Ajay Mitchell, Ryan Rollins and 10 NBA players you might not know but should in 2025-26 – The Athletic
The Oklahoma City Thunder are 8-1 and seemingly cruising toward the top seed in the Western Conference for a third year in a row.
Yet underneath that impressive top line lies an interesting question: How would that record look if they hadn’t nabbed an unheralded Belgian guard from a small conference in the second round of the 2024 draft?
Oklahoma City’s current stellar start belies several early struggles, and second-year guard Ajay Mitchell was essential toward putting four of the Thunder’s first five games in the win column. He had 16 points in 14 minutes in a double-overtime thriller against the Houston Rockets to start the season, 26 in another double-OT game against the Indiana Pacers, 17 in a squeaker over the Dallas Mavericks and 18 in a narrow home win against the Sacramento Kings.
The 6-foot-4 guard from UC-Santa Barbara was the 38th pick in the 2024 draft and spent most of last season on a two-way contract before being promoted to the main roster after the trade deadline.
Mitchell’s role for the coming season seemed like it would be limited, given that the Thunder returned the entire playing rotation from a championship team and would be looking to get minutes for 2024 lottery pick Nikola Topić, who plays the same position. Instead, Mitchell has taken advantage of Topić’s absence due to testicular cancer and several other injuries (notably to All-Star wing Jalen Williams) to carve out a massive role.
Mitchell is a rare player who was hard for scouts to get a handle on entering the draft: a left-handed “power guard” from a small conference whose iffy shooting and paint-heavy style left translation questions for the major increase in competition.
Instead, he’s found the spacing and open floor of NBA life almost easier than paint-packed zones in the Big West, slashing his way into the lane and often overpowering smaller guards with his array of finishes. The key is his touch from outside the charge circle; Mitchell is shooting 51.4 percent between 3 and 10 feet, according to Basketball-Reference.com, after making 49.2 percent a year ago.
“I think there’s definitely more spacing in the NBA than in college,” Mitchell said. “So, that probably helps for sure. I didn’t really know that it was easier or harder. Obviously, the NBA is really hard when you have such great defenders; I just sort of get out there and compete.”
Mitchell earned rotation minutes right away in his rookie season, even while playing on a two-way for a contender, but a midseason injury slowed his roll, and the Thunder were playing for a title. By the postseason, his role was microscopic.
This season, though, he’s been massive: After the Thunder’s loss Wednesday night to the Trail Blazers, he’s putting up 16.7 points per game, and amazingly, Mitchell is enjoying this breakout despite only shooting 28.6 percent from 3 thus far. Coach Mark Daigneault credited improved strength for Mitchell’s early-season eruption, allowing him to stay balanced and finish through contact.
“When you get in as a rookie, the biggest thing is the physicality,” Mitchell said. “Getting stronger was definitely one of my main goals.”
There’s a lot of craft mixed in, too. While he’s very left-handed, Mitchell throws just enough jabs with the right to keep opponents honest, like he does here in Tuesday’s win over the LA Clippers to set up a spin back left for a short bank shot.
The highlight clips show all the shots, but the other key stat for Mitchell, like with many Thunder players, is the absence of turnovers. He’s scored 150 points in nine games and constantly attacks the point off the dribble but only has 16 turnovers for the entire season. On a Thunder squad that has been low-key desperate for shot creation in any minutes Shai Gilgeous-Alexander has been off the court, Mitchell has been a giant life raft.
As a result, he is the top name on my list of 12 players you might not have heard of but absolutely need to know about from the first two(ish) weeks of the season. He’s not alone. Here are 11 others who have made a mark:
(Note: All stats through Wednesday’s games.)
Ryan Rollins, Milwaukee Bucks
The league is still learning about Rollins, in his second full season with the Milwaukee Bucks after a post-college journey to establish himself. The 2022 second-rounder only played 12 games his rookie season after the Golden State Warriors picked him 44th out of Toledo, then he had a multi-year wander through the league’s roster-fringe desert before landing a role with the Bucks in the second half of last season.
It’s not just players and coaches finding out about him; it’s also the league’s public address announcers. On Monday in Indiana, all four of Rollins’ field goals were followed by the PA calling “Ryan Hollins” as the scorer.
“Shout out my guy Ryan Hollins,” Rollins said. “That’s my dog.” (Hollins, who played in the league for 10 seasons, is currently the Houston Rockets’ TV analyst.)
That flub is one reason Rollins made the list, but the other, more important one, has been how well he has played as Milwaukee’s starting point guard in the wake of Kevin Porter Jr.’s absence.
