Best Rookie Season of All Time???

[ATL_Bball_King]

What player had the Best season coming in as a rookie?

Not just Numbers wise, But also impact on the league, affect on team and franchise their rookie year

[brooks_thompson]

Johnson

[Marchesk]

Wilt: MVP, set scoring and rebounding record.

[Joyner82reload]

The guy that averaged 22/9/11 while winning FMVP

[24-Inch_Chrome]

The guy that averaged 22/9/11 while winning FMVP

Magic didn't average 22/9/11 his rookie year.

[ClipperRevival]

MJ set the league on fire his rookie season. Averaged like 28 ppg and did things the league had never seen before. He didn't win but in terms of league wide impact, it was huge.

[fragokota]

Magic

[ATL_Bball_King]

MJ set the league on fire his rookie season. Averaged like 28 ppg and did things the league had never seen before. He didn't win but in terms of league wide impact, it was huge.


Did Lebron have a impact close to MJ?

[Marchesk]

MJ set the league on fire his rookie season. Averaged like 28 ppg and did things the league had never seen before. He didn't win but in terms of league wide impact, it was huge.

He didn't set records or win the MVP. He was huge because of the media following he garnered. If MJ had come out during the 70s, it wouldn't be the same (see Dr J).

[Marchesk]

Magic

There's been several players that had better rookie seasons than Magic, including Kareem and Dr J.

[Cold soul]

Magic Johnson. MJ and Wilt are others you could name.

[inclinerator]

lebron james

[Joyner82reload]

Magic didn't average 22/9/11 his rookie year.

He did in the Finals

[Joyner82reload]

lebron james

Tyreke Evans had a better rookie year than LeBron :lol

[T_L_P]

Big Dave.

[ATL_Bball_King]

79-80 Magic Stats
Rebs:7.7 Pts: 7.3 Stl: 2.4 Pts: 18.0 FG:53%
Team Record- 60-22- Lakers won championship


84-85 Jordan stats
Reb:6.5 Ast:5.9 Stl: 2.4 Pts: 28.2 FG: 51%
Team Record 38-44--Chicago lost first round 3-1


2003-04 Lebron stats-----team record 35-47 missed playoffs
Reb 5.5 Ast 5.9 Stl 1.6 Pts:20.9 FG: 41%

[inclinerator]

ron artest

[thefatmiral]

the admiral

[ATL_Bball_King]

KAJ- Rookie stats

Pts:28.8 Reb: 14.6 Ast:4.1

Team Record- 56-26

[fragokota]

There's been several players that had better rookie seasons than Magic, including Kareem and Dr J.

Read OP's post again. Imo what Magic achieved in his rookie season (including the championship ofc) comes closer to what op describes.

[Stringer Bell]

Wilt.

Ridiculously dominant, led to rule changes.

Magic had team success, and had one of the greatest single game performances in NBA Finals history, but overall I can't put him THAT high. Wilt won ROTY, MVP, and led the league in both scoring and rebounding by pretty wide margins.

[necya]

Wilt, Bird, DRob, MJ, KAJ

sorry but Magic didn't have the impact of those guys on the league and their team as a rookie, completely overrated by a championship which is a team accomplishment.

[RonSwanson]

Tyreke Evans had a better rookie year than LeBron :lol


:roll:

[IncarceratedBob]

it's magic johnson easily

[SHAQisGOAT]

Read OP's post again. Imo what Magic achieved in his rookie season (including the championship ofc) comes closer to what op describes.

Magic had a great rookie year but playing with MVP (would've been a great choice for DPOY too), still in his prime, top3 GOAT Kareem Abdul-Jabbar helps... a WHOLE LOT.

Not to mention that they got rid of no-defense played, team "cancer" Adrian Dantley, while acquiring Spencer Haywood and Jim Chones, plus Michael Cooper was back after being injured in his 1st year.
Already having Wilkes and Nixon.

I mean, Magic wasn't a better, more impactful overall player than Larry Bird. And he won a title yea (plus FMVP, that "belongs" to Kareem though) but he didn't do more than Bird, in terms of play and impact towards team-winning/improvement.

And you'd really think that those 1980 Lakers with, let's say, Bird instead of Wilkes while replacing Magic with a player(SG) of the same caliber as Jamaal, wouldn't win the title? Shit, they'd be even better and rape the whole league.

