2019 NBA Award Season

The 2019 NBA All-Sophomore Teams

Enough about rookies — what about the surprisingly deep and delightful sophomore class that looks like an all-timer?

Enough with all the rookie talk! Luka Doncic has been awesome. Trae Young has been wonderful, too. Marvin Bagley is fun. DeAndre Ayton is doing stuff. It’s been a rookie class to remember, in part because the guys at the top of the draft have all lived up to billing. But as much as we talk about rookies, it’s often the sophomores that really take off.

Rookies sometimes post numbers, but they rarely do it on a winning team. Take a look at those names above. All four are averaging 15 points a game, but they’re also doing it for teams that will be drawing ping pong balls in May. Twenty rookies have played at least a thousand minutes. Just two have done it for playoff locks, and both of them play for the Los Angeles Clippers. Most of these rookies are posting encouraging but empty numbers. But by the end of a sophomore season, these guys are ready to make a difference.

This year’s rookie class has been strong, but last year’s class is looking like an all-timer. There are at least four potential franchise players at the top and as many as 20 or more guys already making real impacts on their team.

The NBA chooses All-Rookie 1st and 2nd Teams. Why not recognize the top-10 sophomores, too? The league doesn’t specify positions on the All-Rookie teams, so it’s just the ten best guys. Let’s do the same thing with the 2017 draft class and pick some All-Sophomore teams. If you need a refresher, here were last year’s All-Rookie and All-Sophomore teams…

Sophomore of the Year (SOY)

Ben Simmons, Philadelphia

If you look into the sophomore class, you’ll quickly find four building blocks that look like potential franchise players. In alphabetical order, they are: De’Aaron Fox, Donovan Mitchell, Ben Simmons, and Jayson Tatum. Everyone orders the four differently, and you can make a solid case for any of the four long-term. But right now, there’s only one correct answer for which player is best, and that’s Simmons.

Ben Simmons is insanely good for a sophomore. He’s averaging 17 points, 9 rebounds, and 8 assists a game, something only Wilt, Oscar, Magic, Russ, and Fat Lever have done before. And he’s doing it efficiently. Despite his complete and utter lack of a jumper, Simmons is at 59% true shooting, far ahead in efficacy compared to Spida, Fox, and Tatum all at 55% or lower. Simmons has compiled eight win shares this season, almost as many as any of those two other sophomores combined. He still can’t hit a shot — he’s 0-for-6 on threes and 1-for-18 on long twos — but Simmons has increased his free throw rate by 31%, and he’s up from 56% to 61% on shots at the line. That’s not great, obviously, but it’s improving, enough to stop teams from Hack-a-Ben and enough to not detract him from driving.

How much can Ben Simmons improve from here? That much remains to be seen, especially on a team where the pieces don’t fit perfectly around him. But part of the reason we ask that question is because Simmons is so good already, so close to an ostensible ceiling because he’s already there. That separates him from the rest of the sophomore crowd as the clear Sophomore of the Year.

All-Sophomore 1st Team

De’Aaron Fox, Sacramento

Remember, the All-Rookie teams don’t require positions, so we won’t for our teams either, and that means we’re basically just ranking the top ten sophomores in order. And right now, the second best sophomore is De’Aaron Fox. Fox exploded onto the scene in year two after a forgettable at best rookie season. He’s averaging 17-and-a-half points a game with four rebounds and seven dimes. Remember how Fox couldn’t shoot at Kentucky or as a rookie? He’s at 48% on twos and 37% from deep, almost identical the shooting numbers of Spida and Tatum.

I’m not a fan of rewarding sophomores with the Most Improved Player award, but it’s incredible how much Fox has improved. Twenty-one-year-old point guards are not supposed to be this good. Fox has been the best player and the motor of a completely transformed Sacramento Kings team. Coming into the year, most of us expected the Kings to be a bottom-five team, as usual. Instead, they were in the playoff race all season in the loaded West. Fox’s speed has turbo-charged the Sacto attack, as the team has leapt from 30th to 3rd in pace this season. Fox is getting to the line more often, and he’s suddenly learned how to shoot, hitting 37% on 225 three-point attempts, adding that to an already dependable floater and mid-range shot. Add in Fox’s pesky defense and clear leadership skills, and Sacramento finally has their franchise guy.

