Thibs endorses Mirotic for rookie honors
If there was a rookie of the year award for the second half of the season, Nikola Mirotic would have it locked up. Mirotic averaged 20.8 points and 7.6 rebounds in March.
Bulls coach Tom Thibodeau suggested Mirotic has done enough to win NBA Rookie of the Year, an award that covers the entire season.
"In my eyes, yeah," Thibodeau said when asked if Mirotic is rookie of the year. "He's had a terrific year. He's gotten better almost every day, certainly every month. Playing multiple positions, he's done a heck of a job for us.''
When it comes to winning the award, though, the problem is Mirotic didn't always play significant minutes early in the year. For the full season, he's averaging 10.0 points and 5.0 rebounds.
Minnesota's Andrew Wiggins is averaging 16.2 points. So even though the Timberwolves are one of the league's worst teams, Wiggins appears to be a strong favorite to win rookie of the year.
Milwaukee's Jabari Parker averaged 12.3 points, but played in just 25 games before suffering a torn ACL. The next-highest rookie scorer is Knicks point guard Langston Galloway at 11.3 points.
Since the all-star break, Wiggins is still the top scorer at 18.9 points, followed by Mirotic at 17.7 and Lakers guard Jordan Clarkson at 15.1. Philadelphia center Nerlens Noel is also finishing strong, averaging 13.6 points, 10.3 rebounds and 2.5 blocks since the all-star break.
Noah shows resolve:
Joakim Noah talked more Monday about the shooting death of Uchenna Abina, who was killed early Friday morning on the South Side a few hours after meeting with Noah about an anti-violence event. Abina reportedly worked as the manager for rapper Lil Durk.
"What happened to that man was just really sad," Noah said. "Nobody deserves to die that way. Unfortunately, that's the harsh reality of it. It happens way too much in this city and I think right now just my prayers and my thoughts go out to his family and his friends. I couldn't imagine losing a brother or a sister or even a friend to gun violence.
"This is what I signed up for. I'm just trying my best. It's hard. But we've just got to keep pushing, keep up the good fight. We need more people involved. We need everybody to just do their part, whatever that is."
Brooklyn rising:
Keep an eye on Brooklyn for a potential Bulls' first-round playoff opponent. Among the teams fighting for the final playoff spots in the East, the Nets have played the best recently, going 7-2 over their last nine games. Center Brook Lopez was named Eastern Conference player of the week.
If the playoffs started Monday, the Bulls would be the third seed and play No. 6 Milwaukee in the first round. But the Bucks are just 4-12 since Feb. 27 and have some difficult games coming up, including Monday at Atlanta.