Larry was also ROY (not Magic) while being 1st all-nba and 4th in MVP voting...

[Prime_Shaq]

Shaq. 23 PPG 14 RPG 3.5 BPG on 56 FG%. Help the Magic with a 20 win improvement (From a dismal 21-61 to a respectable 41-41 in a tough Eastern conference)

[Stringer Bell]

it's magic johnson easily

We're talking about the whole season, not one game.

[salwan]

anthony bennett

[24-Inch_Chrome]

Grayson Allen in two years. 35/5/5 on 55/40/95. Book it.

[Joyner82reload]

:roll:

He did, I'm not sure what you're laughing about. They both averaged 20/5.5/6 while Tyreke turned the ball over less, was far more efficient, and did it in less minutes.

[AkronAngel]

Magic or Wilt.

[ATL_Bball_King]

Grayson Allen in two years. 35/5/5 on 55/40/95. Book it.


No rookie will ever be dominant again coming into the league...The league is too stacked...No rookie can turn around a franchise in a season...

Did you even like Allen Before the championship Game...???

[fragokota]

Magic had a great rookie year but playing with MVP (would've been a great choice for DPOY too), still in his prime, top3 GOAT Kareem Abdul-Jabbar helps... a WHOLE LOT.

Not to mention that they got rid of no-defense played, team "cancer" Adrian Dantley, while acquiring Spencer Haywood and Jim Chones, plus Michael Cooper was back after being injured in his 1st year.
Already having Wilkes and Nixon.

I mean, Magic wasn't a better, more impactful overall player than Larry Bird. And he won a title yea (plus FMVP, that "belongs" to Kareem though) but he didn't do more than Bird, in terms of play and impact towards team-winning/improvement.

And you'd really think that those 1980 Lakers with, let's say, Bird instead of Wilkes while replacing Magic with a player(SG) of the same caliber as Jamaal, wouldn't win the title? Shit, they'd be even better and rape the whole league.

Larry was also ROY (not Magic) while being 1st all-nba and 4th in MVP voting...


I respect your knowledge of NBA history and i am fond of your posts, but we can't judge Magic's accomplishment as rookie based on "ifs" but facts. And facts do state that as great as Kareem was he didn't win with the Lakers until Johnson came around. That's a fact and Magic deserves credit for it. Even if Kareem was to be named FMVP in 1980 if he managed to stay healthy, that still doesn't take away from Johnson's Super clutch performance as an unexpierenced Young rookie that carried his team to a ring in game 6. He won that FMVP in the end and that's also a fact. The way he immediately impacted his team's fortune by helping them win a ring his First year around is the greatest compliment a rookie can have. Again imho he had the greatest impact as rookie as described in op's post.

[24-Inch_Chrome]

No rookie will ever be dominant again coming into the league...The league is too stacked...No rookie can turn around a franchise in a season...

Did you even like Allen Before the championship Game...???

Grayson Allen is the future GOAT, don't doubt it. Maybe 35/4/4 is more realistic, 50/40/90.

Yeah, I did. He hadn't shown his GOAT potential to the world before the title game but I loved his hustle, dude has true grit. He's also a monster dunker.

[Marchesk]

I respect your knowledge of NBA history and i am fond of your posts, but we can't judge Magic's accomplishment as rookie based on "ifs" but facts. And facts do state that as great as Kareem was he didn't win with the Lakers until Johnson came around. That's a fact and Magic deserves credit for it. Even if Kareem was to be named FMVP in 1980 if he managed to stay healthy, that still doesn't take away from Johnson's Super clutch performance as an unexpierenced Young rookie that carried his team to a ring in game 6. He won that FMVP in the end and that's also a fact. The way he immediately impacted his team's fortune by helping them win a ring his First year around is the greatest compliment a rookie can have. Again imho he had the greatest impact as rookie as described in op's post.

Yeah, but imagine if Wilt's rookie season was accompanied by prime Oscar or West. Magic had Kareem on his team. That makes a big difference. No Kareem, no sniffing the finals.

[Kingwillball]

Tyreke Evans had a better rookie year than LeBron :lol


Lol.. No he didn't

[Kingwillball]

Grayson Allen is the future GOAT, don't doubt it. Maybe 35/4/4 is more realistic, 50/40/90.

