NBA Rookie Report Cards: How the Top 10 Shake out at 2016-17 Quarter-Season Mark
What have the NBA's rookies been up to since we last checked in before Thanksgiving?
Joel Embiid's still balling out for the Philadelphia 76ers, as is fellow 2014 draftee Dario Saric. Jamal Murray's been money off the Denver Nuggets bench, while Brandon Ingram is starting at point for the Los Angeles Lakers.
Some second-round picks and undrafted free agents have also found their way into the mix.
By and large, though, this year's class of newbies remains among the most underwhelming in recent memory. Granted, that could change in a hurry, assuming Buddy Hield and Jaylen Brown find some semblance of consistency with their respective squads. And when (or if) Ben Simmons' foot heals, the Sixers will have a 6'10" point guard to toss into the mix.
Let's look at how the race among the current top 10 performers is shaping up. Grades and rankings are determined by each player's individual production and team-wide impact.
10. Jonathan Gibson, Point Guard, Dallas Mavericks (Undrafted in 2010)
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Perhaps no player in the NBA today—rookie or otherwise—owns a more decorated passport than Jonathan Gibson.
After graduating from New Mexico State in 2010, the West Covina, California, native trotted the globe, playing pro hoops in Turkey, Israel, Italy and Iran. He opened eyes in China, where he won the league's scoring title in 2014 and came back to average 42 points per game during 2016.
In between those stints, the 29-year-old hustled to make a name for himself stateside. He won Drew League MVP honors in 2013, played summer ball with the Boston Celtics and Portland Trail Blazers, and performed well enough for the Dallas Mavericks in Las Vegas this past July (17.0 points per game, 45.9 percent from three) to earn an invitation to Mavs training camp.
He didn't survive Dallas' cuts. But with Deron Williams, Devin Harris and J.J. Barea all injured by mid-November, the Mavericks have brought Gibson back to help fill the void.
He quickly made up for lost time. During just his second NBA game, he lit up the Orlando Magic for 26 points, including five threes.
"We’re down bodies," Harrison Barnes said, per Basketball Insiders' Cody Taylor. "Defenses are going to be keying in on a few of us so we need everyone to step up and be aggressive. This is probably one of the greenest lights that [Gibson is] going to have in [his] career."
All told, Gibson scored in double figures five times during his first 11 outings with the Mavs, averaging 9.2 points and shooting 35 percent from three. Whether he lasts past Jan. 10—the day his deal becomes fully guaranteed—may depend as much on his own scoring exploits as on the impending returns of his wounded teammates.
Grade: C
9. Buddy Hield, Shooting Guard, New Orleans Pelicans (No. 6 Pick in 2016)
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Kevin Durant can only dream of the warm reception Buddy Hield got from the Thunder faithful in Oklahoma City. Fans at Chesapeake Energy Arena stood and applauded Hield—who finished his four seasons at Oklahoma as the 2016 College Player of the Year—when he first checked into the New Orleans Pelicans' 101-92 loss to the Thunder on Dec. 4.
That didn't stop Hield from misfiring on his first attempt. Quite the opposite, actually.
"It was crazy," Hield said, per ESPN.com's Justin Verrier. "That’s why I shot the air ball. Man, the people love me out there, but I have so much respect that I have to pay to Oklahoma. This is home to me."
Eventually, Hield settled into the Sooner-friendly atmosphere. He finished with 16 points, including four threes, in just over 15 minutes. The next night, he scored eight points during 24 minutes while starting in Jrue Holiday's spot.
That may not seem like groundbreaking stuff, but for Hield—who had played less than five minutes combined between his previous two outings and averaged 6.9 points on 36.2 percent shooting through his first 20 games as a pro—it could be the beginning of a crucial turn around the proverbial corner.
If Hield can carry that confidence into the rest of his season, he may yet snag a regular starting spot with the Pelicans—and, perhaps, work his way into the Rookie of the Year conversation.
Grade: C
8. Malcolm Brogdon, Shooting Guard, Milwaukee Bucks (No. 36 Pick in 2016)
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Malcolm Brogdon is a throwback among rookies. The four-year letterman at Virginia will be 24 on Dec. 11—far older than the average kid coming out of the draft nowadays.
That age and experience have made him the ideal candidate to step into the Milwaukee Bucks' gaping backcourt void. Through his first 19 games, he's posted a sturdy assist-to-turnover ratio of 2.5-to-1.
Brogdon's also shown off a shooting touch that could make him an ideal fit next to Giannis Antetokounmpo and Jabari Parker. In his first seven games after Thanksgiving, he shot 66.7 percent from three, with four double-digit scoring efforts mixed in.
