Spurs rookie Stephon Castle was named the Western Conference’s Kia Rookie of the Month for March.
Finally, a trend.
When San Antonio’s Stephon Castle and Atlanta’s Zaccharie Risacher were named the winners of the NBA’s March monthly awards for rookies – Castle in the West, Risacher in the East – it marked the second time for each.
Until this week’s announcement, eight different rookies had won the monthly honors. Castle (January) had been joined in the West by Jaylen Wells, Yves Missi and Isaiah Collier, while Risacher (February) shared the distinction with Jared McCain, Alex Sarr and Kel’el Ware.
The monthly award doesn’t guarantee anything when it comes to the annual awards. But for Rookie of the Year voters who are looking for reasons for their rankings on the 2025 ballot, two obviously is better than one.
There isn’t enough time or schedule left for three.
Here are this week’s Kia Rookie Ladder rankings:
Weekly recap
• We seem to be getting a statistical push for All-Rookie consideration, with some of the top performances lately coming from guys who aren’t even on the Ladder. Chicago’s Matas Buzelis continues as a late bloomer (15.8 ppg, 6.5 rpg, 47.6% from 3 over the past week), and Toronto’s fleet of rookies – Ja’Kobe Walter, Jonathan Mogbo, Jamal Shead and Jamison Battle – combining for 42.8 points per game over the Raptors’ past four, compared to 24.7 as their season scoring averages.
• Ron Holland II, again? No doubt Pistons fans will defend this, but Holland has looked like the most combative rookie this season. He has one of the antagonists and ejectees in Minnesota’s kerfuffle Sunday, and he previously had run-ins with Utah’s Jordan Clarkson in December and Golden State’s Draymond Green in January. The 19-year-old apparently has been getting mentored by Isaiah (Beef) Stewart.
• OK, it’s a little weird to cram an 11th guy onto the Ladder for the second consecutive week. But the gap from 10 to 11, whoever you favor, is paper-thin compared to the gap from 11 to 12 with these rookies. Not to worry, it ends next week when the final Ladder of 2024-25 ranks the 10 who essentially will represent one voter’s All-Rookie ballot.
Storyline to watch
The final push. Risacher, Sarr, Ware and Wells can still make persuasive cases for the ROY award, but Castle is the favorite in Vegas for legitimate reasons. He ranks first among all the first-year guys in points, field goals, shots, free throws, and steals, as well as third in minutes and tied for third in assists. One of the other Ladder rookies is going to have to go off in the relatively few games left.
Latest ranking
(All stats through Tuesday, April 1)
1. Stephon Castle, San Antonio Spurs
Season stats: 14.3 ppg, 3.4 rpg, 3.8 apg
Last Ladder: 1
Draft pick: No. 4
Castle came within two assists of posting the Class of 2024’s first triple-double of the season, finishing with 22 points, 11 rebounds and eight assists in a loss at Cleveland Thursday. Said teammate Keldon Johnson: “I feel like the game is already slowing down for him, but once he keeps growing — he works his a– off — he’s going to be great.”
2. Zaccharie Risacher, Atlanta Hawks
Season stats: 12.4 ppg, 3.7 rpg, 1.3 apg
Last Ladder: 2
Draft pick: No. 1
The 6-foot-8 forward sputtered against Portland Tuesday, but in the two months he was the East’s top rookie, Risacher led his class with 55 3-pointers, hitting them with 41% accuracy. His 36 points in the Hawks’ blowout of the Bucks Sunday were his season-high and his third game of 30+ points, most by a rookie this season.
