NBA Rookie Ladder: Tight Race Between 7-Footers Continues

Chet Holmgren and Victor Wembanyama continue to battle it out in what’s become a tight Rookie of the Year race already.

Nearing the quarter mark for the 2023-24 NBA season, we’ve officially emerged out of the Rookie of the Year cold war and are squarely in the heat of the action.

With nearly 75% of the season still left to play, it’s truly anyone’s award. But two towering newbies are making it an uphill battle for everyone else.

Here is the Draft Digest rookie ladder as of Tuesday, Dec. 19:

1. Chet Holmgren, OKC Thunder

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After much deliberation, we’ve decided to keep Thunder sensation Chet Holmgren at No. 1 this week.

Dishing out 15 blocks in his last seven quarters of play would be reason enough, but averages of 17.0 points, 8.6 rebounds and 4.6 blocks while shooting 53% overall in his last five games don’t hurt either.

To this point, Holmgren has just been the most complete product we’ve seen in a rookie player in a long, long time. And while Wemby’s gaudy stat lines may catch him eventually, they haven’t yet.

2. Victor Wembanyama, San Antonio Spurs

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The No. 1 pick this year was already off to a fantastic NBA start, inefficiencies and all. But a move to center a handful of games ago has created a rim-running, shot-blocking monster that’s coming for everyone in the NBA.

In his last five, Wembanyama has averaged 19.1 points, 15.8 rebounds and 4.2 blocks while shooting an improved 45% overall and 35% from beyond the arc.

Perhaps even more important, he feels more ingratiated in the Spurs system, and seems to be impacting games more each night.

Honestly, Wembanyama feels more like 1B that No. 2 right now. In fact, would anybody be upset with co-Rookies of the Year for the two seven-footers?

3. Brandon Miller, Charlotte Hornets

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Miller continue to fly under-the-radar as one of the best rookies we’ve seen in awhile.

He’s now pushed his double-digit scoring streak to 11, averaging 14.8 points per game without being the focal point of the Hornets’ offense.

He’s also grabbing 4.0 rebounds per game, dishing 2.2 assists and shooting a blistering 38% on 5.2 3-point attempts per game.

4. Jaime Jaquez Jr., Miami Heat

5. Dereck Lively, Dallas Mavericks

6. Cason Wallace, OKC Thunder

7. Bilal Coulibaly, Washington Wizards

8. Keyonte George, Utah Jazz

9. Ausar Thompson, Detroit Pistons

10. Scoot Henderson, Portland Trail Blazers

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