Dylan Harper's grip slipping from treacherous Rookie of the Year ladder

Another week, another week on the NBA's Rookie Ladder for Dylan Harper, but there's a concerning trend taking shape. The top guys aren't moving from their spots. Last week, the Spurs' fourth overall pick came in at sixth on the list, and he's remained in the exact same spot. As much as I'd love to stomp my feet, claiming malpractice, they're right to keep him there.

The ex-Rutgers star is only averaging eight points in his last ten games. His efficiency over that time has been in the dirt (37% FG/17% 3PT). He's still giving the team four assists and three rebounds and giving effort on defense, so at least Dyl's finding a way to contribute, but it hasn't been Rookie of the Year worthy.

Now, anything can happen in the last few months of the season, so I would be remiss in saying Harper has no shot. But if you're paying attention to the forecasts, you can see which way the wind has been blowing. Cooper Flagg, Kon Knueppel, and VJ Edgecombe are making it extremely difficult to make up any ground.

Harper's draft class is unbelievable at the top

Harper has hit a bit of a rookie wall lately. He hasn't been his normal impactful self, and that's expected in your first NBA season. These guys are used to playing fewer than 40 games in a season; now they have to play 82, the contests occur more frequently, and the competition is much tougher. Lulls are expected.

I hoped that he'd be prepared to weather the long season better than his class counterparts, as I'm sure his father, 5x champion Ron Harper, has given him as many tools to succeed as possible. But there's no substitute for experience.

Flagg has also had a few down games, so it's not like he's been perfect. He had a middling three-game stretch offensively just a few games back but had a great performance in last night's win over the Kings. To be fair, he's on the floor more and has a higher usage rate, so he gets more opportunities to impact outcomes. That will still work against Harper.

Knueppel and VJ have both been on fire lately. Their numbers have been incredible. You wouldn't believe they were rookies if it were your first time watching them play. The Hornets still aren't very good, but they're a tough out every night, and Kon is a huge part of that. On Philly's side, they've been better than people thought. Pairing Tyrese Maxey with Edgecombe has looked like a genius move thus far.

We haven't even gotten into Derik Queen and Cedric Coward. All hits. These guys have shown that they can handle themselves. They're only going to get better as the year goes on. With that said, I could see Harper passing Coward and Queen if he can recapture his early-season magic, but piercing the top 3 is going to be like trying to draw blood from a Viltrumite.