Donovan Mitchell, Utah

It’s tough for a sophomore to score 23ppg and end up third on the list, but that’s how strong this class has been. Spida has been great for a sophomore, but he hasn’t improved a ton. He’s carrying a pretty heavy load for a Utah offense that lacks other creation options, and that’s part of the reason the efficiency numbers still aren’t there. The 47% on twos is a bit concerning, and the 53% true shooting is lowest of the four high-end sophomores and fourth lowest among the 34 NBA players scoring 20ppg. The Jazz are only two points better than opponents per 100 possessions with Mitchell on the court than off, ranking him sixth on Utah.

Still, there’s time to develop the efficiency. Mitchell’s free-throw rate is up and his three-point-attempt rate is down — those are both good things for what he does right now. You want the ball in his hands driving to the rim. And that’s why it’ll be interesting to see what Utah decides to do with free agent Ricky Rubio this offseason.

Jayson Tatum, Boston

Tough break for future-Hall-of-Fame lock Tatum to rank fourth among sophomore options, but here we are. Tatum has been… fine. He’s putting up 16 and six each night, and his shooting has regressed but is still solid, with a useful 37% three and far too many mid-range jumpers. You know about Tatum by now. Something in Boston isn’t working, and it’s hard to know right now whether Tatum is partly at fault for that or whether he’s just a symptom of bigger problems. He’s still +6 on the court, so even if he’s gotten a little jumper happy, he’s still a terrific young two-way wing and has a very bright future ahead even if he has some kinks to work out in the present.

John Collins, Atlanta

We should probably start talking about this as a quintet of sophomores. John the Baptist has been wonderful for Atlanta, one point shy of a 20/10 season. He’s been terrific as a dive man on pick-and-rolls with Trae Young, but that was always going to be the case with his superb athleticism. The more exciting development has been his jump shot. Collins has made 54 threes, almost one per game, hitting 36%. That’s more than enough for defenses to respect the shot, and it gives Atlanta a devastating one-two punch with Young’s forever range and Collins’s superman dives. Of course, neither is any good at defense yet, so that’s the next step for Atlanta. For now, they’ll enjoy his 63% true shooting — even better this year, despite the increased three-point attempts.

All-Sophomore 2nd Team

Derrick White, San Antonio

White was a Summer League monster, and that’s why it was especially devastating when the Spurs lost both him and Dejounte Murray at the start of the year. Murray’s out for the season, but White has transformed the team upon his return. The Spurs are 38–26 with White and just 7–8 without him, the difference of a 49-win team versus a 38-win squad. White is so darn Spursy. He’s patient and smart and good at defense. He nails the mid-range, runs the pick-and-roll, and makes the right decision every time. White has taken a huge step forward making shots at the rim and in the mid-range. He’s second on the team in on/off differential. He’s a significant reason the Spurs will still be playing in two weeks.

Monte Morris, Denver

Morris has gotten plenty of shine as the Nuggets’ steady backup point guard. The numbers don’t overwhelm you, but Morris is an efficiency king, with an absurd 5.5 assist-turnover ratio. To put that in perspective, Morris has 52 turnovers in 1882 minutes — that’s one every 36 minutes. He’s also making 41% of his threes. But let’s not go overboard. Morris doesn’t draw free throws and doesn’t steal the ball or do much on defense. He is a reliable, steady backup point guard. That’s meant the world to Denver after the pupu platter of veterans they tried last year, but it’s probably Morris’s ceiling,too.

Jarrett Allen, Brooklyn

Allen caught my eye much of last season and has continued to meet and exceed expectations in year two. He’s gone from rookie backup to playing meaningful starter minutes on a potential playoff team, and his per-minute production has stayed just as strong. Allen is a modern big man. He’s a solid rim defender and a useful rim runner, and he’s erased more than his fair share of potential posters, unafraid of pretty much anyone at the basket. Every NBA team needs a springy rim runner in 2019, and Allen fits the bill for the Nets.

Bam Adebayo, Miami

Don’t look now, but here comes Bam. Since the All-Star Break, Adebayo is putting up 11 points and eight-and-a-half boards, and he’s diming guys up three times a game too with nifty passing and touch out of the post. Adebayo draws free throws well and hits them at a 73% clip, and he has answered the questions about whether he was just feasting on benches, getting even better as a starter, with 65% true shooting and a 123 offensive rating. Adebayo is never going to be a scorer, but he sets hard screens, reads the game well, and plays strong (and I do mean strong) and switchable defense. He looks like Miami’s starter going forward.

