Grading Every NBA Team's Top Rookies at Las Vegas Summer League (2024)

The NBA's summer league is wrapping up in Las Vegas, and it's given us a pretty good opportunity to get to know this incoming rookie class.

From No. 1 pick Zaccharie Risacher, to sweet-shooting Reed Sheppard to the son of LeBron James, we've seen enough action to make informed evaluations of each team's most notable rookies on the ol' reliable A-through-F scale. Of course, expectations for Risacher should be different than those for a No. 55 pick like Bronny James, so remember that all of the above are graded on a scale.

Based a little on their numbers but more on how each of the rookies looked, below you'll find the report cards for every squad.

Take our first grade of the exercise with a pretty hefty grain of salt.

Zaccharie Risacher only played in two games, and Nikola Đurišić broke his foot just over six minutes into his second appearance.

But in the very limited action we saw from these two, you could understand why the Atlanta Hawks took Risacher first overall and made a trade to land Đurišić

The former's combination of length and outside shooting was on display in his first appearance, when he had 18 points and hit three threes.

A smooth, high-volume shooter with a power forward's frame can do wonders for an offense, and it looks like there's room for Risacher to grow as a playmaker, too.

He shot the ball much worse in his second game, finishing the summer league 11-of-28 from the field and 4-of-16 from three, but you can see the vision.

As for Đurišić, he only took seven shots in Vegas before going down, but Atlanta had him operating as the lead playmaker for much of his possessions, which is pretty interesting for a 6'7" wing.

In the tradition of other Serbian NBA players, Đurišić looked like a solid, pass-first player who sees the floor well and has a good feel for the game.

It's hard to praise a shooter when he's simply not making shots. So, while Baylor Scheierman has played hard and typically appeared to know what he was doing, going 5-of-21 from three over his first three games is hard to ignore.

Still, shooting numbers from any random, three-game sample don't predict future performance, and Scheierman went 3-of-6 from deep in a loss on Friday.

On a team as loaded as the Boston Celtics, if he wants a shot at some regular-season minutes, he'll have to be ready to knock those looks down when presented.

Scheierman hasn't been the only notable first-year Celtic, though. Anton Watson, taken with the 54th pick, is averaging double-figures and had 14 points, eight rebounds and two blocks on Friday.

With all the offense Boston already has, the defense-first Watson might have a different but potentially easier path to minutes in 2024-25.

The Brooklyn Nets didn't add anyone through this summer's draft. And though they have a small handful of undrafted rookies, they've barely played in Vegas.

This has been more of a showcase for journeymen, NBA hopefuls and a few second-year players.

One of those, Jalen Wilson, is averaging over 20.0 points per game.

The Charlotte Hornets' second-round pick, K.J. Simpson has missed all of the action in Vegas with a hamstring injury, so all of our takeaways are confined to 18-year-old Tidjane Salaun.

Given his age and inexperience, looking out of place would've been understandable, but Salaun hasn't.

His outside shots aren't really falling, but Salaun has what appears to be a pretty effortless stroke. He's active. And his length on the defensive end could help him get onto the floor during his rookie campaign.

He's not shooting well. On Friday, he went 4-of-17, giving him a fourth straight sub-50-percent night, but Matas Buzelis' confidence and combination of size and versatility are undeniable.

Buzelis is 6'9", with a 6'10" wingspan, but he moves like a wing. The outside shots aren't falling, but he gets them up in bunches, and his form looks good.

He's pretty bouncy, too. So, even if the jumper doesn't really show up during the 2024-25, he can still do damage around the paint.

There will be plenty of times when his confidence bleeds over into bad decisions and questionable shot selection, but Buzelis has real upside and versatility to uncover.

In his final college season, Jaylon Tyson was just starting to flash some playmaking chops from the wing, and those have transferred over to his stint in the summer league.

On Thursday, Tyson ably controlled much of Cleveland's offense, totaling 21 points on 6-of-9 shooting and handing out nine assists.

If he can be that kind of willing passer and shoot the ball like he did his last couple years in college, there's a chance for some real minutes for the No. 20 pick in the regular season.

