Sports

No Kon Knueppel or Cooper Flagg, but These Five Rookies Could Impact the NBA Playoffs

By Blake Silverman Sports Illustrated

Updated April 18, 2026 5:40 AM

The Rookie of the Year frontrunners won't play in the postseason. Cooper Flagg's Mavericks have their eyes set on the NBA draft lottery, while Kon Knueppel and the Hornets were eliminated Friday night in a blowout loss to the Magic as the two teams battled for the Eastern Conference's eighth seed.

Flagg and Knueppel, who were teammates at Duke, have been the center of much of the conversation around the NBA's rookies. Plenty of other players entered the league on playoff teams, however, and the first round kicks off on Saturday.

Team context and role matters greatly in how quickly, or not so quickly, a player can adjust to the next level over their first season. The top of last year's draft was stacked with impact players. The first four picks were highlighted by Flagg and Knueppel. The latter led the NBA in three-pointers and smashed rookie records as he helped the Hornets exceed expectations. Flagg, meanwhile, looks like the NBA's next true superstar as the Mavs continue their rebuild after dealing Anthony Davis at the deadline, one season after the shocking Luka Dončić trade.

Charlotte chose Knueppel with the fourth pick and sandwiched in between the fellow Blue Devils are two players who have had great rookie seasons in their own right: San Antonio's Dylan Harper and Philadelphia's VJ Edgecombe. Elsewhere in the draft, teams found key pieces who were able to shine on both sides of the ball in year one.

With NBA playoff action set to begin, here are five rookies who could become x-factors over the course of the postseason:

Dylan Harper, G, San Antonio Spurs

Season stats: 11.8 ppg, 3.4 rpg, 3.9 apg, 50.5 FG%, 34.3 3P%, 75.6 FT%

Dylan Harper was the second pick of the NBA draft | Petre Thomas-Imagn Images

Harper may just be San Antonio's best bench player and they have likely Sixth Man of the Year winner Keldon Johnson on the roster. There was some debate whether the Spurs were wise to take Harper out of Rutgers with the second pick of last year's draft with De'Aaron Fox and Stephon Castle already on the roster. But San Antonio's choice to bring in Harper anyway has paid immediate dividends. He averaged 22.6 minutes per game off the bench in year one as an elite backup point guard who should grow into a key starter alongside Victor Wembanyama and Castle sooner rather than later.

The Spurs hope to make serious noise in the postseason and take down the defending champion Thunder in a potential Western Conference finals matchup. Should that dream meeting come to fruition, Harper will be a x-factor as the Spurs hope to continue their dominance against Oklahoma City.

VJ Edgecombe, G, Philadelphia 76ers

Season stats: 16.0 ppg, 5.6 rpg, 4.2 apg, 43.8 FG%, 35.4 3P%, 81.8 FT%

VJ Edgecombe is a key piece for the 76ers moving forward | Scott Wachter-Imagn Images

Edgecombe, the third pick in the NBA draft, immediately stepped into a critical role for Philadelphia. He started in all 75 games he appeared in, serving as the Robin to Tyrese Maxey's Batman in the 76ers' backcourt. Edgecombe's athleticism and high-flying ability jumps out each time he's on the floor, but he's also an efficient scorer and an impactful perimeter defender. He averaged 1.9 stocks (steals plus blocks) over his rookie season, taking tough defensive assignments out of Maxey's hands.

Joel Embiid's health is a big question for Philadelphia's first-round series against the Celtics. He's currently out while recovering from an appendectomy, which leaves even more of a burden on the shoulders of Edgecombe, Maxey and Paul George.

Hugo González, F, Boston Celtics

Season stats: 3.9 ppg, 3.3 rpg, 0.5 apg, 47.6 FG%, 35.2 3P%, 50.0 FT%

Hugo González has made a huge impact for the Celtics as a late first-round pick | Daniel Dunn-Imagn Images

González's offensive numbers certainly don't jump off the page, but where he makes a true impact is on the defensive side of the ball. He's a menace of an on-ball defender, often able to swallow up the top assignment in minutes he's given. As the No. 28 pick in the NBA draft, González has been tasked with guarding the likes of Cade Cunningham, Jalen Brunson and Donovan Mitchell during his rookie season.

The Spaniard averaged 14.6 minutes per game mostly off the bench and it will be interesting to see whether Joe Mazzulla trims his minutes as rotations tighten over the postseason. If Boston does shrink the normal group, though, González's defense alone is reason enough for him to play a solid role in the playoffs especially as the Celtics go deeper on a potential return path toward the NBA Finals.

Collin Murray-Boyles, F, Toronto Raptors

Season stats: 8.5 ppg, 5.0 rpg, 1.9 apg, 57.9 FG%, 34.0 3P%, 65.7 FT%

Collin Murray-Boyles is a versatile forward for the fifth-seed Raptors | Dan Hamilton-Imagn Images

Murray-Boyles is a bench piece for the Raptors, but the do-it-all forward plays a big role for the fifth seed who's tasked with taking down James Harden, Donovan Mitchell and the Cavaliers in round one. He doesn't shoot threes, but he's physical near the hoop and is a great playmaker for his position. He should still have a considerable role for Darko Rajaković's squad who's had relatively little buzz heading into the postseason. Murray-Boyles was a top-10 pick in last summer's draft after he spent two seasons at South Carolina. He raises the Raptors' floor as a solid decision maker that can score near the rim and impact the game defensively as well.

Toronto earned the fifth seed in the Eastern Conference thanks to the Magic's disappointing loss to the Celtics in the final game of the regular season as Boston rested its starters. That may prove beneficial for Toronto as the Raptors won all three meetings against the Cavs over the regular season, but each meeting came early in the season before Harden came into the fold.

Carter Bryant, F, San Antonio Spurs

Season stats: 4.2 ppg, 2.5 rpg, 0.7 apg, 40.8 FG%, 33.5 3P%, 71.4 FT%

Carter Bryant was the last pick in the lottery of last summer's draft | Daniel Dunn-Imagn Images

The Spurs have not one, but two rookies who have made an immediate impact this season. Bryant, the 14th pick in the draft, has a much smaller role compared to Harper. However, the Arizona product's role steadily increased over the course of the season. His minutes went up to 15 per game following the All-Star break after he averaged less than 10 a night to start the season. Bryant has become a more consistent three-point shooter and his ability to defend multiple positions paves a path for a real role over the postseason. As of now, he's a versatile depth piece for the Spurs, which every team needs over the course of a long playoff run.

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This article was originally published on www.si.com as No Kon Knueppel or Cooper Flagg, but These Five Rookies Could Impact the NBA Playoffs.

This story was originally published April 18, 2026 at 5:30 AM.