NBA All-Star weekend is in progress, which means it’s time for us to re-examine ESPN rookie strength ranking. For each of the top 10 players mentioned in this article, they will be compared with NBA All-Star players who are retired or active. If each rookie can give full play to their potential, they can become such all-star players.
The competition for the rookie of the year is still very fierce. Caesar sports betting selected Orlando Magic forward Paul bankero as the biggest hit (Odds-950), ahead of Indiana Pacers guard Benedict masserin (Odds +550). After Marceline was the Utah Jazz center Walker Kessler (Odds +2000), followed by Detroit Piston guard jeden Evie (Odds +5000).
This article ranks according to the performance played by the rookie so far in the season, rather than the future potential. This is not a draft review, but a real-time updated list to test which newcomers are the most valuable to their teams.
No. 10: Dyson Daniels (New Orleans Pelicans)
Data: 4.5 points per game, 3.5 rebounds, 2.5 assists
Best rookie odds: +30000
All-Star Template: dezhantai-Murray
Previous ranking: 5
Daniels was the best defender in this rookie. He was able to enter the rotation lineup in a playoff-level team, but he struggled slightly in putting the ball into rim.
Before the ankle injury on January 24, Daniels played in high order and for a long time, mainly because of his excellent defensive ability. Many high-level data of Daniels are in the forefront of the league, and his ability to bypass cover also enables him to undertake the task of defending the opponent’s number one star. In addition, the excellent footsteps of Daniels can make him look in the mirror with his opponent on the defensive end. Even if the opponent has no ball, Daniels also has good defensive skills.
On the offensive end, Daniels has a strong ability to transfer the ball and feels good about the game, but his shooting stability is slightly struggling, and his three-point shot percentage is only 33%, it did not put enough pressure on the opponent’s defense within three point line. At the beginning of this season, when playing with Zion Williamson and Brandon Ingram, Daniels looked better. I believe that after the all-star holiday ended, all three of them returned to the team, daniels will get more opportunities.
No. 9: Jeremy Sohan (San Antonio Spurs)
Data: average 10 points, 4.9 rebounds, 2.5 assists
Best rookie odds: +30000
All-Star Template: David West
Previous ranking: None
Sohan has made remarkable progress every month. Before he was absent from the back injury, he reached the best state of the rookie season. Spurs lost 18 games in the past 19 games, and unabashedly slashed to pursue victor-wembanyama, which greatly benefited Sohan because he had unlimited opportunities, he can constantly grow up in mistakes.
As the main attacking organizer of the Spurs, Sohan gradually played his own reputation, and he had the freedom to launch and advance the attack at the attacking end. At the same time, although there will be some questionable offensive choices, Sohan has strong creativity, and his ability to terminate in the basket and to connect teammates is also impressive. Sohan is mainly regarded as a non-shooter by the opponent’s defense, but he also has certain potential in outside shooting. In the past 10 games, he made 13 of 31 shots downtown (42% hit). Although he shot with one hand, his free throw conversion rate reached 87%.
Time will prove whether sohan’s jump shot with extremely slow shot can become his stable attack method. Considering his comprehensiveness at both ends of attack and defense, if this technology can be developed, he will become a very dangerous player.
No. 8: Jay-Durham (Detroit Piston team)
Data: game average 8.6 points 8.7 backboard 0.9 cover
Best rookie odds: +30000
All-Star Template: Dwight Howard
Previous ranking: 8
Durham entered the starting line-up of the piston team in early December and played an impressive performance. He is gradually becoming one of the best rebounder and Terminator in NBA, at the same time, great progress has been made on the defensive side.
Jay Durham is the youngest player in NBA. He just turned 19 in November 2022. he is the same age as many players in the 2023th draft, even younger than them. Therefore, we have many reasons to be optimistic about Durham’s future. Now it seems that it is really surprising that his draft dropped to No. 13 rank.
No. 7: AJ-Griffin (Atlanta Hawks)
Data: 9.3 points per game 2.1 backboard 1 assist
Best rookie odds: +40000
All-Star Template: rasard Lewis
Previous ranking: 4
Griffin’s playing time has been ups and downs, but he is still an efficient player for a team competing for the playoffs (Eagles). AJ-Griffin’s three-point shot percentage this season is 39%. Although he did not do well in covering and shooting receive the ball, his jump shot this season exceeded 50%, ranking third in the league, second only to Durant and Curry.
