New Report Card Grades for Every NBA Team's Rookie Class
The 2024 NBA rookie class is now three-quarters of the way through the season, which means it's time to reassess how each team's picks are faring.
Grades aren't quite final, and we'll see some surges and slips as many rookies' roles dramatically increase or decrease down the stretch. Tankers will hand over big minutes and elevated responsibilities, while contenders might minimize their less experienced players.
Some rookies have spent the majority of their time in the G League, and we'll note that when relevant. The main focus here will be on high picks and those who've actually logged significant NBA minutes this year.
Grades are based on performance relative to expectations. Top picks who are struggling will have a hard time scoring well, while productive lower selections will earn better marks.
Let's see how this class grades out ahead of the stretch run.
Atlanta Hawks
1 of 30
Top pick Zaccharie Risacher has quietly heated up from the perimeter over the last several weeks, and he's now shooting over 40.0 percent from deep since Jan. 1. Though his full-season mark from long range is still well below the league average, Risacher is at least giving the Atlanta Hawks a glimpse of the premium shooting they hoped he'd develop.
Next steps for Risacher include growing as a connective passer and leveraging his length to be a bit more disruptive on D. An assist-to-usage rate that sits in the 9th percentile among forwards won't cut it, even in a smaller role. And Risacher needs to at least get his steal rate up above the 50th percentile. He has good mobility and instincts, so the Hawks would surely like to see an uptick in deflections.
Billed as a high-end support piece with a sub-star ceiling, Risacher is delivering on those modest expectations.
Grade: B
Boston Celtics
2 of 30
Baylor Scheierman made a handful of short-stint appearances for the Boston Celtics in January and February, topping 10 minutes in two of them. The No. 30 overall pick could see more time in March and April if the Celtics rest their rotation pieces more often upon settling into a playoff position they don't think is likely to change much.
If that happens, Scheierman could get the chance to prove his G League production translates to the NBA level. Across 14 games in Maine, the 6'6" wing is averaging 20.4 points, 6.2 rebounds and 5.2 assists while hitting 41.1 percent of his threes.
Grade: C
Brooklyn Nets
3 of 30
Believe it or not, the tanking Brooklyn Nets, who are in the very earliest stages of their rebuild, haven't given even a single minute of game action to a 2024 draftee. What few rookie contributions Brooklyn has gotten have come from undrafted sources.
One rookie, Cui Yongxi, suffered a torn ACL and was waived as part of the deal that sent Dennis Schröder to the Golden State Warriors in December. Another, Jaylen Martin, has seen three minutes all year and hasn't played since Feb. 8.
Reece Beekman, who came over in the Schroder deal, is seeing the most action. Pre-trade, he averaged 18.7 points, 7.3 assists, 5.2 rebounds and 2.8 steals while scoring efficiently for the Santa Cruz Warriors. In 21 games since Jan. 1, he's averaging 12.7 minutes and 2.4 points per game for the Nets.
Grade: C-
Charlotte Hornets
4 of 30
The Charlotte Hornets are gradually handing more minutes over to their rookies as the 2024-25 season continues to circle the drain. The biggest beneficiaries of late are KJ Simpson and Damion Baugh—each of whom are averaging over 20.0 minutes per game since the calendar flipped to 2025.
That's more than lottery pick Tidjane Salaün over that stretch, who continues to look like a player without a defined role. Over half of Salaün's shots have come from long range, but he's hitting only about a quarter of those attempts—and that number is trending downward.
Simpson and Baugh have also been wildly inefficient from the field and from deep, but the latter, already 24, really mixes it up on defense. The 6'4" guard is extremely physical and had multiple steals four times in a five-game stretch from Feb. 20 to March 1.
Grade: D
Chicago Bulls
5 of 30
Matas Buzelis is seeing real rotation minutes now, and he's putting them to good use. The rangy, athletic rookie forward put up 12.8 points per game and shot 50.0 percent from the field, both season highs, in February.
