NBA regular season awards are always hotly contested. They're an eternal source of debate. Fans will inevitably feel that their guy deserves any given award.
This year, the Rookie of the Year race is especially contentious. Most would peg the Spurs' Victor Wembanyama as the presumptive favorite. With that said, some are still holding out for the Thunder's Chet Holmgren.
That's controversial enough. Holmgren was drafted last year and redshirted during his rookie season. Some would suggest that he shouldn't even be in consideration for the award.
Recently, an LA Clippers star weighed in on the issue.
LA Clippers star gives his take on Rookie of the Year race
Unsurprisingly, we're talking about Paul George. The man otherwise known as Podcast P has been giving his frank opinions on players around the league via his popular podcast.
"Chet’s on a winning team, he’s got a great group of young guys around him, so not much pressure is solely on him. The expectation for Wemby is extremely high"Paul George
George has a point. Wembanyama has been statistically more impressive than Holmgren. Still, Holmgren has settled into a role on a contending Thunder team - and he's thrived.
By contrast, Wembanyama's Spurs have struggled. That's not an indictment on the recent number-one pick. If the Spurs had a Shai Gilgeous-Alexander on their squad, they'd likely be in the title picture as well.
Which should be Rookie of the Year?
LA Clippers star weighing in on a debate that's already settled
Victor Wembanyama.
2023-2024 NBA Blocks Leaders:
— Basketball Reference (@bball_ref) March 22, 2024
213 - Victor Wembanyama
168 - Chet Holmgren
167 - Brook Lopez
155 - Anthony Davis
145 - Walker Kessler
All Leaders: https://t.co/IR78tGqpN9
Typically, wins and losses don't factor into the Rookie of the Year race. We don't expect these kids to carry winning teams. More often than not, the finalists are lottery picks. That means they landed on some of the worst teams in the league.
That's partly why Holmgren's redshirt status weighs against him. The Thunder had more time to put a talented group around him. Moreover, they were already further ahead in their rebuilding process than the Spurs when they selected him.
In all likelihood, this duo will be compared to each other for years to come. It will be interesting to see what the future holds for each, but for now, it seems like Wembanyama has the Rookie of the Year award in hand.
We can't wait to see what Paul George has to say when he wins it.