Prediction of Potential—The '19 ROTY prize

Prediction of Potential—The ‘19 ROTY prize
With the National Basketball Association (NBA) season is nearing its close, it’s time for a very special report.
Like every season, the race for the Rookie of The Year (ROTY) award has a few likely candidates. This year’s rookie class has one of the highest ceilings in years and potentially ever. Multiple rookies have shown much promise and talent; good news for the NBA in the years to come. However, even among this pool brimming with talent, there are two frontrunners, Luka Dončić and Trae Young, who have shown maturity beyond their years. The two athletes have each displayed not just flashes of brilliance but have consistently demonstrated their All-Star potential.
LUKA “WONDERBOY” DONČIĆ
Luka Dončić has demonstrated an innate talent for basketball, reminding many of former NBA MVP Dirk Nowitzki. Some of the comparisons drawn have been their European nationalities and that they both play for the Dallas Mavericks. Averaging 21 points, 7.6 rebounds, and just a tick shy of 6 assists per game, Dončić has shown a well rounded game in his first season. He has a consistent stepback shot and a penchant for coming up big in the clutch. One of his earliest magical highlights is when he nailed a catch-and-shoot three at the buzzer, sending a tough game against the Trail Blazers into overtime.
Another instance of Dončić’s “clutch gene” is his fourth quarter takeover against the Rockets on 8 December 2018. With just three minutes remaining, the Dallas Mavericks were at an 8 point deficit. Over the next few possessions, Luka swooped and scored 11 straight points to lead the Mavericks to a stunning victory over Houston.
Dončić leads all rookies in scoring, but he’s also stood out as a great passer and rebounder. Amongst players in his draft, he is second to only point guard Trae Young in assists per game while also ranking second in rebounds per game. He’s also demonstrated a willingness to play defense, where he sits third in total steals among rookies. This holistic game came straight from the Euroleague, where he was the youngest ever player to win the Euroleague MVP. His solid scoring, passing and rebounding has impressed many fans. In fact, Dončić had the second most All-Star fan votes in the tougher Western Conference, trailing only Lebron James.
An area he’s already exceeded Lebron James in, however, may be much more surprising. Lebron is well known for producing triple-doubles, but Lebron was unable to record a single triple-double during his entire rookie season. Comparatively, Dončić leads the rookies with 6 triple doubles this season and counting—the only NBA player ever to have multiple triple doubles as a teenager.
TRAE “ICE TRAE” YOUNG
Enter Trae Young. Traded for Luka Dončić at the NBA 2018 draft, many saw Young’s games before January and thought that the Atlanta Hawks had made a gross blunder on draft night. Recently, however, Young has put together a solid late run at the ROTY award, including a stellar 49-point, 16-assist game against the Chicago Bulls—the first time a rookie has scored 45+ points with 10+ assists since Michael Jordan.
Young struggled with three-point shooting during the first half of the season, shooting just 19.8% from three-point range in November, but he’s upped that to a eye-popping 43.7% through February. His rookie-leading 8 assists per game is fourth among all players in the NBA.
The Atlanta rookie has demonstrated marked improvement since the beginning of the season, shooting more shots and making them more often, but what’s remained constant through his early shooting struggles is his good eye for passing. He’s made some great assists by drawing multiple defenders to the perimeter before passing to teammates closer to the basket.
Much as Dončić has drawn comparisons to Nowitzki and Lebron, the young (wink, wink) guard has drawn comparisons to Stephen Curry, a two-time league MVP. Their playing styles are similar: they often shoot the ball from three-point range, and they both make flashy assists and score fancy layups.
This year’s race for Rookie of The Year has been exciting and fun—Dončić with his consistent, well-rounded performance and Young with his late case for top rookie. While Young’s recent performances may stand out to many, Dončić has been leading the Dallas Mavericks for the whole year, a feat that Young is hard-pressed to beat. Young’s drastic improvement in the past few weeks has him sitting comfortably in the second spot, but overall, Dončić leads in the ROTY race.