Rookie of the Year Watch

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[Jamaaliver]

Trae Young Doesn’t Need to Be Luka Doncic to Win Rookie of the Year

The Hawks were panned for trading Doncic’s rights for Young and a future pick. But through four games, the Atlanta rookie has flashed the sort of offensive upside that should draw awards consideration by season’s end



Trae Young’s career may forever be linked to Luka Doncic’s. While two other teams outright passed on Doncic to start the 2018 draft, the Atlanta Hawks traded Doncic’s rights to the Dallas Mavericks for a future first-round pick and the draft rights to Young, who was selected two picks later.

Atlanta was heavily criticized for the decision. But the Hawks went with Young, sparking a debate the won’t end anytime soon; even though both teams are unlikely to make the playoffs, their first matchup drew so much intrigue that it earned a spot on national TV. Young’s early returns have revealed the good and bad of his game, as well as new dimensions; he’s already had moments through his first four games that suggest there will be plenty of spectacular nights too.

Through four games, Young is averaging 21.5 points and 7.5 assists in 32.3 minutes per game. The only rookies to ever average more than at least 21 points and seven assists over a full season are Iverson and Oscar Robertson, per Basketball Reference.

Even if Young’s averages drop to something like 18 points and five assists, he’ll be in rare company. The 12 rookies who have reached that threshold won Rookie of the Year, except for Magic Johnson, who lost to Larry Bird in 1979-80.

Young has stiff competition among his rookie class. Nonetheless, given his fast start, Young should be a leading contender come awards season.

Spoiler:

Young’s shooting has translated, and now his handle is even tighter than it was in college, which helps him to create space against athletic defenders. His ballhandling is also helping him get to the rim. Now he invites and absorbs contact by angling his hip into defenders, which should help him keep opposing players behind him. Perhaps even more importantly, he’s using craft once he actually gets to the paint with either hand to lay up the ball with touch.



Young’s offensive versatility guarantees that he’ll attract a lot of defensive attention, so it’s critical that Hawks general manager Travis Schlenk surround him with shooting threats. Schlenk also drafted Maryland wing Kevin Huerter, who drew comparisons to Klay Thompson during the pre-draft process. The Young-Huerter backcourt is intriguing offensively.

The Ringer

[ChokeFasncists]

Got the W and a FRP

[Jamaaliver]

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[macd-gm]

Luka is a much better 3 point shooter than i expected. I don't really understand PER but his PER (12.27) is about the lowest I've seen from a 20 point scorer. What's up with that? or is it just sample size? Trae is 15 and Ayton 24.

[Jamaaliver]

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[ChokeFasncists]

Luka is a much better 3 point shooter than i expected. I don't really understand PER but his PER (12.27) is about the lowest I've seen from a 20 point scorer. What's up with that? or is it just sample size? Trae is 15 and Ayton 24.

Maybe his efficiency, fouls and TOs drag it down.

[Bob8]

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11/18 from the field, 4/6 for 3.

[Jamaaliver]

Clear, undeniable proof that Luka Doncic is the second coming of Michael Jordan:

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Numbers don't lie. Bob was right, and Doncic is the greatest player of all time. Shut it down!!

[macd-gm]

[Bob8]

Clear, undeniable proof that Luka Doncic is the second coming of Michael Jordan:

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Numbers don't lie. Bob was right, and Doncic is the greatest player of all time. Shut it down!!

Nope, I don’t believe MJ is in conversation, because he was 2 years older than Luka as rookie.

[Jamaaliver]

Trae and Luka going tit for tat in rookie scoring lead.

Will the ROY award come down to who scores the most among 1st year players? Or will Ayton's efficiency be the difference?

Ayton will have the Rebounding lead. Trae will have the assist lead.

Scoring is the only major stat lead that will be competitive.

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[Jamaaliver]

NBA Rookie Power Rankings: Is every top-five NBA Draft pick this year actually good?

