Kia Rookie Ladder: Cooper Flagg, Cedric Coward gain ground in chase to top

“Irrational exuberance” is a Wall Street term often used to describe shareholders’ enthusiasm when the market is hot.

That’s a good way to describe what we’ve seen from Charlotte Hornets rookie forward Kon Nueppel over the past week or two. A player (in almost record time) dropped out of the selection at No. 4, raising some eyebrows over a perceived shoo-in as Kia Rookie of the Year.

Some don’t stop there, suggesting that Knueppel will be the first rookie to make the All-Star team since Blake Griffin in the 2010–11 season. Or that he’ll eventually chase the greatest 3-point shooter in league history into the record books.

To which there is only one appropriate response: Wow.

NBC’s lead NBA analyst Reggie Miller said, “He’s winning the Rottie.” “I would dare say this … will Stephen Curry be a little nervous in about 15 years? Just go back and look at Steph’s first two to three years in terms of 3-pointers and what Cone has done this year.”

There’s no doubt that Miller was having fun, but it’s not fair to Curry, the other rookies this season, and most of all to Nueppel, to go so far, so early, because of someone’s sneakers.

Luckily, no one is more serious on the subject of Knueppel than Kid. Sure enough, he’s been at the top spot on the Kia rookie ladder for three weeks. And yes, he was a candidate for the East’s Player of the Week for the second time, competing with the conference’s best vets.

But for now, perspective is everything.

“Even going into my freshman year of high school, I knew I was a good player in the state and in middle school,” the recent Duke product said, “but I still thought I would probably play Division III ball at Wisconsin Lutheran College or something.”

Meanwhile, Charlotte’s 4-13 start should keep its entire roster humble and away from postseason awards or season honors.

Knueppel also said, “We just have to play with our heads a little better.” “Get the matchups we want, think about what we’re doing, execute offensively, and know our personnel defensively.”

Here are the latest rankings of the NBA’s top rookies:

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weekly recap

, How do we take an invisible eraser What about the unwritten rules that were allegedly violated Saturday when New Orleans’ Derrick Queen angered the Hawks with his late steal and dunk in Atlanta’s lopsided win? Guard Witt Krejci was dribbling the entire time and considered Queen’s move a violation of basketball etiquette. To which the Stair Committee says: Balderdash! Play the full 48 minutes and move on. That said, the newcomer’s attempt to justify it as a malicious play was also a bit silly.

, clippers wing kobe sanders That went from eight consecutive DNPs and just eight minutes of court time in L.A.’s first 10 games to 25.1 minutes per game and three starts in the next seven. The No. 50 pick in June and the five-year product of Cal Poly and Nevada is on a two-way contract, but offers something more than the Clippers: He was born in this millennium.

Sanders averaged 8.9 points, shot 36.7% from three, and sank 11 of his 12 free throws while guarding various injured teammates during his outstanding adventure. With Kawhi Leonard returning Sunday due to a foot sprain, the 23-year-old Sanders is not starting, but he remains in the rotation.

, Despite pre-draft and summer promotion Regarding Portland’s move to land Chinese center Yang Hansen, progress has been slow and bumpy for the 7-foot-1 native of Zibo, China. He’s averaging 3.1 points in nine appearances, with his biggest night coming in garbage time on Sunday in OKC (eight points, four rebounds and three assists on 3-11 shooting).

It’s clear why the Trail Blazers and the NBA were eager to nab Yao Ming in a bottle again, but the reality is starting to sting as Henson was essentially traded on draft night for Memphis’ Cedric Coward, a player who spent four college years in the Pacific Northwest. Coward’s shooting and defense have been on display from the start.

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story worth watching

• Flagg vs. Doncic. Anyway, the crypto.com arena’s marquee may read similarly, as Dallas and our No. 2 runholder Cooper Flagg face the Los Angeles Lakers on Friday (10 PM ET, Prime VideoFlagg had no connection to the infamous trade last winter that took Luka Doncic away from the Mavericks, but he got caught up in the legend with the tossing of draft lottery balls. The rookie would be wise to turn his attention elsewhere, even if Mavs fans are unable to do so.

“I would say to me, it’s another game,” Flagg said. “I know there’s going to be a lot more to that game that goes into these guys’ mentality and whatnot. To me, it’s just another game. I’m just trying to live day by day, take one day at a time, one game at a time. Right now, we’re just trying to find ways to win.”

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(All figures till Tuesday, November 25)

1. Kon Knuppel, Charlotte Hornets

Season statistics: 19.4 ppg, 5.8 rpg, 2.9 apg
Last Stair: number 1
draft pick: number 4

Last week contributed to the Knuppel excitement: 27.3 ppg on 59.2% shooting and 56.3% from beyond the arc. Through 17 games, his 63 3-point field goals have put him on pace for 303, which would break Keegan Murray’s NBA rookie mark (206). Mathematically, Knueppel’s 3.71 3-pointers per game so far are second only to Curry’s all-time 3.97. But 17 versus 1,041 games? Let us go. Here’s a better comparison. Then there is this: curry – first He Changed the game – Was 19 of 49 (38.8%) on 3-pointers during his first 17 games, to Knueppel’s 63 of 144 (43.8%). In his final 63 games as a rookie, Curry increased his shooting rate to 147-of-331 (44.4%).

