We all knew this year’s Rookie of the Year race was going to be tight, but once Ja Morant took over from the start, most people thought it was all settled.
However, Zion Williamson’s undeniable impact since making his debut with the New Orleans Pelicans is starting to make the media have some second thoughts about their votes.
At least, that’s what ESPN’s Briand Windhorst thinks, as he recently stated in The Jump that he could still lean towards voting for Williamson rather than Morant:
“Ja is going to win it, but I am going to keep watching because my vote is not settled. And in 3 or 4 years I’d like to be able to do what I am with Embiid by saying “Hey, I voted for Joel Embiid,” and if Zion owns the league in 4 years I may be able to say that,” Windhorst claimed.
Ja has played at an outstanding level so far this season, posting averages of 17.7 points, 3.5 rebounds, 7.0 assists, and 1.0 steals per game on 49% shooting.
Also, he’s currently leading the Memphis Grizzlies to a playoff berth despite the fact that most people thought they were going to be near the bottom of the standings this season.
Morant clearly has earned the right to be at the top of the rookie ladder so far. However, Zion’s first 10 games have turned a lot of heads as well.
Zion is averaging 22.1 points, 7.5 rebounds, 2.2 assists, and 0.7 steals per game on 57% shooting and the Pelicans are 6-4 since he made his professional debut 10 games ago.
He’s torching opposing defenders with ease and looks like a player destined to dominate the league. Also, he’s posted back-to-back 30-point games and is playing limited minutes, so that says a lot about his upside.
However, Zion won’t be able to play even half of the regular season so that’s obviously something to consider when voting, but the truth is that both players could be going toe-to-toe for the MVP race a couple of years from now.