He’s the Bucks’ main offensive weapon in the non-Giannis Antetokounmpo minutes. He’s also boosted his assist rate while also taking on an important (and efficient!) scoring role, and players have caught on even if the PA announcers haven’t.
“Now it’s usually their best defender, best guard defender guarding me now,” Rollins said. “So, it’s probably the biggest adjustment, but other than that, people just are kind of waking up to who I am.”
While Antetokounmpo’s brilliance is the main reason the Bucks are 5-3, Rollins has been a revelation as Milwaukee’s second-leading scorer, something he pairs with being a 94-foot defensive pest who ranks 10th in the league in steals.
The defensive part of the equation is no surprise; the Bucks knew Rollins could defend right away and just hoped that he might get the hang of playing point guard. Watch here as he navigates around a transition screen and gets the back-tap steal on Knicks star Jalen Brunson, one of four swipes he had in the victory over New York.
Those steals are a bit harder to come by now that he’s showing up on scouting reports: Rollins has noticed opposing guards will get off the ball early against him rather than try to challenge his ball pressure. However, it’s his play on the ball that has allowed him to stay on the court for extended minutes and shine as a defender; even late last season, the Bucks were reluctant to put Rollins in the playoff rotation because of his offense.
Not anymore.
“Just confidence and learning his position a little bit better,” Bucks coach Doc Rivers said of Rollins’ emergence. “Understanding when to be aggressive, when not to be. Defensively, he was already at that point last year, he’s a top NBA defender … (but) he’s shooting the ball with more confidence now, and he’s finishing with more confidence now for sure.”
Collin Gillespie, Phoenix Suns
One of my strongest takes from the first two weeks of the season is that Gillespie is absolutely, positively an NBA rotation player. The Denver Nuggets could really use him, and I don’t understand why they let him walk out the door in 2024.
Gillespie isn’t going to turn around the Suns’ fortunes by himself, but adding a rotation-caliber guard on a minimum deal without using draft capital is the type of win that the Suns need to replicate oh, say, 60 to 70 more times to offset the draft and cap hellscape they currently inhabit.
But in all seriousness … Gillespie can play. Watch here as he turns defense into offense in the Suns’ unexpectedly easy romp over Utah, coming off his assignment to relieve Jusuf Nurkić of the basketball and then threading a difficult lob to Mark Williams for the finish.
He’s a meh athlete but is a money shooter from deep (42 percent career on a 185-attempt sample) and makes the right play when his shot isn’t there, with 42 assists against just 12 turnovers this season. He’s been able to hold up defensively, too, especially off the ball; he has a 2.4 percent career steal rate, and for a 6-1 guard, he gets active on the glass (8.0 percent career rebound rate).
A good year could easily yield him a nice payday. Phoenix only signed Gillespie to a one-year minimum deal, partly because of the aforementioned cap hellscape, and he will be an unrestricted free agent after the season; the Suns will have his early Bird rights because he was on a two-way deal with them in 2024-25.
Cam Spencer, Memphis Grizzlies
While the Grizzlies, shall we say, sort out some issues in their backcourt, Spencer has been able to take advantage of key absences to justify his multiyear deal signed in July. Spencer was on a two-way last season after being picked 53rd out of UConn in 2024 but has ramped up his game considerably in his second pro season.
While toggling between both guard spots, Spencer is an ace 3-point marksman (41.7 percent career at UConn, 41.7 percent in a much smaller NBA sample) who also provides dollops of ballhandling and passing. While you’d like to see him be more threatening inside the arc, Spencer also averages an assist every five minutes. Defensively, he offsets limited physical tools with pure feistiness.
In addition, his contract sets up the possibility of a long-term win. The Grizzlies had a bit more money under the cap than initially expected because of Cole Anthony’s buyout. They had leftover cash that they used to boost Spencer’s first season to $2.5 million and drag out his deal with three seasons to follow at the minimum, the last of which is a team option.
As a result, Spencer will have one of the best contracts in the league if he provides anything approaching rotation-caliber minutes in Memphis. Based on initial results, he seems on track to deliver.
Keyonte George, Utah Jazz
After spending his first two seasons looking like a short shooting guard masquerading as a floor general, George has looked like a new man to start 2025-26. He’s much more comfortable running the offense, making decisions and distributing the ball. While he’s also developed as a scorer in his own right, averaging 22.6 points per game on 58.9 percent True Shooting despite an early-season 3-point slump, George’s command of Will Hardy’s system has been the story.