Yeah, I did. He hadn't shown his GOAT potential to the world before the title game but I loved his hustle, dude has true grit. He's also a monster dunker.


He will be lucky to make NBA and at best will be a bobby sura type..

[ATL_Bball_King]

Grayson Allen is the future GOAT, don't doubt it. Maybe 35/4/4 is more realistic, 50/40/90.

Yeah, I did. He hadn't shown his GOAT potential to the world before the title game but I loved his hustle, dude has true grit. He's also a monster dunker.

35 points or Mins per game?

No way an NBA player is averaging 35ppg in this league...Its only 27 right now..

[24-Inch_Chrome]

He will be lucky to make NBA and at best will be a bobby sura type..

Michael Jordan 2.0.

[ATL_Bball_King]

I respect your knowledge of NBA history and i am fond of your posts, but we can't judge Magic's accomplishment as rookie based on "ifs" but facts. And facts do state that as great as Kareem was he didn't win with the Lakers until Johnson came around. That's a fact and Magic deserves credit for it. Even if Kareem was to be named FMVP in 1980 if he managed to stay healthy, that still doesn't take away from Johnson's Super clutch performance as an unexpierenced Young rookie that carried his team to a ring in game 6. He won that FMVP in the end and that's also a fact. The way he immediately impacted his team's fortune by helping them win a ring his First year around is the greatest compliment a rookie can have. Again imho he had the greatest impact as rookie as described in op's post.


Thats a good point though, There can be nothing greater than a rookie winning FMVP...Is he the only one ever to have done this??

[fragokota]

Yeah, but imagine if Wilt's rookie season was accompanied by prime Oscar or West. Magic had Kareem on his team. That makes a big difference. No Kareem, no sniffing the finals.

My friend i am affraid you are missing the point here, check where you base your whole argument (" imagine if") , compared to mine that says that he won a ring his First year around while being FMVP. That's the ultimate goal in playing Professional basketball in the end, winning titles, and that's what he did as a rookie while having a great impact on his team.

[dreamwarrior]

Kareem in '70. He came in and just destroyed the league. MIL Kareem could do it all with athleticism, tenacity, and had a good jump shot as well.

[Psileas]

Thats a good point though, There can be nothing greater than a rookie winning FMVP...Is he the only one ever to have done this??

Regular season MVP is harder to get than Finals' MVP. And this is what Wilt and Unseld did.

[Pointguard]

What player had the Best season coming in as a rookie?

Not just Numbers wise, But also impact on the league, affect on team and franchise their rookie year

I don't know why nobody is getting Fragokota here. Magic and Bird had great impact not only on their teams, but the league as well. Magic obviously had more impact on Kareem and the team than anybody/any team has had since. Kareem gets top two billing and the Lakers wouldn't be the top franchise. He was exciting, he was the best team player ever, out shined the label showtime. Nobody is really close. Bird is probably second but he only had a more impressive regular season.

In terms of play, Wilt would have had 10 records not only for rookies, but for everybody. He sets standards left and right. He also had off the court impact as well. Also had impact like Magic and Bird as well as low as it is kept.

[Hamtaro CP3KDKG]

lol @ anyone who thinks rookie Magic>Bird

[Pointguard]

lol @ anyone who thinks rookie Magic>Bird
In the regular season Bird was definitely better. But it took Bird awhile to get his postseason act together. Magic at 20 years old was better in the playoffs than Bird was until Bird was 27 years old.

[Demitri98]

Wilt

MVP of the league and set records at the time for PPG and RPG

Took the league by storm

[bobopenguin]

lol. The only rookie in entire nba history wins FMVP.
he played well whole season. He helps Lakere won the championship, and himself got a FMVP. how is this not the best rookie season?
Magic Johnson.

[Deuce Bigalow]

George Mikan, it's hard to choose when his rookie season was.
From his wiki:

Chicago American Gears (1946–47)Edit
After the end of the 1945–46 college season, Mikan signed with the Chicago American Gears of the National Basketball League, a predecessor of the modern NBA. He played with them for 25 games in the end of the 1946-47 NBL season, scoring an impressive 16.5 points per game in his rookie games. Mikan led the Gears to the championship of the World Basketball Tournament. In the WBT, Mikan was elected Most Valuable Player after scoring 100 points in five games, and also voted into the All-NBL Team.

