Every week, Vincent Goodwill of Yahoo Sports will reveal his ticket for an NBA superlative award for the 2019-20 season. Tickets were to be submitted before the season restart at Walt Disney World.
The NBA Rookie of the Year career met expectations and fears, all in one spectacular package. When Zion Williamson was preparing to make his debut in late January, the anticipation only matched the certainty that Ja Morant was doing more than enough to secure the award.
Availability is the only reason this was no different, with Williamson playing just 19 games. The window for Williamson to possibly steal the award closed when the NBA announced that the ballots would be based on games played prior to closing, because a growing team of the New Orleans Pelicans who were late for a playoff spot would be a factor. convincing in Williamson’s favor.
But Morant, a -5000 favorite to win the prize at BetMGM, is not a consolation prize, nor a predetermined selection. Playing in the deepest position for a Memphis Grizzlies team trying to transition from one identity to another is no small feat. Before being drafted, he proclaimed to Yahoo Sports that he was a “Point God,” a title reserved for the few who belong to the story, and turned it in, averaging 17.6 points and 6.9 assists.
Although slim, he gets to the lane with ease, he has the rebound to finish above the big flat-legged ones and the bravado to take off long before physics says he should. His jumper is reliable enough (36.7 percent of three) that defenders can’t slide under the screens, and he’ll only become more consistent with time and experience.
In addition, he played winning basketball, a constant factor with all three players on the ROY ticket: Morant, Williamson and Kendrick Nunn of the Miami Heat. The Grizzlies’ first win in Disney’s bubble will coincide with their total last season, a direct result of the man who controls most possessions and leads a young team that currently has the eighth seed in the Western Conference.
My second place is someone who wasn’t even in the 2019 draft class, wasn’t selected in the 2018 draft, and was signed and resigned before playing a game with the Golden State Warriors in 2018: Nunn.
His 112 points in his first five games are a record for an unselected player and stunned the league.
The Heat signed him at the end of last season and made his debut in this year’s first game, scoring 24 against Morant in a Heat 19-point victory. Too small for a 6-foot-2-inch guard but with an unsuspecting mindset, the Heat found a place for him and his 15.6 points per game in a unique setting.
He is aggressive and strong for his size, and given his “advanced” age of 24, the transition to professional play was not so difficult, although it is difficult to project his ceiling in the long term. But the Heat is not a traditional outfit, led by Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo.
Behind Butler, they score by committee and Nunn has fitted in as the starter, allowing coach Erik Spoelstra to pull Goran Dragic off the bench to stabilize the second unit. Nunn hunts across the lane and is a strong and cunning finisher.
How the league catches up to it and how it fits will be interesting, but he seems to have found his place with a Miami team that will be difficult in the bubble playoff setup.
And apologizing to PJ Washington from Charlotte, Brandon Clarke from Memphis, and Nunn’s teammate Tyler Herro, Williamson casts my vote.
It is too tempting to ignore it.
The electricity it produces is so tangible, as witnessed in his debut against the San Antonio Spurs when he was 4 of 4 of three and had Gregg Popovich running.
The historical precedent for Williamson’s case was somewhat reinforced recently, when Joel Embiid made his long-awaited debut after two years on the shelf and played just 31 games in 2016-17. Embiid’s impact was undeniable, almost becoming a 20-10 machine in just 25 minutes a night, putting together the most statistically impressive season of any “rookie.” But he finished third behind teammate Dario Saric and winner Malcolm Brogdon, but garnered more second-place votes than Saric.
Now, history has shown that Embiid is a star, but that should not play such an important role in the vote because it is not about projection but about production. However, Williamson’s production in limited time should not be ignored: 23.6 points and 6.8 rebounds in 29.7 minutes per game.
Had he qualified, his Player Efficiency Rating would have been 12th, in front of Trae Young and just behind Nikola Jokic. Like Morant, he gives pelicans hope for the present and the future. Williamson’s work around the rim makes him a future candidate to play in the center of the small ball, and his play did not hinder Brandon Ingram’s Most Improved Player campaign, as Ingram averaged over 21 a night in his 16 games together.
The rhythm he has developed with Jrue Holiday and Lonzo Ball makes his game even more attractive, because he does not intend to dominate the ball but to adapt.
Only his mere presence attracts so much attention on the floor, even though he is not a shooter, he opens up opportunities for everyone else.
There is only a lot of room for a player operating on the margins, but there is an unlimited amount in the air. And that’s where you earn your money and create fear.
His athleticism makes him a nightmare to protect and ignore. It makes teams take it into account no matter where you are, although it’s clear you’re still working things out at this level.
He didn’t play enough to win Rookie of the Year, but he played too well when he was available to ignore it.
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