Los Angeles Lakers: LeBron or Giannis for MVP? NBA awards predictions
Rookie of the year: Ja Morant, PG, Memphis Grizzlies
Runner up: Zion Williamson, PF, New Orleans Pelicans
This would have been a neck and neck battle had Zion played a full season, however since Zion missed a large part of the season, no matter how good he was when he played, he is simply not eligible to claim the award.
Don’t get it twisted, if Zion Williamson was healthy for a significant portion of the season, he would unquestionably be the Rookie of the year.
Zion exploded out of the blocks when he finally got healthy and looked like one of the best rookies since LeBron James. His averages of 23.6PPG, 6.8RPG, 2.2APG, show how pro-ready Zion Williamson was. One can only imagine what Zion will look like next year with another year of experience and top-level coaching.
The rookie who has been balling out all year and is deserved of the award is future superstar, Ja Morant.
Compared to Zion’s numbers, it might seem that Morant had a significantly lesser season than Zion. That couldn’t be further from the truth.
In Ja Morant, it is easy to see him becoming one of the best point guards in the league sooner rather than later. With dunking ability similar to Russell Westbrook, speed on par with DeAaron Fox, and a well-rounded shooting and play-making game, Morant if he continues to develop, has the potential to be an MVP candidate in this league over the coming years.
With Morant on the Grizzlies and Zion on the Pelicans, both franchises have an extremely bright future and the NBA is also in extremely safe hands going forward.