The NBA regular season is done, and as tradition would have it, the end of the year — before things begin to get serious — has been outright wacky in terms of individual rookie performances.
Let’s take a look at some of the more impressive rookie stat lines and see if there’s something to them as an indicator of future promise.
C Zach Edey, Minnesota Timberwolves
At 7-foot-4 and roughly 300 pounds, Edey is just larger than everyone else and was expected to be active on the glass solely based on his size. While there’s certainly something to that, it’d be unfair to credit Edey’s rebounding prowess on size alone.
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The Grizzlies center is keen on optimal positioning. He boxes out and his eyes track every oddly twisted rotation on the ball, giving him (another) leg-up on the competition.
Occasionally, Edey just goes flat-out Charles Barkley and chases the ball like it’s the last Pokémon card that completes his collection — and usually gets it.
Sustainability: While 15.6 rebounds in just 30 minutes per night seems like a bit too much to expect for Edey, we are looking at a player who should be able to gather huge per-minute rebounding numbers for the rest of his career.
G Stephon Castle, San Antonio Spurs
You won’t hear anything about a “silver lining” from Victor Wembanyama being out and missing 36 total games on the season, because something like that is basically a lost season for a team. However, there’s a case to be made that Castle wouldn’t have been this free to figure out his own game, as the presence of Wembanyama clearly would have made things that much more challenging.
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Castle’s all-around game and ridiculous defensive upside have been a fun treat for Spurs fans to end the year, as the 6-6 do-it-all guard/wing is further hammering home the point that he can be whatever the Spurs need him to be.
The jumper is still a few years away, and he’ll go through stretches in which offensive efficiency isn’t his best friend. But given that he’s just 20 and doing this is extremely impressive, regardless of which lens to use.
Sustainability: The statline may be a little inflated, especially as Wembanyama’s usage rate and the return of De’Aaron Fox from injury will undoubtedly make an impact. That said, Castle has proven he can scale up if needed, which instantly — along with his defense — makes him San Antonio’s third guy moving forward.
F Matas Buzelis, Chicago Bulls
When you enter the league as a freshly turned 20-year-old, with a reputation for being aggressive attacking the rim but not necessarily being a strong shooter, hitting almost half of your last 60 3-point attempts must come as a bit of a surprise.
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Buzelis is balling these days. He’s seeking gaps in the defense, not hesitating on open 3s, averaging 2.4 stocks per game over the same stretch and generally making life unexpectedly complicated for opponents.
At 6-10 and with plenty of potential to add strength and finesse, Buzelis looks like a future building block for the Bulls, who won’t have any contractual issues hanging over their head with him for quite some time.
The rookie’s late-season surge isn’t built on entitlement but rather earned minutes throughout a year of receiving them inconsistently, which speaks of his work ethic and upside.
Sustainability: The shooting is an outlier, at least at this level of efficiency, but the overall scoring numbers should be a solid bet, as his nose for scoring has only gotten better the more he’s played. The big question for Buzelis: What is his real shooting value? The answer will help determine his ceiling.
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The best of the rest
C Kyle Filipowski, Utah Jazz: His 14.5 points and 9.2 rebounds over the last 13 games — and in 27.8 minutes per contest — are worth keeping an eye on. Filipowski has delivered under the radar for most of the year, but since it’s the tanking Jazz, being under the radar is probably justifiable.
F Zaccharie Risacher, Atlanta Hawks: Two performances of 36 and 38 points as part of five double-digit scoring efforts over his last nine games are certainly something. The Swiss army knife potential is real, and his scoring is coming along nicely. He still needs to actually rebound like a 6-9 forward, but the positional defense, shot creation, movement and low-mistake count mean he is trending in the right direction.
C Donovan Clingan, Portland Trail Blazers: His 10.3 rebounds and 1.8 blocks over his past 20 games in 26.8 minutes of work are real. His offense might be rough — at times painful — but the rebounding and interior shot-blocking are definite mainstays and probably only improving with time.
