Keyonte George, Victor Wembanyama Headline Rookie Outings in NBA's Monday Night Slate
The NBA slate on Monday night was stacked, with 26 teams competing around the league following the NBA In-Season Tournament championship — which the Los Angeles Lakers claimed in its 14-point win over the Indiana Pacers two days prior.
Several first-year players contributed in a large role for their teams, with many standouts being familiar faces.
Keyonte George of the Utah Jazz, Victory Wembanyama out of the San Antonio Spurs and the Portland Trailblazers' Scoot Henderson were of the most impactful rookie performances on Monday.
Let's take a handful of the league's contests on the night and delve into some notable freshmen outings:
© Jeff Hanisch-USA TODAY Sports
Thunder vs. Jazz
A number of enticing rookie prospects flourished throughout this one, as George would take on Chet Holmgren and Cason Wallace in the Jazz's first meeting with the Thunder.
Oklahoma City did take home the 134-120 win as Wallace entered the starting lineup to supplant an injured Lu Dort. Wallace would have himself another efficient performance with 10 points on 50% shooting, as well as a steal and two blocks.
Holmgren had a strong game as well, the second one in a row for him, posting 16 points 6-of-9 from the field and adding eight rebounds with two blocks.
It was George who had a strikingly impressive night though. He'd find himself with five threes on just nine tries, and registered a career-high 30 points while also facilitating for seven assists.
This was just George's second 20-plus scoring game in his young career as he builds comfort and arises to the occasion — he's getting the call, and he's been answering within his 26 minutes per game this season.
Spurs vs. Rockets
Despite an 11-point loss to Houston, Wembanyama had another special night as he sits within the top two in the Rookie of the Year race.
It was an all-around performance from the 7-foot-4 rookie and the fourth game in five contests where he logged four or more blocks. He swatted five shots and found himself with 18 rebounds, also having the team-high in scoring with 15 points in the Spurs' low-scoring outing.
For the Rockets, Amen Thompson was called up from the G League to compete in his first NBA action since Nov. 1 following a sprained right ankle.
In 10 minutes, he saw himself score once and post five rebounds in his team's win.
Heat vs. Hornets
Jaime Jaquez Jr. had a pretty productive night for the Heat, as did Brandon Miller for the Hornets.
Though, it was a narrow two-point win for Miami, with Jaquez Jr. putting up an efficient 18 points in 24 minutes before fouling out in crunch time.
Miller contributed three 3-pointers for Charlotte, and ended with 16 points along with four rebounds and two assists in 30 minutes of play.
Trailblazers vs. Clippers
Entering this game off a tough 4-of-17 performance against the Dallas Mavericks on Friday night, Henderson shook the rust off and played a much more complete game versus the Clippers.
In a five-point loss, 132-127, Henderson sank three shots from beyond the arc and shot 50% from the field in a 19-point, six-assist game in 30 minutes from the No. 3 overall pick.
Want to join the discussion? Like Draft Digest on Facebook and follow us on Twitter to stay up to date on all the latest NBA Draft news. You can also meet the team behind the coverage.