Four games in, and it's clear that Ryan Kalkbrenner is a starting-caliber player. Seeing a rookie thrive as a starter in his debut season is quite rare, and you have to hand it to the second-round pick for his quick progress and for rewarding the Charlotte Hornets' faith in him.
Interestingly, Kalkbrenner has outplayed probably over 20 of his draft classmates selected before him. In fact, NBA.com has him 10th in its first Rookie Ladder of the year. He also has a legitimate case to place higher, above even the three players ranked before him, namely Jeremiah Fears, Derik Queen, and Collin Murray-Boyles.
The numbers are there, as Kalkbrenner is averaging 9.5 points and 7.3 rebounds per game, which prorate to 12.9 points and 9.8 per 36 minutes. He has also generally passed the eye test on both ends of the floor. On offense, his shot selection has been terrific, having converted 90.5 percent of his field-goal attempts. Meanwhile, the young big man has been as solid as advertised on defense, offering steady rim protection and showing enough IQ to compensate for his lack of respectable lateral quickness.
Kalkbrenner still has a lot of room for improvement, of course. He has yet to show the perimeter shooting potential he displayed during his latter years in college. Also, some opponents can continue to exploit his slow-footedness at the perimeter, like what the Miami Heat did in their latest matchup against Charlotte.
Ryan Kalkbrenner's trajectory already inspires plenty of hope for Hornets
If it isn't obvious already, the Hornets nailed their decision to bring in the Creighton University product with their final pick of the 2025 draft.
The early possible overreaction to the move is that they have found their long-term solution to their lengthy search for a starting center. But if that doesn't turn out to be accurate, the worst-case scenario is that they have a rotation-level backup big, and that does not sound bad at all, considering that he was the 34th overall selection.
Upon taking a look at what Kalkbrenner has done so far, though, it's not far-fetched to believe that he can become a full-time starter for the Hornets. His ability to set tough screens, facilitate the offense with his connective passing, and hunt for high-quality shots has helped unlock their explosive offense. The interior defense still needs some polish, but being surrounded by a stingier perimeter defense should help him flourish more in protecting the basket.
The scary thing for opponents is that Kalkbrenner is likely only going to get better at the skills he already possesses and learn new ones as he gains more experience.