The 2018 rookie class looks strong so far -- see who came out in top of the first set of rankings

The 2018 NBA Draft was praised for depth more than star power. But the stars at the top are showing up, too. No. 1 Deandre Ayton, No. 2 Marvin Bagley III, No. 3 Luka Doncic, No. 4 Jaren Jackson Jr., and No. 5 Trae Young have come out the gate hot and opened the door for a strong Rookie of the Year race again this season.

This week's NBA Rookie Power Rankings

1. Trae Young -- Atlanta Hawks PG

Stats through 10/26: 21.5 points, 7.5 assists, 3.5 rebounds

Perhaps no rookie was as polarizing as Young heading into the NBA season, with some trumpeting his talents as a Steph Curry-Steve Nash hybrid and others dismissing him as a flash-in-the-pan whose skill set and slight frame would never translate to the NBA. So far, it looks like the kid can hang -- his 35-point, 11 assist, one-turnover game against the Cavs put him in rare air as an NBA rookie. He leads all first-year players in scoring (through Oct 26), and has made 39 percent of his 3-pointers while putting up nearly eight per game -- that's elite level shooting. But besides the shooting and passing (7.5 assists also leads all rookies ... by far), Young's ability to finish around the rim must be exciting for the Hawks. According to Synergy Sports data, Young has converted nine of his 12 attempts around the basket, and has found creative ways to finish in traffic.

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If Young is able to finish like this around the basket while forcing teams to guard him 30 feet from the basket, the Curry comparison becomes a real thing.

CBS Sports

[Jamaaliver]

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[Jamaaliver]

Trae Young's Inconsistency Will Cost Him in ROY Race

Young entered Wednesday's game with three straight double-doubles and four consecutive solid performances. Then he laid an egg, going scoreless in a silent first half during which he took an uncharacteristic three shots.

Young was far more aggressive after the break, but he needed 16 shots to get his 15 second-half points. He's made only three of his last 23 shots from three-point range and is veering dangerously close to bad-shooter territory. The counting stats are there, as they will be all season. The Hawks lack proven talent, so they're giving Young carte blanche to be the Oklahoma version of himself.

However, Young isn't effective enough yet at what he does to play winning basketball. His passing will keep him from becoming too much of a net negative, but he has Steph Curry's shooting tendencies with Swaggy P-esque accuracy at this point.

Young can score against NBA defenders, which should quash any concerns about him flaming out. He tries harder than advertised on defense as well, though it's never going to be a strength of his.

But when sizing up the Rookie of the Year race, Luka Doncic and Deandre Ayton are more consistent on a night-to-night basis. Doncic looks like a seasoned pro, which makes sense given his background playing against pros in Europe. Ayton is dominating inside offensively and is staying within himself.

There's a non-zero chance Young puts it all together and becomes the best player in this year's draft class. Just don't let the counting stats fool you—he's a clear step or two behind Doncic and Ayton right now.

Bleacher Report

[Jamaaliver]

And it appears we have another contender for the ROY conversation.

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He'll never earn the scoring numbers of Trae, Ayton and Luka (particularly when Portis and Markkannen come back) but the kid looks very good very early.

Somewhat dismissed in the preseason Rookie of the Year projections, Carter has elbowed his way into top contention for rookie honors despite being just 19 years old. Carter is averaging 11.6 points and 8.3 rebounds for the season. But in the last five games as Carter has expanded his offensive play, he is averaging 15.6 points and 10.6 rebounds. He has made four of seven threes and is averaging 2.4 blocks.

It's probably placed Carter barely behind Luka Doncic and DeAndre Ayton among the top rookies with Trae Young putting up good scoring numbers on poor shooting. Overall among rookies, Carter is sixth in scoring, second in rebounding and first in blocks.

Bulls Propaganda Page

[ChokeFasncists]

Bro Nick Young! ~lol~

[Jamaaliver]

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