The Association’s experts chime in on Cooper Flagg’s continual growth this season.<\/p>\n
Half of the 10 rookies on this week\u2019s Kia Rookie Ladder will get a chance Wednesday night to slip a few more stats, moments and perhaps highlights into 2025 before Father Time closes the door on the calendar year completely.<\/p>\n
Charlotte, New Orleans, San Antonio and Washington are among the 18 team on the New Year\u2019s Eve schedule<\/a>.<\/p>\n There will be Rookies of the Month named for December soon, and it\u2019s quite possible we\u2019ll get a repeat of the October\/November recipients<\/a>. Other candidates have thrived, but it\u2019s hard to imagine any of them unseating Dallas\u2019 Cooper Flagg in the Western Conference or Charlotte\u2019s Kon Knueppel in the Eastern Conference.<\/p>\n Pending the latter\u2019s probable return from an ankle sprain to face Milwaukee on the month\u2019s final day, Flagg (23.5) and Knueppel (20.9) are the only two rookies to average more than 18 points in December. Flagg did it by shooting 51.6%, while Knueppel\u2019s 3-point marksmanship of 45.4% was his primary scoring method. Sixty percent of his shots (8.8 of 14.8) came from behind the arc.<\/p>\n There was movement after those two on the Ladder, driven in part by Tuesday\u2019s nationally telecast showdown between Philadelphia\u2019s VJ Edgecombe and Memphis\u2019 Cedric Coward.<\/p>\n Here are the complete Ladder rankings:<\/p>\n Weekly recap<\/p>\n Dallas\u2019 Ryan Nembhard slipped off the Ladder, his decline in minutes resulting in a drop in production. Brandon Williams has picked up the slack at point guard lately, averaging 14.3 points on 56% shooting for the Mavs in his last eight games. Storyline to watch<\/p>\n The second clutch rookie. Flagg\u2019s demonstrated ability to perform late in close games has him putting up \u201cclutch\u201d stats<\/a> on par with some of the league\u2019s most cold-blooded characters. But now he has rookie company, with Philadelphia\u2019s Edgecombe maintaining and producing in nerve-wracking situations. The Sixers\u2019 guard ranks first in 3-point proficiency (61.5%)<\/a> among players who have taken at least 10 clutch 3-pointers and second (60.7%) in field goal percentage<\/a>, period, among those attempting 20 or more shots in the clutch. Edgecombe ranks fifth in clutch minutes and his team has gone 13-8 in those situations.<\/p>\n (All stats through Tuesday, Dec. 30)<\/p>\n 1. Cooper Flagg, Dallas Mavericks<\/p>\n Season stats:<\/a> 19.4 ppg, 6.4 rpg, 4 apg One of Flagg\u2019s most talked-about traits as he entered the NBA was his ability to be a quick study, quickly absorbing, processing and deploying information on the fly. He was, y\u2019know, one of those \u201csponge\u201d guys. It\u2019s been evident so far in scoring and shooting that have improved as the season has unspooled. His December production<\/a> (23.5 ppg, 4.8 apg and 51.6% shooting) all have ticked up from November<\/a> (17.8 ppg, 3.7 rpg, 47.7% shooting). And he\u2019s getting comfortable firing from deeper, going 10-of-20 in his past five games and upping his accuracy to 33.3% this month compared to 25.3% in October\/November.<\/p>\n 2. Kon Knueppel, Charlotte Hornets<\/p>\n Season stats:<\/a> 19.3 ppg, 5.1 rpg, 3.5 apg Only Knueppel (113, 428%) and the Denver Nuggets\u2019 Jamal Murray (108, 45.4%) have canned at least 100 3-pointers while making<\/a> better than 40% of their attempts. The focus at the moment on this rookie, though, is his durability: He was listed Wednesday morning as probable to play in the Hornets\u2019 matinee against Golden State just four days and one missed game after his ankle sprain.<\/p>\n 3. VJ Edgecombe, Philadelphia 76ers<\/p>\n Season stats:<\/a> 15.9 ppg, 5.4 rpg, 4 apg His stats line looked great by the end of Tuesday\u2019s game<\/a> \u2014 25 points, six rebounds, four assists, four steals and 5-of-10 shooting on 3-pointers \u2014 but his ability to dig out from a rough first half to redefine his night over the final 29 minutes showed resiliency beyond his years. Twenty of those points came after halftime, including 13 of Philly\u2019s 25 in the fourth quarter to keep his team alive. The final shot was pure icing<\/a>.