NBA All-Rookie Teams: Way-too-early picks for the best first-year players

NBA All-Rookie Teams: Predicting the 2022-23 Second-Team

The NBA All-Rookie Second Team is a group of five players who greatly impressed during the regular season. These players are in the conversation for being some of the best-performing young players in the league. Let’s take a look at who might make the list at the end of the 2022-23 season.

Jalen Williams, Oklahoma City Thunder

2022 Preseason stats: 14.4 PPG, 3.0 RPG, 5.2 APG (4 games)

Jalen Williams, the No. 12 overall pick, showed us why the Thunder were so keen on bringing him to Oklahoma City. He’s got a complete game and is a gifted scorer. He was the No. 4 leading scorer in points per game among qualified rookies during the preseason. With rookie teammate Chet Holmgren out of the spotlight due to being injured, Williams will get a lot of focus from the coaching staff on his development and get a chance to score a ton of points for the Thunder.

He’s only played a handful of minutes in the Thunder’s season opener after suffering an orbital bone fracture that will keep him sidelined for a week or two. Once he gets back, he should be able to pick up right where we saw him in the preseason.

Shaedon Sharpe, Portland Trail Blazers

2022-23 stats: 6.0 PPG, 2.0 RPG, 0.5 APG 

Shaedon Sharpe, the No. 7 overall pick out of Kentucky, has already shown off his insane athleticism. Despite Sharpe turning 19 just five months ago, his ceiling and potential are mesmerizing. Having Damian Lillard beside him will give him great opportunities to shine and play off one of the best players in the NBA.

Look for Sharpe to take NBA Twitter by storm in the regular season after playing just five minutes during Summer League and not appearing on national tv during the preseason. He looked spectacular in his debut against the Kings, putting up 12 points, 2 rebounds, and an assist in 16 minutes of action. Will he be able to earn the trust of Head Coach Chauncey Billups and be a regular contributor?

Walker Kessler, Utah Jazz

2022-23 stats: 9.0 PPG, 7.5 RPG, 2.0 BPG

Kessler, the No. 22 pick in the draft, has already been labeled an elite shot blocker by many. If he lives up to that billing and continues to improve his rebounding, he’s got an excellent chance of being named to an All-Rookie team. The 7’1″ big man should get a lot of opportunities to compete on a rebuilding Utah Jazz team. He’s already posted a four-block game, which came against the Minnesota Timberwolves in his second-ever game as an NBA player.

Jalen Duren, Detroit Pistons

2022-23 stats: 9.3 PPG, 7.7 RPG, 1.7 BPG 

The Pistons have one standout rookie in Jaden Ivey, but it looks like they have another one in Jalen Duren, the big man out of Memphis. He’s been averaging around 20 minutes off the bench, but with the way he’s playing, it’s going to be really tough for Head Coach Dwane Casey to keep him there for much longer. His strength, size, and athleticism allow him to matchup with almost anyone on defense, and he’s so quick on offense. The scary part? Duren is still just 18 years old and won’t turn 19 until mid-November.

Tari Eason, Houston Rockets

2022-23 stats: 8.3 PPG, 5.3 RPG, 1.3 BPG

Tari Eason had perhaps the best preseason of any rookie in the NBA, putting up veteran-like numbers across four games, with 17.8 points per game and 9.0 rebounds per game in that four-game sample size. In fact, these were the same types of numbers he put up during his five summer league games, too. The fact that he showed little-to-no drop-off from the summer to preseason bodes really well for the regular season.

Eason looks like the perfect building block to put alongside teammates Jabari Smith and Jalen Green.