Basketball from a fans perspective

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2024-25 NBA Rookie of the Year

In the April 20 edition of Off the Dribble I wrote of my belief Stephon Castle of the Spurs would be named NBA Rookie of the Year. Castle had a number of contenders however I had no proof just a belief he would be the winner based on his play for the Spurs in his rookie season. The paragraph below is a portion of the edition written at the time.   

“I have an opportunity to change this, it’s written weeks ahead of an official announcement. This is not to guarantee Stephon Castle wins 2024-25 NBA Rookie of the Year, it’s 80% probable. It’s interesting that he is almost certain to be given that honor despite being the 4th pick in the 2024 NBA Draft. I’m sure Spurs management was excited with the opportunity to add an NCAA Championship player to their roster. Early on Castle fell behind several other rookie candidates as he adjusted his game to the NBA. Although the Spurs are still a work in progress he was aided in his adjustment by veterans Chris Paul, Harrison Barnes and second year player Victor Wembanyama.”

This week on Tuesday the NBA announced its Rookie of the Year for 2024-25 with Stephon Castle being named the winner. A little background on Castle, he was made the number four draft pick by the Spurs last June, he was awarded 482 points, the number one draft pick Zaccharie Risacher was a distant second receiving 245 points. Castle becomes the second Spurs player in succession to win the honor, he follows teammate Victor Wembanyama named 2023-24 NBA Rookie of the Year.

Speaking of rookies

I do not make any claim about my ability to identify new talent; I believe it is important to allow a player time to adjust to the NBA. It is not helpful to judge a player's ability before they have played. This applies to Cooper Flagg and others in the past. For example, Charles Barkley made a bet with Kenny 'The Jet' Smith before Yao Ming's rookie year, claiming that Yao would not score over 15 points in an NBA game. Similarly, Stephen A. Smith questioned why the Knicks drafted Kristaps Porzingis with their top pick.

Two years ago, there were concerns about Victor Wembanyama, such as "He's too skinny" or "His game won't translate to the NBA." These statements later proved to be unfounded. There have been players whose apparent talent did not translate to the NBA. Currently, there are similar doubts about Cooper Flagg. Flagg’s ability to play at the NBA level remains an unknown until he’s had the opportunity to demonstrate his talent over time. An exhibition game against Team USA proved he could play a single game but that’s about all. If it appears I’ve soured on him far from it. There are athletes who plain don’t have the skill set to play at the NBA level, don’t tell me someone can’t play until they clearly demonstrate they can’t.

Meanwhile….

He is not the second coming, allow me to begin this account with that statement. The brief but outstanding career of China’s Yao Ming secretly has the NBA pining for a successor to Ming. Since Ming retired in 2011 a small number of players have found their way to these shores from China but their accomplishments have been limited. We now come upon another player from the Asian continent who just might earn a roster position should he place his name in the 2025 NBA draft. His name is Hansen Yang, he stands 7 foot 1 and 250 pounds, a scouting report paints an exciting forecast for Yang. One description indicates he lacks elite athleticism however he is fluid and coordinated for his size. Yang spent this season playing for the Qingdao Double Star Eagles in the Chinese Basketball Association. He was a double-double machine but also proved quite capable in the assist and block shot field. If Yang decides to head for the U.S. he is projected as a second round draft pick.

A few might remember the name Julian Wright, he was a third team All-American at Kansas and played the 2005-06 season. He was made the third pick in the 2007 NBA Draft by the Hornets (Pelicans). Wright’s NBA career didn’t endure, he played internationally up to 2022. Why does he make news today, the comment he made regarding his former coach Bill Self. “Wright called out Kansas’ mid type of playbook, which he said was old as well. He also said he was willing to chip in for Self’s buyout which currently sits at $23.1 million if he is fired without cause.” The Jayhawk faithful came forth to defend the coach, the first letter I read was critical of Wright due to the fact of his “journeyman” basketball career. This former Kansas player appears to believe his former coach has not made adjustments required to reach today’s players.

When Shaquille O’ Neal played in the NBA, I discovered his enormous shoe size firsthand. At a shoe store, I saw one of his Reebok shoes, and they were so large that my foot could fit inside easily without removing my shoe. His shoe size was 22 American (56 European). Similarly, Bob Lanier, who played for the Pistons, also wore a size 22. In comparison, Yao Ming at 310 pounds and Kevin Durant 240 pounds both wear size 18 (52 EU). The largest shoe size recorded in basketball was size 23, worn by Kenny George, a former UNC Asheville player. George stood 7 feet 7 inches and weighed 370 pounds, he reportedly wore a size 28 shoe (58 EU). The legendary Sasquatch has been nicknamed Bigfoot however these basketball players could also be given that tag.

The NBA has announced information about early entry for the NBA Draft. A total of 106 players have declared for the 2025 NBA Draft, the group of players includes college players and those from Europe, Australia, or the G-League. As for the college players they have until June 15 to withdraw their names if they wish to return to college. For the record, the number declaring for the draft is the smallest in years, in 2024 it was 201, in 2023 the number was 242. The year 2021 saw a record 353 players declare for the draft, it would appear even with an increasing number of international talent added to the pool the numbers are actually shrinking.