Taking a closer look at one of the closes NBA Rookie of the Year races in recent history, featuring Trae Young and Luka Doncic
June 21st, 2018, an NBA draft day trade occurred that would alter the future landscape of the NBA and would spark the Luka Doncic vs. Trae Young comparisons that will likely last for the entirety of their pro basketball careers.
With the third pick, the Atlanta Hawks would select Doncic, the Slovenian sensation but would then immediately trade down to obtain the fifth pick from the Dallas Mavericks which would turn into Trae Young, the wonder kid who lit up college hoops the year prior.
Now, draft day trades often end up being rather one-sided. Here are a few notable ones from past years:
- Olden Polynice traded for Scottie Pippen in 1987.
- Vlade Divac traded for Kobe Bryant in 1996.
- Robert Traylor was traded for Dirk Nowitzki in 1998.
- Tyrus Thomas was traded for LaMarcus Aldridge in 2006.
- George Hill was traded for Kawhi Leonard in 2011.
What do all of these trades have in common?
They all have a blatantly clear winner and a loser. But the Trae Young Luka Doncic trade is looking like it’s going to be an exception to this strange trend. An outlier. An anomaly.
So, let’s take a look at each of these rookie sensations and attempt to answer a few burning questions like, “Who wins Rookie of the Year?”, “Which team won the trade?” and, “Which of these players will have the better NBA career?”…