Kon Knueppel warmly greets and appreciates his fans during a heartfelt visit to his hometown of Milwaukee!<\/p>\n
A bright sidebar to Charlotte rookie Kon Knueppel\u2019s first game back in his hometown of Milwaukee was his family\u2019s invitation to bring the entire team over for dinner. The image of the Hornets\u2019 chartered team bus rumbling down Knueppel\u2019s street even dazzled the 6-foot-7 rookie.<\/p>\n
\u201cTaking the bus down my street, going home, that was weird,\u201d Knueppel said before the game against the Bucks last Friday. \u201cAnd a bunch of NBA players in my house. It was a lot of big people, but my family enjoyed it.<\/p>\n
\u201cMason [Plumlee], one of our vets \u2026 he was like, \u2018I\u2019ve never done this before, never gone to a teammate\u2019s house. So that was cool to hear him say that. It was a special hour and a half for us.\u201d<\/p>\n
So excited to host the Hornets at our home in MKE! pic.twitter.com\/btmkBHBpEz<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Chari Nordgaard Knueppel (@ChariNKnueppel) November 14, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n Over the coming months of this NBA season, it could get weird for Knueppel that another teammate with whom he rode team buses \u2014 Dallas\u2019 Cooper Flagg, his Duke sidekick last season \u2014 could be vying with him for the NBA\u2019s Wilt Chamberlain Trophy as the Kia Rookie of the Year.<\/p>\n Flagg arrived as the favorite, drafted first overall by the Mavericks. But Knueppel has overachieved his spot at No. 4 to command the highest perch on the Kia Rookie Ladder one month into 2025-26. It is his second week at the top after averaging 20 points and five rebounds while hitting 40.6% of his 3-pointers in Charlotte\u2019s past four games.<\/p>\n Here is the latest ranking of the NBA\u2019s top rookies:<\/p>\n Weekly recap<\/p>\n \u2022 Utah\u2019s Ace Bailey, who initially didn\u2019t seem eager to land in Salt Lake City, now is benefiting from that destination in the form of veteran mentor Kevin Love. Love at 37 has shown himself to be a team-first Jazz man, including guidance of the roster\u2019s next generation. Love spoke recently with DJ Siddiqi of RG.org<\/a>, saying of Bailey: \u201cWe were both the fifth pick, so we have his nickname for each other, P5 [pick five], and I think that\u2019ll just continue to grow. \u2026 I really see ways that I can help him.\u201d<\/p>\n Love, whose locker adjoins Bailey\u2019s, added: \u201cJust embrace the challenge and embrace being a rookie and understanding it\u2019s going to be a steep learning curve. \u2026 You\u2019re so young, there\u2019s gonna be a lot coming at you, there\u2019s gonna be a lot of voices, but try and find ways to balance and center yourself.\u201d<\/p>\n \u2022 Another NBA vet got on the court with a touted rookie Monday when Paul George returned to action and synced up with VJ Edgecombe. \u201cHe can hoop,\u201d George said. \u201cHe always seems to make a timely, timely basket in the fourth quarter. \u2026 So he\u2019s got a tremendous confidence, but he reminds me of just letting the game come to you and picking and choosing when to attack and be aggressive.\u201d<\/p>\n \u2022 Lottery Ladder no-shows: So far, 10 of the 14 players drafted as lottery picks<\/a> have grabbed a rung for one or more weeks. The ones who have not yet include No. 8 Egor D\u00ebmin of Brooklyn; No. 10 Khaman Maluach of Phoenix, No. 12 Noa Essengue of Chicago, and No. 14 Carter Bryant of San Antonio. D\u00ebmin has been the most productive of this lot (7.4 ppg, 3 rpg, 3.4 apg), while Essengue has yet to see action for the Bulls.