In a dominant showing, Stephon Castle of the San Antonio Spurs secured the 2024-25 NBA Rookie of the Year award. The young guard grabbed 92 first-place votes out of 100. "Coming in with all confidence that I had in myself as a player—that was definitely a goal of mine from Day 1… I'm just happy I was able to execute it," Castle told ESPN.
The rookie star beat out Atlanta's Zaccharie Risacher and Memphis's Jaylen Wells in what turned out to be an easy win. Over 81 games, Castle impressed with averages of 14.7 points, 4.1 assists, and 3.7 rebounds.
Picked fourth overall, Castle broke the 1,000-point barrier in his rookie season. He joins just five San Antonio rookies who've reached this milestone. His best game came against Charlotte in February when he scored 33 points coming off the bench.
With Castle on board, San Antonio improved by 12 wins to finish with 34 victories. The team added veterans Chris Paul and Harrison Barnes, while De'Aaron Fox came in during the season to support their young talent.
Castle's award gives San Antonio back-to-back rookie winners, after Victor Wembanyama won in 2024. Since the league expanded, only two other teams have done this - Minnesota with Wiggins and Towns (2015-16), and Buffalo with McAdoo and DiGregorio (1973-74).
He becomes the fourth Spur to earn this honor, joining team legends David Robinson (1990), Tim Duncan (1998), and Wembanyama (2024).
Coming straight from leading UConn to a championship, Castle hit the ground running in the NBA. During All-Star Weekend, he won the Rising Stars MVP and made waves in the dunk contest.
