The 2017 rookie class has made a definite splash in the NBA, as Boston Celtics forward Jayson Tatum and Utah Jazz shooting guard Donovan Mitchell cracked the top 25 in ESPN's latest player rankings.
Tatum comes in at No. 24 after stepping up in the playoffs, taking over as the team's leading scorer by raising his regular-season scoring average of 13.9 points to a beefier 18.5 points per game, becoming the de facto bucket-getter in the absence of point guard Kyrie Irving and forward Gordon Hayward.
ESPN's Mike Schmitz, who curated the explanation for this ranking, expects a decline in minutes and role, which could make Tatum's ranking take a slide in next year's rankings.
Tatum evolved from role-playing starter into playoff closer, calmly averaging 18.5 PPG in 19 postseason games, looking like a longtime star in the process. With Kyrie Irving and Gordon Hayward back, it will be interesting to see if Tatum is asked to take a backseat.
Mitchell was the runner-up for the Rookie of the Year award after a fierce race with Sixers point forward Ben Simmons, but was good enough to rank two spots above Tatum at No. 22.
Perhaps unlike Tatum this season, the sky is the limit for Mitchell, who carved his spot in the starting lineup after the first 12 games of the regular season by snatching it right out of Rodney Hood's hands.
Schmitz is expecting Mitchell to grow into a more efficient scorer (43.7 percent field goal last season, 34 percent from deep), as well as a more well-rounded player who will take on more playmaking duties.
Mitchell showed flashes as a pick-and-roll facilitator last season, and I'd expect him to continue to evolve his floor game by embracing aggressive three-level scoring. If the Jazz keep up their winning ways as expected, Mitchell could contend for a Western Conference All-Star bid in Year 2.
The Spider has all the athletic tools to make himself into an All-Star, but he will be competing against some of the best in a loaded West.
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