The Bucks won five of the seven overall, losing to the Toronto Raptors by six and the San Antonio Spurs by one.
And even after Brogdon's shot cooled off, he continued to juice Milwaukee's offense with his passing prowess. Between games against the Brooklyn Nets and Spurs, he scored just seven points on 3-of-14 shooting, but logged nine assists without a turnover. He found his scoring touch against the Portland Trail Blazers on Wednesday, putting up 13 points and nailing all three of his treys.
In all likelihood, Brogdon is already nearing his ceiling. But the Bucks, with their rash of injuries on the perimeter, don't need him to be anything more than a reliable role player during what they hope will be a postseason run.
Grade: C+
7. Brandon Ingram, Small Forward, Los Angeles Lakers (No. 2 Pick in 2016)
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The Los Angeles Lakers' recent rash of injuries has turned head coach Luke Walton into a mad lineup scientist and Brandon Ingram into his most malleable subject.
The rookie out of Duke had already been a pseudo-point guard with L.A.'s second unit. He's been a starter at small forward and shooting guard. Walton tapped him to run the first-team offense—in a super-sized group of Metta World Peace, Luol Deng, Julius Randle and Timofey Mozgov—against the Utah Jazz on Dec. 5.
"You expect anything with Luke," Ingram said. "He can put different lineups out there, and we just go with the flow. With the injuries we have, it's always next man up."
The result? Ingram finished with four points on 1-of-6 shooting with two assists, two rebounds and one turnover in just over 25 minutes—none of which came during the Lakers' fourth-quarter comeback in what wound up as a 107-101 defeat to the Jazz.
"It's just one game for him. It's a learning process for him," Jordan Clarkson said. "He's still young, 19 years old. He's got a long way to go. He's going to be great in this league."
That one game, though, earned Ingram a demotion back to the bench, with Marcelo Huertas taking over at point guard against the Houston Rockets on Wednesday. Ingram had a fairly productive night in his return to that role, finishing with 12 points and seven rebounds in a 39-point loss to the Rockets.
There will be more rough nights for Ingram, just as there already have been so far this season. He's still shooting well under 40 percent from the field (36.6 percent, to be exact) and just under 30 percent from three (29.6). And while Ingram can make plays with the ball, that he's averaging nearly as many turnovers (1.6) as assists (1.8) indicates that he might not yet be ready to run the point.
In the long run, though, these experiences could aid Ingram's development. Throwing the slender kid from Kinston, North Carolina, into the fire over and over may burn the Lakers now, but figures to forge him into a more formidable force once his mind and body catch up to the speed and physicality of the NBA game.
Grade: C+
6. Troy Williams, Small Forward, Memphis Grizzlies (Undrafted in 2016)
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One by one, the Memphis Grizzlies watched their wings succumb to seemingly the same injury bug that ran roughshod through their locker room last season.
First went Chandler Parsons, bothered by the same knee problems that have plagued him since his days in Dallas. Then went James Ennis, whose calf strain has kept him out for the better part of a month. More recently, Vince Carter's hip flexor has been giving him fits.
Their absences have made Troy Williams' presence all the more critical. During his second NBA start—his first since Nov. 1—the undrafted free agent out of Indiana scored 18 points to help Memphis secure a three-point road win over the Miami Heat.
"He is another kid that stays ready. He is not afraid of the moment," said Grizzlies coach David Fizdale, per the Commercial Appeal's Ronald Tillery. "He works really hard. He had a great summer. He really took his spot on this team. We are so decimated now at the wing position. I threw him in there and he took advantage of the situation. We couldn’t have won without him."
Nor would the Grizzlies likely have won their last four in a row without Williams' help. With the way he's playing, Memphis would be hard-pressed to banish him to the end of their bench once their swingmen are fit to play again.
Grade: B
5. Domantas Sabonis, Power Forward, Oklahoma City Thunder (No. 11 Pick in 2016)
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It would be easy to nitpick Domantas Sabonis' debut campaign to date.
For one, the 6'11" forward hasn't shot a free throw in a month. According to the Norman Transcript's Fred Katz, that means he's taken upwards of 90 field-goal attempts since he last stepped to the stripe.
In the meantime, Sabonis has been a boon to the Oklahoma City Thunder's on-court fortunes. According to NBA.com, OKC has posted a net rating of plus-14.3 points per 100 possessions with the Gonzaga product on the floor during the team's six-game winning streak.
Over that same span, Sabonis has hit 60 percent of his threes and snagged 1.2 steals per game. He scored 13 points, grabbed six boards and hit all three of his treys in a three-point Thunder victory against the Denver Nuggets.
