(Picture from ESPN.com)
Unlike some of the past few years, the NBA has a tough task at hand when it comes to deciding who the Rookie of the Year will be for 2010. Guys like LeBron James, Kevin Durant, Brandon Roy, Chris Paul, Derrick Rose, and Amare Stoudemire completely ran the table in ROTY voting making it easy in the past. Entering this season, most crowned Blake Griffin but the favored front runner fell ill to the Clipper Curse making way for a plethora of equal rook's looking to steal the award. After a few weeks, it looked like the 20 year old from Compton California, Brandon Jennings, was leading th
e pack, but Tyreke Evans, Stephen Curry and DeJuan Blair might have something to say about that. With the NBA close to the trade deadline, and All Star break, here is a little peak at the top ROTY candidates.
1. Tyreke Evans- This guy can't shoot three pointers and should abolish that shot from is arsenal of skills (25% from beyond the arc) but with that said, he has performed well beyond his "rookie" status. He is averaging more minutes than any other rookie player with 37 per game and with Kevin Martin out for the Kings, Tyreke has stepped to the front of a team that is searching for themselves. He is also leading all rookies in scoring with 20.9 per game while shooting 46% from the field. He can dish, he can grab boards and he has taken advantage of his situation in Sacramento and giving King fans mad hope for the future.
2.Brandon Jennings- His jump shot has struggled a little bit in the month of January, but the kid is still averaging 18 points per game. When he dropped 55-points against Golden State was a beautiful masterpiece, something that was beyond his years as a developing player. He's shooting better from three than from the field, but with his quickness those numbers will begin to shift. Jennings can cut through traffic like O.J. Simpson in his Bronco, and also can distribute and rebound. Tyreke is playing really well, but if Jennings can keep up his consistant scoring, he will put pressure on Evans and continue to make it difficult to crown a clear cut Rookie of the Year.
3. DeJuan Blair- You would never guess that DeJuan Blair was missing ACL's in both knees with the way he has stepped in and played this season for the Spurs. His minutes keep going up (currently at 17 per game), and is proving that he can fill in for Duncan. Blair wanted to prove people wrong for letting him slip until the second round, and he is doing so. Blair is throwing down 7.1 points with a 55% field goal percentage, and 6.4 rebounds. If he can stay healthy watch out for Blair.
4. Stephen Curry- A couple nights ago I finally got to watch Steph Curry against the Chicago Bulls and he impressed me. Curry burried 5 out of 8 three pointers, and had 26 points. He is averaging 13 points per game while playing 33 minutes for the Warriors. In the month of January he is averaging closer to 17 points per game, a possible sign that Curry has finally grasped the NBA type of play. He too is sharing the love by dishing out 4.5 assists per game and grabbing almost 4 rebounds. If Curry keeps up his clutch shooting from three (44%) and ups his average points per game he could enter into serious talks with Tyreke and Brandon.
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