Rookie of the Year – Donovan Mitchell
From the season’s onset, Philadelphia 76ers phenom Ben Simmons was largely considered the frontrunner for the Rookie of the Year Award, and with good reason. He was highly-touted in college and despite missing what would have been his entire first year in the league due to injury, he had clearly proven himself as primed to become a generational talent long before that.
And so far in his rookie season, he has not disappointed. However, a certain Jazzman has made the Rookie of the Year race much closer than anyone could have presumed at the start of the year. That of course is Donovan Mitchell.
Mitchell’s emergence as a budding NBA star has turned the Rookie of the Year contest into essentially a two-man race. While Simmons has a strong argument as perhaps the better all-around player, Mitchell’s impact on his team cannot be understated.
He’s the leading scorer for the Jazz as well as the leading scorer among all rookies at 19.8 points per game. He has a higher usage percentage than Ben Simmons as Mitchell has quickly transformed into the number one option on a team that is on the cusp of forcing its way back into the playoffs. Meanwhile, Simmons is a key part of Philadelphia’s current playoff run, but many would consider him second fiddle to All-Star Joel Embiid.
🕷️🕷️rising!
— NBA.com/Stats (@nbastats) March 8, 2018
Donovan Mitchell has totaled 33 games with 20+ points this season, the most by any rookie since Damian Lillard (41) in 2012-13. pic.twitter.com/6OTglQMLeU
On the other hand, some could suggest that Donovan Mitchell is also second fiddle to Rudy Gobert since he’s made his healthy return. Simply put, there are so many arguments for and against both players earning the award. The fact of the matter is that these are two different players with two different roles (albeit key roles) on two different teams, which makes comparing them side-by-side more than a little bit tricky.
The only poor take is refusing to admit that either player has a case for winning Rookie of the Year.
At the end of the day, I wouldn’t be one bit surprised if Ben Simmons ends up getting the nod. There’s no question that he’s deserving! But Donovan Mitchell is every bit as deserving of being in that conversation and at this juncture, has a legitimate shot to steal the Rookie of the Year Award from the once heavy favorite.
Especially if the Jazz are able to force their way into the playoffs, perhaps even nabbing around the sixth seed, with Donovan Mitchell leading the way and breaking the 20 points per game mark, his case is going to be even further solidified.