[llperez]

here are the last 20 rookie of the year winners.

2010-tyreke evans, sacramento kings(20.1ppg…5.3rpg…5.8apg)

2009-derrick rose, chicago bulls(16.8ppg…3.9rpg…6.3apg)

2008-kevin durant, seattle supersonics(20.3ppg…4.4rpg…2.4apg)

2007-brandon roy, portland trailblazers(16.8ppg…4.4rpg…4apg)

2006-chris paul, new orleans hornets(16.1ppg…5.1rpg…7.8apg)

2005-emeka okafor, charlotte hornets(15.1ppg…10.9rpg…0.9apg)

2004-lebron james, cleavland cavaliers(20.9ppg…5.5rpg…5.9apg)

2003-amare stoudemire, phoenix suns(13.5ppg…8.8rpg…1apg)

2002-pau gasol, memphis grizzlies(17.6ppg…8.9rpg…2.7apg)

2001-mike miller, orlando magic(11.9ppg…4rpg…1.7apg)

2000-elton brand, chicago bulls(20.1ppg…10rpg…1.9apg) & steve francis, houston rockets(18ppg…5.3rpg…6.6apg)

1999-vince carter, toronto raptors(18.3ppg…5.7rpg…3apg)

1998-tim duncan, san antonio spurs(21.1ppg…11.9rpg…2.7apg)

1997-allen iverson, philidelphia 76ers(23.5ppg…4.1rpg…7.5apg)

1996-damon stoudamire, toronto raptors(19ppg…4rpg…9.3apg)

1995-grant hill, detroit pistons(19.9ppg…6.4rpg…5apg) & jason kidd, dallas mavericks(11.7ppg…5.4rpg…7.7apg)

1994-chris webber, golden state warriors(17.5ppg…9.1rpg…3.6apg)

1993-shaquille oneal, orlando magic(23.4ppg…13.9rpg…1.9apg)

1992-larry johnson, charlotte hornets(19.2ppg…11rpg…3.6apg)

1991-derrick coleman, new jersey nets(18.4ppg…10.3rpg…2.2apg)

By position: pg-7.. sg-2.. sf-4 ..pf-7 ..c-2
years of school: HS-2…FR-3…SO-6…JR-5…SR-5…EURO-1
best averages: points-iverson…rebounds-Shaq…assists-stoudamire
by pick #: 1st-9…2nd-4…3rd-3…4th-1…5th-2…6th-1…7th-1…9th-1

So my questions are:

top 5 rookie seasons
bottom 5 rookie seasons
top 5 careers(predicted)
bottom 5 careers(predicted)
and any other comments you want to make

[llperez]

ill give mine:

top 5 rookies-shaq oneal, tim duncan, allen iverson, damon stoudamire, larry johnson(it should be noted that rookies in 90’s were better usually becasue they often stayed in school longer and were more experienced coming into the nba)

bottom 2-amare stoudemire, mike miller

actually now that i think about it, the questions are’nt all that fun, just wanted to post the stats cause i was curious to look them up myself.

[Mr. JewboyParticipant]

 steve francis’s numbers really impress me

they’re a lot like lebron’s

well that being said, my top 5 are:

1.shaq-amazing

2. duncan-also pretty amazing

3. iverson-admireable how many points he could score so early bein so short

4. lebron- how did he do that one year removed from HS?!

