5 surprising NBA rookies you need to know about

2022 NBA Draft: 12th pick

When it comes to the draft, Presti just doesn’t miss. With Williams, the Thunder might have found the athletic wing player their starting line-up has been missing. With Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Lu Dort, Josh Giddey, and Chet Holmgren, the Thunder employ four switchy, positionless two-way players. While that line-up has a ton of potential, it lacks athleticism. Williams is averaging 9.2 ppg on 52.2 fg% while showing an ability to guard all five positions. He’s also chipped in 2.9 rpg and 3.1 apg in 24.1 mpg.

The Santa Clara product has additionally shown flashes as a facilitator, as he notched an 11-assist game last week against the Toronto Raptors. Now that they seem too good to tank, the potential for the Thunder to find their fifth starter in Williams lessens the need to land a lottery pick in next summer’s Victor Wembanyama draft. Williams could slot in at either shooting guard or small forward, providing lockdown defense and athleticism on the perimeter while surrounded by elite passing from Giddey and SGA. The tank is ending in OKC. Welcome back to competitive basketball.

2022 NBA Draft: 24th pick

Upon first glance, the stats don’t jump off the page at you. Beauchamp is only averaging 6.4 ppg, 3.7 rpg in 18.5 mpg. But there is a ton of potential from the late first-round pick and former Yakima Valley College wing player. And in a game against the Oklahoma City Thunder in early November, Beauchamp showed his potential, especially on a Bucks team looking to win their second championship in the Giannis Antetokounmpo-era.

In a game without Antetokounmpo and Jrue Holiday, Beauchamp dropped in 19 points, eight rebounds and two steals in just 30 minutes in a 136-132 Bucks win. He shot 7-of-13 from the field, including 5-of-8 from 3-point range, and a team-high +14 in his second season start. The career-high came just after his previous career-high five days before when he dropped 14 points and five rebounds in a win over the Minnesota Timberwolves. The Bucks have always thrived on their perimeter depth, making Beauchamp a needed two-way threat come playoff time, especially as just one of four players under 25. In addition, the Bucks’ roster is beginning to age out, making their usually late-first-round picks all the more critical for depth.

2022 NBA Draft: 31st pick

Pacers head coach Rick Carlise is famously tough on his guards. One needs tough skin and a short memory to excel under his gruff personality, especially rookies. Nembhard is getting a chance at 20.1 mpg, averaging 6.7 ppg while shooting 40.5 percent from three and a whopping 100 percent from the line. Nembhard, the Pacers’ second-round pick, played four years in college, his last two with Gonzaga. About his unorthodox four-year college career, he told USA Today, “I think playing four years in college allowed me the time to kind of mature, grow my game and understand kind of who I am.”

While Indiana’s 2022 first-round pick Bennedict Mathurin has burst on the scene as a bonafide All-Rookie First-Team player, Nembhard has been given time as a starter. He scored 15 points, three rebounds, five assists, and two steals against the New Orleans Pelicans in his first start. In his third start, he notched 13 points on 5-of-6 shooting in a 125-113 win over the Hornets. Carlise believes in him judging by the four-year, $8.6-million deal the Pacers signed him to this month.

2022 NBA Draft: 17th pick

The rise in talent across the NBA in the last decade has been impressive. There are only a few teams one can say holistically “suck.” The Houston Rockets are one of those teams. Their young players have much growing up to do on and off the court. One of the few bright spots is rookie Tari Eason. He’s been able to produce when head coach Stephen Silas has been inconsistent with his minutes distribution, giving Eason anywhere between 12 and 24 minutes.

Eason is averaging a respectable 8.7 ppg, 5.2 rpg, and shooting 37.1 percent from three. In Sunday’s 127-120 loss to the Warriors, Eason finished with a career-high 19 points (8-of-14 FG, 1-5 3Pt, 2-2 FT) to go with eight rebounds, three steals, and one assist in 23 minutes. Eason is a do-it-all player rebuilding the team’s needs for a culture change. With the Rockets at the bottom of the standings, there’s no reason not to give Eason more minutes, especially as a compliment to Alperen Şengün’s finesse game at center.

2022 NBA Draft: 13th pick

The Detroit Pistons are one of the other teams that can be roasted for sucking. The silver lining to this disastrous season is the Pistons, under GM Troy Weaver, had the best showing in this summer’s NBA Draft — selecting Jaden Ivey and Jalen Duren. Duren was passed around on Draft night in a series of trades, eventually landing in Detroit. He has provided toughness and potential at the center position, averaging 7.1 ppg on 59.0 percent shooting, to g with 7.5 rpg, and 1.1 bpg.

Duren’s rebounding has been good enough for second-best among rookies, behind Banchero (8.3), who plays 13 more minutes per game. Even more impressive, Duren is grabbing over 85 percent of his contested offensive rebounding chances, which is the highest in the NBA. The metrics prove his rebounding numbers are here to stay, and could seemingly improve as he becomes more comfortable playing in the NBA. He has the highest Contested Rebound percentage this season with a minimum of 40 contested rebounds, at 59.8 percent. Once he earns the starting nod, perhaps as soon as next season, his per-36 numbers of 12.3 rebounds per game could become his nightly average, especially playing next to the high-IQ playmaking of Cade Cunningham.