After last year’s rookie class took the NBA by storm with a number of key players that made immediate impacts, the focus now shifts to their sophomore seasons with questions about how much they can improve in their second year. At least two sophomore players appear on track to be All-Stars this season while another three players have the potential to make tremendous impacts. Here is a look at the top five NBA sophomores right now.
C: Karl-Anthony Towns
Minnesota Timberwolves
Towns earned NBA Rookie of the Year honors a year ago for the Timberwolves when he averaged 18.3 points, 10.5 rebounds, 2.0 assists and 1.7 blocks per game. With a full year of experience under his belt, Towns has the potential to be even better in 2016-17. The 7’0’’, 244-pound big man combines his size with incredible athleticism and basketball IQ and it won’t surprise anybody if he emerges as an All-Star in his sophomore season.
PF: Kristaps Porzingis
New York Knicks
It didn’t take long for Porzingis to silence his doubters. The 7’3’’, 240-pound big man was booed when the Knicks made him the fourth-overall pick in the 2015 NBA Draft but it didn’t take long for basketball fans in New York to change their minds after he averaged 14.3 points, 7.3 rebounds, 1.9 blocks and 1.1 three-point shots per game in his rookie season. Porzingis should feel even more comfortable with another year of experience and an improved cast of weapons around him including Derrick Rose, Joakim Noah, Courtney Lee and Brandon Jennings and it could be enough for Porzingis to emerge as an All-Star in 2016-17.
SG: Devin Booker
Phoenix Suns
Booker broke on to the scene as a 19-year-old last season when he played at a high level despite being one of the youngest players in the entire league. Booker started slow as a substitute for the Suns but turned it up in 28 games after the All-Star break when he averaged 19.2 points, 4.1 assists, 3.0 rebounds and 1.5 three-point shots per game. Booker is an excellent ball handler that can create for both himself and his teammates and he really showed a strong progression throughout his rookie season.
Phoenix will have full confidence leaning on their young shooting guard as a starter from the outset this coming year and he should emerge as one of the top sophomore players in the NBA. Him and Eric Bledsoe have all of the sudden become the core of the team.
PG: D’Angelo Russell
Los Angeles Lakers
Russell underwhelmed both on and off the floor in his rookie season with the Lakers, putting up average numbers on the floor and clashing with teammates off of it. However, there is definitely room for growth if Russell can mature and become a more accountable player and teammate. Of course, the SnapChat snitching incident didn’t help, but Russell should be on track to become a better player in his second season if he can put all of this behind him.
Russell averaged 13.2 points, 3.4 rebounds, 3.3 assists and 1.6 three-point shots per game for one of the worst teams in the NBA and while it’s unreasonable to expect the Lakers to improve dramatically as a team, they should be better with Russell a part of that equation as one of their franchise players. We’ll see what Luke Walton can make of Russell.
C: Nikola Jokic
Denver Nuggets
Jokic might only be starting to scratch the surface in terms of his potential but he has progressed enough to believe he will emerge as a significant contributor for the Nuggets this coming season. We saw him become a central figure for Serbia in the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio. A lot of people thought that a team like Spain or Argentina would be playing the gold medal game against the United States but it turned out to be Serbia and Jokic was a big part of that.
Jokic averaged 10.0 points and 7.0 rebounds for Denver a year ago and another year of experience should help him at both ends of the floor. At 6’10’’ and 250 pounds, Jokic has the size and strength the Nuggets need at the center position and he should perform at a high level in his sophomore season.