Isaac Okoro still hasn't been re-signed, so there may be a role to be won on the wing.

The Dallas Mavericks and their fans probably shouldn't have expected a ton from a No. 51 pick, and that's just what they've gotten from Melvin Ajinça.

The 20-year-old Frenchman is 6'8" with a 6'8" wingspan. He looks like a potentially capable, or at least willing, defender.

But after shooting 30.9 percent from deep for Saint-Quentin Basketball last season, he's now 4-of-19 on threes in Las Vegas.

If he can't start knocking down jumpers, his chances of getting on the floor are pretty low.

The Denver Nuggets got some legitimately sad news on the opening night of summer league. DaRon Holmes II, whom the team had targeted well before the draft and traded up to get at No. 22, went down awkwardly in the second half.

Not long after that, it was reported that the big man had torn his Achilles and will miss all of the 2024-25 campaign.

The news is obviously awful on a personal level for Holmes. To be drafted is a dream come true for these men, and a season-ending injury on their first night with the new jersey likely isn't a part of it.

It's bad for the Nuggets, too, who may well have needed Holmes this season. General manager Calvin Booth's philosophy on sustainability requires contributions from young players (it's part of why they let Kentavious Caldwell-Pope go and are trusting Christian Braun to step up in his place).

So, while Holmes may not have had a huge role coming off the bench, this does mean Denver has one less body in its quest to return to title contention.

On the bright side, Trey Alexander, an undrafted free agent who signed a two-way deal with the Nuggets, has looked more comfortable running the team than sophom*ore Jalen Pickett.

He hasn't come close to a 50 field-goal percentage in any of his three games, but Ron Holland appears to be getting more comfortable as summer league wears on.

On Friday, he had 20 points, blocked two shots and hit a three.

Holland's upside, at least for now, has a lot more to do with his athleticism than shooting numbers, though. And he's shown plenty of that in Vegas.

Imagining that kind of explosiveness in largely defensively positionless lineups with Cade Cunningham and Ausar Thompson is pretty intriguing, and Holland might not even be Detroit's best rookie in Vegas.

Another player with wing size and plenty of versatility, Bobi Klintman has impressed with his feel, vision and passing ability. He's 6'9" with a 6'11" wingspan, and is somehow second on the summer squad in assists per game.

Like the Nets, the Golden State Warriors didn't add anyone through this year's draft. And their undrafted rookies aren't making much of an impression.

Instead, the Vegas Warriors have been headlined by a pair of second-year players who started games in the 2023-24 regular season in Brandin Podziemski and Trayce Jackson-Davis and a player who may be on his last chance in the league.

Kevin Knox, the No. 9 pick in 2018, is averaging double-figures in Las Vegas, but he's shooting 29.6 percent from deep.

Even without his three-ball falling the way it did in college, Reed Sheppard has arguably been the best player in Vegas.

At Kentucky, he didn't get a ton of on-ball opportunities, but the Houston Rockets summer squad has turned the offense over to him. And he hasn't disappointed.

Sheppard has a good feel for the game. He looks like a veteran in the way he operates sets with poise and confidence. Defenses haven't been able to speed him up. And his steady approach has led to averages of 20.0 points, 5.3 assists and 4.8 rebounds.

But what really makes Sheppard interesting are the defensive counting stats he collects. Sheppard's averaging a whopping 2.8 steals and 1.3 blocks as a 6'2" guard. His anticipation often has him in the right spots, and his athleticism helps him capitalize and create extra possessions for his team.

The Rockets are already loaded with young talent, but Sheppard looks good enough to force himself into a pretty significant role.

The Indiana Pacers took three second-round picks into the league in Vegas, but Enrique Freeman and Tristen Newton haven't produced any more than one might expect of the 50th and 49th picks.

The player with some expectations is Johnny Furphy, who was mocked as a potential first-rounder in the weeks and months leading up to the draft but slipped to the Pacers at No. 35.

And while he, like plenty of other incoming rookies, has struggled to connect on shots, he does look like a viable NBA player.