Most dangerous as a slasher in transition and against shifting defenses in half-court settings, Buzelis also significantly upped his three-point attempt rate last month. Though he saw his accuracy dip from its previous rates—35.1 percent in November, 36.4 percent in December and 39.4 percent in January—the extra volume is important. If defenders know Buzelis is willing to fire away, they'll have to cover him more closely.
If opponents have to stay nearer Buzelis, and if they close out more aggressively, that'll be the key to him attacking downhill more often.
Grade: B
Cleveland Cavaliers
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No. 20 pick Jaylon Tyson played at least 14 minutes in a game just twice prior to Jan. 20. The first, a Nov. 20 blowout of the New Orleans Pelicans, included 16 points, 11 rebounds and seven assists. The second produced eight points and three rebounds as the Cavs hammered the Philadelphia 76ers on Dec. 21. The 24 points Tyson amassed in those two games accounted for over half of his total (42) on the season to that point.
Tyson has been in the mix more often lately, and he's responded with more consistent production. The highlight was a 15-point, five-rebound effort in a 22-point win over the Hawks on Jan. 30.
It still seems safe to say Tyson has something to offer as a multi-skilled wing, but he didn't get drafted by a team bad enough to let him show it. Clearly overqualified to be in the G League, Tyson would be a rotation mainstay on most other squads.
Grade: C
Dallas Mavericks
7 of 30
The Dallas Mavericks' dearth of rookies meant we spilled a disproportionate amount of digital ink on undrafted guard Jazian Gortman. Dallas' decision to waive Gortman so it could sign Kylor Kelley to a two-way deal on Jan. 26 gives us another first-year contributor to evaluate.
Kelley appeared in six games during February, averaging 3.2 points and 2.5 rebounds in 8.5 minutes per game.
The 7-footer put up 9.2 points, 6.0 rebounds and 1.6 blocks across nine G League games with the South Bay Lakers this year, but as a non-stretch, non-switch big, he's unlikely to stick in Dallas' rotation once it gets a few members of its injury-ravaged frontcourt back in the rotation.
Grade: D
Denver Nuggets
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PJ Hall and Spencer Jones are averaging 3.1 and 2.8 minutes per game, respectively. Trey Alexander leads the class at a whopping 4.4. Collectively, they've attempted 15 shots in 158 minutes.
The Denver Nuggets' rookie contributions would look a little better if No. 22 pick DaRon Holmes hadn't torn his Achilles just a few weeks after the draft.
Holmes was an All-American and 20-point scorer at Dayton, and he almost certainly would have made a rotation impact. Whether in relief of Aaron Gordon during his spates of injury or in place of Zeke Nnaji, Holmes' contributions would have been valuable to a thin Nuggets depth chart. His injury cost Denver a frontcourt piece it couldn't afford to lose.
We still aren't penalizing the Nuggets for Holmes' injury. He was a smart pick at the time.
Grade: C
Detroit Pistons
9 of 30
Ron Holland has averaged between 13 and 17 minutes in every month this season as the Detroit Pistons have let him see more consistent fringe-rotation playing time than most rookies enjoy.
Though he still has an assist-to-turnover ratio of almost exactly one-to-one (that's bad) and is making just under 24.0 percent of his threes (that's worse), Holland has regularly showed flashes of disruptive defense, downhill attacking and excellent rebounding for his position.
Perhaps most encouraging is Holland's 80.0 percent clip from the foul line. Anyone who can knock down freebies that effectively has a decent shot to develop into a long-range shooter. For now, the rookie is mostly a high-motor defender and slasher—which goes a pretty long way on a Pistons team whose second-half run owes largely to solid D and an attacking mindset.
Grade: B
Golden State Warriors
10 of 30
Right around the halfway point of the season, the Golden State Warriors made a blockbuster addition that completely changed their trajectory.
They also traded for Jimmy Butler.
Jokes aside, rookie Quinten Post's insertion into the rotation has had a transformative effect on the offense. Though he's not very mobile and doesn't defend the rim at the level you'd like from a 7-footer, the big man's outside stroke quickly reached "expect him to make it" territory.
Post is striping it at 41.6 percent from deep on a rapid-fire 9.5 attempts per 36 minutes. He's already had eight double-digit scoring games since Jan. 23 and has turned in red-hot stretches that have shifted the momentum in multiple games.
