Kon Knueppel, the No. 4 overall pick, is averaging 18.3 points, 5.7 rebounds and 3.0 assists this season.
The top of the rookie class made history this week.
Charlotte’s Kon Knueppel and Dallas’ Cooper Flagg became the first pair of college teammates to be honored as the best rookies in the Eastern and Western conferences, respectively, for October/November. That has not happened in the 24 years the league has been awarding the monthly standouts.
The two Duke products have been high rung-holders on the 2025-26 Kia Rookie Ladder since the season began and slotted in again in the top two spots. The five other players nominated as October/November’s best newcomers – Memphis’ Cedric Coward and New Orleans’ Jeremiah Fears and Derik Queen in the West, Philadelphia’s VJ Edgecombe and Charlotte’s Ryan Kalkbrenner in the East – all have been Ladder mainstays since Opening Night.
Here is the latest ranking of the NBA’s top rookies:
Weekly recap
• We’ll see your Rookie of the Month honor and raise you a sit-down on “The Tonight Show.” Knueppel made use of the day off between Charlotte’s games at Brooklyn Monday and against the Knicks Wednesday to appear on NBC’s “The Tonight Show.” He handled it smoothly, presented host Jimmy Fallon with a personalized Hornets jersey and even brought along Flagg, sort of, for his appearance.
• Just to follow up on last week’s “Storyline to Watch,” which touted Dallas’ game against the Lakers at Crypto.com Arena for its intriguing Cooper Flagg-meets-Luka Dončić subplot: Flagg went for 13 points, seven rebounds and 11 assists with three steals in 36 minutes in the Mavericks’ 129-119 loss. Dončić had 35, 5 and 11, and sank all 11 of his free throws, posting a plus-15. For the record, there’s no getting between the Dallas-scorned Slovenian star and these payback games: Dončić is 3-0 when facing the Mavs, averaging 33 points, 9.3 rebounds and 9.7 assists while shooting 50.6% and 46.2% on threes.
• Boston’s Hugo González, the No. 28 pick in the Draft, has averaged nearly 23 minutes in two games against New York, barely 10 in his 14 other appearances. Why? Simple answer: González’s defensive work vs. Knicks scorer Jalen Brunson. The second quarter Tuesday was a distillation of that, as González played all 12 minutes and was key to Boston’s comeback from 14 points down to a four-point halftime lead. Brunson made one of three shots in his 6:49 that period and was minus-12, finishing with 15 points on 6-of-21 shooting. Said Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla: “Whenever we put Hugo, he just did a good job of getting underneath him, just kind of being physical with him.”
Mazzulla praised the 6-foot-6 Spaniard’s defensive instincts, honed after joining Real Madrid’s youth program at age 9. At age 16 in October 2022, he became the fourth-youngest Real Madrid player to debut in the Liga ACB. He played last winter with Spain’s senior national team. Said Boston teammate Jordan Walsh: “I just see him being a dog. … I love when he gets in the game. Last time we played New York he did a great job on Brunson. He obviously did the same thing this time.”
Storyline to watch
• Harper’s done holding the Ladder. Spurs guard Dylan Harper is poised to climb again now that he’s back from the left calf strain that sidelined him for 10 games. Ramping up his minutes in four appearances since his return Nov. 26, Harper averaged 12.5 points, including 15 in 21 minutes Tuesday as San Antonio beat Memphis. His scoring is ahead of the rest of his game now, though the Spurs’ comings-and-goings with injuries hasn’t helped with consistency. The No. 2 pick in June spoke about his return, but had more fun boosting teammate Harrison Barnes.
(All stats through Tuesday, Dec. 2)
1. Kon Knueppel, Charlotte Hornets
Season stats: 18.3 ppg, 5.7 rpg, 3.0 apg
Last Ladder: 1
Draft pick: No. 4
It’s one thing to lead the rookies in scoring and in 3-point field goals (73, more than double anyone else’s total). It’s even more impressive when a 20-year-old shows such maturity on and off the floor, while emerging as Charlotte’s most reliable performer. He had a good perspective on his recent shooting dip, too (35.2% the past week, 32.3% from the arc). “It’s always gonna regress to the mean or go back to around 40% [on 3],” he said. “I hope it’s a little higher than that this season.”
talk of the town @Kon2Knueppel 🗣️ pic.twitter.com/oqUAMr4Lwq
— Charlotte Hornets (@hornets) December 2, 2025
2. Cooper Flagg, Dallas Mavericks
Season stats: 17.0 ppg, 6.6 rpg, 3.4 apg
Last Ladder: 2
Draft pick: No. 1
Flagg is right on Knueppel’s heels in these rankings after the biggest statistical week among the rookies: 24.0 ppg, 7.7 rpg, 5.0 apg, while shooting 53.8%. Stepping up amid an array of Mavericks injuries, the 18-year-old got up 41 shots in the road victories over the Clippers and the Nuggets. He asserted himself at both ends while averaging 35.7 minutes, leading this class in total minutes (712), field-goal attempts (298) and rebounds (139). Meanwhile, he has brought out some “old head” instincts in teammate Klay Thompson.
