Mitchell or Simmons? Rookie of the Year Race
Before the beginning of the season, there were already a few favorites to win the NBA Rookie of the year (ROTY) award. After a few games, unknown names pop-up in the ROTY discussion like Lauri Markkanen, Kyle Kuzma and Donovan Mitchell (just to name a few).
After the 2017-2018 NBA regular season, only two names survived the race: Donovan Mitchell and Ben Simmons. Donovan Mitchell is the 13th overall pick this season originally by the Denver Nuggets but immediately traded to the Utah Jazz for Trey Lyles and the draft rights to Tyler Lydon(24th overall pick). Ben Simmons on the other hand, is the 1st overall pick of the Philadelphia 76ers last season but didn't play due to a fracture of the fifth metatarsal bone of his right foot which led him to miss the entire 2016-2017 NBA season.
For comparison, here is the stats of both players:
Ben Simmons is ahead in all of the categories except point per game, 3-point field goal per game and free throw percentage per game which Donovan Mitchell specialized in.
In giving the ROTY award, there are also other factors to be considered other than statistics like how the players made an impact to their team and the mostly debated one is if Ben Simmons is actually a rookie.
To bury this debate, let's remember when Blake Griffin (1st overall pick in the 2009-2010 season) won the 2010-2011 NBA Rookie of the year award. He and Ben Simmons both missed their first season due to injury but still considered as a rookie in the following season. This serves as an evidence that Ben Simmons is eligible for being the Rookie of the year.
Donovan Mitchell had an outstanding rookie season considering that he is playing in the West Conference which is the stronger conference. He is a better scorer than Ben Simmons. He has a mid-range jumper and a 3-point shot which Simmons lack. He even leads the team on points per game. This shows how much of a scorer he is.
On the contrary, Ben Simmons is a better all-around player than Mitchell. He even carries his whole team without having a jump shot. Tgis is a clear evidence that the two of them are a completely different players so comparing them is pretty hard. If only they'd be awarded as a co-rookie of the year (which will never happen) because they are both deserving.
Well, personally for me, I will give it to Ben Simmons because of the way he impacts the game without scoring that much. He also averages close to a triple-double and carrying the team without Joel Embiid. Let's not forget that the Sixers weren't in the playoffs last year but is in now. It is true that Simmons is not the only reason but he is still a major contributor.
So those are my thoughts, of course I might be wrong so let me know what you think about whio should be the Rookie of the year this season in the comments section below.
This is my first sports analysis blog so I apologize for the bad delivery. Also, upvote and resteem this post if you want me to talk about my thoughts on who should be the 2017-2018 NBA MVP. Thank you and have a nice day.