He’s averaging 11.0 assists per 100 possessions thus far, a top-15 figure league-wide. While he still needs to cut down his turnovers, he’s made life a lot easier for a limited supporting cast in Utah. Go through a reel of George’s assists, and they’re mostly legit dimes setting up 3-pointers and dunks — plus passes that matter.
In a related story, George’s development has helped a Utah team many expected to be abjectly awful has instead be … less awful. The Jazz are 3-5 with a respectable minus-3.9 scoring margin, and George (and a big dose of Lauri Markkanen, of course) has helped guide them to the middle of the league’s pack in offensive efficiency.
Finally, I’ll note that George also qualifies for this list based on the “Ryan Hollins” rule above: Opposing team announcers fight an insatiable urge to call him “Kyshawn” George.
Dru Smith, Miami Heat
Miami has been high on Smith for years, but he’s never been healthy enough for long enough to display why the Heat feel so strongly. Now that he’s finally healthy after enduring both a torn ACL and a torn Achilles and playing only 28 games for the Heat across three seasons, Smith has become a rotation staple for a surprisingly spicy Miami squad.
The interest in Smith comes at the defensive end, where he’s an active, athletic defender — even post-injury — who makes up for his smallish stature for a “3-and-D” wing with hands and mobility and has racked up a career 3.6 percent steal rate. This season, he’s also taken advantage of more liberal officiating on perimeter ball pressure, with more swipes (13) than fouls (12).
Smith also has taken advantage of opportunities in Miami’s egalitarian offensive system, using slashes to the cup to rack up assists and supplement his long-distance game (Smith takes half his career shots from 3). In Tyler Herro’s absence, he’s operated as the closest thing Miami has to a backup point guard.
It’s been a journey for the 27-year-old Smith, but if he can stay on the court, he’s in a position to deliver real value for the Heat: This is the first season of a three-year deal for the minimum.
Marvin Bagley, Washington Wizards
Wait, what?
One of the most shocking things about watching the Washington Wizards this season has been realizing that Bagley A) still is in the league, and B) somehow is only 26 years old.
I bring it up because Bagley’s minutes as the primary backup big in Washington so far this season have been … kind of good? He’s grown into his body enough to handle playing the backup center spot, he’s less focused on scoring than he was as a younger player, and he still can move.
More globally, Bagley ranks second in the Wizards in PER through eight games, even with just 16.2 percent usage as he takes on a more secondary role and lets the Wizards’ kids cook. On a one-year minimum deal with a tanking team, he’s a low-key trade candidate to watch in February for teams looking for a lively body in the frontcourt.
Mo Gueye, Atlanta Hawks
A third-year pro from Washington State who didn’t see much action until the back half of his second season, Gueye has popped this season as a defensive force for the Hawks. At 6-11 and 210 pounds, he’s filled out his thin frame just enough that he can battle most of the league’s meatier power forwards, with two particularly effective outings against Orlando’s Paolo Banchero standing out. The key to his defensive impact is length and mobility, combined with the tenacity to stay with ballhandlers.
Watch here, for instance, from Tuesday’s Atlanta win over the Magic, as Gueye stays with Banchero on a right-hand drive then spikes his offering at the rim. What’s impressive is that, two minutes earlier, Banchero had tested Gueye going to his left and had the same outcome.
While in this clip it wasn’t much of a ghost screen at the start of the play, in general, Gueye’s ability to navigate ball screens and avoid being drawn into switches throughout the game was notable.
Offensively, Gueye has also developed enough of a jump shot that opponents have to pay him some mind when he’s in the corners; he’s at 31.6 percent for the season on solid volume. He has to continue knocking them down at something approaching a 1-in-3 clip to have an offensive role, as he’s not quite explosive enough to be a rim-running center and has a limited handle. However, he finishes dunks at the rim and can eat enough off assisted baskets to keep him on the floor for his defense.
He’s also a bargain, with a $2.4 million non-guaranteed team option for 2026-27; depending on their plans, it’s possible the Hawks decline the option to re-sign him as a restricted free agent this summer.
Jake LaRavia, Los Angeles Lakers
A big forward with guard skills, LaRavia struggled to break out in a crowded forward rotation in Memphis and spent the second half of last season idling in Sacramento, but he has found a home with the Lakers in his fourth pro season. He’s averaging 12.1 points per game and sporting a 14.4 PER thus far.