As the second youngest player in NBA (19 years old and 6 months old), Griffin has room for growth in ball control, attack selection and defense, but compared with a year ago, he has shown inspiring bright spots in various fields, especially in physical confrontation. He has come out of the injury and reached a higher level of physical confrontation.
In a long draft cycle, AJ Griffin was considered to be the top 10 players. The Eagles must be very excited to select him with the 16th ranking. I believe that with the growth of Griffin’s age, he will bring more help to the Eagles.
No. 6: Jay Williams (Oklahoma City Thunder)
Data: 12.2 points per game 4.4 rebounds 2.9 assists
Best rookie odds: +7500
All-Star Template: Chris Middleton
Previous ranking: 6
Jay Williams has a lot of playing time (29 minutes on average, ranking fifth in this rookie), and he left a deep impression on both sides of the attack and defense with his comprehensive and excellent sense of competition. He can play multiple roles and play multiple positions in the Thunder team. Because he has a strong body and an arm show of 7’2, as well as the ability to affect the game when there is a ball and no ball, Jay Williams can switch between point guard and big forward positions at will. His outside shooting has not been very stable (32 percent hit in three points), but he has shown enough ability throughout the season, and he will not worry too much about his outside shooting ability.
On the defensive side, Jay Williams is everywhere. The Thunder team has a large number of relieve a garrison in its defense system, and he has performed very well both for defenceman and big players. Players like Jay Williams are very valuable in today’s NBA, and his performance in the rookie season is much to be appreciated.
No. 5: Walker Kessler (Utah Jazz)
Data: Average score 8.2 points 7.7 backboard 2.1 cover
Best rookie odds: +2000
All-Star Template: Rudi-Gobel
Previous ranking: 10
Since re-entering the starting line-up of the Jazz team, Kessler has entered the topic of competing for the best rookie of the year. More playing time can convert his excellent output per minute into a larger data sample, it makes him one of the most efficient big men in the whole alliance. Kessler is the second best capping player in NBA, ranking ninth in the league in the number of rebounds per 40 minutes, and ranking fifth in the league field goal percentage effectively.
Kessler is very efficient on the offensive end. He has a soft hand feeling and provides jazz with more high-quality selection of blocking and dismantling. When there is no ball, he has a strong sense of timing, and both the left and right hands have strong end ability. His position on the court was very intentional and he could undermine the opponent’s defense modestly. In addition, Kessler basically does not go to the area where he is uncomfortable, and he seldom makes mistakes at both ends of attack and defense.
On the defensive end, Kessler has a 9-foot-5 standing touch height and excellent frame guard consciousness. It is difficult for his opponent to score when he is in the inner line. His control over the coverage area and his grasp of timing are impressive, especially at his age, but he still has room to grow when choosing relieve a garrison and being a big man with external defense technology, his defensive ability will be questioned when he is pulled out of the singles by his opponent and carried out single defense.
Kessler seems to be the biggest robbery in the 2022th draft. He was selected in the 22nd order, and he was already a very capable starting choice at the age of 21. The extent to which kessler can improve the technology of the outside line and the comprehensiveness of the defensive end will determine how high his upper limit will be, but the jazz must be very happy to let him sign another three-year rookie contract at a low price.
4th place: jeden-Ivy (Detroit Piston team)
Data: 15.2 points per game 3.9 rebounds 4.6 assists
Best rookie odds: +5000
All-Star Template: Russell-Westbrook
Previous ranking: 3
Ivy can provide good data in every match, but his efficiency is not high (the two-point shooting rate is 47%, and the three-point shot percentage is 33%). However, Ivey has gradually gained a reputation because he is the main control and engine of the piston team and has good value. In the long run, the performance of ivy is a win-win situation for him and the piston team, because this (low efficiency) can improve the probability of the piston team in pursuing wen banyama.
With the continuous improvement of Ivey’s attack selection and termination ability, his strong speed change ability and ability to enter the Forbidden Zone in the face of any defense make him have high potential on the offensive end. His passing ability in the March and his ability to jump shot have been demonstrated, but he still has a lot of room for improvement on the defensive side, there are still many deficiencies in his defensive strength and stable defensive consciousness.
No. 3: Kegan-Murray (Sacramento Kings)
Data: 11.9 points per game 4.6 rebounds 1.1 assists
Best rookie odds: +7500
All-Star Template: Danny Granger
Previous ranking: None
Considering that Murray is one of the oldest players in this rookie, his performance is not as continuous as some experts expected, but he has made great progress on the defensive end, and as the season went on, he gradually found his range. So far this season, murray has hit 42% in downtown and played an average of 30 minutes in the game. At the same time, murray plays a very important role in the third largest king in the west.
