Former UConn Star Stephon Castle Stays In Driver's Seat As Top NBA Rookie
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Former UConn Huskies star and current San Antonio Spurs guard Stephon Castle remains the favorite to win 2025 NBA Rookie of the Year.
The NBA announced its latest Kia Rookie Ladder on Wednesday with Castle in the No. 1 spot.
Behind Castle were Memphis Grizzlies rookies Jaylen Wells and Zach Edey at the No. 2 and No. 3 spots, respectively, followed by Yves Missi of the New Orleans Pelicans at No. 4 and Kel’el Ware of the Miami Heat at No. 5.
On Tuesday, Castle was named the NBA’s Rookie of the Month (January) for the Western Conference, with Ware taking home the honor in the Eastern Conference.
Castle has scored 20 points or more in three of the last four games for San Antonio. He’s emerged as a bona fide rising star in the NBA at just 20 years old.
Through 46 games played this season, Castle is averaging 12.2 points, 3.7 assists, and 2.8 rebounds per game.
Per 36 minutes, Castle is averaging 17.2 points, 5.2 assists, and 4.0 rebounds.
Castle will participate in the 2025 NBA Slam Dunk Contest, giving his growing name even more visibility in the basketball universe.
The Spurs entered Wednesday 21-26 on the season, three games back of the Play-In. While it appears that San Antonio isn’t banking on a playoff appearance this season, the acquisition of De’Aaron Fox might change things for the Spurs.
Castle won a national championship last season at UConn, his only season spent in Storrs playing for head coach Dan Hurley.
Castle has gained the respect of NBA veterans like his teammate Chris Paul and Los Angeles Lakers superstar LeBron James, both of whom have praised Castle in the press this season.
The future is bright in San Antonio, and Castle is one half of that equation alongside Victor Wembanyama.
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Colin Keane is a contributing journalist for "UConn Huskies On SI." Born in Illinois, Colin grew up in Massachusetts as the third of four brothers. For his high school education, Colin attended St. Mark's School (Southborough, MA), where he played basketball and soccer and served as student body president. He went on to receive a Bachelor of Arts in English Literature from Villanova University. Colin currently resides in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. For all business/marketing inquiries regarding "UConn Huskies On SI," please reach out to Scott Neville: scott@wtfsports.org