My 2023 Rookie of the Year & All-Rookie Team picks.
Rookie of the Year
Paolo Banchero- Orlando Magic
Notes: Banchero looked like the Rookie of the Year all season, as he went up against different defensive coverages that no other rookie came close to seeing (20.0 PPG/3.7 APG). He also rebounded the ball at a high level (6.9 RPG) and defended guards, forwards, and centers. His shooting numbers were probably the one area that wasn’t Rookie of the Year worthy (42.7% FG/29.8% 3-PT), but when you’re facing defenses designed for an All-Star in year one, those percentages don’t really matter to me as much.
All-Rookie First Team
Paolo Banchero- Orlando Magic
Jalen Williams- Oklahoma City Thunder
Walker Kessler- Utah Jazz
Bennedict Mathurin- Indiana Pacers
Keegan Murray- Sacramento Kings
Notes: Banchero, Williams, Kessler, and Mathurin should without a doubt be All-Rookie First Team members, as they had many nights where I said to myself, ‘These guys are the real deal.’ The four showed off natural ability that you can’t teach on both ends, making winning play after winning play. As for my 5th selection, Keegan Murray, this was a tough call, but efficiency won out on this one. There were certainly a lot of games where Jaden Ivey looked like an All-Rookie First Team guy, but he could never fix his field goal percentage (41.6% FG) and turnover issue (237 turnovers) enough for me to make First Team while Murray stayed consistent throughout the year (broke the rookie 3-point record with 206 threes/shot 41.1% from deep/took on the challenge of defending star players).
All-Rookie Second Team
Jaden Ivey- Detroit Pistons
Jeremy Sochan- San Antonio Spurs
Jabari Smith Jr.- Houston Rockets
Jalen Duren- Detroit Pistons
Tari Eason- Houston Rockets
Notes: I think all five of these rookies should be locks to make Second Team, but I wouldn’t be surprised if Indiana Pacers guard Andrew Nembhard takes one of the last spots. It’s probably going to be a close vote between Eason and Nembhard, but I personally believe Eason was more productive in all areas. Nembhard was the better playmaker/passer (4.5 APG vs. 1.1 APG). However other than that, they basically averaged the same scoring numbers (9.5 PPG vs. 9.3 PPG) while Eason outrebounded Nembhard (6.0 RPG vs. 2.7 RPG) and was the better defender (1.2 SPG vs. 0.9 SPG). Lastly, Eason had more double-doubles than Nembhard (7 vs. 5) and did it in far less minutes (21.5 MPG vs. 27.6 MPG).
