. Paul is now eligible to be dealt.

Kyrie Irving, James Harden, Myles Turner, Julius Randle, Fred VanVleet are among the other biggest names who are newly trade-eligible as of Monday.

Fourteen of the players on the list, including Lillard, Harden, and VanVleet, can’t be moved without their consent, since they have the ability to veto trades this season. The Rockets, Clippers, and Bucks are each carrying multiple players who fit that bill.

Six newly trade-eligible players are still on non-guaranteed contracts, including a pair of Spurs. If one of those players is included in a trade prior to the league-wide salary guarantee date of January 10, only the non-guaranteed portion of his salary would count for matching purposes for the team trading him away (the team acquiring him would still have to account for the player’s full cap hit).

[RELATED: Trade Rules For Non-Guaranteed Salaries]

Finally, it’s worth noting that there are still a number of recently signed players around the NBA who remain ineligible to be dealt. Many will become trade-eligible on January 15, while others will see their trade restrictions lift on unique dates.

Typically, teams wait until closer to the trade deadline (February 5) to make their moves rather than striking deals as soon as trade season unofficially opens on December 15, so we should count on most of the in-season trade activity occurring in January and February.

Still, it’s worth noting that a pair of trades were officially finalized on December 15 last season, so it wouldn’t come as a major surprise if two or more teams come together for a deal sooner rather than later.

A player who is traded on or before December 16 can be “re-aggregated” (ie. have his salary combined with another player’s salary for matching purposes) in a second deal prior to the trade deadline. The Warriors did this with Dennis Schröder last season, acquiring him from Brooklyn on December 15, then sending him to Detroit in the five-time Jimmy Butler blockbuster at the deadline.

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Community Shootaround: Thunder’s Dominance

December 11th, 2025 at 9:29pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The NBA has spent the last decade or so trying to keep the playing field level. The aim for parity generally seems to be working, especially with the restrictive tax aprons making it difficult for some contenders to make meaningful roster moves.

Only one problem: The Thunder, thanks to draft pick hoarding maneuvers by top executive Sam Presti, seem almost invincible.

Courtesy of the highly productive 2019 Paul George trade with the Clippers, the Thunder acquired a superstar in Shai Gilgeous-Alexander along with multiple first-round picks. The reigning Most Valuable Player led them to last season’s championship and seems poised to do so again.

The Thunder have a ridiculous 24-1 record and could break Golden State’s record of 73 regular season victories.

They rank in the top five in nearly every offensive and defensive statistical category. They’ve achieved this despite their second-best player, Jalen Williams, appearing in only six games. He’s rounding back into form after recovering from a wrist injury – he had a 25-point, 8-assist performance against Utah on Sunday.

Oklahoma City has arguably the deepest team in the league and heads into the NBA Cup semifinals this weekend after thrashing the Suns by 49 points in the quarterfinals.

What makes the Thunder even scarier is that they could legitimately control the next few drafts. They have a shot at multiple lottery picks next June, including the reeling Clippers’ unprotected first-rounder.

Imagine dropping AJ Dybantsa, Darryn Peterson or Cameron Boozer onto this already loaded roster. OKC is also owed multiple first-rounders in the 2027 draft as well.

Of course, trying to retain all their top players will eventually create luxury tax issues for the Thunder. It’s still hard to envision this franchise not being a dynasty.

That brings us to today’s topic: Will the Thunder breaks the Warriors’ record of 73 regular-season wins this season? Are they destined to win back-to-back championships? If not, which team can prevent them from taking the title again? How many titles can the Thunder win over the next decade?

Please take to the comments section to weigh in on this topic. We look forward to your input.

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NBA Waiver Order Now Based On 2025/26 Records

December 1st, 2025 at 7:08am CST by Luke Adams

As of December 1, the NBA’s waiver priority order is determined by teams’ current-year records, rather than the previous season’s results.

That means, starting today, the waiver order for this season is based on teams’ 2025/26 records, with the worst teams getting the highest priority. In other words, if two teams place a claim on the same player, the team lower in this season’s NBA standings will be awarded that player.

Up until today, the waiver claim order was based on which teams had the worst records in 2024/25.

Waiver claims are relatively rare in the NBA, but it’s still worth noting which teams will have the first crack at intriguing players who may be cut over the next few weeks or months.