Murray has a high degree of player and maturity at both ends of attack and defense, which makes him easily fit into any lineup. In addition, Murray’s ability to open space, the attributes of few mistakes and the ability to defend multiple positions make him an ideal role player.
Murray’s ability to create attacks independently and his most prominent characteristics still have some question marks, but nowadays every NBA team is looking for players of the type like Murray, he can adapt well to the lineup of the Kings, which is an important part of the revival of the Kings.
2nd place: bennedit-masserin (Indiana Pacers)
Data: 17.2 points per game 4.1 rebounds 1.4 assists
Best rookie odds: +550
All-Star Template: Jay Brown
Previous ranking: 2
The gap between matherin and bankelo has been widened. Pacers have lost 13 games in the past 15 games. Matherin’s jump shot has also been in trouble. Since November 30, 2022, his three-point shot percentage is only 24%(145 votes 35).
But masserin has a lot to be liked. For the 20-year-old player, scoring is like a search for something. He has become one of the most productive scorers in the NBA conversion attack, and with an average score of 17.3 points, it ranks second in the average score list of this rookie. In the face of the unsettled defense, masserin’s excellent combination of strength, explosive power and physical confrontation ability made him have unlimited potential in conversion and open attack, he has incredible ability to make foul, can use the other hand to finish the end in physical confrontation, and has impressive creativity and excellent ability to finish the end in basket.
In the half-time attack, matherin’s performance was mixed. Various NBA teams have noticed that he is not willing to pass the ball, struggling in the face of defense and his lack of medium distance in the game. Surprisingly, under the condition of standing on both feet, masserin’s shooting performance was very struggling (according to the data of Synergy Sports, masserin’s receive the ball jump shot percentage was only 30%), he also missed many opportunities for three points, which were all bad performances he had never performed in Arizona University. As a player with independent offensive ability, the extent to which he can create offensive space for his teammates and himself in the block and split and singles will determine how high his final upper limit will be.
On the defensive end, based on his defensive performance in college, masserin struggled slightly as many people expected. Once he played, he would be regarded as the target of attack by his opponent. His strength at the defensive end was uncertain, and he was often caught out of focus on the field. He did not show much progress in supporting defense and seizing the opportunity of relieve a garrison, his loose consciousness on the defensive side often made his teammates in trouble.
Masserin’s excellent offensive performance in the first two months of the season set a very high threshold for him. Even if he continues to get high scores, it will not be shocking. The extent to which he can improve his weakness this season and the following seasons will determine whether he can become an NBA All-Star player.
No. 1: Paul bankero (Orlando Magic)
Data: 19.9 points per game 6.6 rebounds 3.6 assists
Best rookie odds:-950
All-Star Template: Blake Griffin
Previous ranking: 1
Bankero has been leading the list of the best rookie of the year, not only because of his scoring ability, but also because he proved that he could win the next game in NBA. After winning 5 wins and 20 losses at the beginning of the season, the magic team won 19 wins and 15 losses since december, which made them withdraw from the competition of wen banyama and become the contenders for the playoff play-off.
Bankero is already one of the most deadly shooting creators among young NBA players. He has excellent body shape, strength, skill and aggressiveness, even elite defenders can hardly restrict him in the open space. In addition, bankero is also an excellent ball handler. He can pass the ball on the move and finish the end in the confrontation. He also has the ability to shoot with the ball, he has excellent hand feeling and creativity around RIM, which makes him have great potential in initiating a break-down and destroying the defensive formation of the other side. Next, a more reasonable attack choice will be the key factor affecting the continuous evolution of bankero. He relies too much on the dry jump shot when opening singles. His three-point hit rate (28%) he also failed to reach the required level, and he also threw away many outside seats.
On the defensive end, bankelo’s basketball intuition, strength and mobility make his defensive performance more efficient than many people expected, however, he also had some inattention when defending players without balls. In addition, bankelo was not a good enough frame protector and rebounder, but he did very well in one-on-one defense.
Introducing more shooters around bankero will be the next priority of the Magic team, but in terms of talent storage and team depth, the Magic team has completed the work ahead of schedule, this gave them some impressive victories this season and gave their fans reasons to remain optimistic. So far, bancello is like a treasure among the 2022th draft players, and still has considerable room for long-term progress.
Author: Jonathan Givony
Compilation: Wu Liuqi