5. Evans-pretty identical to lebron’s, and in an era where PGs rule the league is pretty damn impressive 

[ronniemiller1kParticipant]

hard to judge this for the current ones obviously due to the fact injuries can play a role in the current rankings for their careers but heres what i got…FACTORS i used to base this on:  stats, team talent, hype, age, position, and circumstance (straight from HS or foreign)

top 5 – tyreke evans, chris paul, lebron, iverson, damon stoudamire

bottom 5 – roy, okafor, amare, mike miller, webber

top 5 careers – durant, lebron, duncan, iverson, shaq

bottom 5 careers – okafor, miller, damon stoudemire, larry johnson, coleman

[Mr. ChicagoParticipant]

Top 5 (no particular order)

Shaquille O’Neal (I forgot how dominant he was even as a rookie)

Allen Iverson (23 & 7 as a rookie, ridiculous)

Tim Duncan (The Big Fundamental)

Lebron James (terrible team did it all)

Damon Stoudamire (Almost a double double with assist as a rookie, that is unheard of)

On a side note: Larry Johnson almost made my Top 5, I forgot how dominating he was in his prime. He was fearless taking it to the rack, and could really rebound as a shorter forward, however his overall career was a dissappointment.

[creepingdefParticipant]

Top 5 Rookie Seasons:

Shaq (23 & 13 are you kidding me?!), Duncan, LeBron, Iverson and Grant Hill (LeBron before LeBron so to speak).

Bottom 5:

Mike Miller, Emeka Okafor, Derrick Coleman, Brandon Roy, Vince Carter.

Top 5 Careers:

Shaq, LeBron, Duncan, Iverson, Durant.

Bottom 5 Careers:

Mike Miller, Derrick Coleman, Emeka Okafor, Damon Stoudemire, Larry Johnson.

 

Only reason why Mike Miller won ROY was because the 2000 Draft Class was so weak.

 

[Toronto16Participant]

Wow, I didn’t rememeber how well Damon Stoudemire did in his rookie year.  I mean the Raptors won about 16 games that year, but still.

[omphalosParticipant]

whenever I see these numbers for Grant Hill I’m sad that he is .1ppg off being part of the 20, 5 and 5 club. His career didn’t live up to expectations due to injuries, so it would have been a nice consolation prize for him.

[RUDEBOY_Participant]

Only 9 of the last 20 number 1 overall picks have won the rookie of the year award..All but 4 of the past 20 rookies of the year have made a allstar team..And all of those guys are still playing expect 4….

Top 5 Rookie Seasons..

1 Shaq 2 Lebron 3 Duncan 4 Iverson 5 Webber

 

Bottom 5 Rookie Seasons..

1 Mike Miller 2 Amare 3 Damon Stoudemire 4 Okafor 5 Roy

 

[Mr. 19134Participant]

 My list is based off expectations and the situatuation the rookies walked into their rookie year.  

 

1. Allen Iverson (a lot of people forgot just how dominant the lil fella was his rookie year.  Now only was he the smallest player ever drafted first overall Pat Croce took a lot of Heat for doing it.  People thought Camby was the next great big man.  They though Marbury might of been the best pure PG and just as talented as A.I.  They also thought Ray Allen was the next Reggie Miller and could shoot too well not to draft.  And a lot of people in Philly wanted the Sixers too draft Kobe Bryant.  He was a local prodigy who almost everybody who watched him play thought he was the closest thing to Jordan anybody has ever saw in a shooting guard body.  In the end some of their predictions were right but Iverson was the best player at that time.  He put the franchise on his back and became an international icon.  23 n 4.1 n 7.5.  The dude averaged as many rebounds as KD and more assists then Rose as a rookie.

2. Tim Duncan (going into an already good Spurs team with David Robinson at his side TD was dominate from day one.)

3. LeBron James (I’ll never forget his first game against the Kings where he started at point.  We may never see another LeBron again.

4. Shaq (U could argue he could be higher but Shaq’s size and seasoning before he even got in the league was enough for people to not be surprised at his numbers.)

5. Tyreke Evans (people forget just how good this guys rookie year was last year untill put into perspective.  20 5 n 5.!)

[marcusfizer21Participant]

It’s hard to imagine a guy averaging 11 ppg 4 rpg 2 apg winning a ROY… But then again, it’s the 2000 Draft Class… The Weakest ever… sheeesh

[MelParticipant]

 I wonder what kind of numbers he will put up in his prime because his numbers were right on par with LeBrons and better than Durants. It will definitely be interesting to see how he develops. I hope he doesn’t  sizzle out

[llperez]

guys who made playoffs as rookies: Chris Webber, tim duncan, mike miller, amare stoudemire, derrick rose

[mikeyvthedonParticipant]

here are the last 20 rookie of the year winners.