<\/p>\n Storyline to watch<\/p>\n \u2022 Rookie Ladder showdowns. It would make for pretty interesting TV if these top rookies could jostle for position up close and personal, on a huge Ladder constructed on a Hollywood set. Unfortunately, we have to settle most of the time for virtual Ladder-fare, stats and trends as proxies for face-to-face combat. Getting two or more of these rookies on the same court, though, can goose interest. Some upcoming actual clashes include Knueppel\u2019s team facing Flagg\u2019s on Jan. 29 and March 3. Cedric Coward is set to meet Flagg\u2019s Mavericks for the second time Saturday and the Pelicans\u2019 promising pair next Wednesday. VJ Edgecombe clashes with Toronto\u2019s Collin Murray-Boyles tonight in Philadelphia. Mark those calendars.<\/p>\n (All stats through Tuesday, Nov. 18)<\/p>\n 1. Kon Knueppel, Charlotte Hornets<\/p>\n Season stats:<\/a> 17.6 ppg, 6.0 rpg, 2.7 apg It\u2019s always something for NBA rookies. The most highly rated ones typically get drafted into tough situations. Many experience coach firings (see New Orleans\u2019 two Ladder dwellers for more on that). Some get plugged into new-to-them roles, often off the bench. Then there\u2019s Knueppel, whose emergence during injury absences for relative team elders LaMelo Ball and Brandon Miller opened the door to a new pecking order in Charlotte. Ball is back, Miller could return soon, and it will be interesting to see how K2 and the Hornets\u2019 rookies are blended into coach Charles Lee\u2019s mix (and vice versa). Hey, you know you\u2019re doing lots right when you\u2019re being used, after just 14 games, as a comparison for other prospects<\/a>.<\/p>\n 2. Cedric Coward, Memphis Grizzlies<\/p>\n Season stats:<\/a> 14.3 ppg, 6.4 rpg, 2.9 apg Some foot soreness, a long road trip and a 1-9 record since Halloween have thrown curves at the Grizzlies newcomer, but Coward stepped up for 19 points and 11 rebounds for his third double-double, posting a +3 in Tuesday\u2019s injury-depleted contest in San Antonio. It\u2019s no surprise that Coward has a bigger impact at home (16 ppg, 51.9% shooting) than away (12.4, 42.9%), and it might be more than coincidental that when Coward thrives, Memphis wins (19 ppg and 68.4% shooting in victories and 12.6 ppg on 40.5% shooting in defeats). Former Grizzlies wing Chandler Parsons gushed recently about the<\/a> no-longer-unheralded Coward.<\/p>\n 3. Cooper Flagg, Dallas Mavericks<\/p>\n Season stats:<\/a> 15.5 ppg, 6.3 rpg, 3.1 apg Coward\u2019s fresh performance on Tuesday kept Flagg on the third rung, but he\u2019s looking more comfortable and flexing his versatility nightly. The rookie ranks 11th in clutch points<\/a>, his 25 trailing Kevin Durant by one and more than Giannis Antetokounmpo, Jaylen Brown or Stephen Curry. He also seems to get more excited about subtle moments on successful nights<\/a> rather than putting crooked numbers on the score sheet. He doesn\u2019t turn 19 until Dec. 21, yet he already has played more games as a Maverick than Anthony Davis.<\/p>\n 4. Ryan Kalkbrenner, Charlotte Hornets<\/p>\n Season stats:<\/a> 9.9 ppg, 7.1 rpg, 2.2 bpg Kalkbrenner\u2019s showing through his first four NBA weeks<\/a> tracks well with the player he was after his five-year stay at Creighton. From 65.8% shooting and 2.4 blocks per college game, the 7-footer is at 81.2% and 2.2 swats, ranking first and second, respectively, in this league<\/a>. He hasn\u2019t been timid about taking the lumps<\/a> that the most dedicated rim protectors risk, either.