It’s already a known fact that the 2021 NBA Draft class is full of great players. Cade Cunningham, Jalen Green, Evan Mobley, and Scottie Barnes are only four of the league’s rookies who have played at a high level season. With that being said, I’d be lying if I told you the Rookie of the Year Race was over, because it’s most certainly not.
Even pretty recently, it seemed as if Evan Mobley would continue to hold a substantial lead over the rest of the rookies this season, largely based off his first half alone for the Cleveland Cavaliers. But, an injury to Jarrett Allen, and more recently, his own sprained ankle have turned that narrative on its head. Now, while Mobley is still in the lead this week, there are a couple of guys who are looking to overtake the top spot.
The good news is that Mobley, and Jarrett Allen should be back in the rotation by the time the play-in tournament comes around, or so it seems. Cade Cunningham didn’t help his Rookie of the Year case as he only played eight minutes versus the Oklahoma City Thunder, then missed the entire game versus the Indiana Pacers. However, in terms of skill set and playmaking, he’s the best there is in this rookie class. He will need a very strong finish to overtake Mobley.
Behind Cunningham is a guy who is coming in under-the-radar a bit. Scottie Barnes has had a fantastic season for the Toronto Raptors. If you just look at his statistics and the impact he’s had on a good Raptors team, he should and will get some votes.
Looking past him, Jalen Green is up to the fourth rung this week. Even though the Houston Rockets keep losing, Green keeps on impressing. He’s averaged 32 points per game since last week’s ladder. I think it’s okay to forgive him for his terrible first half of the season.
Finally, bringing up the rear, once again is Franz Wagner of the Orlando Magic. I don’t know what Wagner needs to do to get noticed, but he’s having a great season. Every week he stays in the same spot, no matter what happens around him. Talk about consistency! Here’s the full Rookie Ladder Rankings for this week:
- Evan Mobley, Forward, Cavaliers
- Cade Cunningham, Guard, Detroit Pistons
- Scottie Barnes, Forward, Raptors
- Jalen Green, Guard, Rockets
- Franz Wagner, Forward, Magic
- Josh Giddey, Guard, Thunder
- Herbert Jones, Forward, New Orleans Pelicans
- Davion Mitchell, Guard, Sacramento Kings
- Bones Hyland, Guard, Denver Nuggets
- Ayo Dosunmu, Guard, Chicago Bulls
- Jonathan Kuminga, Forward, Golden State Warriors
- Chris Duarte, Guard, Pacers
Even though Giddey hasn’t played since the All-Star break, his triple-doubles and playmaking performances from before the break keeps him in the sixth spot.
Jones and Mitchell are both great defenders, and have looked better and better in their increasing offensive roles. Bones Hyland and Ayo Dosunmu are two floor generals, who before the season would not have made any type of rookie ladder.
And finally we have Jonathan Kuminga in the 11th spot. There have been calls for him to play more, but his playoff role might be “series dependent.”
From there, Duarte started off hot, but has faded at the end of the season. On top of that, he missed a bunch of games due to injury.
Mobley can win, but must close strong
Whenever Evan Mobley returns from injury, he is going to have to play even better than he did prior to the injury. Don’t get me wrong, Mobley’s case for ROY is by far the best out of the other options, but ending the season on a high note would be a huge confidence boost into 2022-23. With Jarrett Allen also returning to the lineup before the play-in/potentially postseason, this Cavaliers team could be a dangerous team once again in the playoffs.
Mobley has basically been atop the rookie ladder from the beginning of the season. His impact on winning is the one thing that stands out to me. Rarely, if ever, do you see a 20-year-old come right into the NBA and be an elite rim protecting big man. On top of that, his offensive arsenal is getting better by the game. With Allen being out with an injury, it opened up the floor more for Mobley to use his length and speed to get past defenders.
Even with Cade Cunningham and Scottie Barnes closing in on the top spot, I believe Mobley has enough gas to get him over the finish line.
And the most telling stat about Mobley that proves his worth is the team’s record when he doesn’t play. Without the big man from USC, the Cavs are 4-9. On top of that, they are 6-10 without Jarrett Allen.
So while this has been a very bad meltdown, it’s not all their fault. Any team would be impacted losing a starter. Now imagine losing two of your three cornerstones to injury, and then you have the Cleveland Cavaliers.
No matter how this season ends, hopefully the rest of the NBA took notice this season. This isn’t the same LeBron James-less Cavs that don’t stand a chance. This is a new, young group that has the possibility of making their own mark on the city of Cleveland.
Could Scottie Barnes be the de-facto winner?
It seems that in this Rookie of the Year race, there are two camps of people. The first are the ones who will dig in and defend Evan Mobley for the Rookie of the Year Award. The other people will do the same with Cade Cunningham.
But is there a possibility that Scottie Barnes sneaks up through the middle and wins the crown? Absolutely. In my opinion, Barnes has been the second-most impressive rookie this season. Cunningham has missed a lot of time due to injury, but has been impressive when he’s on the court. However, I think Barnes deserves the award a lot more than Cunningham.
Skill-wise, Cunningham might be the best in this draft class. Even still, that really doesn’t matter for the Rookie of the Year award. Barnes has played in 11 more games than Cunningham, and you could argue that he’s been more impressive on a much better team. The Raptors, as of this writing, have moved up to the fifth seed in the latest Eastern Conference standings. Barnes has averaged 15.5 points per game this season while also grabbing over 7.5 rebounds and dishing out over three assists.
No matter how the Rookie of the Year plays out, this has been a great season for rookies across the league.
Evan Mobley and Scottie Barnes have been great throughout the whole season, and Cade Cunningham has shown that he was worth the number one overall pick, when he’s on the court, this season. And after a disastrous first half of the season, second overall pick Jalen Green has been lighting it up, as noted by NBA.com’s Steve Aschburner, who authors the Ladder. Over the past week Green again aaveraged 32 points per game.
All of the rookies have had their time to shine this season. It’s just time to see who really wants the spotlight at the end.