While the centerpiece of the San Antonio Spurs is undoubtedly Victor Wembanyama, rookie Stephon Castle is emerging as a very real core player, perhaps even passing Devin Vassell and Jeremy Sochan. While his play recently contributed to some bias,

The Grizzlies' Jaylen Wells still leads for Rookie of the Year, but others are making a push in a historically underwhelming group.

San Antonio Spurs guard Stephon Castle remains the favorite to win 2025 Rookie of the Year honors despite the improved play of Atlanta Hawks forward Zaccharie Risacher. Castle is the favorite with -430 odds and Memphis Grizzlies first-year wing Jaylen Wells sits at No.

As soon as it was announced that Victor Wembanyama would miss the rest of the NBA season with deep vein thrombosis, the San Antonio Spurs likely knew that their season was done. Since the All-Star Break, the Spurs have won only three games and slipped to 13th in the Western Conference, well below even the Play-In Tournament.

With about one month left in the 2024-25 NBA season, the Rookie of the Year race appears to have a clear frontrunner. While there hasn’t been a runaway winner in the NBA rookie rankings, San Antonio Spurs guard Stephon Castle has stood out during the second half of the season.