Stephon Castle’s savage ROY reaction proves Spurs drafted a killer

When the odds for Rookie of the Year came out last summer, I was shocked by the revelation that Stephon Castle wasn't listed in the top three. There were a ton of questions about Alex Sarr and Zaccharie Risacher about how ready they'd be on day one coming into the draft. Reed Sheppard was selected third overall, but he was never going to be a serious competitor on a guard-heavy team like the Rockets.

When the season started, the Georgia-born hooper was trying to feel his way into the NBA game, but it didn't take long for him to start pressing the issue. He took 10 shots in his seventh game of the year, and the aggression began to take hold. Soon, he was scoring in double figures on a nightly basis and making splash plays that made your jaw drop.

By the time March rolled around, everything else was simply icing on the cake. Castle had spent too much time as the face of the rookie class to let go of the rope. I said it on several occasions, and after his victory was announced, he told Jacob Tobey that he felt the same way.

"Me, personally, I feel like I won the award a long time ago."- Stephon Castle

Castle had Rookie of the Year wrapped up by the middle of March

Castle was one of the prospects considered to be pro-ready, and he just played a major part in UConn's run to a national title. What did you expect to happen when he joined San Antonio with a franchise player as focused on winning as Victor Wembanyama and a veteran as experienced as Chris Paul?

He was set up for success from the beginning. One of the reasons I thought he'd win this award is because of the attention Wembanyama brings to the Spurs. The Silver and Black had over 20 national TV games this season, and even when they weren't on TNT, ESPN, or ABC, people tuned into the NBA League Pass to watch the Alien play basketball. That meant they would see more of Castle by default.

He made the most of it, but the best part of his gameplay is that he wasn't doing it to win the award. He was doing it to help his team win games. Castle knows how important his development is to the franchise, so he wasn't shy about attacking defenses. He spoke all season about how much his teammates encouraged him to be aggressive, and that's exactly what he did.

Zaccharie Risacher and Jaylen Wells were the two other players who received first-place votes. They had solid years, but neither one displayed the consistency Castle did from the start of the season to the end of it. That's what won him this award, and it was plain as day to see months ago.

During the season, he downplayed the race, understanding that the big picture is what mattered in the grand scheme of things. But when it comes down to it, Castle is a competitor. He wanted that trophy, and he got it. He wanted a championship at UConn, and he got it. The only question now is, what does he want next?