[RELATED: 2025/26 NBA Waiver Claims]

Here’s what the teams at the top of the NBA’s waiver order look like as of Monday, Dec. 1:

  1. Washington Wizards (2-16)
  2. New Orleans Pelicans (3-18)
  3. Brooklyn Nets (3-16)
  4. Indiana Pacers (4-16)
  5. Sacramento Kings (5-16)
  6. Los Angeles Clippers (5-15)
  7. Dallas Mavericks (6-15)
  8. Charlotte Hornets (6-14)
  9. Utah Jazz (6-13)
  10. Portland Trail Blazers (8-12)

In instances where multiple teams have identical records, head-to-head record for the current season is used to break ties — the team with the worst winning percentage in head-to-head games gets the higher priority. If the tied teams have yet to face one another or if they’ve split their head-to-head matchups, a coin flip determines priority for those clubs.

If a waived player can’t be claimed using the minimum salary exception, a team must use a mid-level exception (non-taxpayer or room), bi-annual exception, trade exception, disabled player exception, or cap room to absorb his salary.

Most teams, especially those operating below the tax aprons, have at least one of those exceptions available to place a waiver claim, but it’s worth noting that a club with a top priority won’t be in position to nab just anyone who reaches waivers.

Teams right up against hard caps also may not have the ability to claim even a minimum-salary player on waivers. For example, the Lakers are currently operating just $1.12MM below their first-apron hard cap, so they wouldn’t be able to fit a player with, say, a $2MM cap hit.

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2025/26 NBA Disabled Player Exceptions

November 28th, 2025 at 3:00pm CST by Luke Adams

A disabled player exception can be granted when an NBA team has a player go down with an injury deemed to be season-ending. The exception gives the club some additional spending flexibility to add a single-season replacement in the trade market or in free agency

We go into more detail on who qualifies for disabled player exceptions, what they’re worth, and how exactly they work in our glossary entry on the subject. But essentially, a DPE allows a team to sign a player to a one-year contract, trade for a player in the final year of his contract, or place a waiver claim on a player in the final year of his contract. The exceptions are worth either half the injured player’s salary or the amount of the non-taxpayer mid-level exception (whichever amount is less).

Because the rules related to disable player exceptions are somewhat restrictive and the exceptions themselves generally aren’t worth a lot, they often expire without being used. Still, it’s worth keeping an eye on which disabled player exceptions have been granted, just in case.

We’ll use this space to break down the teams with disabled player exceptions available for the 2025/26 league year, updating it as the season progresses if more teams are granted DPEs and/or to indicate which ones have been used.

Teams have until January 15 to apply for a disabled player exception and until March 10 to actually use them.

Here’s the list so far:

Available disabled player exceptions:

The No. 12 overall pick in the 2025 draft, Essengue played just six total minutes in two outings at the NBA level before suffering a shoulder injury in the G League that required season-ending surgery.

The Bulls have plenty of breathing room below the luxury tax line to take on additional salary, but they also still have their full mid-level and bi-annual exceptions available, so they may not end up needing the disabled player exception they were granted in mid-December.

Still, it’s another tool at their disposal on the trade market and in free agency for a Bulls team that could consider making a number of in-season roster changes, given all its players on expiring contracts.

VanVleet tore the ACL in right knee at an unofficial team mini-camp in September, prior to the start of training camp, and underwent surgery to address the injury a few days later.

A report in October indicated that the Rockets had applied for a disabled player exception in response to VanVleet’s injury, and while there was no follow-up report confirming that request was granted, Eric Pincus of Sports Business Classroom has the $12.5MM DPE on his list of available exceptions, which suggests the NBA officially signed off.

Unfortunately for the Rockets, they’re operating about $1.26MM below their first-apron hard cap and can’t surpass that threshold at any time during the 2025/26 league year. As a result, they can’t really add salary using the VanVleet disabled player exception at this point, though there’s a chance it could come in handy on the trade market, or in free agency later in the season.

Haliburton’s injury technically occurred during the 2024/25 league year, as he tore his right Achilles tendon during Game 7 of the NBA Finals in June. However, because the injury will sideline Haliburton for all of ’25/26, the Pacers were granted a disabled player exception. It’s worth the amount of the non-taxpayer mid-level exception, since half of Haliburton’s $45.6MM salary would far exceed that amount.

The Pacers are operating about $4.7MM below the luxury tax line, so they’re unlikely to add a significant amount of extra salary during the season, but this exception is big enough that there are a variety of ways in which they could end up using a portion of it.

The Clippers were awarded their disabled player exception in the wake of Beal’s season-ending hip injury. It’s worth half of his $5.35MM salary.

The Clippers are in nearly the exact same situation as the Rockets, with an open spot on their 15-man roster but without enough breathing room below their first-apron hard cap to sign a free agent to fill that spot until later in the season, with or without this DPE. The Clippers’ team salary is about $1.28MM below their hard cap, limiting their spending options for now.

