4. Tristan da Silva, Orlando Magic
Why Tristan da Silva deserves ROY consideration: It may have taken time for Tristan da Silva to crack the rotation for the Orlando Magic this season but now that he's seen pretty consistent minutes over the last few games, I would find it hard to believe that his role is going to diminish all that much over the course of the season. In fact, on the contrary, the argument could be made that his role should get bigger as he continues to get more and more comfortable during his rookie season. For a Magic team that is struggling to find their footing after the injury to Paolo Banchero, da Silva has been a pleasant surprise.
da Silva has started six of eight games played so far this season and is averaging eight points and three rebounds on 40 percent shooting from the field and 33 percent shooting from 3-point range. He's emerged as a pretty versatile player for the Magic on the wing and has given the team some relief after the injury to Banchero. Interestingly enough, he's been able to leap Jonathan Isaac in the depth chart through the first few weeks of the season. Whether that will continue to be the case all season long remains to be seen, but it is an interesting development.
Why Tristan da Silva could fall out of the ROY race: Even though Tristan da Silva has looked strong to start the season (though his shooting numbers could use a boost), I can't help but wonder if there's a potential rookie wall that could be on the horizon for the young big. Coming out of college, da Silva was one of the most experienced players in this year's draft class. However, in the past, that hasn't stopped the rookie wall from hitting all that much. It's certainly something to watch over the next few months.
Plus, the eventual return of Banchero is likely going to impact the minutes of da Silva. Perhaps, down the stretch, the Magic will also want to give Isaac another opportunity to prove his worth back in the rotation. There are so many different factors at play here but in short, the Magic should feel good about what they've seen from da Silva so far this season. While he deserves recognition for how he's started the season, it would be a stretch to suggest da Silva could win this year's NBA Rookie of the Year award. Good story though.