<\/p>\n 4. Derik Queen, New Orleans Pelicans<\/p>\n Season stats:<\/a> 13.3 ppg, 7 rpg, 4 apg Queen\u2019s mix of power and finesse is intriguing, as he leads the rookies in total rebounds<\/a> (239) and total assists<\/a> (137). The big man also ranks second in blocks (28), fourth in steals (34) and fourth in total points (451), with a usage rate (22.8) close behind Flagg\u2019s (23.3).<\/p>\n 5. Cedric Coward, Memphis Grizzlies<\/p>\n Season stats:<\/a> 13.9 ppg, 6.5 rpg, 2.9 apg His battle Tuesday with fellow Ladder dweller Edgecombe reminded folks of Coward\u2019s veteran-like game<\/a>. He scored 17 of his season-high 28 points in the first half with nine of his 16 rebounds, and he notched a plus-14 in the Grizzlies\u2019 3-point overtime loss to the Sixers.<\/p>\n The next 5:<\/p>\n 6. Dylan Harper, San Antonio Spurs<\/p>\n Season stats:<\/a> 11.9 ppg, 3.4 rpg, 4.1 apg Like Indiana\u2019s Bennedict Mathurin two years ago, Harper is starting to get a little attention as a rookie with Kia Sixth Man of the Year potential. The field is a crowded one, though, with Jaime Jaquez Jr., Reed Sheppard, Nikeil Alexander-Walker, Naz Reid and others (including Spurs teammate Keldon Johnson) in that award mix.<\/p>\n 7. Jeremiah Fears, New Orleans Pelicans<\/p>\n Season stats:<\/a> 14.4 ppg, 3.6 rpg, 3.1 apg Leads the Class of 2025 in steals, while ranking third in points, field goals made and free throws made, and sixth in total assists. Near the top<\/a> in highlights as well.<\/p>\n 8. Maxime Raynaud, Sacramento Kings<\/p>\n Season stats:<\/a> 10.6 ppg, 6.3 rpg, 1.0 apg Half of his six double-doubles (tied for most by a rookie with Queen and Coward) have come in his past five performances. Said Kings coach Doug Christie: \u201cOne thing I like about Max is his poise. \u2026 He is playing with Hall of Famers in DeMar [DeRozan] and Russ [Westbrook]. I think he was a little like, \u2018What do I do with it?\u2019 Then all of a sudden, he is aggressive.\u201d<\/p>\n 9. Egor D\u00ebmin, Brooklyn Nets<\/p>\n Season stats:<\/a> 9.8 ppg, 3.1 rpg, 3.4 apg Up across the board in December compared to November: 11.8 ppg, .559 True Shooting Pct., plus-11.8 vs. 8.8, .498 and minus-11.5. Coach Jordi Fern\u00e1ndez is still pushing but applauding a bit<\/a>, too.<\/p>\n 10. Tre Johnson, Washington Wizards<\/p>\n Season stats:<\/a> 12.1 ppg, 2.9 rpg, 1.6 apg Johnson\u2019s 5-for-5 work from the arc against Phoenix on Monday boosted him to 40.5% accuracy on 3-pointers and suggested a Ray Allen-as-rookie<\/a> comparison to one fan.<\/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
\nPortland\u2019s Caleb Love was a coin flip for much of the first two months: good night or not so good off the Trail Blazers\u2019 bench. He averaged 7.5 points in 17 minutes through 21 games. But in his most recent four games, his production shot up to 18.3 ppg in 30.5 mpg, shooting 50% overall and 16 of 35 on 3-pointers. Injuries, notably Jrue Holiday\u2019s calf strain, have opened playing time for the 6-foot-3 undrafted native of St. Louis.
\nKings center Maxime Raynaud has had some active company among Sacramento\u2019s newcomers. Both wing Nique Clifford and center Dylan Cardwell averaged 7.5 rebounds over the past week as half-time contributors.
\nNew York\u2019s Mohamed Diawara pounced on two starts at Atlanta and New Orleans to put up five points, five rebounds and two assists against the Hawks and 18 points on 7-of-9 shooting against the Pelicans. The 6-foot-9 forward from Paris, the No. 51 pick in June, had been averaging 1.3 points and 4.3 minutes.<\/p>\n
Last Ladder:<\/a> No. 1 \u2194\ufe0f
Draft pick:<\/a> No. 1<\/p>\n
Last Ladder:<\/a> No. 2 \u2194\ufe0f
Draft pick:<\/a> No. 4<\/p>\n
Last Ladder:<\/a> No. 4 \u2b06\ufe0f
Draft pick:<\/a> No. 3<\/p>\n
Last Ladder:<\/a> No. 3 \u2b07\ufe0f
Draft pick:<\/a> No. 13<\/p>\n
Last Ladder:<\/a> No. 6 \u2b06\ufe0f
Draft pick:<\/a> No. 11<\/p>\n
Last Ladder:<\/a> No. 5 \u2b07\ufe0f
Draft pick:<\/a> No. 2<\/p>\n
Last Ladder:<\/a> No. 7 \u2194\ufe0f
Draft pick:<\/a> No. 7<\/p>\n
Last Ladder:<\/a> No. 8 \u2194\ufe0f
Draft pick:<\/a> No. 42<\/p>\n
Last Ladder:<\/a> 10 \u2b06\ufe0f
Draft pick:<\/a> No. 8<\/p>\n
Last Ladder:<\/a> Not ranked \u2b06\ufe0f
Draft pick:<\/a> No. 6<\/p>\n