For the last time before the All-Star break, Evan Mobley and Scottie Barnes are once again on the rookie ladder’s top two rungs this week. Both Barnes and Mobley’s effect on winning has put them in a different tier than most other rookies. Last week, I went over how rare it was to see Mobley have such a big effect on wins and losses, and Barnes is having much of that same effect on the Raptors as well. With both the Cleveland Cavaliers and Toronto Raptors locked in a tight Eastern Conference Playoff race, I think it’s safe to say that a lot of these rookies could use the time off.
The workload that has been put on some of these rookies’ plate has been crazy, with Barnes 12th in the league in minutes per game with 35.5. Mobley isn’t far behind him, putting in 34.1 minutes per game for the Cavaliers. So yes, these guys are young and spry, but they need a break sometimes, too. So let’s take a look at the full list, and even get into the Oklahoma City Thunder’s Josh Giddey, who is quickly rising up the rookie ladder.
As I mentioned, Mobley and Barnes go 1-2 on the ladder for what feels like the 10th time this season. Both have been impressive on both ends of the floor.
Even as the break drew nearer, and both players looked to be getting a little fatigued, they looked strong in recent performances. Mobley put up 18 points and and 10 rebounds in the Cavaliers loss to the Atlanta Hawks Tuesday night. Even in the loss, the rookie snatched four steals. Barnes put up 17 points and grabbed five rebounds in a tough loss to the Nuggets. For both of those two, however, I’m sure the only thing that matters is the loss. It should be a great show on Friday night, watching those two go back-and-forth in the Rising Stars Challenge. But, let’s not forget there are a lot of other rung-holders playing in the game.
Making his way up to number three this week, is Josh Giddey, who has stepped his game up as of late. The no-doubt-about-it best rookie in the Western Conference put on a quite a show at Madison Square Garden on Monday. The Australian had 28 points, 12 assists and 11 rebounds against the New York Knicks, and enjoyed every minute of it. Oh, that was coming off another triple-double against the Chicago Bulls over the weekend. At 19, he became the NBA’s first teenager to have back-to-back triple-doubles, as pointed out by NBA.com’s Steve Aschburner.
Rounding out the top five, is the number one overall pick Cade Cunningham at fourth, and Franz Wagner back at five. Cunningham has had some recent injury struggles, so his game has been off. I would imagine after the long break, he should be back to putting on great performances, like he had versus the Cavs at the end of last month.
Meanwhile, Franz Wagner is your prototypical great young player, just playing for a bad team. But, the Magic shouldn’t be down for long with guys like Wagner, Mohamed Bamba, Jalen Suggs, and Cole Anthony on one of the youngest teams in the league. Here’s are the full rankings:
- Evan Mobley, PF, Cavaliers
- Scottie Barnes, Forward, Raptors
- Josh Giddey, Guard, Thunder
- Cade Cunningham, Guard, Detroit Pistons
- Franz Wagner, Forward, Magic
- Ayo Dosunmu, Guard, Bulls
- Herbert Jones, Forward, New Orleans Pelicans
- Chris Duarte, Guard, Indiana Pacers
- Jonathan Kuminga, Forward, Golden State Warriors
- Jalen Suggs, Guard, Magic
Mobley and Barnes thriving, while Giddey impresses
I don’t really need to do a lot of writing in this particular edition of my reaction to the rookie ladder this week. It’s been pretty clear that Evan Mobley and Scottie Barnes were the clear frontrunners for Rookie of the Year. With that being said, Josh Giddey has entered his name into the discussion, and Cade Cunningham’s talent will ultimately be there at the end. However, Mobley is a clear first choice in my books.
He not only leads all rookies in plus-minus, but he dwarfs the competition. At plus-157, the nearest rookie is Los Angeles Lakers guard/wing Austin Reaves with a plus-116. Reaves has also played in considerably less time than Mobley.
Either way, it’s not that it’s very rare to see such a high rating for such a young player, but it’s that he’s doing it on another level than anyone else in his class. Mobley leads all rookies in field goal percentage and blocks, and in recent games has shown he is looking to improve offensively. I have a feeling he’ll be very eager to get back to real games after this weekend.
To be completely honest, I don’t get to see a lot of Scottie Barnes play. However, in the time that I have watched him, he’s been one of the best all-around players I’ve seen. He really is a stat-stuffer, and that is often translating into wins for the seventh-place Raptors. I could go on and on about how great Barnes season has been, but I think we’re all thoroughly impressed with the level he’s playing at, with such a high workload.
To the last point, though, I think it’s time to officially enter Josh Giddey’s name into the Rookie of the Year conversation. With teammate Shai Gilegeous-Alexander struggling with injuries, Giddey has kept the Thunder above water. On top of that, he’s also doing it in a lot of different ways. Giddey has a calm presence that you often see with great facilitators.
But Giddey has shown he’s more than just a great facilitator. In the game versus the Knicks, he was 11-for-22 from the field, while also hitting a trio of three-pointers.
It’s going to be a joy to watch him throw alley-oops all night on Friday.
Finally, Cunningham has the talent to be the best rookie of this class; unfortunately, he’s just struggled with injuries. On top of that, the Pistons have been extra cautious, which is very smart considering the Pistons are probably looking at another high lottery pick next season.
It should be a thrilling ride all the way to the end of the season. I can’t wait.
Jalen Green, James Bouknight among rookies hoping for a strong close to the season
We’ve been well past the halfway mark of the season for some time here, but I still look at the All-Star break as a strong benchmark point for rookies. Evan Mobley, Franz Wagner, Herbert Jones, and Jalen Suggs, among others, have looked strong at points this season. However, while I don’t like to do this, there are some rookies who need to perform better in the second half of the season.
Obviously, we have to start with the second overall pick Jalen Green. The young guard has only played in 41 games for the Houston Rockets, struggling with leg injuries at points during the season. Although, he’s scored over 14 points per game, which is impressive. But his efficiency has been pretty bad all season; he’s only shooting 38 percent from the field, and shooting just 30 percent from three.
As good as the Cavaliers have been with Evan Mobley on the court, the Rockets have not been very good with Green on or off of it. When he’s on the court the Rockets have shown they aren’t that much better when he’s playing. He needs to pick up his shooting, and possibly put up more effort on the defensive end.
Other guys like James Bouknight and Sharife Cooper have been buried on their teams’ respected benches. Unfortunately, some of these young teams are already contending, so finding significant time in the later stretch of the season may be tough.
It’s very important for Green, more than anyone else, that he performs better over the next near-two months, or else he will start to look like a real bust.