Rookie leaps fuel MIP chatter
- Cam Spencer’s second NBA season turned him from a fringe Grizzlies guard into a real rotation piece, and that kind of leap keeps reviving MIP debates. - The jump is clean: 4.2 to 11.1 points, 1.4 to 5.6 assists, and roughly 64% true shooting while playing 23.8 minutes. - But the bigger lesson is role — more touches, more trust, and better context can make “improvement” look sudden.
Most Improved Player talk usually starts with stars. Bigger usage. Bigger box scores. Bigger names. But every year there’s another version of the award argument — the one about young players who didn’t just get better, but finally got a real job. ### Why is Cam Spencer in this conversation? Because the jump is hard to miss. Spencer went from 4.2 points in 10.1 minutes as a rookie in 2024-25 to 11.1 points and 5.6 assists in 23.8 minutes in 2025-26. The shooting held up too — 47.3% from the field, 44.9% from 3, and about 64% true shooting. That’s not empty stat inflation. That’s a second-round pick turning into an efficient rotation guard. (craftednba.com) ### So is this actually MIP-level improvement? That’s where the debate always gets messy. The NBA’s own MIP framing this season acknowledged the usual split — some voters don’t love second-year players in this race, and some don’t want to reward lottery picks just for becoming what they were supposed to become. In other words, people are r(craftednba.com)rest version of the case: low expectations, small rookie role, then a real leap once the minutes arrive. (nba.com) ### What changed for Spencer besides minutes? Basically, the ball found him more often. His scoring went up, but the sneaky number is assists — from 1.4 to 5.6. That says this wasn’t just a hotter shooting year. Memphis trusted him to organize offense, make reads, and survive with a bigger load. CraftedNBA’s tracking(nba.com)cy way of saying his skills travel well next to better teammates. (craftednba.com) ### Why does efficiency matter so much here? Because anybody can look improved if the volume doubles and the shots get worse. Spencer did the opposite. His field-goal rate jumped from 41.5% to 47.3%, and his 3-point accuracy climbed from 35.8% to 44.9% while his attempts more than doubled. That’s the part that makes people pay attention. M(craftednba.com)scaled up and got cleaner. (craftednba.com) ### Where does Jaden McDaniels fit into this? He’s the other useful model — not because he’s a classic MIP favorite, but because his growth shows how role tweaks unlock new versions of a player. Minnesota has used McDaniels more creatively on defense, moving him off the ball more often so he can help at the rim and wreck actions from the w(craftednba.com)y late April he was up to 14.8 points per game for the season. (sports.yahoo.com) ### Is this really about development or just opportunity? It’s both. Opportunity is the amplifier, not the whole song. A player still has to justify the extra possessions. Spencer did that with shooting and playmaking. McDaniels did it by expanding (sports.yahoo.com)(craftednba.com) ### Why do these cases matter beyond one award? Because they change how teams think about the back half of a roster. Spencer was the 53rd pick and opened on a two-way deal before Memphis re-signed him to a multiyear contract. That’s exactly the kind of late-bloomer path teams are desperate to find — cheap rotation value that becomes real lineup value. (nba.com) ### What’s the bottom line? The flashy MIP winner this year was Nickeil Alexander-Walker, not a sophomore breakout. But Spencer-type leaps still shape the conversation, because they show what improvement actually looks like in the league — not just better stats, but better stats once a player is trusted to do harder things. (nba.com)
