The NBA has taken a new approach for the announcement of end-of-season awards. Several honors and All-NBA teams have already been named. In tonight's NBA news update, the league announced its First and Second All-Rookie Teams for the 2019-20 season. And although you can name a few snubs, each of the 10 players making the two teams deserved their selection.
The top 3 names from the Rookie of the Year race in Ja Morant, Kendrick Nunn, and Zion Williamson are all present and accounted for. Morant, in fact, is a unanimous pick for the First All-Rookie Team. Here are both the teams:
First Team: Ja Morant (Memphis Grizzlies), Kendrick Nunn (Miami Heat), Brandon Clarke (Memphis Grizzlies), Zion Williamson (New Orleans Pelicans), Eric Paschall (Golden State Warriors)
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Second Team: Tyler Herro (Miami Heat), Terence Davis II (Toronto Raptors), Coby White (Chicago Bulls), PJ Washington (Charlotte Hornets), Rui Hachimura (Washington Wizards)
The most notable absence among these names is that of New York Knicks rookie RJ Barrett who averaged 14.3 points and 5 rebounds per game this season.
NBA News Update: Golden State Warriors in search for veterans
The Golden State Warriors have been a top-heavy team for a good few years now and as a result, they've had to complete the roster with younger players to conform to the NBA's salary cap figures. Things become really difficult without the veteran presence outside of their main guys in Steph Curry, Klay Thompson, and Draymond Green.
Head coach Steve Kerr spoke to The Athletic's Anthony Slater and mentioned that the Warriors will be looking to sign a few veterans in the offseason.
"We’d like to add a veteran or two in free agency, but I don’t even know if that’s possible. We’ll see how everything shakes out. So it’s almost, you know, if we can’t do that...we’ve gotta be able to do that on the staff. So I think that’s a big part of why Shaun and LB are here, to provide some of that mentoring."
The Golden State Warriors signed former players Shaun Livingston and Leandro Barbosa yesterday and Kerr's explanation above makes the move even more plausible.
Grizzlies Nation! You can check out the latest Memphis Grizzlies Schedule and dive into the Grizzlies Depth Chart for NBA Season 2024-25.