The Rookie Of The Year race this season was the most interesting we'd seen in years. So interesting that I'm still thinking about it. Part of its excitement was because both of the top candidates in Ben Simmons and Donovan Mitchell played waaaay above our expectations. Combined with their young age and team-friendly contracts, they're set up to be great threats in their respective conferences for years down the line. Yea, Simmons was coming in as the #1 overall pick from a year ago, but you'd be hard pressed to find a large faction of people who thought he'd look like a potentially transcendent NBA star right out of the gate. You also might die before you find a group of people outside of Jazz fans that thought Utah would make the playoffs after losing Gordon Hayward in free agency.
Donovan Mitchell played two years at Louisville, averaging 15.6 points 2.7 dimes, and 4.9 boards per game in his final year before hitting the draft. His averages aren't a set of numbers that jump out at you at all. When the draft lottery was just about to come to a close, Mitchell got scooped up by the Denver Nuggets at #13, where he was promptly traded to the Utah Jazz. You wouldn't think that a guy who averaged 15 points in college would go on to average 20 in his very first year in the big leagues, let alone lead his team to a first-round playoff series victory against a "contender" with two all-stars. Donovan Mitchell's story is one we can all get behind because of its a story of an underdog who focused and worked his ass off to be where he is now.
The rookie of the year race had convincing cases on both sides. The two weren't just playing well by rookie standards, but they were playing at a level that distinguished them as two of the top talents in the game. Ben Simmons was a nightly triple-double threat, with a season average of 15.8 points, 8.1 rebounds, 8.2 assists, while shooting 54% from the field(flanked by a vomit-inducing 56% from the free throw line). Ben played in 81 out of 82 regular season games. Mitchell, on the other hand, played 79 games while putting up averages of 20.9 points, 3.7 rebounds, 3.7 assists while shooting 43.7% from the floor and 80.5% from the line. One guy was setting up teammates and doing it all (except hitting free throws/three's) for the Sixers while the other was stepping up as the top dog on offense for the Utah Jazz. It became harder to call as the season went on.
As things winded down in the regular season, I sided with Simmons. The wily Australian just felt like a once in a generation player. He and Embiid created a totally unexpected resurgence in the city of Philadelphia. In one year, they took the Sixers from a franchise that was the patron saint of tanking and the poster-child of losing to one of the top three teams in the Eastern Conference. And to top it all off, the Sixers were mostly comprised of young guys without any playoff experience. Once the regular season was in the books and we were gearing up for the playoffs, I was pretty convinced Simmons was the guy. He ended up being crowned Rooke of the Year at the NBA awards over the summer, and Donovan respectfully got up and congratulated Ben as he walked to the podium. That was a nice gesture to witness, as there had been some barbs traded between the two on who was really more deserving of ROY.
Unfortunately, Rookie of the Year only considers a player's regular season performance. I think their regular season showings were pretty close, which is why the debate was so interesting all year. If we take a look at the entire year including playoffs, I think what Donovan Mitchell did to the Oklahoma City Thunder was so unbelievable that he gets the nod over Simmons. Ben's playoff performance was great in the first round against the Heat, but he ran into trouble once a savvy coach and intelligent defensive squad got in his way (or rather did the total opposite by backing off of him and daring him to shoot). There's a ton of other things he can work on besides his jump shot, but the jumper is that one glaring hole in his game that's going to determine whether he becomes an all-time great or just a 6'10 Rajan Rondo-like player.
Donovan Mitchell was the MAN in that series versus Russell Westbrook and Paul George. Part of Oklahoma City's struggles were due to the uneasy pairing between Carmelo Anthony and the rest of the Thunder's squad. Still, we have to give credit to Donovan and the Jazz for taking the opportunity to win when it presented itself. Even in the games that OKC won, Mitchell still balled out and gave them a scare(29 & 23 points in the two games the Jazz lost). Here was this 21-year-old guy who had never squeaked his sneakers across the hardwood of an NBA playoff game going toe-to-toe with two proven all-stars with playoff experience, eventually coming away victorious in 6 exhilarating contests. Mitchell averaged an astonishing 28.5 points, 7.2 rebounds, 2.7 assists, and 1.5 steals while shooting 46% overall and 36% in that series. Peep some highlights of the games below
For me, that dominant show of playoff excellence is what gets the edge over Simmons. In Donovan's first playoff game, he showed no fear at all while playing in a hostile enemy building, accruing 29 points, 10 rebounds, 3 assists, and 2 steals in a narrow losing effort for his playoff debut (116-108 Thunder win). He just kept making shot, after shot, after shot, after shot. And the announcers took notice too! In the very beginning of the video they remark how Mitchell hadn't missed a shot yet. It was shocking seeing a rookie play that well against a team of established stars.
Ben Simmons put up healthy playoff averages of 16.3 points, 9.4 rebounds, 7.7 assists, and 1.7 steals while shooting 49% overall and 71% from the line. Not bad numbers at all! Ben is more of a do-it-all kind of guy, he has other teammates who specialize in scoring. He was still a notable triple-double threat in the playoffs, but when the postseason comes around your flaws become amplified. Becoming a good shooter is something he'll have to come to grips with as his career evolves.
I think Ben Simmons still has the higher ceiling than Donovan Mitchell given all of Ben's physical tools and his natural knack for the game. Ben will probably end up having the more legendary career, but Mitchell's performance in the playoffs reminded me of a grizzled 5-year NBA veteran who toiled in the lottery for years, then finally amassed enough skill and experience to claw his way into the prestige of the playoffs(in the much superior Western Conference no less)
My mind is still being blown at fact that last year was Donovan's first. It is an overwhelming positive when a guy produces results and looks that confident in NBA postseason situations. Think of Magic Johnson in his rookie year where filled in at Center during Game 6 of the NBA Finals and won the title without Kareem in the final game. Or Derrick Rose's rookie year where he and his scrappy Bulls squad put the Pierce/Allen/Garnett Celtics on the ropes in a 7-game all-timer. Donovan's accelerated maturity and fearlessness will be a stepping stone in his ascent through the NBA ranks. Hopefully, the Jazz can keep surrounding him with quality pieces so we can see the guy play up to his full potential.
The Mitchell vs. Simmons debate makes me think the NBA should take a serious look at changing the criteria for their end-of-season awards like MVP and rookie of the year. Make the playoffs count too. I mean, they're already presenting the award months after the season is over now, they used to do it before the Finals started. They could additionally create a "Regular Season MVP" and "Playoffs MVP". That would spur up tons of fun, meaningless debates! We already have a Finals MVP, but that alone doesn't feel like it covers all the bases. It'd be interesting to see how the awards of the past would've shaken out if they took a player's entire year into consideration in the Rookie of the Year race. I think Donovan would've come out on top.
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