In all likelihood, the 2014-15 NBA Rookie of the Year race was settled when Jabari Parker tore his ACL in mid-December. At the time, Parker was the favorite, and his injury left No. 1 overall pick Andrew Wiggins of the Minnesota Timberwolves as the only rookie with the right combination of playing time and offensive production to win the award.

Rookie Leaders In Points, Rebounds And Assists Per Game Player Team PPG RPG APG Total Andrew Wiggins MIN 16.3 4.4 1.9 22.7 Nerlens Noel PHI 10.0 8.2 1.7 20.0 Elfrid Payton ORL 8.9 4.3 6.3 19.5 Langston Galloway NYK 11.4 4.3 3.2 18.9 Jordan Clarkson LAL 10.9 3.1 3.1 17.1

As I originally discovered last season when writing about the rookie of the year race, 26 of the past 27 ROY awards have gone to the rookie with the highest combined per-game averages in points, rebounds and assists per game. (The other one went to the second-place finisher.) If that trend holds, Wiggins is the clear choice:

Real Plus-Minus Rookie Leaderboard Player Team RPM WAR Nikola Mirotic CHI 3.2 5.4 Jusuf Nurkic DEN 3.0 3.5 Marcus Smart BOS 1.6 4.3 Elfrid Payton ORL 1.5 5.6 Elijah Millsap UTA 0.8 1.7

But if voters look deeper, they'll discover that it's time to buck the trend and pick a rookie who's not even in the top five in combined points, rebounds and assists per game: Chicago Bulls forward Nikola Mirotic.

Making a difference on a playoff team