The inconsistencies of this year's rookie class continue in Week Four of the NBA season. Timberwolves rookie Kris Dunn underwhelmed in his starting role and is now back on the bench. Celtics' No. 3 selection Jaylen Brown has also lost his starting spot due to the return of teammate Kelly Olynyk. Yet like Dunn, Brown also struggled in the last week.
But not all of the rookies have played poorly. Joel Embiid continues to be close to dominant, Brandon Ingram is making strides and the two Malcolms -- Brogdon and Delaney -- are also playing well.
Here are this week's rookie rankings:
Embiid continues to excel in his limited role. Playing just 22.1 minutes a game, the Sixers' big man is putting up numbers that no other rookie in his class can match. Embiid is leading all rookies in points (18.0), rebounds (7.3) and blocks (2.3). Again, he is putting up these numbers in under 25 minutes a game. Just imagine how effective he will be once his minutes restriction is lifted.
Embiid was key to Philadelphia picking up its first win of the season against the Indiana Pacers on Friday. The 7-footer finished the game with 25 points and seven rebounds. Perhaps most impressive is that Embiid got to the line 14 times and missed just two free throws. This points to another way that Embiid isn't like the prototypical big man as he is shooting 79.6 percent from the charity stripe so far this season.
While Embiid is leading rookies in multiple categories, Philadelphia's other rookie, Dario Saric, is right behind him. Saric is second among all his class in points (9.7) and rebounds (6.0). He is also taking over two three-pointers a game and is shooting 46.2 percent from deep. Saric has scored in double figures in the Sixers' last two games and seems to be an ideal fit to develop alongside Embiid.
Looking like the steal of the draft, Malcolm Brogdon continues to play well off the bench for the Bucks. Brogdon's assist numbers dipped a bit in the last week but he scored in double digits in Milwaukee's last two games. Brogdon is averaging 8.2 points, three assists and 1.3 steals in 21.2 minutes so far this season, and is also shooting a very solid 42.9 percent from the field. Brogdon is fourth among all rookies in scoring, second in steals and sixth in assists.
So far, Brandon Ingram has only shown flashes of being a potential dynamic scorer. But he is playing well and Lakers coach Luke Walton is already saying that Ingram is close to being a "lockdown defender." Quite the descriptor to place on Ingram 12 games into his career yet the Lakers rookie is excelling on the defensive end of the floor. Ingram has picked up his scoring as of late as well. He scored in double figures in two of the Lakers' last three games and is now averaging 6.9 points while shooting 40.9 percent.
He had a subpar game against the Timberwolves on Tuesday but besides for that performance, Malcolm Delaney continues to play well, running Atlanta's second unit with extreme confidence. Against the Sixers on Saturday, he had a solid game, finishing with nine points, six assists and three rebounds. Averaging 3.9 assists a game, Delaney leads all rookies in assists.
Buddy Hield's excellent shooting from college still hasn't translated to the NBA yet he is slowly making strides. Take his game against the Lakers for example. Hield matched his career-high with 18 points and shot 61.5 percent, going 8-of-13 from the field. Overall though, Hield is shooting 37.1 percent and 23.7 percent from three. He is tied for second in scoring though, averaging 9.7 points a game.
Jaylen Brown's short stint as a starter ended quickly as Kelly Olynyk is back from injury. The Celtics have decided it was best to go small and start Marcus Smart instead. As a reserve in Boston's last two games, Brown hasn't made that much of an impact. He played just under seven minutes against the Pacers on Saturday and failed to score. Against the Pelicans, Brown did have a bit of a bounce back game, scoring eight points and grabbing four rebounds. Brown has shown promise but it will clearly take him some time to carve out a niche for himself as a rookie.
Domantas Sabonis falls down in the rankings after two subpar games shooting the basketball. Against the Magic, Sabonis was 1-of-6 and then finished 1-of-5 against the Pistons on Monday. Sabonis' rebounding numbers have also dropped since his 10-rebound effort on Nov. 7. The Thunder rookie still has good averages though, shooting 43.7 percent and 46.9 percent from three. Sabonis is also averaging 7.1 points, which is seventh among all rookies.
With Ricky Rubio returning from injury, Kris Dunn is back to coming off the bench and running Minnesota's second unit. Dunn has the makings of a strong player but so far he hasn't had any semblance of a breakout game. He is averaging 4.7 points, 3.8 assists and 1.6 steals. Dunn does however lead all rookies in steals and is second in assists.
Marquese Chriss is insanely athletic as evidenced by his monster putback dunk against the Warriors on Sunday. The Suns also have a lot of faith in Chriss and have recently inserted him into the starting lineup. He is still quite raw though but had the best game of his young career against the Nets on Saturday, scoring 16 points and grabbing five rebounds. Chriss' 3.6 rebounds per game is seventh among all rookies.