The Flagg continues to rise. Cooper Flagg is your Western Conference Rookie of the Month! ✨@Cooper_Flagg // #MFFL pic.twitter.com/4ot8FIpKZO
— Dallas Mavericks (@dallasmavs) December 2, 2025
3. Jeremiah Fears, New Orleans Pelicans
Season stats: 15.7 ppg, 3.3 rpg, 2.8 apg
Last Ladder: 6
Draft pick: No. 7
That jersey number so indicative of this guy’s confidence – “Fears 0” – has been working overtime lately, as the Pelicans guard has engaged in some extracurriculars with Luka Dončić, Rui Hachimura, Jimmy Butler and Moses Moody. Fears might be a little chippy over New Orleans’ 3-19 record – five more losses than he endured last season at Oklahoma (20-14) – and the minus-211 he’s toting, worst in his class. But he has scored 10+ in all but one game and is shooting well (44.9/36.4/78.7).
rookie to rookie!!!! pic.twitter.com/vdodkqTkaR
— New Orleans Pelicans (@PelicansNBA) December 3, 2025
4. Cedric Coward, Memphis Grizzlies
Season stats: 13.0 ppg, 5.8 rpg, 2.6 apg
Last Ladder: 3
Draft pick: No. 11
Coward’s shooting has sagged the past six games, with four nights in single digits and 2-of-23 hoisting from the arc in that time. Yet the Grizzlies still value his defensive work and his less glamorous role in the offense, and they have gone 4-2 in those games, the victories all on the road.
5. Derik Queen, New Orleans Pelicans
Season stats: 12.3 ppg, 6.2 rpg, 3.5 apg
Last Ladder: 4
Draft pick: No. 13
Queen’s strong showing against the Timberwolves Tuesday – 39 minutes, 21 points, eight boards, six assists – was a turnaround from his recent four-game struggle, when he averaged just 21 minutes, lost court time due to defensive concerns and amassed a minus-68 in 84 minutes, more than half of his season-long minus-128. Getting past these hiccups is the latest challenge in this long season.
The Next 5:
6. VJ Edgecombe, Philadelphia 76ers
Season stats: 14.7 ppg, 5.8 rpg, 4.2 apg
Last Ladder: 5
Draft pick: No. 3
It has been slow going for Edgecombe since returning from the left calf tightness that cost him three games heading into and through Thanksgiving, averaging 22.6 minutes and 8.0 points against the Hawks and Wizards. Since the Baylor guard burst on the scene in his five October appearances (21.2 ppg, 43.8% on threes), he has been more earth-bound (12.0, 31.6%).
7. Ace Bailey, Utah Jazz
Season stats: 10.3 ppg, 3.4 rpg, 1.8 apg
Last Ladder: 8
Draft pick: No. 5
Playing from the opening tip and a little experience have suited the Jazz rookie, most notably in his shooting. In starting Utah’s past 11 games, Bailey has hit 52.6%, including 40.3% of his 3-pointers, while averaging 13.8 points. In his first nine games of the season, all in reserve (with nearly identical usage), he was a 5.9 points on 33.9% shooting. Banging knees with Sacramento’s DeMar DeRozan cost Bailey the rest of that second half Friday but he was back in the lineup two nights later.
8. Ryan Kalkbrenner, Charlotte Hornets
Season stats: 9.0 ppg, 6.6 rpg, 1.8 bpg
Last Ladder: 7
Draft pick: No. 34
Kalkbrenner ranks ninth in the league in offensive rebound percentage (13.2%), averaging 2.9 boards per game at that end. But his defensive rebound percentage(16.4%) ranks 66th, behind a trio of smallish Joshes (Giddey 25.2%, Hart 23.7%, Minott 18.7%) as well as several Hornets teammates. At 7-foot-1, the glass and rim protection are his responsibilities.
9. Egor Dëmin, Brooklyn Nets
Season stats: 8.6 ppg, 3.6 rpg, 3.6 apg
Last Ladder: 9
Draft pick: No. 8
Better late than never for Dëmin against Philadelphia last weekend: After going scoreless with one rebound and two assists in the first half, he finished with 23 points, nine boards and five assists, shooting 8-of-15 with five threes after the break. Consistency? It’s a project. Said coach Jordi Fernandez: “He’s going to have to do that for four quarters and not just to take three attempts in the first [half] and 15 in the second. It doesn’t need to be equal or even, but he just has to find a way.”
10. Ryan Nembhard, Dallas Mavericks
Season stats: 7.9 ppg, 1.1 rpg, 3.7 apg
Last Ladder: N/A
Draft pick: Undrafted
Only Flagg outscored his undrafted Canadian teammate among the rookies last week, as the younger brother of Indiana’s Andrew averaged 17.7 while sinking 66.7% of his attempts. His breakout came Monday in Denver, when he scored 28 with 10 assists and zero turnovers in 35 minutes to join some elite company.
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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.