Furphy is 6'8" with a good-looking jump shot. Reaching his ceiling will depend on him consistently hitting outside shots, but he's looked good attacking the rim and filling lanes as a cutter, too.

For a team that already has an All-Star point guard in Tyrese Haliburton and a strong frontcourt with Pascal Siakam and Myles Turner, players who can fill in the wing spots between them are important. And Furphy looks like he could grow into that role.

The Los Angeles Clippers are another team that had just one pick in the draft, and theirs was taken all the way down at No. 46. So expectations aren't terribly high for Cam Christie.

Still, it'd be nice to see a little more from L.A.'s rookie class, such as it is.

Christie is shy of a double-figures scoring average, while shooting just 31.6 percent from the field. And he's not filling out other columns in the box score enough to make up for it.

Again, the Clippers probably couldn't have expected starpower from the 46th pick, and Christie is only 18 years old, but a few more signs of upside would've been nice.

If we set aside the media circus that's followed Bronny James and just analyze him as we would any 55th pick prior to 2024, he's been fine. Not great, but at least fine.

His three-point shot isn't falling, and the form can be a little inconsistent, but Bronny defends and moves the ball well for a late second-round pick. And if he leans into those strengths, there's an outside chance he can become a legitimate pro of his own accord.

The more important pick for L.A. is obviously first-rounder Dalton Knecht.

He's shooting well from three-point range in Vegas and is another wing scorer who simply reads the game well.

In the regular season, playing alongside playmakers like LeBron James and Austin Reaves, Knecht probably won't be asked to do much more than hit open catch-and-shoot threes, but he's shown hints of playmaking chops this summer.

As that develops over the few pre-prime years he has left, Knecht might become a starting-level player.

We're going to cheat a little on this one, since the Memphis Grizzlies' top-10 pick, Zach Edey, has been limited to fewer than nine total minutes in Vegas. He played a good amount in his one game in Salt Lake City, though. And in that contest, he looked like a potential starter.

Of course, it's important to bear in mind that summer league competition is nowhere near the level of actual, regular-season action. But lateral quickness was the big concern on Edey prior to the draft, and he moved well in Salt Lake. And he did much of his damage against Walker Kessler, who's been one of the league's best rim protectors over the last two seasons.

Memphis' B grade doesn't rest entirely on Edey, though. The Grizzlies also took a sharpshooter in the second round. And while Jaylen Wells isn't hitting his threes at a high rate this summer, he has a double-figures scoring average and you can see why he connected on 41.7 percent of his attempts at Washington State.

The Miami Heat's No. 15 pick, Kel'el Ware, has been perhaps the most dynamic big man in Vegas.

He's collecting rebounds, blocks and steals at a high rate, and his athleticism has been on vivid display on the offensive end.

With Bam Adebayo in place, there may not be a ton of minutes available for Ware on the regular-season squad, but he already looks like a potential difference-maker as a rim-runner and -protector for the second unit.

As for second-rounder Pelle Larsson, his jumper, though it looks good, isn't falling consistently, but his passing has been better than advertised. With the vision and willingness to pass that he's flashed this summer, Larsson might be another second-round success story for Miami.

With the 23rd pick of the draft, the Milwaukee Bucks, who could use immediate contributors on a team that's old and expensive at the top of the roster, took a relative unknown in A.J. Johnson.

Last season, the 19-year-old playmaker averaged 7.9 minutes and 2.8 points, while shooting 35.5 percent from the field for the NBL's Illawarra Hawks.

Now, to the surprise of many (including yours truly), Johnson has looked as ready for summer league competition as just about anyone from this class.

With the off-the-bounce shotmaking and creation he's flashed in Vegas, Johnson looks like he might actually see some time for the big club this season (even with Doc Rivers' infamous aversion to putting young players on the floor).

Their second-round pick, Tyler Smith, hasn't generated as much buzz, but Johnson's performance alone is enough to earn Milwaukee high marks for a bold, unconventional pick.

