#2 Eric Paschall - Golden State Warriors
After the Golden State Warriors got Draymond Green, D'Angelo Russell, and Willie Cauley-Stein back from injury, Eric Paschall's excellent start to the season appeared to be slowing down. However, after enduring frustrating performances against the Utah Jazz and OKC Thunder, Paschall has averaged 20 points and 5 rebounds per game over his past three appearances against the Los Angeles Lakers, Boston Celtics, and New Orleans Pelicans.
The 23-year-old is also shooting well over 50% from the field, and his 30-point performance against the Pelicans on Sunday means that he is the only rookie in the NBA with multiple 30-point games so far this season. With Russell picking up another injury, Steve Kerr has hinted that Paschall could take on an even greater role, and the young power forward could get even better over the coming weeks.
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#1 Ja Morant - Memphis Grizzlies
Heading into the 2019 NBA draft, it was reported that some teams around the league viewed Ja Morant as a better prospect than Zion Williamson, and there is no doubting that the 20-year-old has excelled over the first month of the season. While the Grizzlies looked on course to be among the NBA's worst teams during the opening weeks of the season, Morant's performances have inspired wins over the San Antonio Spurs, Charlotte Hornets, and Utah Jazz over the past week.
The dynamic point guard is now averaging 18.4 points, 3.2 rebounds, and 6.0 points per game and his game time are likely to increase as he is playing just 27.2 minutes per contest. Ultimately, Morant has been the breakout rookie of the season so far, and he could soon pull away as the favorite for the ROTY award.