Call Post a specialist if you like, but there's no doubting the fact that he's been truly special as a three-point threat at the 5.
Grade: B
Houston Rockets
11 of 30
Reed Sheppard may still have a starring role to play in the Houston Rockets' future, but he's clearly just an understudy for now.
The No. 3 overall pick averaged 11.8 minutes per game in February, less than he managed in November and December. That downward trend isn't encouraging—nor is Sheppard's 33.5 percent shooting from the field.
Beloved by draftniks who believed his elite steal rates, otherworldly outside shooting and sneaky facility as a lead ball-handler in college would translate to major production right away, Sheppard simply hasn't earned minutes as a rookie and hasn't impressed in the handful Houston has given him.
And then...he goes and racks up 25 points and five assists in his first start of the season, a 137-128 loss to the Thunder on March 3. That's how Sheppard pulls you back in—by hinting that his rough year owes mostly to a lack of opportunity.
Grade: C
Indiana Pacers
12 of 30
Johnny Furphy was the only Indiana Pacers rookie making semi-regular appearances through the end of 2024, but even he has fallen all the way out of the rotation. As Indy has gotten key players back from injury, Furphy's minutes have all but disappeared.
The second-round rookie saw the floor in 30 games from November to January but appeared just six times and averaged 3.5 minutes per game in February. The highlight of Furphy's season was definitely the month of December, when he put up 3.6 points per game and shot 40.0 percent (8-of-20) from deep. Since then, it's been DNPs and steadily declining playing time.
At least he's sitting at a respectable 12.8 points and 9.9 rebounds per game in eight G League appearances.
Grade: C-
LA Clippers
13 of 30
Cam Christie has played 31 minutes and scored 11 points in six appearances with the LA Clippers but is averaging 19.4 points, 4.7 rebounds and 2.6 assists in the G League. That's a solid showing for a No. 46 pick.
The depth of LA's roster means Christie may not get many more shots at NBA minutes, as does the fact that the undrafted Trentyn Flowers has been the Clips' more impressive rookie. In San Diego, The 6'7" guard is averaging 20.0 points and 4.8 rebounds while hitting 39.1 percent of his threes all while piling up highlights.
If any first-year player is going to get playing time for a Clippers team that has looked in need of a post-All-Star-break boost, it'll be Flowers.
Grade: C
Los Angeles Lakers
14 of 30
Dalton Knecht will always have that 37-point, shrug-punctuated eruption on Nov. 19. When he reflects on his debut season, that'll surely spring to mind first.
The rest of his rookie year has been rougher, with the nadir coming during a frigid shooting stretch in December that saw Knecht hit just seven of his 45 three-point attempts. January brought relief, as the 23-year-old wing made 36.8 percent of his treys and averaged 8.3 points per game.
Overall, Knecht remains a dangerous shooter defenses can't ignore, and he's got just enough of a knack for making connective passes to keep the offense going when opponents sell out to prevent him from getting threes off.
It remains to be seen whether Luka Dončić can spoon-feed Knecht for a few more clean looks per game, or if the rookie will see his role shrink on a Los Angeles Lakers team that, lately, has been defined by its elite defense.
Grade: B-
Memphis Grizzlies
15 of 30
Now 60-plus games into the season, Jaylen Wells continues to stand out as the member of this rookie class making the most meaningful contributions to a winning team.
Wells is shooting 37.4 percent from deep, routinely guards the opponent's toughest wing assignment and is easily the first-year player taking the least off the table for his team. Maybe you'd prefer scoring outbursts or highlight-reel blocks and steals, but with rookies, those often come with mistakes galore.
Wells simply turns in a high-quality two-way effort night after night.
Notably, the Memphis Grizzlies' most effective five-man unit includes Wells and fellow rookie Zach Edey. That group also includes Ja Morant, Desmond Bane and Jaren Jackson Jr. and is bludgeoning opponents by 28.6 points per 100 possessions.