The Minnesota Timberwolves made an aggressive trade into the top 10 of the draft to snag Rob Dillingham and emerge with two first-rounders.

The second one they took, No. 27 pick Terrence Shannon Jr., has maybe been the more impressive. He's missed most of his three-point shots, but Shannon has looked like a polished, multi-level scorer who's willing to take on tough defensive assignments.

The shooting has been even worse for Dillingham, who's below 30 percent from the field, but his playmaking has been genuinely intriguing.

Dillingham has tallied at least five assists in each of his games in Vegas, and his quickness and ball-handling have made him a pretty consistent threat to get to the paint.

Neither rookie is likely to play a ton of minutes for a team that just went to the conference finals, but they've shown the outlines of skil lsets that could get them on the floor.

The New Orleans Pelicans don't currently have a starting-caliber center on the roster, so there's some pressure on No. 21 pick Yves Missi to be ready to contribute right away.

And while his scoring has looked a little rocky in Vegas, Missi's done a good job of moving the ball out of rolls that don't lead to scoring opportunities. And most importantly, he's looked like a difference-maker on the defensive end.

On a team that already has a lot of scoring Dejounte Murray, Trey Murphy III, Brandon Ingram (if he isn't traded) and Zion Williamson, that might be enough from Missi.

New Orleans' second-rounder, Antonio Reeves, hasn't looked as good, but his college resume suggests he can develop into an NBA-level outside shooter.

The New York Knicks have three players from the draft seeing action in Vegas, and two of them, including first-rounder Pacôme Dadiet, look like projects.

Dadiet is averaging more field-goal attempts than points, and he hasn't been able to generate steals or blocks at anywhere near an encouraging rate.

Big man Ariel Hukporti is shy of a double-figures scoring average and isn't totaling many blocks either.

But the Knicks still pretty comfortably pass this assessment, thanks to second-rounder Tyler Kolek exceeding expectations.

Like plenty of others detailed so far, Kolek is missing too many shots, but he's looked like one of the best distributors in Vegas. He surveys the floor well and is plenty unselfish. Kolek has had at least seven assists in each of his four games.

With playmaker Nikola Topić still recovering from a torn ACL, the Oklahoma City Thunder rookies representing in Vegas are Dillon Jones and Ajay Mitchell, both of whom are averaging double-figures.

The most impressive has been Mitchell, who's made half of his three-point attempts, is moving the ball well and posting a strong steal rate.

Dillon Jones, on the other hand, looked a lot better at the Salt Lake City summer league, but he's also shown flashes versatility, with some decent passing numbers.

On a team as deep as OKC, neither is likely to see a ton of playing time in 2024-25, but the Thunder have a proven track record with player development that could turn both of these players into contributors.

Tristan da Silva has been one of the steadiest players in Las Vegas, regardless of experience level.

With his combination of size (6'8" with a 6'10" wingspan), shotmaking and feel for the game, da Silva looks like a perfect gap-filler for a team that already has plenty of potential starpower at the forward spots in Paolo Banchero and Franz Wagner.

All three together could give Orlando one of the most talented, versatile and positionless trios in the league within a few years.

In Vegas, da Silva is averaging 17.7 points, five rebounds and three assists, while shooting 60.7 percent from the field and 58.8 percent from deep.

Philadelphia 76ers first-round pick Jared McCain doesn't lack for confidence, but he's been dreadfully inefficient in Las Vegas.

He's averaging 14.8 field-goal attempts in just 26.5 minutes, but he's only shooting 25.4 percent from the field. And he's not making up for the lack of scoring with distributing. Through four games, he's averaging 1.8 assists.

McCain was never going to be asked to do much in his first year on a title contender, but he'll have to start picking his spots better to have a chance to play in the regular season.

Second-rounder Adem Bona, on the other hand, has done exactly what many expected of him coming into this summer league. He hasn't scored a bunch, but he's converting inside when given the opportunity. And he looks like a potentially dynamic rim protector and rebounder.

On a team that may have extended stretches without its starting center, Bona's defensive intensity could force him into some real minutes.

