Unveiling the NBA Rookies Shocking Everyone with Their Unexpected Dominance This Season

Think of Small as a small-er (have to stop it with the word play, I know) version of Coward. He can defend (69th percentile steal rate), shoot (44.6% on 3-pointers) and create with the ball in his hands (his pull-up shooting numbers are nearly identical to – spoiler alert – the player who finished first in our list).
The Grizzlies are struggling, of course, but between Small and Coward, they will (hopefully) have something to root for in the near future.
4. Jamir Watkins, Washington (+0.69)
We won’t fault you if you haven’t used your time on NBA League Pass to catch up with the Wizards. But they have a rookie who is lapping relative expectations, and it isn’t the player they used the sixth overall pick in the 2025 NBA Draft (Tre Johnson). Rather, it’s Watkins, the No. 43 selection.



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