NBA rookie of the year 2010-2011 | Rookie Of the Year Prediction | NBA 2010-2011 Rookie Award Winner Predictions || O

NBA rookie of the year 2010-2011 | Rookie Of the Year Prediction | NBA 2010-2011 Rookie Award Winner Predictions || O

NBA rookie of the year 2010-2011 | Rookie Of the Year Prediction | NBA 2010-2011 Rookie Award Winner Predictions

RANK	PLAYER		VOTES
1	John Wall Point guard Washington Wizards	Last season Kentucky 16.6 ppg, 6.5 apg	48
2	Blake Griffin Power forward Los Angeles Clippers	2008-09 season Oklahoma 22.7 ppg, 14.4 rpg	23
3	DeMarcus Cousins Center Sacramento Kings	Last season Kentucky 15.1 ppg, 9.8 rpg	14
4	Evan Turner Guard Philadelphia 76ers	Last season Ohio State 20.4 ppg, 9.2 rpg	5

John Wall
With the Wizards giving Wall the reins from day one, it’s easy to see why more than half of our panelists think he’ll take home the hardware. A pure point guard with amazing quicks, the will to pass, defensive skills and a decent shot, Wall has a game that should translate immediately to the pro level. Witness recent ROY winners Chris Paul and Derrick Rose — the two players to whom Wall is most often compared.
That’s not to say he’s a shoo-in, of course. In fact, only two of the past 11 No. 1 picks have won rookie of the year. And, you might recall, the last time Washington had the No. 1 pick, it didn’t work out so well. (Ask Kwame Brown.)
Assuming Gilbert Arenas is still with the Wizards, Wall will have a backcourt mate who can either help him or hinder him, depending on how willing Arenas is to defer. Either way, the stage is set for Wall to turn around a franchise coming off its most embarrassing season ever, and, as we saw earlier in our forecast series, we expect that the Wizards will only go up from here.
Blake Griffin
After a kneecap injury derailed his entire 2009-10 season, Griffin is officially still a rookie and now, as our panel sees it, Wall’s main competition. A quarter of our voters believe the 2009 No. 1 pick will regain the form that made him the overwhelming favorite to win the award last season.
It’s easy to forget now, but Griffin’s arrival had us calling the Clippers “Team Turnaround” in last year’s poll. And that’s one reason why, as we’ll see in Thursday’s forecast, he’s one of our top choices for players we’re most excited to see.
DeMarcus Cousins
Based on talent alone, Cousins could easily be the favorite to win rookie of the year. Just look at his Kentucky stats — he’s an efficient double-double machine who dominated college opponents as a freshman.
Still, you can’t blame our panel for hesitating to crown Cousins king of the rooks. Not when he’s going up against two No. 1 picks for the honor. Not when he’s dealing with maturity issues. Not when he’s competing with Samuel Dalembert, Carl Landry and Jason Thompson for minutes in Sacramento. And not when he’s battling the likes of Duncan, Gasol and Yao in the West when he does see the floor.
But if Cousins overcomes those obstacles and plays to his potential, Sacramento could very well be looking at back-to-back ROY winners (Kings point guard Tyreke Evans won the 2009-10 award). The last team to accomplish that feat was the Buffalo Braves (Bob McAdoo in 1973 and Ernie DiGregorio in 1974).
Evan Turner
Although his summer-league performance seemed wanting, it’s easy to see the case for the reigning college POY as ROY. At Ohio State, the No. 2 pick showed he could fill up a stat sheet, and he should flourish under new Sixers coach Doug Collins, who knows a thing or two about guiding multifaceted young players (see Michael Jordan, Grant Hill).
The main issue for Turner might be finding minutes on a team loaded at the wing positions, but we find it hard to believe a player with his versatility will be glued to the bench. Of course, if the Sixers decide to move out Andre Iguodala, as some have speculated, then Turner’s ROY bid should gain even more steam.