Who Are the Best Undrafted Rookies from the 2025 Class After One Season?

A handful of players who weren't selected in the 2025 draft have already earned spots in the NBA.

Jan 30, 2026; New York, New York, USA; Portland Trail Blazers guard Caleb Love (2) brings the ball up court against the New York Knicks during the fourth quarter at Madison Square Garden. | Brad Penner-Imagn Images

The 2025 NBA Draft has already produced a number of impactful NBA players.

Cooper Flagg and Kon Knueppel each turned in remarkable rookie campaigns, while VJ Edgecombe and Dylan Harper have eached played significant roles in their teams reaching the second round of the playoffs.

Even beyond the top four picks in last summer's draft, there plenty of players who turned in solid debut campaigns. Jeremiah Fears, the No. 6 overall pick, was a bright spot for the New Orleans Pelicans, while Maxime Raynaud, a second-round selection, shined for the Kings.

There were also a few prospects who weren't picked in the 2025 draft that made a name for themselves at the NBA level.

Dylan Cardwell, Sacramento Kings

Cardwell proved to be a solid bench option for Sacramento, joining a Kings' rookie class that showed promise in 2025-26.

The 6-foot-10, 255-pound big man averaged 5.4 points, 7.5 rebounds, 1.4 assists and 1.5 blocks while shooting 58.7% from the field in 20.6 minutes per game across 44 appearances.

While Cardwell, who played at Auburn in college, may not be the future star who will change the Kings' franchise, he has the makings of a solid role player who could be a good complimentary piece if Sacramento lands a top prospect in the 2026 class.

Caleb Love, Portland Trail Blazers

Love, a former college basketball star at North Carolina and Arizona, made a splash in his first NBA season.

In 49 appearances, the 6-foot-3 guard averaged 10.4 points, 2.5 assists and 2.3 rebounds per game while shooting 38.8% from the field and 31.8% from 3-point range. Love will need to improve his effiecncy to become a more viable option in the league, but has shown the ability to be a sparkplug scorer off the bench.

Love scored at least 20 points in eight contests as a rookie.

Ryan Nembhard, Dallas Mavericks

The younger brother of Pacers' guard Andrew Nembhard, Ryan Nembhard earned a significant role for the Mavericks alongisde top pick Cooper Flagg in 2025-26.

The 5-foot-11 guard averaged 6.6 points, 5.3 assists and 2.2 rebounds per game while shooting 41.5% from the field and 35.6% from beyond the arc in 60 games and 27 starts. In Dallas' final regular season game, Nembhard set a franchise rookie record for single-game assists with 23.

After his size likely caused him to go undrafted, Nembhard seems to have proven that he can still be an impactful player in the NBA.

Honorable mentions

Adama Bal, Moussa Cissé, LJ Cryer, Andersson Garcia, Chaney Johnson, Bez Mbeng, John Poulakidas, Julian Reese