Edey remains a hulking offensive rebounder and interior deterrent whose dalliance with long-range shooting (34.9 percent on over 40 attempts this season) gives him a Brook Lopez ceiling.
Memphis is all but guaranteed two members on the All-Rookie first team.
Grade: A
Miami Heat
16 of 30
Pelle Larsson hasn't played a consistent role since December, but big man Kel'el Ware is now a fixture in the Miami Heat's starting five.
An athletic and powerful finisher inside, Ware also showcases just enough stretch potential to kindle excitement about his offensive ceiling. A 34.2 percent hit rate on threes may not seem like much, but when paired with Ware's interior finishing, solid rebound rates (76th percentile on the defensive glass) and shot-blocking, it more than suffices.
Ware narrowly missed averaging a double-double in February with 9.1 points and 10.5 boards per game, and he's well on his way to bettering those numbers in March.
If he keeps this up, the 7-footer will likely finish among the top five in Rookie of the Year voting. Not bad for a No. 15 pick.
Grade: A-
Milwaukee Bucks
17 of 30
2025 first-rounder AJ Johnson went to the Washington Wizards in the Khris Middleton trade, leaving Tyler Smith as the only rookie to log minutes for the Milwaukee Bucks this season.
Smith has appeared in 15 games and is posting an impressive 61.5 true shooting percentage, but that has come on a grand total of 34 field-goal attempts. At 6'11", Smith's potential to contribute as a spacer makes him an interesting prospect.
Even with Bobby Portis' suspension, Smith has spent all of the post-deadline portion of the season in the G League. He's hitting 38.0 percent of his threes for the Wisconsin Herd, a modest improvement on the 36.4 percent he hit in 2023-24 with the G League Ignite.
Grade: C-
Minnesota Timberwolves
18 of 30
This isn't just about Rob Dillingham anymore, even if the lightning-quick point guard remains the cream of the Minnesota Timberwolves' rookie crop.
Somewhat surprisingly, the Wolves have gotten major contributions from both Jaylen Clark and Terrence Shannon Jr. over the last several weeks. The former has even seen action as a starter and is shooting 42.9 percent from deep on the year.
Shannon is also carving out wing minutes while putting together one of the better three-game stretches of any rookie this season. He put up scoring totals of 17, 25 and 17 points across three games against the Thunder, Lakers and Jazz from Feb. 24 to 27, chipping in a total of 19 rebounds and eight assists for good measure.
Dillingham is still most critical to Minnesota's long-term plans, and he continues to show flashes as an off-the-dribble attacker. Shannon and Clark are welcome surprises.
Grade: B
New Orleans Pelicans
19 of 30
If there's a silver lining in the New Orleans Pelicans' injury-ravaged 2024-25 season, it's the development of a handful of promising rookies.
Yves Missi has been a regular starter all year, and he continues to flirt with double-doubles on a nightly basis. Whether he's a high-end member of a first unit on a winning team remains to be seen, but the rookie center has clearly exceeded expectations this season.
Karlo Matković, a 2022 second-rounder who debuted earlier this year, has also had his moments. The 6'11" forward scored 19 points in a win over the Spurs on Feb. 23 and posted a 17-point, 10-rebound double-double as the Pels downed the Suns on Feb. 27. There aren't many places where frontcourt spacing means more than it does in New Orleans, where Zion Williamson's downhill rumbles get particularly dangerous when opposing bigs have to honor shooters.
Grade: B
New York Knicks
20 of 30
Ariel Hukporti was the only Knicks rookie getting semi-regular playing time after Feb. 1, but a torn meniscus shelved him for what'll likely be the rest of the season. His role was in line to shrink upon Mitchell Robinson's much-anticipated return, but the injury further thins a New York roster that needed all the depth it could get.
Tyler Kolek still leads Knicks rookies with 29 appearances, and he's shot a welcome 39.3 percent from deep while struggling to finish inside the arc. He hasn't played for the Knicks in a month but averaged 18.0 points and 10.0 assists in Westchester.
Pacome Dadiet remains a mostly speculative prospect who hasn't produced efficiently in spot NBA minutes or during G League stints. Still just 19, he easily has the highest ceiling of the bunch.
