NBA Rookie Rankings: Top 10 Strongest Rookies in NBA History

Next Chapter

No.10 Larry Bird (21.3 points, 10.4 rebounds, 4.5 assists in his rookie season) Bird is the embodiment of Celtics' accolades, he is a combination of elegance, confidence, and hard work, and likes to take on challenges under pressure while helping his teammates do their best. In his 13 seasons with the Boston Celtics, from '79-80 to '91-92, Bird was perfect in every aspect of the court — whether as a scorer, a passer, a rebounder, a defender, a team centerpiece, or a key man. Bird was always so confident, and as everyone knows, the dude would waltz to his opponent's bench before the big game and tell him that he was going to score 40 points in the game, and no one dared to take it as a joke. Bird was a lethal shooter, and he often deliberately closed his eyes when he even practiced his three-point shot. In Bird's reign, perhaps only Magic Johnson was a little better at passing. The Magic is Bird's greatest enemy and lifelong friend, and the black-and-white rivalry between the two superstars in the '80s has become an NBA classic.

As a 23-year-old rookie, Larry Bird quickly became the centerpiece of the Celtics' 60-win season. Larry Bird averaged 21.3 points, 10.4 rebounds and 4.5 assists per game in his rookie season. In his rookie season, Bird was named to the NBA's First Team.

No.9 Tim Duncan (rookie season count: 21.1 points, 11.9 rebounds, 2.7 assists, 2.5 caps) 4-time championship

Duncan is the league's premier power forward, and he is one of the best players in the NBA right now with his tough style and textbook basic skills.

Duncan graduated from Wake Forest University in 1997 and was subsequently drafted by the Spurs as the No. 1 pick. Duncan was the last player in the NBA to complete college to win the Rookie of the Year award, and Duncan was selected to the NBA's First Team in his rookie season. He averaged 21.1 points, 11.9 rebounds and 2.5 blocks per game in his rookie season, and Duncan led the Spurs to a 53-29 record with David Robinson in his rookie season.

No.8 David Robinson (24.3 points, 12.0 rebounds, 3.9 caps, 1.68 steals) was one of the top centers of his time, if not the best in history, and David Robinson was undoubtedly a basketball prodigy, but also a respectable figure off the court. For a skinny, muscular 7-foot-1 athlete, he's fast, strong, and agile. In his first six seasons in the NBA, he won honors as Rookie of the Year, Most Valuable Player, and Defensive Player of the Year. In addition to a rebounding title, he has won the scoring title once, was a six-time All-Star, was named to the NBA First Team three times, and was named to the NBA First Team three times, and was named to the NBA First Defensive Team three times.

In his rookie season, David Robinson was even a year older than Larry Bird, as he entered the NBA after graduating from the U.S. Naval Academy. He averaged 24.3 points, 12 rebounds and 3.9 blocks per game in his rookie season. David Robinson's 26.3 efficiency that season ranked fifth in the league. NO.7 Shaq O'Neal (Rookie season count: 23.4 points, 13.9 rebounds, 3.5 caps)

1/3

O'Neal was already hyped when he first entered the NBA, but O'Neal also lived up to expectations, averaging 23.4 points, 13.9 rebounds and 3.5 blocks per game in his rookie season, with O'Neal's 13.9 rebounds per game in his season being his career-high. With O'Neal's help, the Magic had a win rate of over 50 percent in O'Neal's rookie season after a 21-61 record the previous season. NO.6 Michael Jordan (rookie season counts: 28.4 points, 6.5 rebounds, 5.9 assists, 2.39 steals) Jordan is the greatest basketball player in the United States. Becoming a Michael Jordan-esque figure is the dream of all Americans. Originally from Brooklyn, New York, Michael Jordan went on to study at the University of North Carolina, where his basketball talent began to show. After joining the Chicago Bulls, Jordan led the team to 6 NBA championships and 5 MVPs. He announced his retirement twice, and announced his comeback twice, eventually retiring from the Washington Wizards in 2003. Jordan wasted no time proving that he would become a legend in NBA history, averaging 28.4 points per game in his rookie season. Jordan's 25.8 efficiency rating that season was second in the league behind Larry Bird's 26.5.

