Andrew Wiggins Wins Rookie of the Year, Marcus Smart is 5th

Wiggins wins Rookie of the Year, Smart 5th





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Wiggins, 20, received 110 of 130 first-place votes and 604 total points from a panel of sportswriters and broadcasters throughout the United States and Canada. The Chicago Bulls’ Nikola Mirotic finished second with 335 points (14 first-place votes), and Nerlens Noel of the Philadelphia 76ers was third with 141 points (three first-place votes). Players were awarded five points for each first-place vote, three points for each second-place vote and one point for each third-place vote.

Wiggins averaged 16.9 points, the second-best mark by a rookie in Minnesota history, behind Christian Laettner’s 18.2 points in 1992-93. He appeared in all 82 games and ranked fourth in the NBA with a rookie-leading 36.2 minutes, the highest average ever by a Timberwolves rookie. The 6-8 Wiggins led or tied for the Minnesota lead in scoring a team-high 25 times and reached the 20-point mark in 31 games. He finished ninth in the NBA in free throws made (354) and sixth in free throws attempted (466), good for 76.0 percent. Wiggins also averaged 4.6 rebounds and 1.05 steals, both top-10 marks among rookies.


Here are the full voting results:

http://ak-static.cms.nba.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2015/04/2014-15-Rookie-of-the-Year-Results.pdf



bob
Congrats to all players nominated.  It's tough being a rookie.  Mirotic is a 24 year old "rookie" who played pro for years in Europe.  If/when you look at the full results, look to see who stuffed the ballot boxes for Mirotic and Payton.  WMVP is a Chicago sports radio station and all of Payton's first place picks came from Florida broadcasters.


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Good for Marcus.  No huge surprise, as he was a starter most of the year, and he was immediately an impact player.  Obviously, he still has a long way to go in order to be of maximum help for the Celtics, but he has already come a long way and I see no reason why that can't continue.  My only concern, long-term, is what the right position is for him.

Sam

It's very typical for guys to vote for their local guy.
Steve Albert is the only non Boston guy to vote for Marcus Smart.

I agree with Sam. What position will Smart play going forward?