Grade: C
Oklahoma City Thunder
21 of 30
Standout second-rounder Ajay Mitchell underwent turf toe surgery in January and may not make it back by the end of the season. That's a blow to Mitchell, who was in line to make an All-Rookie team as the No. 38 pick, and also to the Oklahoma City Thunder, who lost one of their top reserve ball-handlers.
Mitchell was averaging 6.4 points per game and hitting 43.1 percent of his threes when he left the lineup. A left-handed guard out of UC Santa Barbara, he displayed advanced feel and court sense for OKC, establishing a legit role on a team running away with the West's best record.
Dillon Jones averaged 9.4 minutes and 2.2 points per game in February and isn't getting much action of late. Branden Carlson hasn't played for a couple of weeks but enjoyed a stretch from January 10 to January 23 during which he appeared in eight straight games and shot a combined 13-of-22 from long range.
Lottery pick Nikola Topić won't play this season.
Grade: B
Orlando Magic
22 of 30
With the Orlando Magic's frontcourt getting healthy, rookie Tristan da Silva is fading into the background. After averaging at least 25.0 minutes per game in November, December and January, the forward managed just 14.9 minutes to go with a season-low 4.8 points per game in February.
A highly cerebral player on both ends, da Silva cuts cleverly and creates clean passing angles for teammates by moving well in space off the ball. He gets himself into the right spots defensively and anticipates actions, which combines with good length at 6'8" to offset a lack of quickness.
If the three-ball went in a little more often (33.2 percent on the year), da Silva would profile as a hugely helpful role-playing wing. But then again, nobody is making threes in Orlando this year.
Grade: B-
Philadelphia 76ers
23 of 30
Joel Embiid's season is over, and the Philadelphia 76ers' priorities have now shifted to preserving the top-six-protected first-rounder they owe to the Oklahoma City Thunder.
In an effort to mine some good news from a bleak year, at least there's a chance the Sixers will make good use of that pick if they can keep it. After all, the guy they selected in 2024, Jared McCain, was on track to win Rookie of the Year before a meniscus injury knocked him out in December.
Even undrafted wing Justin Edwards has had some real moments, led by a 25-point outburst on Jan. 14.
Prior to going down, McCain was averaging 15.3 points and 2.6 assists while hitting 38.3 percent of his threes. He had more on-ball zip than his draft profile suggested and looked the part of a dangerous off-ball movement shooter.
How he fits next to fellow smallish guard Tyrese Maxey is an open question, but McCain was one of the best values in the draft. Even though he's hurt, we're throwing the beleaguered Sixers a bone.
Grade: A
Phoenix Suns
24 of 30
Ryan Dunn shot 29.0 percent from the field and 21.1 percent from deep in February, adding another month's worth of evidence to the pile already indicating his hot start was a fluke. Though Dunn remains a solid defender, he hasn't had the kind of bottom-line impact the Phoenix Suns need.
Oso Ighodaro is also headed the wrong way. Barely playing now that Nick Richards is entrenched as the starting center. the rookie from Marquette has lately been confined to mop-up duties.
Still interesting defensively because of his ability to move on the perimeter and gifted with legitimate touch on short floaters, Ighodaro has qualities that hint at rotation upside.
If Phoenix's season continues to spiral, maybe he and Dunn will get opportunities to play more down the stretch.
Grade: D
Portland Trail Blazers
25 of 30
Donovan Clingan slid into a regular starting role in the middle of February and promptly started hoarding boards. He snagged 20 of them (10 offensive) against Denver on Feb. 12 and hauled in 13 more on Feb. 24. Still routinely held under 30 minutes per game and occupying a low-usage role, Clingan isn't piling up many counting stats outside of his rebounds.
But the rookie center's rates in a couple of key areas are stellar.
He's in the 98th percentile among bigs in block rate and opponents attempt 3.5 percent fewer shots at the rim when he's in the game. Those paint-protection figures pair well with excellent rebounding numbers to give Clingan a strong defensive profile in the middle.
Here's hoping that Portland's push into Play-In territory continues to feature as many Clingan minutes as possible.
