The NBA's Rookie of the Year race almost always features the first overall pick, followed by one or two other lottery picks. Entering the 2023-24 NBA season, we really shouldn't overthink who the best rookies in the league are, especially when Victor Wembanyama and Chet Holmgren tower over everyone.
No, really, these guys are so tall that they quite literally stand above everyone else!
The hype surrounding Wembanyama and his debut with the San Antonio Spurs is real. He may very well be the best prospect to enter the NBA since LeBron James in 2003. Plus, players who go first overall to the Spurs have a pretty good track record of finding success.
David Robinson was drafted first overall by San Antonio in 1987 and went on to win the Rookie of the Year award in what turned out to be a Hall of Fame career. Tim Duncan was drafted first overall by San Antonio in 1997 and earned Rookie of the Year honors en route to five championships and a place in the Hall of Fame.
It's a small sample size, but the odds are looking good for Wembanyama and the Spurs.
On the other side of things, Holmgren already has a year under his belt after sitting on the sidelines and learning everything the Oklahoma City Thunder could teach him. We've seen players sit out their “rookie seasons” before and go on to win Rookie of the Year the following season, so it should not come as a shock to see Holmgren on the early watchlist for this award.
What about other rookies from this draft class?
Scoot Henderson, Brandon Miller, Amen Thompson, and Ausar Thompson are highly talented players, but will any of them be able to come close to Wembanyama and Holmgren in the race for Rookie of the Year?
Throughout the course of the NBA preseason, ClutchPoints conducted a poll featuring media members from around the country, some of whom are official voters the league uses to determine the winner of their end-of-season awards. Some cover the league at-large, while others cover individual teams. Nonetheless, each media member was asked a variety of questions pertaining to the playoffs, NBA Finals, and individual player awards and accolades.
ClutchPoints' Full NBA Preseason Media Poll
Most Valuable Player | Rookie of the Year | Most Improved Player| Coach of the Year
Sixth Man of the Year | Defensive Player of the Year | NBA Finals/Playoffs/season predictions
Most likely to be a first-time All-Star
The media believes there is a clear favorite for this upcoming season's Rookie of the Year, and their choice really shouldn't come as a surprise given how talented of a player he is.
Below are the results from the voting that took place for 2023-24 NBA Rookie of the Year.
ClutchPoints' 2023-24 NBA Rookie of the Year Media Poll results
- Victor Wembanyama (San Antonio Spurs) – 60%
- Chet Holmgren (Oklahoma City Thunder) – 28%
- Scoot Henderson (Portland Trail Blazers) – 12%
The great debate: Victor Wembanyama vs. Chet Holmgren
Victor Wembanyama has looked like a generational talent during the preseason. From blocking shots to scoring at the rim to being able to create space and opportunities for his teammates as the Spurs' primary ball handler, Wemby has people not only talking about winning Rookie of the Year, but also potentially becoming an All-Star in his first season.
If he achieves such a feat, Wembanyama would become the first rookie to make the NBA All-Star Game since Blake Griffin did so during the 2011 All-Star Game. Earning such honors is not his main goal, though, as Wembanyama has his sights set on bringing a championship to San Antonio.
“It's no secret that it's hard to win a ring,” Wemby told French newspaper L'Equipe this offseason. “But I'm patient, and I know it will happen. Not winning my first few years is no barrier to becoming a Hall of Famer or winning five [championships] later.”
As for Holmgren, he knows what he's capable of and is entering the 2023-24 season looking to be the best version of himself. The Thunder were on the verge of making the playoffs a season ago despite Holmgren's season-long absence. With a true big man like Chet alongside All-NBA guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, they can become real threats in the Western Conference for a long time to come.
This preseason, both Rookie of the Year candidates faced off against one another for the first time. Holmgren silently stole the show from Wembanyama with 21 points and nine rebounds in his team's 122-121 victory.
“It's really cool to see players from across the world be connected to the NBA,” Holmgren stated regarding his matchup against the Spurs' prized rookie. “And I plan to play a long time, I'm sure he does too so there'll be no choice but to go back and forth so I'm excited.”
This young rivalry already has the attention of NBA fans and the media across the nation. Wembanyama may have received 60 percent of the vote in the preseason media poll, but Holmgren has a following already backing him. The Rookie of the Year race between Victor and Chet will be a close one that comes down to the final few weeks of the regular season, that is unless someone else gets caught up in the mix.
The case for Scoot Henderson and others
If there is one player who could sneak in and steal the Rookie of the Year award away from either Victor Wembanyama or Chet Holmgren, it is Scoot Henderson. With Damian Lillard now in a Milwaukee Bucks uniform, Henderson is the Portland Trail Blazers' lead guard alongside Anfernee Simons. Even though he only received 12 percent of the vote, Scoot is a rookie many around the league already respect.
Despite playing with a level of swag given his skill level, Henderson is really humble and understands he's one of the new guys on the block. Henderson has already talked about how the success of the Blazers means more the success he finds during his rookie season, and he already has All-NBA talents backing him.
“Watched him when he was in the G League,” Phoenix Suns All-Star Devin Booker said of Henderson this offseason. “I think he's going to be really good. Obviously we all have some things to learn, but it looks like he loves the game, has a high IQ for it, a body built for [it] and his athleticism is off the charts.”
Opportunity will present itself in Portland for Henderson this season. Out of all the rookies in the league, he may very well end up with the highest usage rate given the lack of star power on the Blazers' roster. This is why he is going to be in the mix for the Rookie of the Year award throughout the new season.
While they may not have received votes, Brandon Miller, Amen Thompson, and Ausar Thompson are three youngsters to watch pertaining to the Rookie of the Year and All-Rookie races this season.
Miller has showed out for the Charlotte Hornets during the preseason, while the Thompson twins will immediately make an impact for their teams on both ends of the court given their length and athleticism. Whereas Amen may have a hard time finding consistent minutes early on with the Houston Rockets, Ausar could very well end up starting for the Detroit Pistons.
Keyonte George from the Utah Jazz is another rookie to get familiar with before the start of the season. While he was not featured in the media preseason poll, George has a path to becoming Utah's starting point guard by the middle of the season, which could lead to him gaining attention in this season's rookie award races.
Overall, outside of Wembanyama and Holmgren, Henderson is the guy who has the best chance to take home the Rookie of the Year award. Between his athleticism and natural scoring abilities, he's going to make a difference from his very first game in Portland.
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