NBA Rookie Ladder: No Zion Williamson, no problem
1. Ja Morant, Memphis Grizzlies
17.5 PPG, 3.5 REB, 5.0 AST
If it wasn’t for his scoring outburst against Kyrie Irving and the Brooklyn Nets, Ja Morant might not have held onto this top spot over RJ Barrett.
However, that performance was so much of a coming-out party for the young Grizzlies guard that it’s hard to ignore him and not have him as the favorite after the first week and a half of action.
Morant’s 30 points on 13-of-22 shooting don’t do that breakdown any justice. He went after Irving in a way that not many rookies would given the respect level a lot of players have for veterans.
He wasn’t scared one bit and challenged him on both ends of the floor, besting him in the contest and making a number of key plays to put the game firmly in Memphis’ grasp. It was a performance that won’t be forgotten any time soon and one that put Morant’s full game on display.
While he’s never fully operated as a score-first guard, he’s stacking high point totals to start the year for a first-year point guard. His passing ability was what many raved about coming out of college, but other than that game against Brooklyn he hasn’t topped the five assist mark and has had his share of turnovers.
Again, guards will go through growing pains learning different offensive systems and how to run pro pick-and-rolls. Going into the season it was easy to predict some early struggles for Morant, especially given the youthful supporting cast around him.
But he’s still found plenty of ways to exceed early expectations and he certainly doesn’t buck the trend of rookies finding success from beyond the arc (42.9 percent).
Right now, he’s got the top spot, but it’s early. There are far too many contenders for the top rookie spot so far.