Top 5 candidates are expected to overthrow Victor Wembanyama in the Rookie of the Year race
A player not selected in the Draft often has little chance of competing for the Rookie of the Year award. However, Keyonte George is considered by experts to become a big unknown in the Utah Jazz shirt.
Taking a look at Utah's lineup, big men like Lauri Markkanen, John Collins and Walker Kessler are still key names in the main lineup of the Salt Lake City Utah Jazz team. However, the position of defender still cannot make coach Will Hardy feel secure.
The volatile performance of Talen Horton-Tucker, Jordan Clarkson and Collin Sexton made Utah Jazz unable to break through in the race for tickets to the Play-off. But next season, Utah Jazz fans can fully expect Keyonte George to shine through his impressive performance at the summer tournament.
In six games in Salt Lake City and Las Vegas, George averaged 18.7 points and 5.3 assists in just 26.4 minutes with a 38.6% throw from the three-point line. The player born in 2003 is a small defender but plays very aggressively. George can end offensive situations on his own or open up favorable lanes for teammates as a builder.
The presence of this young man somewhat removed the pressure on the pitchers of Utah Jazz. In the last season, Jazz players' performance from outside the semicircle was only 35.3%.
Charlotte Hornets has a young and potential squad with outstanding faces like LaMelo Ball, Miles Bridges or P.J. Washington. Now, they will continue to raise their hopes of winning a ticket to the NBA Play-off with Brandon Miller - who was selected in 2nd place in the 2023 Draft.
“The Bees” are 28th in terms of three points per game and 29th in three point percentages in 2022-23. Despite going through a patchwork season, losing a lot of force due to injury, the Hornets still need to focus more on finishing outside the trapezoid.
As a freshman at Alabama, Miller averaged 18.8 points and 2.9 triples with an impressive 38.4% performance from the 3-point line and 85.9% from the free-throw line.
That's an impressive number for a pioneer. Along with Lamelo Ball, the duo is expected to become the new Dynamic Dou of the Charlotte Hornets. Lamelo's cunning and Miller's ability to finish will be weapons that NBA teams must be wary of
Brandon Miller will need to improve both defensively as well as individual skills that complement finishing. If he can lead the Charlotte Hornets to go deep next season, Miller absolutely has a "door" to compete with his direct opponent – Victor Wembanyama.
Next season's Houston Rockets will be worth watching as they have a lot of advantages with attacking players as diverse as Fred VanVleet, Jalen Green, Dillon Brooks and Kevin Porter Jr. However, the new coach Ime Udoka directed the students to focus more on defense. Amen Thompson is considered a suitable piece for the "rejuvenating" lineup of the Rockets.
This young player is rated 5 stars by ESPN and has achieved many outstanding achievements right from the high school level. He and his twin brother, Ausar, put their senior years on hold to play professional football at Overtime Elite.
Last season, Amen moved to the City Reapers, where he averaged 16.3 points, 6.4 rebounds, 6.2 assists and 2.4 steals in 28.2 minutes. The City Reapers then won the league title with a soft 3-0 victory over YNG Dreamerz.
This player's greatest strength comes from his outstanding defensive ability. With good tactical vision and a nearly 2m arm span, Amen Thompson is easy to escape from supportive situations, putting constant pressure on your team's attackers. These are highly appreciated by coach Ime Udoka. He hopes this young man will join the current squad to improve the performance for the Houston Rockets next season.
The biggest star of Portland Trail Blazer - Damian Lillard has voiced his desire to leave right in the next season. This makes the team's leadership immediately look for new factors that can fill this superstar position.
In his pick at this year's Draft, Blazer showed his intention to rebuild the squad around potential young players. Scoot Henderson is definitely a name not to be missed on the list.
Possessing an amazing physique, Scoot Henderson is superior to his competitors of the same level. This player possesses a variety of basket attacks with stable average jumping situations and slick breakthroughs.
He also became the youngest player in NBA G-League history when he signed a full contract with G-League team Ignite at the age of 17. Scoot Henderson was on the starting XI in most of Ignite's games, scoring at the same time. averaged 16.5 points, 6.5 assists, 5.4 rebounds and 1.0 steals.
Holmgren plays in the central position, is 2m16 tall and weighs 94kg. He is quite thin compared to his great height. Therefore, weight is considered the only weakness of this 21-year-old talent. In the last 2022-2023 season, Chet did not play any matches due to a serious foot injury.
It is no coincidence that Holmgren is highly regarded by many NBA scouts. The ideal height helps Holmgren have outstanding defensive ability, he has a 2m28 arm span. During a year at Gonzaga, Holmgren averaged 14.1 points, 9.9 rebounds, 1.9 assists and a 60.7% scoring rate.
Despite playing only one season in the NCAA, Holmgren has received numerous awards such as WCC Defensive Player and Rookie of the Year, and has been hailed by many NBA scouts as talented with extraordinary physical traits. He is predicted to be one of the most talented players in the NBA in recent years.
