Baseball analyst Ron Shandler famously posited that once a player has demonstrated a skill over a sufficiently meaningful sample, they own it. The key qualifier is that the skill must be demonstrated over a sustained period, not merely in an isolated performance or brief hot streak.
This concept applies to basketball as well. Once a player demonstrates they can effectively protect the rim over multiple months, we can assume they "own" that skill as part of their overall skill set. It was clear early in Walker Kessler's career with the Utah Jazz that he was a special rim protector -- a skill that has proved enduring.
We learn to trust what players can and cannot do on the court over time. Box scores create precedents. Past demonstrated ability deserves more weight than recent struggles because a skill can lie dormant without disappearing.
Which players are establishing new levels of expertise so far this season? Even with the sample size remaining quite small, we can begin to identify new identities around the league. With this lens in mind, let's discuss a quartet of players who have added new dimensions to their real and fantasy reputations thus far.
The prospect who was promised
Incredibly fun and prestigious player comparisons -- to the likes of Rashard Lewis and even Chris Bosh -- surfaced when Jabari Smith Jr. was evaluated during the 2022 NBA draft cycle. While those were lofty comparisons, they spoke to Smith's potential to go beyond a traditional "3-and-D" archetype and develop into a game-changing two-way force.
We're not quite at the All-Star tier for Smith, but it's becoming clear that he is taking ownership of a new level of shooting and scoring. Even though his shot diet this year is identical to last season's, he has leapt nearly 20% in scoring output thanks to appreciable spikes in shooting success. There is danger in simply trusting a hot streak. A more granular look shows Smith is finally thriving off the dribble and as a pull-up shooter, which is also showing up in his ability to initiate and finish drives.
Smith has already proven he owns a unique ability to protect the rim from an atypical position, as his career 2.5% block percentage reveals. The blend of improved shooting and scoring, along with his ability to create turnovers, has Smith positioned 20th overall on the Player Rater, just ahead of Houston Rockets teammate Alperen Sengun. Even when his outside shooting cools -- and it will -- Smith has leveled up enough to remain an impact player.
The ready rookie
Beyond being an amazing soundbite and the oldest prospect in his class, Yaxel Lendeborg was a somewhat mysterious prospect. Dominant rebounding numbers over a long college career did not necessarily indicate a dynamic offensive package.
Even just three weeks into his career, it's becoming clear that Lendeborg is an effective bully, sporting an awesome free throw rate of 46.4%. Free throw rate divides field goal attempts by free throw attempts to reveal the balance a player can sustain between creating fouls and shooting volume. This is the rate of a primary offensive engine for most teams.
Getting two feet in the paint is a skill, and Lendeborg is flashing it both in the eye test and statistically. The Golden State Warriors rookie is taking nearly a quarter of his shots from within three feet of the basket, sinking 68% of them. Producing free throws and efficient attempts in the paint are rare elements for a rookie's profile just eight starts into his career. If or when Lendeborg hits a slump in the coming weeks, it will be important to see whether he sustains these opportunity rates, even if he is not converting them.
The two-way sleeper
Possibly lost in the shuffle of the Washington Wizards' exciting rebuild has been the emergence of Kyshawn George as a two-way glue guy. Teams need connective, high-energy players willing to do a bit of everything. His current profile doesn't scream breakout, but he is a plus contributor across several categories -- the sum of his skills is greater than each addend.
The most exciting and seemingly enduring part of his rise this season has been his connection with Trae Young in pick-and-roll actions. Those plays have George finishing around the rim at the highest volume and efficiency of his career, aided by his nearly 6-foot-11 wingspan.
Shot diet is more revealing about a player -- and is a steadier, stickier data point at this point in the season -- than shooting results. Getting hot can happen over eight games, but the breakdown of where and how shots are taken becomes increasingly meaningful as minutes accumulate. George is taking 24.7% of his shots from within three feet of the basket this season and making 73% of them, compared to just 14.7% and 66%, respectively, over his first two pro seasons. Like Houston's Smith, George leverages his length in rim protection, sporting a career-best block percentage of 3.7%. Young is a maestro at making things easy for his roll partners, and George is currently enjoying the benefit.
The first 'Barrier Thief'
Yes, Dyson Daniels has earned the moniker "The Great Barrier Thief," but let's remember that the Los Angeles Lakers' Matisse Thybulle, also a member of the Australian Olympic team, is among the great steal artists of the era. Having led the NBA in steal percentage in his third season and averaged two steals per game over the past three seasons, there is no question that Thybulle is among the most larcenous defenders in the league.
What is aiding Thybulle's fantasy relevance is an expansion beyond being purely a defensive specialist. He is sinking two 3-pointers per game with a fun, new-look, no-dip 3-point shot that he gets off rapidly in catch-and-shoot scenarios. Like George, who is working so well off Young's high-value passes, Thybulle is getting fed wide-open looks in rhythm thanks to the gravity and generosity of Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves. Up to 69th on the Player Rater, it's possible that Thybulle delivers a top-100 season after being classified for years solely as a deep-league specialist.