NBA Rookie of the Year (ROTY) race featuring Jaden Ivey, Bennedict Mathurin and more: November 23, 2022

The race for the 2022-2023 NBA Rookie of the Year award was pretty bleak over the past week.

No. 1 pick Paolo Banchero didn’t play at all once again, with some other rookies stepping up in his absence. However, most of them have only been excelling in limited roles, including one new addition to this week’s rankings.

So on that note, here's this week’s Rookie of the Year Power Rankings by Sportskeeda.

#5 Jalen Williams | OKC Thunder

Previous week’s Rookie of the Year Power Ranking: N/A (-)

Last Week: Games played - 3, Games won - 1, Games lost - 2

Overall: Games played - 13, Games won - 5, Games lost - 8

Last Week: PPG - 13.0, RPG - 4.7, APG - 4.3, SPG - 1.0, BPG - 0.0

Overall: PPG - 9.5, RPG - 3.0, APG - 2.8, SPG - 0.9, BPG - 0.3

Last Week: FG% - 44.1%, 3PT% - 33.3%, FT% - 83.3%

Overall: FG% - 51.5%, 3PT% - 27.3%, FT% - 83.3%

Jalen Williams' scoring has been on the rise for the OKC Thunder lately. The combo guard has now scored in double-digits in four straight games, including all three games last week. In his lone start against Memphis last week, Williams scored 16 points to go along with six rebounds, seven assists and two steals.

He remains one of the most efficient rookies at 51.5% shooting. He also offers the Thunder well-rounded production in just 24.3 minutes per game.

Williams' improved play earned him his first feature on this season's Rookie of the Year rankings.

#4 Tari Eason | Houston Rockets

Previous week’s Rookie of the Year Power Ranking: 5th (↑1)

Last Week: Games played - 3, Games won - 1, Games lost - 2

Overall: Games played - 17, Games won - 3, Games lost - 14

Last Week: PPG - 10.3, RPG - 7.0, APG - 0.3, SPG - 1.0, BPG - 0.3

Overall: PPG - 8.7, RPG - 5.2, APG - 1.0, SPG - 1.5, BPG - 0.5

Last Week: FG% - 42.9%, 3PT% - 14.3%, FT% - 100.0%

Overall: FG% - 43.5%, 3PT% - 37.1%, FT% - 84.0%

Tari Eason continues to make a strong defensive impact for the Houston Rockets in limited playing time. The forward remains the only Rockets rotation player with a positive on-court net rating (+1.6). This is in comparison to Houston’s -14.1 net rating with Eason on the bench.

The rookie’s week was highlighted by a career-high 19 points to go along with eight rebounds and three steals against the Golden State Warriors. Eason also continues to be a per-minute monster with per-36 averages of 17.0 points, 10.1 rebounds, 2.0 assists, 2.9 steals and 0.9 blocks per game.

#3 Paolo Banchero | Orlando Magic

Previous week’s Rookie of the Year Power Ranking: 1st (↓2)

Last Week: Games played - 0, Games won - 0, Games lost - 0

Overall: Games played - 11, Games won - 2, Games lost - 9

Last Week: PPG - N/A, RPG - N/A, APG - N/A, SPG - N/A, BPG - N/A

Overall: PPG - 23.5, RPG - 8.3, APG - 3.6, SPG - 0.7, BPG - 0.9

Last Week: FG% - N/A, 3PT% - N/A, FT% - N/A

Overall: FG% - 46.1%, 3PT% - 25.6%, FT% - 76.9%

Orlando Magic star rookie forward Paolo Banchero has now missed the last seven games due to a left ankle sprain. After being the clear-cut frontrunner for Rookie of the Year to start the season, Banchero has started to slide due to a lack of availability.

Luckily for Banchero, even with his extended absence, there have only been two rookies playing consistently well enough to surpass him. This has helped him stay in the top three for now.

He should also still have a great chance of reclaiming the top spot in the Rookie of the Year rankings if he returns soon.

#2 Jaden Ivey | Detroit Pistons

Previous week’s Rookie of the Year Power Ranking: 3rd (↑1)

Last Week: Games played - 4, Games won - 1, Games lost - 3

Overall: Games played - 18, Games won - 4, Games lost - 14

Last Week: PPG - 16.5, RPG - 4.5, APG - 4.5, SPG - 0.3, BPG - 0.3

Overall: PPG - 16.2, RPG - 4.9, APG - 4.2, SPG - 1.1, BPG - 0.3

Last Week: FG% - 37.5%, 3PT% - 29.2%, FT% - 68.8%

Overall: FG% - 42.3%, 3PT% - 32.6%, FT% - 72.7%

Jaden Ivey once again struggled with inefficiency last week, but still put up the best all-around stats among rookies. Ivey scored in double figures in three of four games, including a 24-point performance against the Sacramento Kings.

He also had four or more rebounds in all four games and five or more assists in three of those games.

Once again Ivey’s play didn’t translate to wins, with the Detroit Pistons going just 1-3 over the past week. However, they’ve been heavily shorthanded. Their lone win against the Denver Nuggets marked their first victory without rising star guard Cade Cunningham (1-6).

#1 Bennedict Mathurin | Indiana Pacers

Indiana Pacers shooting guard Bennedict Mathurin

Previous week’s Rookie of the Year Power Ranking: 2nd (↑1)

Last Week: Games played - 4, Games won - 4, Games lost - 0

Overall: Games played - 16, Games won - 10, Games lost - 6

Last Week: PPG - 17.3, RPG - 4.0, APG - 1.0, SPG - 0.5, BPG - 0.0

Overall: PPG - 19.3, RPG - 3.9, APG - 1.9, SPG - 0.4, BPG - 0.1

Last Week: FG% - 40.4%, 3PT% - 30.0%, FT% - 80.8%

Overall: FG% - 44.3%, 3PT% - 42.1%, FT% - 82.5%

Bennedict Mathurin had a bit of a down week efficiency-wise, but still made a huge impact for the Indiana Pacers. Mathurin scored in double-digits in all four games for Indiana last week, including two games with 20+ points against the Charlotte Hornets and Orlando Magic.