Grade: B
Sacramento Kings
26 of 30
Devin Carter's loud arrival quieted down in a hurry, as the guard scored in double figures in two of his first four games but has yet to do so since. A least he's healthy coming off the shoulder injury that pushed his debut until Jan. 3.
The G League is no match for Carter, which is a great sign for the Sacramento Kings. In five games, Carter is putting up 26.6 points, 9.4 rebounds, 5.4 assists and 2.0 steals, which makes it easy to imagine him slotting into a clear rotation role next season.
Other than that, Sacramento's first-year players have barely featured. Isaac Jones and Isaiah Crawford have seen the floor in a combined three post-All-Star games.
Grade: C
San Antonio Spurs
27 of 30
Stephon Castle just reeled off the best three-game stretch of his young career. In a trio of contests against Houston, Memphis and Oklahoma City from Feb. 26 to March 1, the hyper-athletic guard averaged 26.0 points, 6.0 rebounds and 5.0 assists while shooting 49.2 percent from the field and 35.0 percent from deep.
That's the kind of sustained production that makes Castle such an exciting prospect. Well, that and his undeniable combination of physical tools and smarts. It's rare for players with Castle's athleticism to also show so many flashes of quick floor-mapping and instinctive passing.
There have been plenty of discouraging stretches during which the jumper seems like it'll never fall, but Castle's upside remains best in class.
Grade: A
Toronto Raptors
28 of 30
Jamal Shead, Ja'Kobe Walter and Jonathan Mogbo are all averaging around 20.0 minutes per game since the All-Star break, and the only thing they have in common is their struggle to hit a jump shot during that span.
Shead has been the most accurate from deep on the season at 34.6 percent, and he's also averaging 3.6 assists while playing rugged defense.
Mogbo is the most disruptive defender—one who can also grab a rebound and push the pace. Walter has been an inefficient scorer whose instincts and skill on the ball tantalize. He's easily the most explosive of the group, but in a feast-or-famine way.
Against Orlando on March 4, he feasted.
Jamison Battle tops all three in Estimated Plus/Minus and shot a stellar 42.3 percent on threes, but he's been in the G League for several weeks.
Grade: B-
Utah Jazz
29 of 30
The Utah Jazz probably didn't expect Isaiah Collier would lead their rookie class in minutes by a huge margin, but the No. 29 pick's forceful drives and 90th-percentile ranking in assist-to-usage rate among point guards has earned him a major role. He racked up 14 assists in a one-point win over the Wolves on Feb. 28.
Collier can't shoot from the perimeter, but he's been an offensive engine who's even taken reps away from second-year guard Keyonte George.
Kyle Filipowski is showing signs of a three-point stroke that'd play nicely up front (18-of-34 from deep in February), has had several double-digit rebound games and has even cracked the 20-point mark a handful of times since the break.
Better still, lottery pick Cody Williams has actually been noticeable for long stretches after starting the season with a playing style best described as "invisible."
Overall, this is a high-water mark for Utah's rookies. All three have had their moments after rough starts.
Grade: B
Washington Wizards
30 of 30
Bub Carrington leads all rookies in minutes by a considerable margin, with teammate Kyshawn George also checking in among the top five. Alex Sarr, the top Wizards prospect, is ninth.
That's a pretty clear indication that Washington is focused on its rebuild and doesn't mind the losses that mount when first-year players sop up that much time. The bonus of all those reps is improvement, and the Wizards have seen some from each of their rookies.
Sarr missed all but two games in February due to injury, but his defensive potential continues to shine through. He's third among rookies in blocks and defensive rebounds, and he's got a real shot to join Carrington and George among the top five in made threes.
Carrington's 35.0 percent hit rate from deep and runaway lead in assists among rookies bodes well, too.
Grade: A-
Stats courtesy of NBA.com, Basketball Reference and Cleaning the Glass. Salary info via Spotrac.
Grant Hughes covers the NBA for Bleacher Report. Follow him on Bluesky and subscribe to the Hardwood Knocks podcast, where he appears with Bleacher Report's Dan Favale.