Minneapolis Lakers (1947–56)Edit
In his first season with the Lakers, Mikan led the league in scoring with 1,195 points, becoming the first and only NBL player to score more than 1,000 points in an NBL season.[8] He was named the league MVP, and the Lakers won the NBL title.

The following year, the Lakers and three other NBL franchises jumped to the fledgling Basketball Association of America. Mikan led his new league in scoring, and again set a single-season scoring record. The Lakers defeated the Washington Capitols in the 1949 BAA Finals.

In 1949, the BAA and NBL merged to form the NBA. The new league started the inaugural 1949–50 NBA season with 17 teams, with the Lakers in the Central Division. Mikan again was dominant, averaging 27.4 points per game and 2.9 assists per game and taking another scoring title;[9] only Alex Groza of Indianapolis also broke the 20-point-barrier that year.[1] After comfortably leading his team to an impressive 51–17 record and storming through the playoffs, Mikan's team played the 1950 NBA Finals against the Syracuse Nationals. In Game 1, the Lakers beat Syracuse on their home court when Lakers reserve guard Bob Harrison hit a 40-foot buzzer beater to give Minneapolis a two-point win. The team split the next four games, and in Game 6, the Lakers won 110–95 and won the first-ever NBA championship. Mikan scored 31.3 points per game in the playoffs.

[Deuce Bigalow]

lol. The only rookie in entire nba history wins FMVP.
he played well whole season. He helps Lakere won the championship, and himself got a FMVP. how is this not the best rookie season?
Magic Johnson.
FMVP didn't exist until 1969. Mikan and Russell anyone?

[SugarHill]

It's either Unseld or Wilt

[Deuce Bigalow]

Joe Fulks deserves a mention


Fulks joined the BAA's Philadelphia Warriors in 1946, at age 25, and in his rookie season he won the league's first scoring title with a 23.2 points per game average and the Warriors won the BAA title.
Would have been FMVP If there was such a thing then.

[LAZERUSS]

It's either Unseld or Wilt

Those are the only two ROYs that won MVP's...

but how about Unseld's rookie season against Wilt (68-69)...


68-69:

Nate Thurmond vs. Wilt in 6 regular season games:

Nate: 17.3 ppg, 23.8 rpg, 4.3 apg, .346 FG%
Wilt: 13.8 ppg, 23.7 rpg, 3.7 apg, .547 FG%

Nate vs. Wilt in 6 playoff games:

Nate: 16.7 ppg, 19.5 rpg, 4.7 apg, .392 FG%
Wilt: 12.0 ppg, 23.5 rpg, 2.5 apg, .500 FG%

Clinching game six:

Thurmond: 8 pts, 14 rebs, 1 ast, 3-13 FG/FGA
Wilt: 11 pts, 25 rebs, 1 ast, 5-9 FG/FGA



Bill Russell vs Wilt in 6 regular season games:

Russell: 6.7 ppg, 17.0 rpg, 5.8 apg, .340 FG%
Wilt: 16.0 ppg, 24.0 rpg, 4.7 apg, .493 FG%

As a side-note, Wilt had one H2H game in which he outscored Russell by a 35-5 margin, and another H2H game in which he outrebounded Russell, 42-18.

Russell vs. Wilt in 7 Finals games:

Russell: 9.1 ppg, 21.1 rpg, 5.2 apg, .397 FG%
Wilt: 11.7 ppg, 25.0 rpg, 3.0 apg, .500 FG%

Clinching game 7:

Russell: 6 pts, 21 rebs, 6 ast, 2-7 FG/FGA
Wilt: 18 pts, 27 rebs, 3 ast, 7-8 FG/FGA



Elvin Hayes vs. Wilt in 7 regular season games:

Hayes: 31.0 ppg, 14.3 rpg, 1.4 apg, .452 FG%
Wilt: 25.6 ppg, 20.1 rpg, 6.6 apg, .577 FG%

As a side-note, here were Elvin's and Thurmond's 5 regular season H2H's:

Hayes: 28.2 ppg, 17.6 rpg, 2.3 apg (4 games), .463 FG% (4 games)
Nate: 23.8 ppg, 20.8 rpg, 3.0 apg (4 games), .385 FG% (4 games)



Wes Unseld vs. Wilt in 6 regular season H2H's:

