The year-long battle for Rookie of the Year honors is over and Utah Jazz star Donovan Mitchell came up empty-handed. However, he’s won something far more important.
To the surprise of no one, Philadelphia 76ers point-man Ben Simmons was officially named the 2018 NBA Rookie of the Year at the league’s annual awards show on Monday. And so the year-long battle between he and Utah Jazz star Donovan Mitchell has finally come to an end.
Somewhat unexpected, though, was Simmons’ margin of victory. In a word, it was massive — he captured 90 first-place votes to Mitchell’s 11. That probably feels like a major slight to the Jazz fans that went to bat for him throughout the season on social media.
Mitchell, however, isn’t sweating his runner-up status. Over the course of his incredible rookie campaign, he won something far more important than the ROY trophy.
The respect of his peers.
It’s something the Jazz guard has been keenly aware of throughout the year. Here’s what he said about the ROY race during an appearance on the JJ Redick Podcast last week —
"“Do I want to win it? Yes. Do I think I will? Probably not. But I won the award from my peers, so I don’t care what analysts think, they’re not the ones who have to guard me.”"
Mitchell is referring to the NBPA Players Voice Award he received earlier this month as the “Leader of the New School.” Really, though, that award just serves as a summation of the cred he earned with his peers throughout the season.
From LeBron James on down, the “ones who have to guard him” have consistently sung his praises.
LeBron James on Donovan Mitchell: “He’s a player. ... They’ve been riding that wave all season since they realized what they actually got.” pic.twitter.com/YmzmpU9chX
— Kyle Goon (@kylegoon) December 31, 2017
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Ahead of the awards show, the folks over at Young Hollywood, who are responsible for Mitchell’s “Rookie on the Rise” docu-series, compiled a who’s-who highlight reel of basketball people talking about his status as one of the league’s best young players —
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Clearly, Mitchell’s efforts are resonating with the people who know the game best. And many of the media members who hadn’t rewarded him on their ROY ballots got woke in short order when he propelled the Jazz to a first-round playoff series win over the Oklahoma City Thunder just a few, short weeks later.
In the end, the Simmons-Mitchell affair is probably akin to the rookie battles between Dwyane Wade and LeBron, Michael Jordan and Hakeem Olajuwon, etc. Both players will be multi-time All-Stars and All-NBA’ers as they lead their respective clubs to yearly playoff appearances.
But for Jazz fans feeling blue after Mitchell’s ROY “snub,” my advice would be to take heart. This is simply the case of one player taking the battle while the war rages on.
Mitchell is winning where it counts — on the hardwood and with his peers.