For a second straight year, the Thunder’s top draft pick will miss his entire rookie season due to an ACL tear. Oklahoma City knew about Nikola Topic‘s injury when they drafted him in 2024, but Sorber’s happened in early September during an offseason workout.

The Thunder were granted a disabled player exception for Sorber’s injury, but it’s not worth much. The only ways in which it could realistically end up being useful would be to trade for a player on a near-minimum contract that can’t be absorbed using the minimum salary exception or to outbid a team offering a prorated minimum-salary deal on the buyout market.

Oklahoma City’s position relative to the luxury tax line is worth noting. The team is just over $1MM away from that threshold and will likely want to stay below it this season to avoid starting the repeater clock.

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Community Shootaround: Early Impressions Of 2025/26 Rookies

November 28th, 2025 at 11:15am CST by Luke Adams

Entering the 2025/26 season, No. 1 overall pick Cooper Flagg was widely regarded as the favorite to become this season’s Rookie of the Year. However, through the first five-plus weeks this fall, one of his former Duke teammates, Kon Knueppel, has been the most impressive player from the NBA’s 2025 draft class.

Knueppel, who was selected fourth overall by the Hornets in June, has averaged 18.6 points per game in his first 18 NBA outings, posting an excellent .476/.417/.884 shooting line and chipping in 5.7 rebounds and 2.8 assists in 33.3 minutes per night. Outside of one game in the first week of the season, he has been a permanent fixture in the Hornets’ starting lineup and has already made a significant impression on his veteran teammates.

“He’s been great,” Hornets forward Miles Bridges said of Knueppel, per Roderick Boone of The Charlotte Observer. “(He’s) been our best player. He’s been consistent and he brings it every game, every day. That’s just the type of player he is, so it’s been great playing with him.”

Knueppel ranks first among NBA rookies in scoring and is among the league leader in three-pointers made — only Stephen Curry, Tyrese Maxey, Donovan Mitchell, and James Harden have made more outside shots than Knueppel (63), and none of those four veterans are knocking them down at a higher percentage than the Charlotte rookie is.

As Boone points out, BetOnline.ag now lists Knueppel as the betting favorite for this season’s Rookie of the Year award, but he’s hardly the only first-year player who has gotten off to a promising start.

Flagg has been a little up and down for the Mavericks, in part because he was asked to open the season as the team’s primary point guard. However, he has been shooting the ball more consistently as of late (above 50% in his past eight games) and has increased his scoring average to 15.9 PPG while also contributing 6.4 RPG and 3.1 APG.

No. 2 overall pick Dylan Harper missed some time due to a calf strain, but he has looked good in his seven appearances so far, averaging 13.0 PPG, 3.9 RPG, and 3.6 APG on .472/.375/.850 in a limited bench role for the Spurs (22.4 MPG). His overall plus/minus mark of +43 ranks second among rookies, despite the fact that he’s only played 157 minutes so far.

The top-ranked rookie in overall plus/minus is Sixers guard VJ Edgecombe at +44. The third overall pick is right behind Flagg in points per game (15.6) and has been an effective three-point shooter (.366 3PT%) while also leading all rookies in assists per game (4.2).

While the odds favor one of those top four picks in the draft earning Rookie of the Year honors, there are other legitimate contenders further down the 2025 draft board. Grizzlies forward Cedric Coward, for example, has earned a spot in Memphis’ starting lineup and has performed admirably in that role, with season-long averages of 13.7 PPG, 6.0 RPG, and 2.8 APG on .466/.375/.864 shooting.

In New Orleans, lottery picks Jeremiah Fears and Derik Queen have been two bright spots amid a disappointing start for the Pelicans. Fears is averaging 15.1 PPG with a .453/.365/.786 shooting line, while Queen is filling up the box score with 15.7 points, 7.1 rebounds, 5.4 assists, 1.1 blocks, and 1.0 steals per game in his past nine contests. Both players are currently part of New Orleans’ starting lineup.

Knueppel’s teammate Ryan Kalkbrenner (9.3 PPG, 6.8 RPG, 1.8 BPG, .802 FG%) and Jazz forward Ace Bailey (15.0 PPG on .532/.409/.714 shooting in his past seven games) are a couple more first-year players who have looked pretty good so far.

We want to know what you think. Who are your favorite players from the 2025 draft class? Which of these players do you expect to emerge as the Rookie of the Year favorite? Whose long-term futures are you most excited about?

Head to the comment section below to weigh in with your thoughts!

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