The Phoenix Suns have plenty of offense on their roster from Kevin Durant, Devin Booker and Bradley Beal, so trading down for a defensive specialist made sense.

And given his draft position (No. 28) and strengths (defense, defense and more defense), Ryan Dunn has been fine in Las Vegas.

His shooting has been dreadful, but Dunn looks like he'll be able to both protect the rim and defend on the perimeter.

As for second-rounder Oso Ighodaro, despite a low scoring average and sub-50 field-goal percentage, he's shown flashes of upside as a skilled center with touch and some passing ability.

A sub-40 field-goal percentage for a 7'2" player in summer league is a real concern. If Donovan Clingan can't finish around the rim, his defensive upside may not matter much.

But if he can even become an average offensive player for his position, Clingan could be a starter-level player for years.

Clingan has been a dominant rebounder and shot-blocker in Las Vegas, where his timing and instincts around the paint have led to averages of 12.3 rebounds and 4.3 blocks.

The Sacramento Kings are another team that doesn't have any 2024 draftees in action, but their reason is because lottery pick Devin Carter is recovering from a torn labrum.

The Kings still have a handful of undrafted rookies in action, but none of them are having significant impacts in Vegas.

Instead, more experienced players like Mason Jones, Keon Ellis, Colby Jones and Drew Timme are carrying the team's offensive load.

He only played in one game and shot 8-of-21 from the field in it, but Stephon Castle showed why he was the No. 4 pick in that game.

His perimeter defense and ability to get to the paint were on display, and it looked like Castle would pretty clearly be the summer San Antonio Spurs alpha had he not been injured.

The impact of No. 48 pick Harrison Ingram, meanwhile, has been a little harder to spot, though he's hit 42.9 percent of his three-point attempts in Las Vegas.

If that translates to the regular season, he could be a floor spacer for reserve lineups.

The Toronto Raptors have a handful of 2024 draftees in action, including Jonathan Mogbo (picked 31st), Jamal Shead (45th) and Ulrich Chomche (57th), all of whom are averaging less than six points per game.

And their first-round pick, Ja'Kobe Walter, though he's averaging double-figures, is shooting just 32.4 percent from the field and struggling to provide any ancillary contributions.

With the Raptors pivoting to a rebuild around Scottie Barnes, it could've used somebody popping as a three-point shooter in Vegas, and no one in this rookie class did that for them.

The Utah Jazz have three highly touted high school recruits who, for various reasons, slipped a bit from the start of their college careers to the 2024 NBA draft.

And all three have looked pretty solid for the team in Las Vegas. Cody Williams, Kyle Filipowski and Isaiah Collier are Utah's top three scorers, and they're doing the things that made them such interesting prospects prior to their NCAA stints.

Williams looks like the kind of shotmaking, multipositional wing that seemingly every team is after right now. Filipowski looks like a bona fide floor-spacing big. And Collier is putting up encouraging numbers both as a distributor and defensive ball-hawk.

None of them have completely dominated the competition, but all three being solid is encouraging.

The Washington Wizards have three first-round picks in action in Alexandre Sarr (taken second overall), Bub Carrington (14th) and Kyshawn George (24th).

And if their grade was tied more exclusively to Carrington, they'd probably have a higher mark. The 20-year-old playmaker is averaging 5.3 assists and 3.3 threes, while shooting 40.6 percent from deep. But even that doesn't save the Wizards (in part because Carrington's overall field-goal percentage is 32.1).

George is hitting threes at a decent rate too, but he's not moving the needle too much thanks to a lack of volume.

What this grade is mostly about, of course, is that second overall pick.

Despite being a bona fide seven-footer, Sarr simply can't finish scoring opportunities right now. And he has a little too much trust in his perimeter skills (and not enough in his size).

Through four games, Sarr is 2-of-17 from three and a seemingly impossible 9-of-47 overall. In one game, he went 0-of-15 from the field.

He's shown flashes of upside as a rim protector and passer, but Sarr is going to have to be a smarter scorer to have anything close to a positive impact this regular season.