Draft Digest Rookie Ladder: Murray, Duren Rise After Hot Weeks

Some rookies have continued their run of excellence and others are finally beginning to find their footing as we near the halfway point of the season.

As we come up on the halfway point of the NBA season, the newest NBA class continues to impress upon the league in a positive way.

The top three, Orlando’s Paolo Banchero, Indiana’s Bennedict Mathurin and Detroit’s Jaden Ivey, respectively, have been locked in for awhile, with no to no room for newcomers.

Banchero and Mathurin have been some of the most NBA-ready newcomers we’ve seen in years and Ivey is one of the few rookies with primary playmaking roles.

Over the last 4 games, Keegan Murray has again found his groove, averaging 13.8 points, on near-60 percent shooting and a blazing 67 percent on 5.3 attempts from beyond the arc.

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Oklahoma City’s Jalen Williams continues to be one of the bigger surprises of the class and Houston’s Jabari Smith Jr. continues to see up-and-down performances as he settles into his role as a shooter and defender.

Risers this week include Detroit center Jalen Duren, who’s averaged 14.5 points on 81 percent field goal shooting in his last three games. He’s also brought down 10.0 rebounds and nabbed 1.0 steals per game in that span.

Former Gonzaga guard Andrew Nembhard has remade the list after some hot scoring performances: 19 versus the Hornets and 12 versus Philadelphia.

Here are the full Draft Digest rookie ladder rankings:

1. Paolo Banchero, Orlando Magic

2. Bennedict Mathurin, Indiana Pacers

3. Jaden Ivey, Detroit Pistons

4. Keegan Murray, Sacramento Kings

5. Jalen Williams, Oklahoma City Thunder

6. Jabari Smith Jr., Houston Rockets

7. Jalen Duren, Detroit Pistons

8. AJ Griffin, Atlanta Hawks

9. Jeremy Sochan, San Antonio Spurs

10. Andrew Nembhard, Indiana Pacers

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