Unseld: 11.0 ppg, 20.7 rpg, 2.6 apg (5 games), .345 FG% (5 games)
Wilt: 21.5 ppg, 22.2 rpg, 4.7 apg (5 games), .626 FG% (5 games)

As a side-note, in their last regular season H2H that year:

Unseld: 4 pts, 9 rebs, 3 ast, 1-9 FG/FGA
Wilt: 25 pts, 38 rebs, 7 ast, 12-16 FG/FGA

As another side-note, in their very first H2H game the next season:

Unseld: 23 pts, 23 rebs, 3 ast, 10-17 FG/FGA
Wilt: 38 pts, 22 rebs, 2 ast, 16-26 FG/FGA



Walt Bellamy vs Wilt in 9 regular season games:

Bellamy: 18.8 ppg, 15.8 rpg (7 games), 2.6 apg (5 games), .403 FG% (5 games)
Wilt: 23.2 ppg, 22.3 rpg, (8 games), 6.3 apg (5 games), .745 FG% (7 games)

As a side-note, in their last meeting in that season:

Bellamy: 18 pts, 9 rebs, 1 ast, 5-17 FG/FGA
Wilt: 34 pts, 27 rebs, 7 ast, 14-14 FG/FGA



Willis Reed vs Wilt in 2 regular season H2H's:

(Reed took over the center position after Bellamy was traded in mid-season)

Reed: 20.0 ppg, 9.5 rpg, 3.0 apg, .459 FG%
Wilt: 28.0 ppg, 22.0 rpg, 4.0 apg, .688 FG%.

Chamberlain was, BY FAR, the most dominant player in the league in 68-69. And yet, he was nowhere to be found in the MVP voting.


As for Wilt's rookie season...


1959-60:

In Wilt's rookie season, he joins a Warrior team that had finished in last place the year before, and was declining.

Over the course of the entire season, Chamberlain smashes numerous records, including ppg, at 37.6 ppg (previous record had been 29.2 ppg), and rpg, at 27.0 rpg (previous record had been 23.0 rpg.) Wilt also shot a career low .461 from the floor (the only time in his career in which he would fail to shoot at least .506.) BTW, the league average eFG% was .410.

He led his Philly team to a 49-26 record, and a trip to the playoffs.

During the regular season, Chamberlain squared off against veteran HOF center Clyde Lovellette eight times.

Here were Lovellette's numbers against the entire league:

20.8 ppg, 10.6 rpg, and a .468 eFG%

Here were Lovellette's and Russell's numbers in their nine regular season H2H games:

Lovellette: 21.7 ppg, 14.7 rpg (only three known games), .390 FG% (in four known games.)
Russell: 15.2 ppg, 21.4 rpg (seven known games), .434 FG% (seven known games.)

The two would meet in the Finals, as well:

Lovellette: 16.4 ppg, 9.9 rpg, .394 FG%
Russell: 16.8 ppg, 24.9 rpg, .471 FG%


Wilt vs Lovellette in eight H2H games:

Lovellette: 15.8 ppg, 9.2 rpg (five known games), .474 FG% (five known games.)
Wilt: 30.9 ppg, 21.9 rpg, .407 FG%

Obviously Lovellette did a fantastic defensive job on Wilt, holding him to an "un-Wilt-like" .407 FG%. Still, Chamberlain crushed Lovellette on the glass, badly outscored him, and held him well below his normal scoring average.


Now...the Russell-Wilt H2H's.

First of all, here were Russell's regular season numbers against the entire NBA that season:

18.2 ppg, 24.0 rpg, and a career high .467 eFG%

Russell: 19.8 ppg, 23.7 rpg, and get this... an eFG% of .393
Wilt: 39.1 ppg, 29.7 rpg, .465 FG%, 1.3 apg.

Chamberlain basically EXCEEDED ALL of his regular season stats against Russell in that regular season, including FG%. And, he held Russell, in his greatest FG% season, to way below his normal regular season FG%, and in fact, below the league average (.410.)

Interesting too,...take away their very first H2H game, and in which Russell slightly outplayed Wilt (Wilt outscored Russell, 30-22, but they were even on the glass at 30-30, and Russell outshot Wilt from the floor 7-19 to 12-38)...and here were Chamberlain's numbers in their last ten straight regular season H2H games:

40.2 ppg, 29.7 rpg, and on a .481 FG%.

