The Battle of Number Ones

First off, I would like to say how pumped I am for the NBA season. 4 months after Kobe and his Lakers triumphed over their rivals the Boston Celtics (I would now like to point out that I correctly predicted the winner), everyone is ready for a new chapter in the NBA. A summer headlined by the 3-headed-monster Miami Heat, all signs point to a Heat-Lakers showdown in the NBA Finals.

A much less glamorous and more ambiguous prize during the NBA season is the prestige known as Rookie of the Year. This year stages a much more interesting showdown than previous years due to the debuts of TWO first overall selections from their respective drafts: Blake Griffin and John Wall. Some may point out that former No.1 pick Greg Oden debuted the year after he was drafted, but after his many trips to the injured reserve, he should seriously consider a career in medicine, thus making the competition for Derrick Rose irrelevant.

Hopefully, history (Oden’s Curse and the Curse of the Clippers- I am referring to Bill Simmon’s here) will not repeat itself, allowing Griffin and Wall to duke it out till the season’s 80th game. Just watching both players’ highlights in the preseason alone speaks volumes for what kind of talents they are.

So which one will take home the hardware if both post similar stats? History has shown that individual performance does play the main role (Kevin Durant and Tyreke Evans), but should one player single handedly lead his team to the playoffs (AKA Chris Paul) while the other does not, then the former should take the cake. It should be noted that the past 4 out of the 5 ROYs have been guards, but the 5 before that have been forwards. But here are the cases I make for both:

John Wall PG 6’ 4” Kentucky

This freak of nature has the tools to be a superstar. Regarded as a hybrid between Rajon Rondo and Derrick Rose, Wall’s explosiveness enables him to burn down the floor and make the impossible pass using his incredible vision. His size provides him with the size matchup against most point guards.
X-factor: How many games will Gilbert Arenas miss?

Blake Griffin PF 6’10” Oklahoma

Griffin is a BEAST. He loves to work out and it shows in his play: he utilizes brute strength to get into position for rebounds and boards. He also has three point range and can handle the ball like a guard to complement his post game.
X-factor: Can his knee hold up for a season? Will Baron Davis be a playmaker or scorer?

Who do I think will win? The NBA is becoming a more fastbreak guard's league. So, I would have to go with John Wall.