One of the ripple effects of LaMelo Ball’s potentially season-ending injury is that it opens the door of possibility in the Rookie of the Year race. Ball has long been considered the runaway favorite for the award since early in the regular season.
For some NBA fans, the impact on the Rookie of the Year race was one of the first things that came to mind, which rubbed Kings rookie Tyrese Haliburton the wrong way.
Via Jason Jones of The Athletic:
“Haliburton, however, wasn’t happy to hear from people who were trying to boost his candidacy after learning Charlotte’s LaMelo Ball, the front-runner for the award, had fractured a bone in his right wrist and is likely out for the season.
“It was kind of frustrating to see people tagging me in stuff and hitting me up,” Haliburton said. “Seemed like people were excited or something, and I hated that. I think that’s terrible. … I thought that was garbage.”
Haliburton said he suffered the same injury to his left wrist last season at Iowa State and that he was praying for a full recovery for Ball.”
Haliburton is considered one of the players who could make a run at the Rookie of the Year award with a strong stretch. The Kings guard is fourth in total points, fourth in 3-pointers made, second in assists and third in steals.
The player with the best chance at taking the Rookie of the Year award away from Ball, though, is Minnesota’s Anthony Edwards. Behind a scoring barrage that started well before Ball’s injury, shooting him to the top spot in total points among rookies this season.
As Haliburton notes, though, that is a backburner topic after Ball’s injury. There is a chance Ball returns at the end of the regular season to make one last case for him to be the Rookie of the Year.