2010-tyreke evans, sacramento kings(20.1ppg…5.3rpg…5.8apg)

2009-derrick rose, chicago bulls(16.8ppg…3.9rpg…6.3apg)

2008-kevin durant, seattle supersonics(20.3ppg…4.4rpg…2.4apg)

2007-brandon roy, portland trailblazers(16.8ppg…4.4rpg…4apg)

2006-chris paul, new orleans hornets(16.1ppg…5.1rpg…7.8apg)

2005-emeka okafor, charlotte hornets(15.1ppg…10.9rpg…0.9apg)

2004-lebron james, cleavland cavaliers(20.9ppg…5.5rpg…5.9apg)

2003-amare stoudemire, phoenix suns(13.5ppg…8.8rpg…1apg)

2002-pau gasol, memphis grizzlies(17.6ppg…8.9rpg…2.7apg)

2001-mike miller, orlando magic(11.9ppg…4rpg…1.7apg)

2000-elton brand, chicago bulls(20.1ppg…10rpg…1.9apg) & steve francis, houston rockets(18ppg…5.3rpg…6.6apg)

1999-vince carter, toronto raptors(18.3ppg…5.7rpg…3apg)

1998-tim duncan, san antonio spurs(21.1ppg…11.9rpg…2.7apg)

1997-allen iverson, philidelphia 76ers(23.5ppg…4.1rpg…7.5apg)

1996-damon stoudamire, toronto raptors(19ppg…4rpg…9.3apg)

1995-grant hill, detroit pistons(19.9ppg…6.4rpg…5apg) & jason kidd, dallas mavericks(11.7ppg…5.4rpg…7.7apg)

1994-chris webber, golden state warriors(17.5ppg…9.1rpg…3.6apg)

1993-shaquille oneal, orlando magic(23.4ppg…13.9rpg…1.9apg)

1992-larry johnson, charlotte hornets(19.2ppg…11rpg…3.6apg)

1991-derrick coleman, new jersey nets(18.4ppg…10.3rpg…2.2apg)

Great post.

Top 5 Rookie Seasons (of ROY winners from last 20 years):

Shaquille O’Neal: Best of the last 20 years, he did not make an All-NBA Team but was basically the only major addition on a team that improved by 20 games and took it to some great centers regularly during his rookie season. Had a few triple doubles with points, rebounds, blocks, and had his highest rebounding totals in his career. Started the All-Star game and laid down a foundation that made him one of the NBA at 50 greatest players by his 4th season.

Tim Duncan: Became the Spurs leader right out of the gate, even with the return of David Robinson and I believe he led the greatest single season turn around in NBA history by a rookie. Double/double machine, All-Star game participant, First Team All-NBA, on pure accolades more than likely the top rookie on this list, though I still feel like Shaq had the all-around better rookie year.

Allen Iverson: Lived up to his tremendous hype being a 6 foot (if even) PG with SG’s game in one of the deepest rookie classes of all time. Had an amazing streak of 40 point games as a rookie, the classic cross up on MJ and just took the league by storm. Did not make the All-Star team, and would not until his fourth season in the league (missed first two and lockout shortened year, where he led the league in scoring), but burst on to the seen as a force to be reckoned with and one of the more unique talents in NBA history. His team only improved by 4 games, but he took a franchise that had struggled since the loss of another star player in Charles Barkley and made it relevant again.

LeBron James: Came into the league like a tornado and he did not disappoint. Carried a team on his shoulders since his entrance and battled night in and night out with some of the best. This was a time where some players still could get the best of him, but his overall ability to play the game just excelled immediately. His court sense made his team so much better and gave Cleveland so much hope for the future, which was torn away with his exit. Still, he had a great rookie year and his all-around numbers are only part of what he did in his first season.

