10 NBA Rookie of the Year candidates

The last several NBA Rookie of the Year races were downright fascinating to follow for different reasons. Luka Doncic of the Dallas Mavericks, winner of the award for the 2018-19 season, seemed to have the competition wrapped up by the halfway point of the campaign, but Atlanta Hawks guard Trae Young gave Doncic quite a scare from February through the first few weeks of April. 

In the spring of 2018, Donovan Mitchell trolled Ben Simmons, that season's ROTY, over the definition of the word "rookie." The previous year, Malcolm Brogdon earned ROTY honors over Joel Embiid largely because "The Process" featured in only 31 games during his debut season.

Unsurprisingly, the 19-year-old phenom who spent one college season at Duke before entering the Association via this year's draft is a runaway favorite to hoist the Rookie of the Year trophy in 2020. Even if his talent matches the hype, he could face stiff competition from a pair of fellow first-year pros, one who became a national sensation overnight during March Madness and another who will call the World's Most Famous Arena his basketball home for the upcoming season.

Who are the top contenders for the NBA Rookie of the Year?

Tyler Herro

Summer League play means literally nothing as it pertains to Rookie of the Year voting, but Miami Heat guard Tyler Herro gets a shout out for his performances in such games. According to Anthony Chiang of the Miami Herald, the shooter drafted 13th overall averaged 19.8 PPG, 4.5 rebounds and 4.3 assists while burying 42 percent of his attempts from the field during Summer League outings. Other than questions about his ability to defend at the highest level, the biggest thing working against his ROTY chances is that the Heat probably aren't finished building their roster for the upcoming season. Landing Jimmy Butler earlier in the offseason won't be enough for Miami to complete a deep postseason run. Bradley Beal, Chris Paul, Kevin Love and, yes, Carmelo Anthony are just some of the names linked with the Heat in the final month of the summer. How much Herro may play with Miami or a different team is anybody's guess ahead of Labor Day.

Rui Hachimura

Rui Hachimura has the most unique story among his rookie classmates. One of the most famous professional athletes from Japan, Hachimura first started playing competitive basketball at the age of 13, per Chase Hughes of NBC Sports Washington, and the 6-foot-8 forward who spent three seasons at Gonzaga and was drafted ninth overall by the Washington Wizards should see plenty of playing time featuring for an awful team. As Albert Lee of Bullets Forever wrote, the 21-year-old averaged 19.3 points and 7.0 rebounds en route to earning a spot on the NBA Summer League Second Team. He'll have to improve his long-range shot to compete for Rookie of the Year honors, as he converted only 24 of 76 three-point attempts during his collegiate career.

Michael Porter Jr.

Denver Nuggets forward Michael Porter Jr. has an advantage over others in the list. The 21-year-old is no stranger to life in the NBA, as the 14th pick of the 2018 draft redshirted what should have been his rookie year while rehabbing his injured back. A 6-foot-10 forward who suffered through one injury-plagued season at Missouri before turning pro, Porter went down to a knee sprain in July that caused him to miss valuable Summer League action. The Nuggets are stacked with talent and, thus, can bring Porter along slowly. Per Jake Fischer of Sports Illustrated, both the Nuggets and Porter believe he'll benefit from the gap year in the Association as did Blake Griffin and Ben Simmons, two previous Rookie of the Year winners.

Jarrett Culver 

Remember when Andrew Wiggins won Rookie of the Year with the Minnesota Timberwolves in 2015? Minnesota is hoping history repeats itself with Jarrett Culver. The Big 12 Player of the Year for his last season at Texas Tech is a 6-foot-7 perimeter force at both ends of the court whom SB Nation's Ricky O'Donnell called "the NBA Draft’s most versatile prospect after Zion Williamson." As Eric Rosales of Sports Betting Dime pointed out, Culver's ROTY odds plummeted before July 4 for no apparent reason. Maybe there is something behind the notion floated out there by Berry Tramel of the Oklahoman that the Timberwolves and Oklahoma City Thunder could exchange Wiggins for Chris Paul, which would affect Minnesota's rotation and Culver's contributions on the offensive end of the court.