No.5 Elgin Baylor (rookie season jù: 24.9 points, 15.0 rebounds, 4.2 assists) Elgin Baylor was picked first in the first round of the NBA Draft by the Los Angeles Lakers in 1958 and spent the next 14 years with the Lakers. From 1958 to 1972, Baylor played in 846 NBA games and scored 23,149 points, an average of 27.4 points per game. In the 1961-1962 season, Baylor averaged a whopping 38.3 points per game. What's even more incredible is that Baylor, who is not very tall, still holds the Lakers' record for rebounding: he grabbed 11,463 rebounds in 14 seasons. This is not even surpassed by the famous center "Sky Hook" Abdul-Jabbar, who later played for the Lakers for 14 seasons. Baylor's line of movement and the way he runs on the field are very brilliant and pleasing to the eye. His movements under the basket are both powerful and elegant, showcasing some of the best of modern basketball that were later pushed to the extreme by "Flyer" Jordan and "Magic" Johnson. For example, he has a strong ability to stay in the air, and can make two or three movements after jumping. Tommy. Huggins said of him: "He can shoot the ball into the basket from any angle, and the ball is always spinning at high speed. He has a lot of power and can play 1 to 1 with Russell under the basket; You can pass the ball like Magic Johnson, and you can test your dribbling skills against any guard in the NBA. From 1960-1961 to 1962-1963, he became the first star in NBA history to finish in the top 5 in all four technical metrics of the regular season: 34 points, 14.3 rebounds, 4.8 assists and 83.7 percent free throw shooting. If Elgin Baylor had been born 25 years later, his mesmerizing movements might have been captured on camera, but unfortunately, Baylor's performance was even more popular on television, and Baylor's bravery would have become a legend that would never have been witnessed by later generations.

Baylor's rookie season was the first year in a series of four consecutive seasons of "best rookies" (Baylor, Chamberlain, Robertson and Bellamy), and these four consecutive seasons of "best rookies" have so far been unparalleled. Baylor averaged 24.9 points (No. 4 in the league that year) and 15 rebounds (No. 3 in the league) in his rookie show. Starting in his rookie season, Baylor was named to the NBA First Team for seven consecutive years.

NO.4 Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (Rookie season count: 26.7 points, 13.5 boards)

No other person in basketball history has dominated the basketball court for as long and as widely as he did. His 20-year NBA career has accolades unmatched by any other professional basketball player; Best Rookie Award, 6 NBA Championships, 6 NBAMVP Awards, 2 NBA Finals MVP Awards, 19 NBA Appearances

2/3

All-Star Game, 2-time scoring champion. He has 8 NBA playoff records and 7 All-Star records, and when he retired in 1989, he ranked first in the NBA with 9 major statistics, with a total of 38,387 points, more than 7,000 points higher than Chamberlain, who was in second place; played a total of 20 seasons; 5,762 playoff points; 6 Most Valuable Player titles; 57,446 minutes of playing time; 1,560 races; 28,307 shots; 15,837 hits; 3189 blocks.

Abdul-Jabbar continued his brilliant performance at UCLA and made a strong contribution to the Bucks' new season, averaging 26.7 points (second in the league that year) and 13.5 rebounds (third in the league that year), and with Abdul-Jabbar's help, the Bucks finished 56-26 that year, and his 22.5 efficiency rating that year was third behind Chamberlain and Jerry West. No.3 Walter Bellamy (rookie season count: 31.6 points, 19.0 boards)

Walter Bellamy's numbers are unquestionable. He averaged 20+10 points, 20.1 points and 13.7 rebounds per game in his 13-season zero-game career. He is one of only seven players in NBA history to score more than 20,000 points and have more than 14,000 rebounds.

Bellamy was the "No. 1 pick" of the 1961-1962 season, having one of the most dominant rookie seasons in NBA history. He averaged 31.6 points and 19 rebounds per game in his rookie season, both of which are still second and third on the rookie season rankings, respectively.

NO.2 Oscar Robertson (rookie season jù: 30.5 points, 10.1 rebounds, 9.7 assists) If the best all-around in basketball is selected, then Oscar Robertson deserves it. At the beginning of the second year of his career, he became a man of all kinds on the court. Robertson scored 26,710 points in 14 seasons to become the most scoring guard in NBA history, and he ranks fifth in NBA history, while the top four are all centers. Brilliant career: 1961 NBA "Best Rookie"; 9-time All-NBA selection; Won an NBA MVP of the Year and All-Star Game MVP and an NBA championship.

In his rookie season, Robertson actually averaged a "quasi-triple-double" per game, which made him famous. He averaged 30.5 points, 10.1 rebounds and 9.7 assists per game that year. Starting with his rookie season, Robertson was named to the NBA's first team for nine consecutive seasons. In his rookie season, Robertson's efficiency rating of 25.9 ranked third behind Elgin Baylor and Chamberlain.

NO.1 Wilt Chamberlain (rookie season count: 37.5 points, 27.0 boards)

He is the toughest ruler in the history of basketball, and his energy on the offensive end is impressive. If you were to draw a list of the greatest basketball players of all time, the vast majority of fans would put WiltChamberlain's name at the top - at least as close as possible.

After a year with the Harlem freestyle basketball team, Chamberlain joined the NBA and averaged 37.5 points and 27 rebounds per game in his rookie season, dominating nearly every NBA game he played in, earning the Most Valuable Player title in his rookie season. He averaged the second-highest number of rebounds per game in NBA history in his rookie season (behind his own 27.2 rebounds per game in his second season), and Chamberlain also broke the previous NBA season record of 23 rebounds per game set by Bill Russell in his rookie season. Chamberlain averaged more than 37 points per game in four seasons of his career, a height that only Michael Jordan has ever reached in NBA history

Next Chapter
Back to Book