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The 2021-22 NBA regular season is almost at its halfway point, and things continue to get interesting in the Rookie of the Year race. COVID-19 outbreaks are plaguing rosters, with Josh Giddey, Scottie Barnes and Cade Cunningham returning from the NBA's health and safety protocols.
Meanwhile, Evan Mobley returned at the start of last week, and continued his run as one of the best rookies in the league. Franz Wagner, meanwhile, remains the most durable in the 2021 draft class. Other rookies such as Herb Jones and Jalen Green also had strong performances last week.
On that note, here's a look at this week's NBA Rookie of the Year power rankings:
#5 Cade Cunningham
Previous week’s NBA ROTY Power Ranking - #3
Last Week: Games played - 1; Games won - 1; Games lost - 0
Overall: Games played - 26; Games won - 6; Games lost - 20
Last Week: PPG - 19.0, APG - 7.0, RPG - 4.0
Overall: PPG - 15.4, APG - 5.3, RPG - 6.2
Last Week: FG% - 53.3%, 3P% - 42.9%
Overall: FG% - 38.9%, 3P% - 31.8%.
Cade Cunningham drops two spots to number five in this week's NBA Rookie of the Year power rankings. The top overall pick missed four games after entering the league's health and safety protocols on December 22nd. He returned Monday when the Detroit Pistons faced the Milwaukee Bucks.
Cunningham showed no rust in the Pistons' surprise 115-106 win over the Bucks. He bagged 19 points, four rebounds and seven assists on his return.
The only reason he dropped two spots is because Josh Giddey made history, and Franz Wagner had a great week last week.
#4 Josh Giddey
Previous week’s NBA ROTY Power Ranking - #5
Last Week: Games played - 1; Games won - 0; Games lost - 1
Overall: Games played - 31; Games won - 12; Games lost - 19
Last Week: PPG - 17.0, APG - 14.0, RPG - 13.0
Overall: PPG - 11.0, APG - 6.4, RPG - 7.3
Last Week: FG% - 43.8%, 3P% - 60.0%, SPG - 4.0
Overall: FG% - 39.0%, 3P% - 26.1%, SPG - 1.0.
Josh Giddey returned for the OKC Thunder on Sunday against the Dallas Mavericks. He entered the NBA's health and safety protocols on December 28th, but was cleared after just five days. The Australian star made history in his first game back as he takes fourth spot in this week's Rookie of the Year power rankings.
Giddey became the youngest player to record a triple double in NBA history. He posted 17 points, 13 rebounds and 14 assists in the Thunder's 95-86 defeat. He was just 19 years and 84 days old at the time, thus breaking the old record of LaMelo Ball of the Charlotte Hornets.
Giddey lowered the record by 56 days.
#3 Scottie Barnes
Previous week’s NBA ROTY Power Ranking - #1
Last Week: Games played - 1; Games won - 1; Games lost - 0
Overall: Games played - 28; Games won - 13; Games lost - 15
Last Week: PPG - 13.0, APG - 0.0, RPG - 4.0
Overall: PPG - 15.5, APG - 3.3, RPG - 8.1
Last Week: FG% - 44.4%, 3P% - 40.0%, FT% - 75.0%
Overall: FG% - 49.3%, 3P% - 35.9%, FT% - 72.7%.
Scottie Barnes returned to NBA action for the Toronto Raptors on Sunday against the New York Knicks. Barnes had missed three games and almost two weeks after entering the NBA's health and safety protocols on December 21st. It's one of the reasons for his fall from the number one spot to third in this week's NBA Rookie of the Year power rankings.
Franz Wagner and Evan Mobley also played four games each last week to make a strong push for the top two.
Nevertheless, Barnes returned without a hitch, putting up 13 points and four rebounds in the Raptors' 120-105 win over the Knicks.
#2 Franz Wagner
Previous week’s NBA ROTY Power Ranking - #4
Last Week: Games played - 4; Games won - 0; Games lost - 4
Overall: Games played - 38; Games won - 7; Games lost - 31
Last Week: PPG - 23.5, APG - 2.3, RPG - 4.5
Overall: PPG - 15.9, APG - 2.7, RPG - 4.6
Last Week: FG% - 52.5%, 3P% - 50.0%, SPG - 0.8
Overall: FG% - 45.1%, 3P% - 37.0%, SPG - 1.1.
Franz Wagner takes a massive jump in this week's NBA Rookie of the Year power rankings. The iron man of this rookie class played four games last week for the Orlando Magic. He averaged 23.5 points, 4.5 rebounds and 2.7 assists per game, while shooting 52.5% from the field and 50.0% from beyond the arc.
The Magic did not win any games last week, and are currently on an eight-game losing streak. However, Wagner continues to impress, and remains one of the favorites to win the NBA Rookie of the Year award.
He scored a career-high 38 points against the Milwaukee Bucks on December 28th.
#1 Evan Mobley
Previous week’s NBA ROTY Power Ranking - #2
Last Week: Games played - 4; Games won - 1; Games lost - 3
Overall: Games played - 29; Games won - 18; Games lost - 11
Last Week: PPG - 20.8, APG - 3.0, RPG - 7.3
Overall: PPG - 14.7, APG - 2.6, RPG - 8.2
Last Week: FG% - 63.3%, 3P% - 16.7%, BPG - 1.3
Overall: FG% - 50.1%, 3P% - 31.3%, BPG - 1.8.
Evan Mobley of the Cleveland Cavaliers is number one in this week's NBA Rookie of the Year power rankings. He made up for his missed games by playing all four last week. He averaged 20.8 points, 7.3 rebounds and 3.0 assists per outing, while shooting 63.3% from the field.
Mobley's offense was on full display last week, and his defense remains top-notch. He's among the best defensive big men in the league, and is touted as a future Defensive Player of the Year winner.
If he continues his strong play this week, there's no reason for him to drop in the NBA's Rookie of the Year power rankings.
Guess the Lakers players!