Coby White

Those hoping Chicago Bulls rookie guard Coby White will take a big leap directly out of the gates because he plays for a team that won only 22 games last season and likely won't contend in 2019-20 should pump the brakes. As Mark Strotman of NBC Sports Chicago wrote, Bulls vice president of basketball operations John Paxson plans for the club to show patience in helping the 19-year-old learn the position in the pros. Along with still having Kris Dunn on the roster, Chicago acquired Tomas Satoransky, who started 54 games with the Washington Wizards last season after John Wall was lost to injury, in a sign-and-trade following this year's draft. White's Summer League was a roller coaster ride of ups and downs. Per Strotman, White shot a paltry 33.7 percent from the field and missed 27 of 30 three-point attempts in Las Vegas.

De'Andre Hunter

The Atlanta Hawks further invested into the youth movement centered around 2018-19 Rookie of the Year candidate Trae Young, soon-to-be 21-year-old Kevin Huerter and second-year pro John Collins by paying a high price to land the rights to forward De'Andre Hunter. Hunter, who went fourth overall, was named the National Association of Basketball Coaches Defensive Player of the Year his last season at Virginia, but ESPN's Kevin Pelton didn't have Hunter in the top 13 of his draft prospects. Assuming Young and Collins further develop their offensive skills, Hunter may not produce enough numbers to compete with the top ROTY candidates.

Darius Garland 

The Cleveland Cavaliers have a new head coach in John Beilein, an overwhelming lack of talent and a need to trade Kevin Love as soon as the right deal comes in. Cleveland also still has Collin Sexton, as of August 2019, in the lineup, which made the team's decision to draft fellow guard Darius Garland a curious call in the eyes of many. A score-first prospect out of Vanderbilt, Garland could start alongside Sexton on Night 1 if Beilein likes what he sees from such a unit in preseason preparations. We also believe the Cavs could shop Sexton, in part because his future may be as a bench scorer and also so Garland can make the position his own before October. A transaction involving Sexton could help Garland boost his stats for a conference bottom-dweller.

RJ Barrett 

If we're being honest, the list of legitimate Rookie of the Year candidates as of the end of August begins here. Those who followed RJ Barrett, taken third overall by the New York Knicks, during his cup-of-coffee stay with Duke know all about his strengths and weaknesses. The 6-foot-7 wing, who averaged over 22 points per game in college, is often plagued by shooting woes, something visible during his Summer League appearances. A 30.8 percent collegiate three-point shooter, Barrett converted 26 of 77 attempts from the field across his five Las Vegas games. As Forbes' Adam Zagoria wrote, former coach and current ESPN analyst Fran Fraschilla expects Barrett will continue to be an "inefficient" scorer early into his pro career. Fortunately for Barrett, he plays in a New York lineup lacking a proven superstar, so he'll receive handfuls of opportunities to locate a shot.

Ja Morant

March Madness standout Ja Morant, drafted second overall by the rebuilding Memphis Grizzlies, is going to turn the ball over the first couple of months of the season...a lot. He averaged over five giveaways per night his last season at Murray State, and the high-energy guard's assist-to-turnover ratio dipped from 2.54 his freshman year to 1.95 in Year 2. Those who watched him also know he can score from anywhere on the floor and routinely create chances for those around him — he led the nation in assists, dishes per game, points produced per game and, of course, turnovers. How the 20-year-old reacts to any and all early struggles while teaming with Jaren Jackson Jr. will go a long way in determining where he finishes in Rookie of the Year voting. It's also worth noting we're not sure how long veterans such as Andre Iguodala and Jae Crowder will be around to mentor Morant before they're traded for future assets.

Zion Williamson 

It's difficult to forecast anybody other than Zion Williamson winning Rookie of the Year and not just because he's an alleged "generational talent" and the best prospect of his class. The New Orleans Pelicans added veterans Derrick Favors and JJ Redick this offseason, and both Brandon Ingram and Lonzo Ball are looking for fresh starts after joining the Pelicans via the trade that sent Anthony Davis to the Los Angeles Lakers.

No, Williamson won't be the best athlete on the floor night in and night out at this level, but he could average a double-double and 18 PPG in the high-paced New Orleans system. If he's "Draymond Green with rockets in (his) a--" on defense, as Pelicans executive vice president of basketball operations David Griffin described to Jake Fischer of Sports Illustrated, Williamson may have no competition for ROTY by Valentine's Day.