NBA Rookie Superlative Winners for the 2024-25 Season

Prior to this years NBA season, Draft Digest named three rookies as the most likely to win three key superlatives regarding playoff impact, defensive acumen, and three-point shooting in their debut seasons.

Today, with the 2024 draft class's rookie campaigns over, we will revisit each of these superlatives, evaluating where each prediction went wrong, as well as the true winners of each superlative.

Most Likely To Make A Playoff Impact Preseason Projection: Zach Edey, Memphis Grizzlies (Pick No.

9) Winner: Quinten Post, Golden State Warriors (Pick No.

52) This superlative is largely team-dependent, as a rookie can't make a playoff impact if their team isn't participating in postseason play.

However, in the right situation, rookies can step up and play a key role for these teams, which is exactly what Post did for the Warriors.

He played a key role off the bench, filling in key minutes as a stretch five on a team lacking size.

Edey also had the chance to play in the playoffs, but in a more expanded role, he faced more bumps along the way than Post.

While the Golden State big man wasn't consistent throughout the postseason, his impactful stretches in two closely-fought round one wins earn him this superlative.

Most Likely To Make An All-Defensive Team Preseason Projection: Donovan Clingan, Portland Trail Blazers (Pick No.

7) Winner: Jaylen Wells, Memphis Grizzlies (Pick No.

39) For Portland, Clingan had incredible stretches of defensive stardom, showcasing his sky-high potential on this end.

However, for his consistent excellence as a perimeter stopper throughout the entire season, Wells takes this superlative.

Before going down with a wrist injury, Wells started 74 games for Memphis, not only averaging over 10 points per game but also serving as the Grizzlies' primary point-of-attack defender, leveraging his length and lateral mobility to make a big impact.

Most Likely To Make 200 Threes Preseason Projection: Reed Sheppard, Houston Rockets (Pick No.

3) Winner: Bub Carrington, Washington Wizards (Pick No.

14) This superlative is largely determined by opportunity, which is something that Carrigton received a lot more of on the tanking Wizards than Sheppard received on the two-seeded Rockets.

The Washington guard played an average of 30 minutes across all 82 games, converting just under 34% of his 5.0 attempts per game.

This led to 138 total threes made, which led all rookies and earned him this superlative..

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