Thomas Bryant, Washington

Well, this is a surprise! The 42nd pick a year ago, Bryant never had a chance with the Lakers, assigned and recalled from their G-League affiliate a whopping 18 times in a forgettable rookie season before being waived in July. He’s found a home in Washington as a stretch big starting to find his role. Bryant is playing only 20 minutes a game on a dumpster fire team, but the Wizards have a 129 offensive rating with him on the court. Bryant is the only Wiz besides Bradley Beal with a positive BPM. He’s averaging 18/11/2 per 36 minutes with 67% true shooting. The defense is… not great. But who could’ve guessed before the season that Thomas Bryant would rank fifth on the Wizards in minutes and third in points?

The Honorable Mentions

There are a few interesting names missing from the All-Sophomore squads above — most notably the top two draft picks and a pair of 19-point-a-game scorers. That mostly goes to show just how strong and deep this 2017 class may end up being. You could make a really solid All-Sophomore 3rd Team and could even come up with enough names for a quality 4th team. This looks like it could be an all-time draft class.

In making these teams, I gave an emphasis to players making an impact on winning teams. A lot of guys could chuck shots for a lottery team and score inefficient points. I’m more impressed if you do it in games that matter.

Lauri Markkanen is one of those 19ppg scorers that missed the cut. Maybe it’s not fair put John Collins on 1st team and leave Lauri off altogether. Their raw numbers are pretty close to even, and it’s not like the Hawks have played in more meaningful games than the Bulls. But Collins is matching Markkanen with 36% on threes and crushing him on twos, 61% versus 48%. They’re both bad on defense, but Collins is part of a high-scoring, efficient offense. Lauri needs to do more on the boards and doesn’t draw many free throws, and you hope he’ll score more efficiently in time. He’s an excellent building block. But the truth is, he hasn’t… markkedly… improved from last year.

It pained me to leave Markkanen off, but it pains me even more to leave Bogdan Bogdanovic on the sidelines. Bogdan Squared has been perfectly fine for the Kings, but he’s been supplanted as a starter by Buddy Hield and he hasn’t really improved in year two, which means he’s probably hit his ceiling at age 26. Bogdanovic is averaging 14/3.5/4 on good-not-great shooting. He’s a smart player with some secondary handling ability, and he’s a nice rotation player any team can use. That may have to be enough.

The last big name missing, of course, is Kyle Kuzma. Sorry, Lon Shapiro. Kuzma has averaged 19ppg for the Lakers, including 37-, 39-, and 41-point outbursts. But he’s doing a lot of volume scoring and badly needs to stop chucking threes. Thirty-seven players are attempting at least six threes a game this season. Kuzma ranks dead last among them, making just 30% of his treys. His 105 offensive rating is just fine, especially considering all the minutes with LeBron, and his 112 defensive rating shows how much of a problem Kuzma is on that end. So too his -1.8 BPM and his negative on-court rating. The truth is Kuzma was something like the fifth winningest player on a bad Lakers team. Fellow sophomores Josh Hart and Lonzo Ball fit better next to LeBron and have better efficiency numbers and advanced metrics.

Pour one out for OG Anunoby hype. Pascal Siakam has been so good no one has really noticed, but OG has become somewhat of a forgotten man after a lot of rookie hype. His shot has regressed and he’s not contributing much on offense, and he has a brutal -12 on/off per 100 possessions on the court. It’s far too early to give up on him, but he hasn’t been good. Sterling Brown has been the better 3-and-D sophomore bench wing for an Eastern contender.

Jonathan Isaac has taken a real step forward on offense. His mid-range has leapt from 14 to 35%, and he’s taking a better shot selection and might be a starter on a playoff team. That part’s true for Terrance Ferguson, though that’s about the only real positive to report there. Daniel Theis, Royce O’Neale, and Torrey Craig have all been nice role players on winning teams. Maxi Kleber is a useful piece for Dallas.

Josh Jackson is mostly just bad.

2019 ALL-SOPHOMORE TEAMS

G De’Aaron Fox G Donovan Mitchell F Ben Simmons (SOY) F Jayson Tatum F John Collins

G Monte Morris G Derrick White F Thomas Bryant C Bam Adebayo C Jarrett Allen

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Thanks to Basketball Reference as always.