NBA Players Who Deserve More Hype (and Minutes) This Season
It is easy for non-stars to get lost in the shuffle early in the NBA season, especially with big-name players such as Nikola Jokić and Jayson Tatum having great starts.
Still, a few players deserve a bit more hype than they are getting this year.
Two names are rookies who are starting their careers on high notes. A second-year player is showing off the work he did in the offseason. A third-year inclusion is bouncing back from a season-ending injury. Finally, a nine-year veteran has a career year in the making.
Jared McCain, Philadelphia 76ers
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The Philadelphia 76ers are struggling, but there has been one bright spot: rookie Jared McCain. The 16th pick in the draft is the favorite on FanDuel to win Rookie of the Year at +210, up from +5000 from the start of the season.
With Tyrese Maxey nursing an injured hamstring, McCain is precisely what Philly could use until it reaches full health. The guard has played fearlessly. There is no hesitation to shoot when the ball comes his way.
McCain averages 14.8 points per game, shooting 40.3 percent from three on 5.2 attempts. He has come on strong lately,. This included a 10-assist outing in his first game as a starter against the Cleveland Cavaliers.
The rookie is proving that even at full strength, he deserves to get real rotation minutes for Philadelphia. Fans should learn his name because he might win an award at the end of the season.
Donovan Clingan, Portland Trail Blazers
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Another rookie turning heads early in the season is Portland Trail Blazers big man Donovan Clingan. The No. 7 pick brings a level of toughness the Blazers have not seen since Jusuf Nurkic was healthy. Clingan is only averaging 15 minutes per game, but he deserves much more.
In those 15 minutes, he's averaging 5.7 points, shooting 53.7 percent from the field and pulling down 5.5 rebounds. However, going by his per-36 numbers, Clingan looks like a rebounding and shot-blocking machine. He's at 12.4 boards, placing him third in the rebounding race.
The 4.7 blocks in that category would make him the shot-block leader for the season.
That's wild for a rookie.
Clingan had a huge performance in the Blazers' big win over the Minnesota Timberwolves on Wednesday. He had a near triple-double: 17 points, 12 rebounds and eight blocks. And this was just his second start with DeAndre Ayton sidelined.
More nights like that will make it hard for coach Chauncey Billups not to increase Clingan's minutes. He has all the makings of being the backbone of a defense—even as a rookie.
Gradey Dick, Toronto Raptors
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Be honest: Unless you're a Raptors diehard, you have not been watching Toronto this season, especially since Scottie Barnes went out with an orbital fracture. That means you have likely missed the come-up of Gradey Dick. After a slow start in his rookie year, he began to take off after the All-Star break last season. Dick has not looked back and carried it over to the start of 2024-25.
So far, Dick has shown why the Raptors took him with the 13th pick in the 2023 draft. He has taken his scoring up from 8.5 points as a rookie to 19.8 points per game this season. That includes three 30-point games.
The giant leap for Dick has not come from improved three-point shooting or field-goal efficiency, though. His minutes have gone up by a third from 21.1 minutes to 30 minutes this season, and he has used that time to get to the free-throw line. He has gone from averaging 0.9 attempts last season to 4.3 this season. In the Emirates NBA Cup game, he went to the line 16 times on his way to a career-high 32 points.
It is easy to lose sight of what is happening up north, but that means the development the Toronto Raptors are doing with Dick is going largely unnoticed. He deserves more hype than he is getting.
Tari Eason, Houston Rockets
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There is a ton of young talent down in Houston, and it is easy for a player to slip through the cracks. Especially if the player missed most of last season with an injury. That is precisely where Tari Eason lands.
The 23-year-old has seen the same amount of minutes as he was getting last year before he got hurt. That said, his scoring has gone up from 9.8 points to 12.2 points, a modest jump. The more impressive number is the efficiency of his shooting. He has gone from shooting 46.6 percent from the field to 55 percent this season.
The area that Eason is feasting in is in transition. According to Synergy Sports Tech, 31.1 percent of his possessions come in transition, and he has posted 1.24 points per possession. Eason has been doing a great job of running the floor after defensive stops.
Through 12 games, Eason has the best net rating of any Rockets player, getting significant minutes. Coming back from injuries can be challenging, but Eason has slipped right back into the fold in the rotation and should be getting more hype and minutes for his play for the Rockets.
Norman Powell, Los Angeles Clippers
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Usually, young players are on these lists, but what 31-year-old Norman Powell is doing for the Los Angeles Clippers is worthy of the hype. He is averaging a career-high in points and three-point percentage in his ninth season. With the Clippers struggling, it's easy for his play to go unnoticed.
Powell's scoring has leapt from 13.9 points last year to 24.9 points per game this season. He's shooting 49.5 percent from three on 8.1 attempts. Powell is getting 34.3 minutes, up eight minutes from last season. He is taking advantage of the action he is getting with the departure of Paul George to Philadelphia and Kawhi Leonard out with yet another injury.
It is clear Powell has put in a ton of work in the offseason, and it is paying off for him and the Clippers.
It is rare for a nine-year veteran to make such a dramatic jump. Powell is doing just that, helping to carry the Clippers at the start of the season. The numbers might take a dip when (if) Leonard returns, but until then, Powell is the wind in the Clippers' sails.
