What a great week of basketball it has been across the country. Before the Cleveland Cavaliers lost to the Lakers on Monday, they had won two straight at home, one coming in overtime. On top of that, we also got to watch some of the best young NBA prospects during the opening weekend of March Madness. But, it’s time to break down another rookie ladder, and you’ll never guess who was number one this week? If you guessed Evan Mobley, you are a winner!
For the seventh straight week, Rookie of the Year frontrunner and Cleveland Cavalier forward Evan Mobley is atop the rankings on the rookie ladder. After averaging 16.3 points per game this past week, along with collecting nine rebounds per game, he is still the clear leader of this year’s rookie class.
Mobley played a big game against MVP candidate Nikola Jokic and the Denver Nuggets over the weekend, pulling out an overtime win. The rookie had 27 points and 11 rebounds. Against the LA Clippers last Monday, the big man out of USC put up the first 30-point performance of his career. Mobley will need to continue to play well down the last stretch of the regular season.
Filling out the rest of the top five was pretty simple for NBA.com writer Steve Aschburner. Coming in at second for another week in a row is the Detroit Pistons’ Cade Cunningham. The good news for Cade is that his field goal percentage got above 40% this week. He has been good when healthy this season, it’s just hard to know when he’ll be healthy.
Coming in below Cunningham is the Toronto Raptors’ Scottie Barnes. The wing from Florida State, averaged over 16 points per game this past week, and he has a huge test against Evan Mobley and the Cavs on Thursday night.
Rounding out the final two of the top-five are Franz Wagner and Jalen Green. Wagner really does have a case for being one of the most under-the-radar players in the entire NBA this season. Now, Jalen Green has been a pleasure to watch since his disastrous All-Star Weekend. Hopefully Green is able to close out this season on a strong note.
With all that being said, let’s take a look at the full Rookie Ladder Rankings with only three weeks left to go in the regular season.
NBA Rookie Ladder (March 23)
- Evan Mobley, Forward, Cavaliers
- Cade Cunningham, Guard, Pistons
- Scottie Barnes, Forward, Raptors
- Franz Wagner, Forward, Orlando Magic
- Jalen Green, Guard, Houston Rockets
- Josh Giddey, Guard/Forward, Oklahoma City Thunder
- Herbert Jones, Forward, New Orleans Pelicans
- Ayo Dosunmu, Guard, Chicago Bulls
- Davion Mitchell, Guard, Sacramento Kings
- Jonathan Kuminga, Forward, Golden State Warriors
- Chris Duarte, Guard, Indiana Pacers
- Bones Hyland, Guard, Denver Nuggets
Winner takes all in Mobley vs. Barnes on Thursday night?
I think as Cavs fans we can all agree that it’s been kind of a bummer that the Cavs haven’t truly played any super important games late in the season over the past few years. However, Thursday night’s matchup with the seventh-seeded Toronto Raptors on Thursday night in “the Six” is definitely in that ball park.
The Cavaliers are a full game ahead of the Raptors, making that matchup all the more important. And two players who will have a lot to say about who wins that game are two of the top rookies this year in Evan Mobley and Scottie Barnes.
Mobley was the no-brainer pick for the Cavs at number three, but Barnes was no shoe-in to go fourth, right after Mobley. Some, including myself, thought he would slide below the top eight. Nonetheless, he’s come out this season and made all the doubters look like dummies. This season Barnes is averaging 15.4 points per game, 7.7 rebounds per game, and 3.4 assists per game. He’s been a huge factor in the Raptors’ success this season, and has even earned some praise from LeBron James, via Sports Illustrated’s Aaron Rose.
"“I saw Scottie Barnes for the first time in seventh grade. I told one of my good friends: ‘This kid is going to be special.’ I saw the length of his arms and he was playing point guard at his size back then, and obviously, he is still doing it now and can play multiple positions. For him to have that size and ability, I knew he was going to be special so there is no surprise for what he is doing for me, personally.'”"
However, he will have no easy task when taking on Mobley. The young man from Cali has improved upon his already impressive game every week this season. Now when you watch him on the court, you almost start to think he’s a seasoned vet the way he has started to talk on defense, and Mobley’s offensive repertoire is incredible. In my humble opinion, Mobley has the Rookie of the Year wrapped up and in a bag.
If you told any single NBA fan, coach, player, or even GM, no one would have predicted that the Cavs would be on the verge of clinching some kind of playoff spot in the 2022 NBA playoffs; they would laugh at you, directly in the face. Not all the winning is because of Mobley, but he sure has a lot to do with it.
Next year’s predicted Week One Rookie Ladder
Honestly, the ladder hasn’t added any real new names or players in a while, and I’ve talked about the players a lot. So instead of breaking down more of this week’s ladder, let’s take a look to the future to see what the Week One 2022 Rookie Ladder standings might just look like.
On the top spot, the guy I think will have the most immediate impact is Chet Holmgren. When I watched Gonzaga play Duke on Saturday, I thought I was watching a young man who could right now be the leading rim protector of an NBA team. On top of that, we’ve just never seen anything like Chet as a prospect.
Standing at 7-foot, with a crazy wingspan, but slender frame, I can’t recall another prospect like him. However, the biggest nugget about Holmgren is that he has the body to bump down low, but also has guard skills from the perimeter. Holmgren opens at number one on my 2022 Rookie Ladder.
Starting the year in second, I have to go with the second overall pick, Jabari Smith. After a disappointing ending to his Auburn season, he’ll now start preparing for the NBA. Smith’s offense will translate very well to the NBA, and his perimeter defense and rim-protecting abilities are vastly underrated.
Finally, to round out my future top three I have to go with Jaden Ivey, who has eclipsed Paolo Banchero in my mind.
Overall, this is a great time to be alive and watching some hoops. The weather is supposed to be cold and wet this coming week, so there’s nothing better to do than turn on the Cavaliers game and just relax.
With only three more rookie ladder rankings to be unveiled, I don’t have any doubt that Mobley wll bring home the award, barring something crazy.