First overall picks to record 35+ points, 5+ threes in a game as a rookie:
— LeBron
— Iverson
— Antand Zaccharie Risacher. pic.twitter.com/ajQQ9qePvu
— StatMuse (@statmuse) March 31, 2025
3. Alex Sarr, Washington Wizards
Season stats: 13.0 ppg, 6.6 rpg, 1.6 bpg
Last Ladder: 3
Draft pick: No. 2
Shooting comes and goes two games at a time lately, with a 9-of-29 stretch followed by 18-of-32 against the Sixers and the Pacers, then down to 7-of-29 in his past two vs. the Nets and the Heat. But he keeps adding to this “record,” with the advantage of entering the league at 19 and being born on April 26.
4. Kel’el Ware, Miami Heat
Season stats: 9.0 ppg, 7.2 rpg, 1.1 bpg
Last Ladder: 4
Draft pick: No. 15
Five of Ware’s 12 double-doubles (tied for most among rookies with Yves Missi) have come since March 15. He also got the advantage on Sarr on this play, the key to which was Ware playing the ball’s carom like a left fielder.
KEL'EL WARE POSTERS ALEX SARR pic.twitter.com/4aq7Y4rwWR
— Heat Clips 🎬 (@Demar305) April 1, 2025
5. Jaylen Wells, Memphis Grizzlies
Season stats: 10.5 ppg, 3.3 rpg, 1.7 apg
Last Ladder: 5
Draft pick: No. 39
Having dealt well with the challenge of starting for a playoff-bound team and matching up with top scorers on a nightly basis, Wells now gets to adjust to a new coach with only a handful of games remaining. No rookie has participated in more victories (44), but over his past 15 games, Wells’ shooting has sagged to 31%, 25% from the arc.
The Next 5
6. Yves Missi, New Orleans Pelicans
Season stats: 9.0 ppg, 8.1 rpg, 1.3 bpg
Last Ladder: 7
Draft pick: No. 21
In a disastrous season for New Orleans, Missi has been an oasis for coach Willie Green, a break in the clouds every time he pencils the rookie’s name into the starting lineup. “Coming into the season, his role wasn’t where it is now,” Green said, “but he kept working, kept earning trust from the coaching staff and his teammates.”
7. Zach Edey, Memphis Grizzlies
Season stats: 9.2 ppg, 7.7 rpg, 1.3 bpg
Last Ladder: 6
Draft pick: No. 9
The hoops world was abuzz over Zach Edey at this time a year ago, but from his push with Purdue through the NCAA tournament in 2024, the 7-foot-4 lad is dealing with the apparent turbulence in Memphis. “It’s been an up-and-down season for sure,” Edey told HoopsHype recently. “I’ve been asked to play a completely different role than I had in college. I’ve been playing off the ball, adapting to playing around others, and giving space rather than getting the ball every possession.”
8. Isaiah Collier, Utah Jazz
Season stats: 8.3 ppg, 3.3 rpg, 6.2 apg
Last Ladder: 8
Draft pick: No. 29
Meet the Jazz’s new king in the category of most assists by a rookie (419 and counting). Now Collier needs only 15,388 more to surpass John Stockton’s team and NBA record.
9. Bub Carrington, Washington Wizards
Season stats: 9.1 ppg, 4.1 rpg, 4.2 apg
Last Ladder: 9
Draft pick: No. 14
Filled up the stats sheet with eight points, eight rebounds, nine assists and three steals in 38 minutes against Miami Monday.
T-10. Donovan Clingan, Portland Trail Blazers
Season stats: 6.1 ppg, 7.4 rpg, 1.6 bpg
Last Ladder: T-10
Draft pick: No. 7
Leads all rookies in blocked shots with 98 while playing about two-thirds the minutes of Sarr (94) or Missi (93). Then there’s this.
T-10. Kyle Filipowski, Utah Jazz
Season stats: 9.2 ppg, 5.7 rpg, 1.9 apg
Last Ladder: T-10
Draft pick: No. 32
Picking up minutes in Lauri Markkanen’s and John Collins’ absences, Filipowski had six of his 11 double-doubles in March.
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Steve Aschburner has written about the NBA since 1980. You can e-mail him here, find his archive here and follow him on X.
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