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2. Cooper Flagg, Dallas Mavericks

Season statistics: 15.9 ppg, 6.4 rpg, 3.1 apg
Last Stair: No. 3
draft pick: number 1

He has logged more games in Dallas (18) than his higher-paid (and often drydocked) teammate, Anthony Davis (14). He and his teams have had more losses in six weeks (14) than they have in the last four years (eight). After going No. 1 overall in the 2025 draft, Flagg is on a crash course with the Mavs through NBA 101. Tough night on Monday and he’s 1 for 11 in his last three games, but the good reviews keep coming. Coach Jason Kidd said: “Going through this tough time of losing close games will only make us better moving forward. Especially for Cooper, because he’ll get to see a lot of different close games and learn how to handle different situations.”

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3. Cedric Coward, Memphis Grizzlies

Season statistics: 13.8 ppg, 5.8 rpg, 2.8 apg
Last Stair: number 2
draft pick: number 11

Coward hit his first offensive slump of the weekend, scoring nine points in a win at Dallas on Saturday and just five against Denver on Monday. In the process, he shot 5 of 17 and 1 of 8. But without Ja Morant in the lineup to take over the defense, he is drawing more attention to game-planning. Coward has also stepped into the breach as a vocal leader – something in short supply at times in Memphis.

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4. Derrick Queen, New Orleans Pelicans

Season statistics: 12.4 ppg, 6.5 rpg, 3.3 apg
Last Stair: number 7
draft pick: number 13

The 6-foot-10 man/kid from Maryland had a busy week, ranging from averages of 19.5, 7.5 and 5.5 — with a 2.5 “stock” — to getting up to about 15 shots a night. He hit 51.7% of what he threw out there and even found time to beat the Hawks with his late-blowout hustle. Not only has Queens succeeded in the perceived pressure of getting the Pelicans to pay the price of their 2026 unprotected first-round pick, but he has also placed some of the burden on him to prove that he is better than Queens.

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5. VJ Edgecombe, Philadelphia 76ers

Season statistics: 15.6 ppg, 6 rpg, 4.2 apg
Last Stair: number five
draft pick: No. 3

Edgecombe missed his second consecutive game on Tuesday because of left calf tightness. He still ranks highly in his class across the board: first in minutes, assists and shots per game, third in points per game, and fourth in rebounds. His arsenal evoked memories of Hall of Famer Comp “Guard”. Dwyane Wade said, “The parallels between my game as a two guard and his game as a two guard are right down to you, downhill, going, ‘I’m going to punch you and I don’t care.’

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Next 5:

6. Jeremiah Fears, New Orleans Pelicans

Season statistics: 15.4 ppg, 3.3 rpg, 2.7 apg
Last Stair: number 6
draft pick: number 7

Despite the Pelicans’ disappointing team fortunes, Fears – like Queen – has been a bright spot and building block. He’s averaging 16.2 points in November and making 41.3% of his 3-point attempts — though at 3.3 per game, he’s either being prudent or shy on those jumps.

7. Ryan Kalkbrenner, Charlotte Hornets

Season statistics: 9.4 ppg, 6.9 rpg, 1.9 bpg
Last Stair: number 4
draft pick: number 34

Kalkbrenner left Saturday’s game because of left ankle soreness and did not play Sunday in Atlanta. His 3.2 offensive rebounds lead all rookies and rank 19th overall in the league, along with his 80.3% accuracy among all players averaging at least 10 minutes.

8. Ace Bailey, Utah Jazz

Season statistics: 9.9 ppg, 3.4 rpg, 1.7 apg
Last Stair: number 8
draft pick: number five

After starting his career with eight straight games of single-digit scoring, Bailey has scored 10+ in eight of his last nine. And he’s getting attention for more than just buckets. Jazz coach Will Hardy said, “He’s not afraid to ask questions, he’s not afraid to ask for help on something if he doesn’t know.” “And his personality is magnetic. The kid … brings a lot of joy and energy to our building.”

9. Igor Demin, Brooklyn Nets

Season statistics: 7.6 ppg, 3.4 rpg, 3.4 apg
Last Stair: not ranked
draft pick: number 8

One of five rookies on the roster as the Nets try to rebuild quickly, Demin has taken advantage of his opportunities to post some sloppy numbers. His usage has increased, his accuracy has decreased in November, but the 6-foot-9-inch-tall Russian knows it’s all about confidence and reps. “Understanding that the coaching staff is believing in me and believing in all of us, I think that’s where we can get even more strength and even more energy to play as hard as we can,” Demin said last weekend. (Oh, and this is how you pronounce it.)

10. Trey Johnson, Washington Wizards

Season statistics: 11.5 ppg, 3 rpg, 1.3 apg
Last Stair: number nine
draft pick: number 6

It was revealed that Johnson’s “undisclosed minutes restriction” was due to a left hip injury, which will now sideline the Wizards rookie for a few weeks. Not that everyone agrees this is real, given the huge turnout of young people in Washington. Johnson’s shooting and intelligence won the hearts of fans.

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Steve Ashburner has written about the NBA since the 1980s. You can e-mail him here, find his archive here and follow him on x,