NBA 2024/25 Rookie Rankings: March

NBA 2024/25 Rookie Rankings: March

It’s the end of March! How are we here already?

This rookie class has been far more fun to evaluate than this writer was expecting at the outset of the season. Whilst this class likely doesn’t contain a generational star, it is loaded with players who will be solid starters and at the least rotation pieces for years to come.

So, we arrive at the final rookie rankings of the campaign and one final reminder that these rankings are not indicative of a full season’s work; rather, they reflect the performance of the rookies over the month of March. For comparison, here are February’s rankings.

1. Stephon Castle – San Antonio Spurs (Last Ranking: 1)

The fourth overall pick is running away with the Rookie of the Year trophy, putting up season best numbers through March: 19.5 points on 54.6% true shooting, 4.4 rebounds, 4.8 assists and a steal per game. He has started the past 10 Spurs games, through that has coincided with De’Aaron Fox’s season ending injury.

Whilst his numbers remain better as a starter than coming off the pine, Castle did put up some big numbers as the sixth man in Early March, including a 32-point game against the Thunder, amid a stretch of seven straight games scoring in double figures. He backed that up with a nine-game double-digit scoring run as a starter.

2. Zaccharie Risacher – Atlanta Hawks (LR: 2)

The top pick has come home with the wettest of sails, stepping up with Jalen Johnson and Trae Young sidelined. Averaging 16.3 points (53/39/74 splits) through March, Risacher has graduated from tertiary offensive option, filling in gaps where required, to a feature of the Hawks’ attack.

A good cutter since entering the league, Risacher has demonstrated increasing on-ball chops that suggest he could be a consistent 20-point scorer in the NBA, with some playmaking and defense sprinkled in.

3. Alaxandre Sarr – Washington Wizards (LR: re-entry)

The Ringer’s Bill Simmons recently dubbed Sarr ‘Serge Ibaka with three-point range’. Whilst having improved his shooting as his rookie campaign has progressed, he still has a ways to go if he is to match Ibaka’s three point marksmanship. That said, Simmons might be short-selling Sarr in other facets of his game.

The 19-year-old Frenchman has already shown far more ability with the ball in hands than Ibaka ever did (or, in fairness, was ever asked to show) and his defense as a rookie is ahead of where Ibaka’s was, in particular when switching on the perimeter. Could he be generational? Maybe, though in a world where Victor Wembanyama exists, it tough for anybody to become a truly special defender.

If the Wizards get Cooper Flagg, he and Sarr could be a generationally generational tandem.

4. Kel’el Ware – Miami Heat (LR: 6)

The scoring, understandably, still comes and goes for Ware. His defense, however, has improved out of sight in March. He has posted 9.4 boards and 1.8 blocks per game since our previous Rookie Rankings and has balanced his dual responsibilities of switching onto guards and more traditional big man defensive duties. It stands to reason that having Bam Adebayo as your on-court mentor can only help Ware become a genuine asset at that end.

Billed as a potential stretch big coming out of Indiana, the 20-year old’s shooting is still theoretical, making just 32 of his 101 deep attempts through March.

5. Matas Buzelis – Chicago Bulls (LR: 10)

After barely playing in the first half of the season, it understandably took Buzelis a little while to find his groove when thrust into Zach LaVine’s old starting role at the trade deadline. Through March, though, the 11th overall pick is looking like a player.

He hung 28 points including five treys, with nine boards and six assists on the Mavericks in his last start, after dropping a career high 31 on the Lakers in Los Angeles.

Oh, before throwing down a huge jam against Dallas, he also did this:

6. Jaylen Wells – Memphis Grizzlies (LR: 3)

Wells’ offensive shortcomings have come to the fore as the season has progressed. After connecting on 42.9% of his threes in January, he has gone ice cold, falling to 26.6% in March. As a result teams are daring the second rounder to fire away and it appears to be impacting his confidence, making 11 of 45 over his past 10 contests.

In turn, a sagging defense also takes away Wells’ cutting and ability to attack the close out and his scoring is suffering as a result. That said, he’s still providing solid defense on the wing – a rarity for most rookies – and has been one of the few reliable Grizzlies this season, yet to miss a game.

7. Zach Edey – Memphis Grizzlies (LR: 4)

With veteran backup centre Brandon Clarke done for the season, you might expect Memphis to give rookie colossus Edey some more burn. Yet, he remains on a paltry diet of minutes, averaging right on 20 minutes a night and still yet to reach 30 minutes in any game so far.

Instead, they have opted for the Santi Aldama and Jay Huff experience. Is that coming from a want for more shooting? Is it matchup related, given the Thunder and both Los Angeles teams have played Memphis in that four-game span?

With a new coach on board (for some reason), it will be intriguing to see if Edey can earn more minutes in the final throws of the regular season.

8. Isaiah Collier – Utah Jazz (LR: 5)

On what is a deliberately lit tyre fire of a season, Collier continues to stand out for the Jazz. Whilst improving, his shooting is still wildly inconsistent. Either side of a three-game stretch where he shot 17/31 from the floor and 6/13 from beyond the arc, he posted 2/9 and 2/6 from deep against Boston and 0/7 (0/2 from three) against Denver.

Collier’s playmaking, however, continues to stand out even as his teammates stack enough bricks to build a Roman road. He ranks 20th in the league in potential assists and is lapping the field on his fellow freshmen.

9. Donovan Clingan – Portland Trailblazers (LR: 9)

With both Robert Williams and Deandre Ayton out of the lineup, Clingan has finally been given a runway to perform and has for the most part embraced it fully. His numbers through March (seven points, 9.2 boards, 1.8 blocks in 25 minutes) are solid, though laced with inconsistencies.

In amongst some clunkers against Boston (twice), Sacramento, and Cleveland, he’s put up some most encouraging performances, including 18 points, 12 rebound, three block effort against Cleveland, a 13/13/3 against the Ghost-Sixers and a 15/9/4 against Golden State.

If this writer were running the Blazers, the plan would be to run with Clingan and Duop Reath as your centre rotation and get whatever you could for Ayton and Timelord.

10. Yves Missi – New Orleans Pelicans (LR: 7)

It appears the season may be a touch too long for this version of Missi, though given he was drafted as a project and thrust into major minutes from the outset, you could understand why he’s faded as the season has gone on. He as still been solid and he certainly hasn’t fallen off a cliff, though the eye test reveals that he is a little late on rotations and misses a few more boxouts than he previously was. Those are sure signs of mental fatigue.

Encouraging, his offensive rebound rates have stayed true, and Missi’s screening is incredibly advanced for a rookie who came to the game so late. There is more than a hint of Jarrett Allen to Missi’s game.

Dropping out: Bub Carrington (8)