He provides a much-needed skill set on a Lakers roster filled with limited role players around its stars; he doesn’t need a dime from Luka or LeBron to eat. Watch here as he goes full-court against a Miami press and surprises Miami’s Kel’El Ware with a lefty smash:
LaRavia also adds a floor-spacing component; while a slow release limits his volume from beyond the arc, he makes the ones he takes (37.4 percent career), and his ballhandling skill means he can attack closeouts effectively. This is exactly the type of player the Lakers have lacked in the past — a second-side connector who can do something beyond just stand in the corner for a catch-and-shoot 3. The fact that he can play both forward spots while doing it is an added plus.
Locked in on a two-year, $12 million deal that he already seems nearly certain to outrun, LaRavia has proven to be one of summer’s best free-agent signings. At just 24, his impact could be long-term as well, provided L.A. can use early Bird rights in the summer of 2027 to keep him around for a while.
Tristan da Silva, Orlando Magic
You can understand why Orlando fell in love with Tristan da Silva leading into the 2024 draft, because he’s exactly the type of player the Magic desperately need: a knockdown shooter off the ball who can cut, pass and make the right play. He wasn’t quite ready for the role when Orlando auditioned him (and several others) as a wingman from the Franz-and-Paolo Show in his rookie season, finishing with a 9.9 PER and a minus-2.6 BPM.
Alas, the start of this season has been a different story. While the rest of the Magic endure a forgettable first two weeks, da Silva has been a revelation. The 6-8 German is averaging double figures while shooting 41.7 percent from 3, he’s ramped up his usage rate with smart cuts and transition plays, and he’s been a more impactful defender than in his rookie season.
Here’s a clip that shows how he can ramp up his usage while still hardly ever having the ball. Watch as he turns a shot-clock grenade from Banchero into a no-ball-dip 3-pointer over Jalen Johnson’s closeout:
Da Silva is a massively important player for Orlando for another reason: He’s only in the second season of his rookie-scale contract, and if he continues at this clip, he’ll be a bargain at $3.8 million for this year and $4 million for next. That’s a major development for a Magic squad that is locked into four huge contracts for Banchero, Franz Wagner, Desmond Bane and Jalen Suggs and will be flirting with the luxury tax and second apron for at least the next two summers.
Jamal Shead, Toronto Raptors
Drafted 45th in 2024, Shead immediately made an impression in Toronto with his scrappy defense, pressuring the ball, taking charges and hustling all over. Alas, it was hard to take him seriously as a long-term rotation piece for the Raptors because of his deficient offense; he couldn’t shoot and turned it over too much, and at 6-0, he wasn’t a threat to score in the paint.
This season, however, Shead has taken a notable step forward at the offensive end, and that in turn has allowed his dogged defense to be more of a factor. So, too, has the been the league-wide tilt toward increasing ball pressure; Shead has been an enthusiastic participant in that, starting with his giddily chasing Tare Young 94 feet in the Raptors’ opening night rout of Atlanta.
However, the story is on the other side of the ball. Through eight games, Shead has 43 assists against just eight turnovers; the low turnover rate stands out after that was a notable weakness in his rookie stat line. Additionally, Shead is at 47.4 percent from 3 thus far; while one shouldn’t expect him to maintain that exalted level all season, it means opponents have to regard him more on the perimeter and can’t blithely go under screens against him.
As with several other players on this list, this becomes a big win roster- and cap-wise for the Raptors if Shead can hold down the backup point guard gig. The Raptors are pressed up against the luxury tax line and project to have a paper-thin bench, but Shead is on the books for just $1.9 million this year and $2.3 million for next.
Jaylon Tyson, Cleveland Cavaliers
Don’t look now, but the 2024 late first-rounder has had four straight impact games as a starter, scoring in double figures in each as an injury-riddled Cavs team with title aspirations tries to patch together a rotation in the opening weeks.
Tyson’s presence was one reason the Cavs could handle losing Ty Jerome in free agency; he rarely saw the court as a rookie, but his play in summer league and in practice was convincing enough for the Cavs to take the plunge. At 6-6, he has a solid enough handle to take reps at point guard, and he’s a good decision-maker on the move.
While he’s a limited athlete who isn’t going to put major pressure on the rim (and has to cut out all the fouling on defense), Tyson has enough in his bag to make shots inside the arc. He’s also shooting 43.6 percent from 3 thus far, including 13-of-29 from distance in his four starts this week. While that torrid percentage won’t hold up in larger samples, the sheer volume is notable.
The next step is translating his production back to the second unit, the place he surely will end up once the Cavs’ backcourt is at full strength, and doing it in minutes without Donovan Mitchell and Evan Mobley by his side. For now, however, Tyson is shining in his cameo.