Tyreke Evans: Now, for my last choice it was difficult, as I was thinking Chris Webber for getting the Warriors to the play-offs, Larry Johnson for straight killing it and even Grant Hill for his amazing entrance into the game and his immediate jump to league leading All-Star vote getter in his rookie year. But, I chose Tyreke because all in all, the guy was as good as any of them and reached that impressive 20-5-5 barrier in his rookie year, only reached by Michael, Oscar and LeBron before him (narrowly missed by Larry Bird and of course GHill). Tyreke just surpassed everyones expectations, and while Grant did as well, I do not remember it being the same magnitude. No doubt, Grant burst onto the scene as a triple double threat, doing amazing things as a 6’8 SF, and while they both improved their teams by 8 games, I feel like Tyreke was the one that more had to carry his team. They both played on bad teams, but Tyreke’s really lacked any veteran leadership presence, whereas Grant still had Joe Dumars, Terry Mills and a great young shooter in Allan Houston. It really is a toss-up as to which one is better, and on a numbers standpoint, I would say Grant, but on impact on his team, Tyreke was amazing this past year.

 

Top 5 Worst: 

Mike Miller: Horrible year for rookies. This was the year I started following the draft really closely, and I was excited for this class of rookies, but it was just a weak draft. Kenyon Martin, the first pick, had a year plagued with injuries and definitely did not have the impact he had his last year at Cinci. Stromile Swift, DerMarr Johnson, Marcus Fizer, you name a top pick, they did little to live up to it, especially in their first year. Darius Miles was impressive, but inconsistent and a back-up on a bad team. Mark Jackson, an undrafted Center of Temple, was for a while, the leading Rookie of the Year candidate, and that was less than impressive. Mike Miller, took it home, putting up decent numbers on the Orlando Magic, but this was just a really unspectacular draft class and in most years, Mike would more than likely not make the All-Rookie first team, much less be ROY.

Amare Stoudemire: From Mike Miller, it gets tough, seeing that this is an award for excellence, but I guess Amare would have to come next. He was the 9th pick in the draft, out of HS, and had the best rookie year of any HS player that had entered in 1995 up to that year. He also was a pivotal reason for the Suns going from the lotto to the play-offs. He had a great first season, and was followed in ROY closely by Yao Ming, and surprisingly enough not by Jason Williams, who I saw as possibly being a top NBA PG and almost a lock for ROY. Still, guess it was a down year for first year player impact, which leads to Amare being one of the worst winners in the last 20 years.

Emeka Okafor: Yes, numbers were huge, on an expansion team no less. That being said, from his very first year, people should have been incredibly apprehensive about all of their praise for him in college. Many thought Orlando might have made the wrong choice in Dwight Howard, who could have very well been rookie of the year himself and challenged Okafor. The fact that Emeka has never equalled this scoring average is to me enough of a reason to put him on this list.

 Brandon Roy: Was an amazing rookie, and wa an immediate team leader. Also had problems with injuries that limited him to around 60 or so games. He definitely was the rookie of the year, but had Bargnani stayed healthy it could have been much closer (since he didn’t, him getting a first place vote just made Chuck Swirsky look like a jackass). So, Brandon’s injury plagued rookie year puts him in this bunch.

Steve Francis: Now, this was a very hard choice, but I did not agree with either of the shared Rookie of the Years. Both Steve and Jason Kidd put up huge years and did some great things for their teams, but I thought Elton Brand and Grant Hill just had straight up better rookie years. I give Kidd the pass since his team had an amazing improvement, and while Steve was on a vastly different Rocket team than the year before, I felt like he kind of showed even as a rookie an inability to play team basketball. I saw a selfishness from Steve Francis, and while he did amazing things as a player and was a bananas athlete, I put him 5th on worst rookie of the years in the past 20 years.