Incidently and for those that somehow believed that Russell would "let" Chamberlain get his points in certain circumstances...

Here was a game in which Wilt scored 43 points, on 18-36 shooting, with 39 rebounds:

http://www.basketball-reference.com/...001290PHW.html

A fourth quarter comeback. It would not be the last time Wilt would engineer a 4th quarter comeback with a huge game, either.

Over the course of those 11 H2H games, Chamberlain outscored Russell 10-1, including six games of 43+, and a high game of 53. BTW, Wilt also plastered Russell with a staggering 44 point, 43 rebound game. Chamberlain held an 8-2-1 rebounding advantage, and had four games of 35+ (Russell's high game against Wilt was 33.)


The two would meet in the EDF's (and after Chamberlain put up a 38.7 ppg, 23.0 rpg, series against Syracuse in the first round, which included a clinching 53-22 game on 24-42 shooting.)

The series went six games, and Boston won the clinching game six by a 119-117 margin.

Here were their numbers in those six games of EDF's:

Russell: 20.7 ppg, 27.0 rpg, and on a .446 eFG%, and 2.8 apg.
Wilt: 30.5 ppg, 27.5 rpg, and on a .500 FG% (in a post-season that shot an eFG% of .402), and 2.0 apg

However, Wilt badly injured his hand in a melee in game two, and was worthless in game three (and below normal in game four.) His hand was so swollen he could not hold the ball. Of course he was never a great FT shooter, but he went 0-6 from the line in that game (and shot .538 the rest of the series from the FT line.) Game three would probably be the only time in their 49 post-season H2H's in which Russell clearly dominated Wilt. Russell outscored Wilt, 26-12, and outrebounded Wilt, 39-15. The result...a 120-90 blowout win for Boston (BTW, Russell played 40 minutes to Wilt's 35.)

In a must-win game five, Wilt was back to normal, and he erupted for 50 points, on 22-42 shooting, with 35 rebounds (Russell had 22 point, on 9-16 shooting, with 27 rebounds.)

Russell did play Wilt to a draw in the clinching game six win, (again, 119-117.) Wilt outscored Russell, 26-25, while Russell outrebounded Wilt, 25-24. Chamberlain shot 8-18 from the field, to Russell's 11-26 (Russell had quite a few games in their career H2H's in which he took more FGAs that Wilt BTW.)

Still, the heavily-favored 59-16 Celtics barely survived that game six against Wilt's 49-26 Warriors. And had Wilt not badly injured his hand in game two, who knows how that series might have gone?

Wilt was again...BY FAR...the most dominant player in the league, and easily the GOAT rookie.

[Pointguard]

Wilt was by far the best player in the league in his rookie year and was one of a few that was even dominant.

[LAZERUSS]

Wilt was by far the best player in the league in his rookie year and was one of a few that was even dominant.

Agreed.

But I would put Magic's overall rookie season, including the post-season, as the second greatest ever.

[G0ATbe]

Maybe not stat wise... but eye test wise Kobe. Knew from the moment I saw him he'd become the GOAT:pimp: .

[LAZERUSS]

In the regular season Bird was definitely better. But it took Bird awhile to get his postseason act together. Magic at 20 years old was better in the playoffs than Bird was until Bird was 27 years old.

And keep in mind that Magic was three years younger than Bird. Going year-by-year, at the same ages, and Magic had a considerably greater career. And, again, you are dead-on on their post-season impact.

Post-season advantages:

Bird in '81 (barely...he had a horrible shooting Finals), '84, and '86.

Magic: '80, '82, '83, '85, '87, '88, '89, '90, and '91.

[Deuce Bigalow]

1. Mikan, 1948-49
2. Fulks, 1946-47
3. Magic, 1979-80
4. Russell, 1956-57
5. Wilt, 1959-60

[JohnFreeman]

Probably Elfrid Payton

[RonSwanson]

He did, I'm not sure what you're laughing about. They both averaged 20/5.5/6 while Tyreke turned the ball over less, was far more efficient, and did it in less minutes.

Dude, I'm agreeing with you. I just thought that was hysterical

[ILLsmak]

Tyreke Evans had a better rookie year than LeBron :lol

kg.gif.

-Smak