The 2026 NBA draft class was supposed to be a heralded one, with a third of the league tanking for a chance to land four players at the top who could all be No. 1 picks in a typical draft.
A little over a week into the season, the early returns on that group are mixed. Some of the top picks have struggled with scoring efficiency, while others outside of the top 10 have actually had the biggest early impact.
This list will change considerably as the year goes on, but here’s a look at which noteworthy rookies are off to the fastest start with roughly 10 percent of the regular season complete.
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NBA rookie grades and rankings
1. Yaxel Lendeborg, Warriors (No. 11 pick), A+
Lendeborg has been the most productive player in his class, ranking in the top five in points, rebounds, and assists for rookies while shooting an outstanding 50.0 percent from the field and 40.0 percent from 3.
There wasn’t much doubt about Lendeborg’s floor given his versatility and great tools. His scoring output has been more surprising though, particularly given that he only scored more than 30 points once during his college career. He’s been outstanding as a pull-up 3-point shooter, isolation scorer, and bully ball post-up threat. While his off-ball defense still needs to be cleaned up, it has gotten progressively better from the start of the year.
Lendeborg probably won’t be the best player in this class due to being five years older than some of the other names on this list. But he’s been the best so far.
MORE: How good is Yaxel Lendeborg? Why predraft evaluations missed
2. Cameron Boozer, Grizzlies (No. 3 pick), A-
Boozer started out the year slowly, shooting just 29 percent from the field through his first three games. He was doing everything else though, passing the ball well, showing high feel on the court, and hitting some big shots. That included the go-ahead bucket with 20 seconds left to get the Grizzlies a 111-108 win over the Warriors in their second game of the year.
Since that cold stretch, Boozer has found a rhythm offensively. He’s now hitting his shots for a red-hot Grizzlies team, raising his field goal percentage to a more respectable 38.5 percent from the field and 37.2 percent from 3 to go along with his 17.7 points per game. He’s got great polish, looking like an NBA veteran despite being the youngest player in the league.
3. Caleb Wilson, Bulls (No. 4 pick), A-
Wilson’s jump shot has been up-and-down. He’s hitting just 32.3 percent of his midrange jumpers and 32.1 percent of his 3’s. But he’s been a strong finisher at the rim, ranking 6th in the league with 17 dunks.
Wilson has gotten those shots through transition attacks where he’s been unstoppable. He’s also been effective on cuts to the basket and isolation scoring opportunities where he’s exhibited a great first step. His elite athleticism has translated.
Wilson has also been a flashy defender, covering a ton of ground and flying in for some impressive blocks. He’s jumped in passing lanes for plenty of steals as well. He’s had the usual rookie struggles in missing some help rotations, but he has shown two-way star potential.
4. AJ Dybantsa (No. 1 pick), A-
Dybantsa gets a slight ding because he had to miss the early portion of Wizards game with an ankle injury. When he’s been healthy, he’s been excellent.
Dybantsa had the best debut of any rookie, scoring 19 points on only 12 field goal attempts against the Cavs. He followed that up with two more strong games against the Hornets and Magic where his offensive polish from BYU looked like it will translate to the league. He’s a great downhill driver and has nice touch on his midrange shots.
Dybantsa’s defense was a question mark coming into the league. He’s been better than expected on that end, giving more effort than he did in college and using his tools to generate deflections. His screen navigation still needs some work, but the early returns are promising.
5. Darius Acuff, Kings (No. 7 pick), A-
Acuff has scored a ton of points, leading his class with 26.1 per game. His efficiency started out very poorly though before creeping back up to 40.6 percent from the field and 31.3 percent from 3, making him the most polarizing player of this class. He has been taking a league-leading 23.6 shots per game in order to get those buckets.
Acuff has the ultimate green light because he’s playing for a terrible Kings team without great offensive structure or chemistry among its players. His ability to get to his spots has been promising at the very least. He’s a talented offensive player.
Acuff was projected to be an awful defender, and that’s proving to be the case as well. His miscues on that end of the floor have already gone viral on social media. He’s been a bottom 10 defender in the league by some impact stats.
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6. Kingston Flemings (No. 8 pick), B
Like others on this list, Flemings had a slow start shooting the ball. He’s come on as of late though, breaking out with 23 points and five assists in his fifth career game.
Flemings has already earned the trust of coach Quin Snyder, averaging 7.1 points and 4.6 assists on a strong 47.6 percent from the field and 38.5 percent from 3. He’s been a steady playmaker, making the right passes and getting more aggressive on offense. He is showing the nose for the ball that he had at Houston as well, recording four steals in under 25 minutes against the Pelicans.
7. Brayden Burries, Bucks (No. 10 pick), B
Burries has been solid in limited minutes with his scoring, drives, and rebounding. The do-everything guard is averaging 8.9 points, 4.4 rebounds, and 1.3 assists in 17 minutes per game. He hasn’t found the touch on his 3-pointer quite yet though, which should unlock the rest of his offensive package. He was a strong shooter in college but is so far connecting on just 25.0 percent of his shots from deep.
Burries has had a few welcome to the league moments on defense, but he also had one of the best dunks of the season from a rookie.
8. Darryn Peterson, Jazz (No. 2 pick), C-
Peterson hasn’t shot the ball well, averaging 13.4 points per game on 36.3 percent from the field. His 37.5 percent from 3 has been where he’s mostly contributing on offense. His fit alongside Keyonte George has been somewhat awkward, and he hasn’t been able to get all the way to the rim yet, settling for a lot of floaters. It’s clear that he needs to add strength in order to impact the game on both sides of the ball. He was notably benched late in an overtime loss to the Spurs, showing that he doesn’t have coach Will Hardy’s full trust quite yet.
9. Keaton Wagler, Clippers (No. 5 pick), C-
Wagler has displayed good feel and put up a decent stat line of 12.1 points, 3.6 assists, and 4.4 rebounds per game. He’s been good at getting to the free throw line. His overall efficiency has been dreadful though. He’s shooting just 29.0 percent from the field and 30.3 percent from 3.
More concerning than missing shots is how he’s been missing them. He’s struggled with physicality, although he has stayed aggressive in trying to get to the rim. The talent is there, but he will need an adjustment period to figure out how to score in the NBA.
Honorable mention: Meleek Thomas, Aday Mara, Mikel Brown Jr., Trevon Brazile, Morez Johnson, Sergio de Larrea, Allen Graves, Graham Ike, Emanuel Sharp, Bennett Stirtz