 

Top 5 Predicted Careers:

LeBron James: I just really think the sky is the limit. Kobe never won rookie of the year, Michael won it too far back to be on the list, and I think LeBron could be right after those guys when all is said and done, if not competing for a spot with either of them. So, out of these ROY’s, I think LeBron will have the best career.

Shaquille O’Neal: I will admit I am biased, as he is one of my All-Time favorite players, but see Shaq as an All-Time great of the game and I call him the best Center to ever play the game. Just incredibly dominant in a time where the game was completely changing, and he made his teams incredibly difficult to compete with. His overall dominance of the position combined with winning makes him an All-Time great to me, and while Kobe may have indeed surpassed him, Shaq was the man on those first 3 rings.

Tim Duncan: His all out consistency and silent leadership have made Timmy into the greatest PF ever to play the game. While he should all in all be considered a Center, his post moves and overall game made him a legit 4 man, and he lived up to all of the hype that surrounded him since his sophomore year of college. Great career and to me he has a place amongst the All-Time best to play the game.

Kevin Durant: He certainly seems to be seen as a popular choice to usurp Kobe and LeBron for top player in the league, and while I do not think he is there yet, his amazing start leads me to believe he could be one of the better players in the game by the time things are said and done. I do not think he will ever be in LeBron’s league as far as his career, and nor do I see him challenging Michael for all-time PPG, and that Kareem scoring title is a LONG ways away, but he certainly has the potential to be an NBA great and has been very impressive in his brief career.

Derrick Rose: People may call me crazy and say I should put Chris Paul in front of him, or go with a player who has achieved more, but I see great things from Derrick Rose. I still think he could be the best PG in the league, and I just think the kid is a winner and might be incredibly difficult for PG’s including Chris Paul to stop or keep up with. All I know is that while Chris had the better rookie year, Rose had the better second year, and while I can only predict what the future holds, and that is probably not a third year like CP3 had, I will go with Derrick as far as career achievement.

 

Top 5 Worst Predicted (or already ended) Careers:

Mike Miller: Yes, this one is easy again. While Mike Miller may be a pivotal player on a bunch of Miami championships (MAY be, not saying it will happen), he still never really improved to the point many expected him to. Being a 6th man on a championship team is an amazing gig, but everyone else on this list was at one point much ahead of Mike Miller during their careers, which is why I put Mike at the top of this list.

Emeka Okafor: Just never took off as I commented before. When your rookie year is your best scoring year as a pro, it is kind of hard to see you being ranked highly amongst players of this caliber.

Damon Stoudamire: For as much impact as he had on my life, his career ranking is nowhere near many of these players. He came out of the gate with a huge bang, but as soon as he was traded to the Trail Blazers, he kind of lost some of his magic. Had amazing performances, always played well against the Lakers and was a very fun player to watch, but his career numbers and career in general left a lot to be desired considering how amazing his first few years in Toronto were.

Derrick Coleman: He had a nice long career, but his expectations are what make him part of this list. It just seems like he never had that winning attitude, and he never capitalized on his massive potential. During the end of his career, I always remember hearing how much better his teams played without him on the court. Supremely talented, but near the bottom of those who have this award.

Steve Francis: I am sorry to pick on Steve again, but he is on the list for the same reason as these other players. I was thinking of putting LJ, who majorly cooled off once he and Alonzo Mourning had their ego clash and he left Charlotte, but we have LJ’s play-off memories and the 4 point play. Steve Francis played 5 games in the play-offs, in a first round loss. I mean, he is a 3 time All-Star, was one of the NBA’s most exciting players and a great runner-up in the dunk contest. But amongst these players, his career achievements leave him well short and get him in the bottom 5. It is sad, because I think Steve suffered really bad injuries, but it is a harsh list to begin with, but also how I see it.

Great post, and I would love to see more of these that provide thought and research, which lead to cool opinion pieces.

