Through the first 12 or so games of the 2009-2010 NBA season there has been an uprising of dominant rookie point guards, which has made me stop and appreciate some of the incredible things these young athletes have brought to the table, night in and night out. Statistically, they’re nothing short of phenomenal, but each of these four players has played an intricate role in their team’s success thus far. So here are my top-ranked rookie guards so far this year:
1: Brandon Jennings, Milwaukee Bucks
The 6-foot-1-inch, 170-pound point guard out of Oak Hill Academy has helped the Milwaukee Bucks get off to a 6-3 start, while the team is just a half-game behind the division leading Cleveland Cavaliers. Jennings leads the team in points (24.8), assists (5.8), and minutes played (34.8) per game and has proven to be worth the wait after spending last season playing professionally in Rome. Just seven games into his NBA career, Jennings exploded for 55 points on 21-of-34 shooting in a 129-125 win over the Golden State Warriors and has made over 55 percent of his shots from beyond the three-point line this season.
2: Ty Lawson, Denver Nuggets
After taking home the national title with the North Carolina Tar Heels at the end of his prolific college career, Lawson has shown that he can contribute on a team that was already stacked with point guards in Chauncey Billups and J.R. Smith. Through 11 games, Lawson is averaging 9.7 points and 3.4 assists per game in just over 21 minutes per outing. The stats don’t quite jump off the page like they do for Jennings, but Lawson’s ability to provide a spark of the bench for one of the premier teams in the league could prove invaluable down the stretch. If he is able to stay healthy, come playoff time I could see him playing a very similar role to that of Eddie House when the Celtics one the championship two years ago.
3: Tyreke Evans, Sacramento Kings
Coming out of Memphis as the fourth overall pick in the 2009 NBA Draft, Evans has helped a lackluster Kings squad to become, at the very least, respectable in the one the NBA’s toughest divisions. He and teammate Jason Thompson — who is entering his second professional season — lead Sacramento in every major statistical category through their first 10 games. Evans has put up 17.1 points, 4.3 assists, and 1.5 steals per game at the point guard position, though he has struggled from deep as he’s converted on just 6-of-23 from beyond the arc. The Kings are still a few years away from being a contender in the Western Conference, but they have enough raw, young talent to possibly be able to sneak into the No. 8 spot come June.
4: Jonny Flynn, Minnesota Timberwolves
The 20-year-old point guard out of Syracuse University, who we all remember from the Orange’s dramatic six-overtime victory over UConn last year, ranks second on the team with 13.8 points per through the first 12 contests. Flynn has also pulled down 3.1 rebounds and 3.2 assists per outing, but similar to Evans he has had trouble from downtown, shooting just 25 percent from beyond the arc. Aside from playing on a terrible Minnesota team (1-11), Flynn has been prone to turnovers early on as well, averaging almost four per game. He will likely have a typical solid rookie year, but the lack of support from his surrounding teammates and the always-injured Al Jefferson will be tough for Flynn to overcome when it comes to making many tallies in the win column this year.
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