by William Menna

Created on: January 07, 2010

Among first-year NBA players, 2010 is the year of the point guard.  Tyreke Evans, Brandon Jennings, Jonny Flynn, and Stephen Curry - all point guards - four of the top rookies, with first-year point guards Ty Lawson, Darren Collison, Eric Maynor, and Jrue Holiday all contributing to their teams as well.  The top 2010 NBA Rookie of the Year candidates are the next generation of great point guards.

Kings’ guard Tyreke Evans has been setting the bar for this season’s rookie class.  With 20.3 points per game, Evans ranks top among rookies and 14th overall in the league in scoring.  His 5.0 assists rank second, 5.3 rebounds fourth, and 1.5 steals second among all rookies.  Evans is a major reason for Sacramento’s major turnaround from having the worst record in the league a year ago to standing within striking distance of the playoffs in the 2009-2010 season.  At midseason, Tyreke Evans is the best of the 2010 NBA Rookie of the Year candidates.

Brandon Jennings got off to an early lead among 2010 NBA Rookie of the Year candidates, though he has mostly come back down to Earth after a blazing start.  Jennings has become the Bucks’ starting point guard and is the top assist man among rookies with 5.9 per game.  Jennings is averaging 19.0 points, including a 55 point effort in just his seventh NBA game.  He is having an excellent, almost All-Star caliber season and is currently second among 2010 NBA Rookie of the Year candidates to Tyreke Evans.

Stephen Curry made his name as a scorer in college, leading the nation in points during his final NCAA season.  He has started his NBA career with more of an all-around game, averaging 12.3 points, 3.6 rebounds, 4.4 assists, and a rookie-leading 1.9 steals per game (sixth in the league overall).  Curry is shooting 46 percent from the field and 84.8 percent from the line which is best among rookies.

Continuing the point guard trend, Wolves’ rookie Jonny Flynn has started his career nicely.  Winning the starting job after Ricky Rubio decided to stay in Spain, Flynn has stepped up as the third leading scorer among rookies with 14.2 points per game.  He is fourth among rookies with 4.0 assists and fourth in steals with 1.1 per game.  Flynn won’t be leading the Wolves into the playoffs anytime soon, but he is proving himself as one of the top rookies in his class.

One unlikely leader among this season’s rookie class is Kings’ forward Omri Casspi.  Drafted 23rd overall out of Israel, Casspi is fourth among rookies in scoring with 13.2 points per game.  Casspi is leading all qualified rookies in field goal percentage, draining 49.8 percent of his shots.  He similarly leads rookies in three point shooting percentage at 47.1 percent, good for fourth overall in the NBA.

Other 2010 NBA Rookie of the Year candidates include Denver’s Ty Lawson, James Harden of the Thunder, Jonas Jerebko of the Pistons, Tyler Hansbrough of the Pacers, Taj Gibson of the Bulls, Darren Collison of the Hornets, and DeJuan Blair of the Spurs.

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