[mikeyvthedonParticipant]

The questions may not be easy to answer, but I think they were fun and challenging, thought provoking. I liked that you were able to take a stand and make people try to make hard choices they otherwise might not. Ranking these players is very difficult, but to me it has always been fun to make lists, and ranking the worst is always harder than the best.

[llperez]

thanks mikeyvthedon. I enjoyed reading your post and agree with about everything you said. Every now and then i like to put together an in depth topic where i spend some time looking thiings up although i didnt persoally go into any details on stuff.

[mj23mj23besteverParticipant]

those mike miller numbers for a roy are awful and id totally forgotenn how darn good d stoud was too avergae almost ten assisnt as a rookie on a real bad team is very impressive as far as the most impressive gotta go wiht shaq 24 and 13 is unreal as rookie

[JoeWolf1]

 Exactly why I seriously doubt John Wall will put up 20+ ppg this season.  How many rookie point guards have put up 20 ppg in the past 20 years?  1 really in Allen Iverson and 2 if you count Tyreke Evans, but I think he played too much shooting guard for him to count. 

I think John Wall is a great talent, but I don’t think he is the kind of prospect that comes along once every 15 or 20 years.  Iverson ditched the point guard position after only a couple of years in the league and of all the top point guards in the league today NONE have put up 20+ ppg as a rookie.

[Da1potParticipant]

Wow…  Mike Miller winning rookie of the year is basically equal to if Omri Caspi won it last season…

[Mr. 19134Participant]

Yeah well count how many times Casspi hits the game winning shot on a team that features James, Wade, and Bosh.  I guarantee Miller will be the one putting the nail in the coffin this year.  His game has always been overlooked because he was either playing in bad teams or hurt but Mike Miller has a complete offensive game.  He can play point forward and can shoot with the best of them.

[Da1potParticipant]

Yeah.. Mr.19134 I know hes a good player and I’m dissapointed my Wizards didn’t keep him I ‘m just saying stats wise that is what rookie he matches up to from last season. I like Miller, I’m just commenting on the fact that a stat line like his was enough to win rookie of the year…. That shows how weak the draft was.

[TheWizardParticipant]

That just furtherly proves how ROY’s generally become bright stars and have great careers except for the morisson and miller.

[midwestbbscoutParticipant]

how can Shaq be #5 on your career list….the only 2 people its even arguable with are Lebron and MAYBE Timmy….Shaq is probably a top 5 player EVER….

 

ps…..RIP to in shape Derrick Coleman my favorite player ever….

[billykParticipant]

Derrick Coleman could have been a BEAST… He so was versatile and talented on offense, he could shoot 3s, handle the rock, had a high bball IQ and had very good court vision for a player his size… To bad he wasted all that talent..   

[midwestbbscoutParticipant]

I don’t think he ever got over losing the Shermanator

[RUDEBOY_Participant]

I know u guys might laugh at this but Charlie Villanueva plays like a poor man’s Derrick Coleman…

[llperez]

rudeboy, even at colemans worst, he was always a strong physical presence around the hoop. It was almost impossible to move him around down there. Thats a big enough difference between him and charliev that i dont like the comparison. But looking at this list, i think coleman maybe more then any other guy on it failed to live up to his potential the most.

[marcusfizer21Participant]

Derrick Coleman was a much better player and more talented than Karl Malone but the biggest difference was the attitude… The work ethic… The "wanting-it more" mentality was lacking with Coleman while Malone has had that from the beginning… As a result, their careers are in the opposite direction… Malone became a Hall of Famer while Derrick Coleman goes broke since he only played well enough to collect his next paycheck…

[stanford hoops]

I doubt wall averages 20ppg. He has the talent to but he has other teammates who can score so he won’t have to.  I think ge will get a good 8ast a game though while leading the leauge in turnovers

Also Larry johnsons career was a lil disappointing because he hurt his back very badly. After that his career dropped off. It had nothing to do with his talent

[Author]

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