The Rookie of the Year race has and will be a stats over substance award. Sacramento Kings fans remember the ROY run by Tyreke Evans, who finished the season averaging 20 ppg, 5 rpg and 5 apg. This season finished with the Kings winning 25 games total and showing little improvement from the season before. Tyreke was never able to build onto his strong rookie season and has turned into, at best, a high end sixth man. These rankings should be taken likely as these rankings are based more from opportunity to play, rather than player skill.

Luka Doncic

Luka has averaged 34 minutes per game through two games this season. Luka’s first game of the year he showcased his versatility, ending with 10 points, 8 rebounds and 4 assists. The disparity in athleticism was obvious as the Phoenix Suns wing players hounded Doncic into a 5/16 shooting night including 0/5 from the three point line. 2⠂Despite the shooting woes, Dallas trusted their young rookie to keep playing and Doncic was able to make a difference on the boards and setting up his teammates.

Doncic’s first home game was a different story. Luka was on the court to close out a close game and Dallas leaned on him to score on back to back possessions posting up Andrew Wiggins. Luka made a tough falling turnaround jumper after spinning back toward the baseline and followed it up later by turning into the paint and drawing a foul. Doncic finished the night with 26 points on 8/16 field goal attempts and made 4/9 three point attempts. He also added 6 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 steals and a block.

Despite the clear defensive deficiencies and the typical turnover issues seen with rookie ball handlers, Luka has earned the top spot with his all around offensive skill set.

Trae Young

Young has been given the reins of the Atlanta Hawks and is quickly showing off the same playmaking skills he was much ballyhooed for in college. In the opening minutes of his debut against the New York Knicks he had a beautiful drive, forcing his teammates defender to step up and defend Young allowing him to throw a wrap around pass to a wide open Alex Len. Late in the third quarter Young caught the defense off guard with a quick screen into a long three, showing his Steph Curry-like range. Despite being unable to play his team into contention that night he did leave his footprint.

Building onto his good start to the season Young followed up with his first 20 point game in the NBA. Young scored on a multitude of three pointers and showed an ability to finish in the lane. By showing an ability to collapse a defense, he was able to dish out 9 assists. He set up his teammates with easy threes and layups.

Unfortunately his strong showings led to losses by his team and that is what keeps him behind Luka Doncic, who was able to be a key performer in a win for Dallas.

Marvin Bagley III

Bagley has shown when given minutes he can contribute at a high level. Unfortunately in his debut he was only put on the court for 12 minutes. Bagley was able to make the most of his time on the court by putting up 6 points and 5 rebounds. Bagley showed an ability to rebound and immediately push the ball up the court. Playing in a fast paced offense for the Sacramento Kings this provides an immediate boost, by not allowing opposing players to get back on defense while the bigs search for an outlet. Bagley showcased his bruising post play and soft touch down low on two post up opportunities against Jae Crowder, first finishing on a baby hook with his left and later on a baseline spin finishing under the basket. On a night where the King’s starters were playing strong against a tough Utah Jazz team it was hard to find playing time for the rookie big.

Bagley got an opportunity to get in the game early when starting forward Nemanja Bjelica got into foul trouble. Bagley took little time proving to his coach that he deserves to play. Bagley quickly attacked MVP candidate Anthony Davis, finishing a two-handed alley oop as Davis ran back on defense and even driving at Davis after receiving the ball in the corner and finishing a tough spinning layup. Throughout the night Bagley took his defender into the post and worked them, using spins and fakes to build his point total all the way up to 19 points. Similar to the first game and all through college, Bagley was strong on the boards showing off his lightning quick jumping to finish with 8 total rebounds. Bagley even showed he can hold his own on the defensive end finishing the night with 3 steals and a block.

Bagley can find himself moving up the ladder if he can find a way to play big minutes throughout the season.

Jaren Jackson Jr.

Jackson has found himself in a great situation with a team built perfectly around his skill set. Jackson can be a defensive stalwart who has shown potential on the offensive side of the ball by stretching out to the three point line. Jackson’s debut wasn’t outstanding and it was easy to miss him on the floor, but his length made the night just a bit tougher for the Indiana Pacers. Jackson disrupted passing lanes, sticking his arms out and deflecting passes led to 3 steals by the end of the game. He finished with a block as well, just by holding his ground and raising his arms to deflect a layup attempt from Victor Oladipo. The stats weren’t bad on offense for Jackson, he ended with 10 points. He only shot 2/6 from the field and got most of his points from the free throw line.

Finding himself going against a young Hawks team, Jackson was able to hit a groove. Jackson once again was able to get to the line finishing with six made free throws. He also was able to finish down low in the post using a few simple hooks and spins. Different from the previous game he took four threes, making two. Entering into the draft he was celebrated for his defense and so far into his NBA career he can be relied on night in and night out to compete on that end of the court. He finished the night with 2 blocks and a steal.

On a veteran squad, Jackson’s stats won’t be there every night but hd’s shown the ability to be consistent and keep himself on the court.

Deandre Ayton

Ayton dominated all through the preseason showing off an advanced post game, solid mid range jumper and an inside presence on defense. After his debut against Dallas it looked like Ayton was going to dominate throughout the season just as he did before the season started. Ayton teamed up with Devin Booker to lead the Suns to a dominant win over the Mavericks. Quickly finding himself in a mismatch with Luka Doncic he caught the ball in the low post and backed him down to spin to his left and draw an and one. He showed a comfort at the elbow hitting turnarounds and a smooth, quick release off the catch. Beyond his scoring ability, Ayton showed a strong court awareness taking advantage of double teams by quickly finding the open man for a couple threes. This awareness netted him 6 assists for the night. On the defensive end he was able to keep himself out of foul trouble against aggressive bigs in Deandre Jordan and Dwight Powell. Ayton started the season strong with a double-double in his NBA debut.

Playing against a crafty big in Nikola Jokic in his second game, Ayton found himself in foul trouble all night. Unable to stay on the court for more than a few minutes at a time, he was unable to get anything going on offense. Ayton went 2/5 leading to only 5 points the entire night. Ayton did play aggressive and was able to pull in 8 rebounds but was clearly frustrated, ending up with 2 turnovers after have 0 the previous game.

This may have been a one off night for Ayton but with only a few games played it is a knock in the standings.

Honorable Mention:

Allonzo Trier

Trier deserves a mention here for his bullish mentality, consistently getting to the free throw line. Working his way from an undrafted free agent to a two-way contract with the Knicks, Trier has carved out a role on this young team. Trier is averaging 12.7 points on 42% shooting from the field and 5 free throw attempts per game. Trier also has made a highlight play with a strong one-handed dunk through two Hawk defenders.