So while Sabonis isn't drawing fouls, he's certainly finding other ways to contribute. And frankly, his lack of free throws shouldn't come as any shock. With Steven Adams at center and Russell Westbrook driving the lane, Sabonis' job is not to attack the basket, but rather spread the floor for others to do so.
Grade: B+
4. Pascal Siakam, Power Forward, Toronto Raptors (No. 27 Pick in 2016)
7 of 10The Toronto Raptors have been so hot of late—particularly on the offensive end—even Pascal Siakam's found a groove.
The rookie out of New Mexico State registered one career high (11 points) against the Philadelphia 76ers on Nov. 28, then set a new one (14 points) against the Atlanta Hawks on Dec. 3.
The latter included a beautiful layup finish off a full-court alley-oop pass from Kyle Lowry (see above video).
That's probably about as spectacular as Siakam has been as the Raptors' starting power forward. Otherwise, he's been solid, if supremely so, at that spot. Over a seven-game stretch that saw Toronto win six straight before losing narrowly to the Cleveland Cavaliers, the 6'9" Cameroonian shot 62.2 percent from the field and boosted the Raptors' cause by 13.8 points per 100 possessions, per NBA.com.
At this point, Toronto head coach Dwane Casey might have to think twice about moving Siakam out of his starting five when (or if) Jared Sullinger's foot heals within the next month or so, as TSN's Josh Lewenberg originally reported. The kid has thus far earned his spot, both with his own production and his positive impact on the team at large.
Grade: B+
3. Dario Saric, Power Forward, Philadelphia 76ers (No. 12 Pick in 2014)
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Dario Saric had been stuck in a bit of a slump. He'd scored in double figures just once during a six-game stretch to end November and start December.
Then, the Boston Celtics came to the City of Brotherly Love and Saric found whatever mojo he'd lost. He tied his career highs in points (21) and rebounds (12) to notch his third double-double, albeit in another loss for Philadelphia.
"I thought that was his best game as a 76er," head coach Brett Brown said, per CSN Philly's Jessica Camerato.
Saric's breakout was anything but spurious. A two-point stinker against the Orlando Magic inspired the crafty Croatian to spend extra time in the gym.
"I prepared a little bit more for this game," Saric said, per CSN Philly. "After I have some bad rhythm of five or six, maybe, games. Now I concentrate more. I try to give my best, try to play my best, try to think before everything happens."
That may have been just the beginning of something special for Saric. He followed that outing with back-to-back games of at least 17 points and seven rebounds against the Denver Nuggets and Memphis Grizzlies.
Grade: A
2. Jamal Murray, Shooting Guard, Denver Nuggets (No. 7 Pick in 2016)
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Jamal Murray's honor as the NBA's Western Conference Rookie of the Month (for games played in October and November) was no fluke. Granted, his competition was hardly stiff—just look back at the rest of this list—but the 19-year-old Canadian did plenty to earn the award.
Between Nov. 20 and 25, Murray averaged 21.3 points on 50 percent shooting (56.5 percent from three). All told, he led all Western rookies in scoring (10.4 points) and was fourth in rebounds (2.8) and fifth in assists (2.1) before December.
The Kentucky product cooled off considerably thereafter. He scored nine points apiece during the Denver Nuggets' last two games of November, then started December with two points total against the Houston Rockets and Utah Jazz.
Murray bounced back with 22 points against the 76ers. His reasons for success went beyond Philly's backcourt futility and his own prior struggles.
"This was the first team that passed on me in the draft," Murray said, per the Denver Post's Chris Dempsey, "so I went in with a mental edge, was very locked in."
In that case, the Lakers, Celtics, Suns, Timberwolves and Pelicans had better watch their backs the next time they face Murray and the Nuggets.
Grade: A
1. Joel Embiid, Center, Philadelphia 76ers (No. 3 Pick in 2014)
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If death and taxes are the only guarantees in life, then losses and excellent games from Joel Embiid are about as bankable as anything for the Philadelphia 76ers.
The 7'0" sensation has played just three times since Thanksgiving on account of rest in back-to-back situations. During those outings, he's averaged 21.0 points, 7.7 rebounds, 3.0 assists and 2.7 blocks while shooting 58.3 percent on 4.0 three-point attempts per game.
With or without Embiid's excellence, the Sixers still can't seem to buy a win. They've dropped eight in a row and own a league-worst 4-18 record.
Philly should have some opportunities to snap that skid soon—with help from the reigning Eastern Conference Rookie of the Month, of course.
Health permitting, he should be available for each of the Sixers' next nine games (including dates with New Orleans, Brooklyn and Phoenix), none of which comes on either end of a back-to-back.
Grade: A+
All stats courtesy of NBA.com and accurate as of games played on Dec. 7, 2016. All quotes obtained firsthand unless otherwise noted.
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