<\/p>\n 5. VJ Edgecombe, Philadelphia 76ers<\/p>\n Season stats:<\/a> 15.5 ppg, 5.7 rpg, 4.3 apg History suggested there was nowhere to go but down after Edgecombe burst on the scene in the Sixers\u2019 backcourt. Some have blamed his recent drop \u2013 from 21.2 ppg on 49.4% shooting in October to 11.9 on 34.7% this month \u2013 on coach Nick Nurse\u2019s overuse. No doubt Nurse coaches the 20-year-old from Baylor hard,<\/a> but Philadelphia is getting healthier, and Edgecombe\u2019s minutes have come down. There is still a lot to like here<\/a>. Said Sixers basketball boss Daryl Morey: \u201cHe\u2019s the first player I\u2019ve had that, at this age, has this much poise.\u201d<\/p>\n The next 5<\/p>\n 6. Jeremiah Fears, New Orleans Pelicans<\/p>\n Season stats:<\/a> 15.3 ppg, 2.9 rpg, 2.8 apg Only Flagg and Knueppel have taken more and made more shots than Fears (82 of 183) among the rookies, and none of them has a higher usage rate (26.2%). With coach Willie Green out<\/a> and interim James Borrego in since the previous Ladder, the Pelicans have leaned in to their first-year point guard, who averaged 18.8 points and 2.3 steals in a 0-4 week. That included 41 points on a back-to-back vs. Golden State and OKC<\/a>.<\/p>\n 7. Derik Queen, New Orleans Pelicans<\/p>\n Season stats:<\/a> 10.4 ppg, 6.2 rpg, 2.6 apg Like Fears, Queen has established himself as a foundational piece for the Pelicans, with Borrego starting him in the past two games. His net rating (+17.5) takes New Orleans from the No. 30 hole defensively when he\u2019s not on the court to 17. Queen has shown sponge tendencies, too, gleaning tips<\/a> wherever he can find them<\/a>.<\/p>\n 8. Ace Bailey, Utah Jazz<\/p>\n Season stats:<\/a> 8.7 ppg, 3.4 rpg, 1.5 apg It\u2019s a sign of the times that Bailey\u2019s sideways appearance Sunday \u2013 starting but fouling out in just 10 minutes<\/a> in a game against Chicago that went to double-overtime \u2013 had online proposition bettors more upset than the Jazz or their fans. Set aside that schooling, though, and the Rutgers product has averaged<\/a> 16 points on 53.2% shooting as a starter.<\/p>\n 9. Tre Johnson, Washington Wizards<\/p>\n Season stats:<\/a> 11.5 ppg, 3.2 rpg, 1.4 apg Reviews have slid considerably since the preseason, with Johnson both contributing to and suffering from Washington\u2019s dreary start. The Wizards\u2019 league-worst net rating has been a group effort<\/a>, while Johnson\u2019s care of the ball has dipped (eight assists to 14 turnovers so far this month), and he\u2019s back to the bench after four starts. Don\u2019t worry, though \u2013 this is a new hobby<\/a>, not a career change.<\/p>\n 10. Collin Murray-Boyles, Toronto Raptors<\/p>\n Season stats:<\/a> 8.5 ppg, 3.5 rpg, 1.2 apg Second in defensive rating (110.9) among rookies averaging 20+ minutes, behind only Spurs Dylan Harper (108.1), Murray-Boyles has been essential on that end of the floor<\/a>. And his True Shooting percentage (.617) has perked up<\/a> in November, extending his impact.<\/p>\n * * *<\/p>\n Steve Aschburner has written about the NBA since 1980. You can e-mail him\u00a0here<\/a>, find\u00a0his archive here<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0follow him on X<\/a><\/p>\n
Last Ladder:<\/a>\u00a0No. 1
Draft pick:<\/a> No. 4<\/p>\n
Last Ladder:<\/a>\u00a0No. 2
Draft pick:<\/a> No. 11<\/p>\n
Last Ladder:<\/a>\u00a0No. 3
Draft pick:<\/a> No. 1<\/p>\n
Last Ladder:<\/a>\u00a0No. 5
Draft pick:<\/a> No. 34<\/p>\n
Last Ladder:<\/a>\u00a0No. 4
Draft pick:<\/a> No. 3<\/p>\n
Last Ladder:<\/a>\u00a0No. 6
Draft pick:<\/a> No. 7<\/p>\n
Last Ladder:<\/a>\u00a0No. 8
Draft pick:<\/a> No. 13<\/p>\n
Last Ladder:<\/a>\u00a0No. 9
Draft pick:<\/a> No. 5<\/p>\n
Last Ladder:<\/a>\u00a0No. 7
Draft pick:<\/a> No. 6<\/p>\n
Last Ladder:<\/a>\u00a0Not ranked
Draft pick:<\/a> No. 9<\/p>\n