Morant’s NBA Rookie of the Year win over Zion is the right call

It goes without saying that Zion Williamson has a great future in the NBA.

When the Pelicans rookie phenom took the floor this past season, he was outstanding, sometimes brilliant.

Williamson averaged 22.5 points, 6.3 rebounds, 2.1 assists and 0.4 blocks per game while shooting 58 percent from the field.

Had Williamson played at least most of a full season, he likely would have been the Rookie of the Year in the league.

Of course, Williamson played in just 24 games out of 72, missing 48.

Thursday evening, the league announced that Ja Morant of Memphis is the Rookie of the Year.

The award is richly deserved.

Morant played in 67 of 73 games for the Grizzlies. He averaged 17.8 points, 7.3 assists and 3.9 rebounds and 0.9 steals per game. He shot 47.7 percent from the field and nearly led Memphis to a playoff spot, falling just short.

Morant received 99 of 100 first place votes and 498 total points.

Kendrick Nunn of Miami finished second with 204 points. Williamson was third with 140 points.

It may surprise some that Williamson did not finish second but in the long run, does it really matter?

In the final analysis, not playing in 67 percent of his team’s games doomed any chance Williamson would have had of winning the award.

Morant has a great future and Nunn is a good player. Williamson is a great player with a great future. There will be other awards to be won down the road but in this case, the voters got it right.

Ja Morant is the deserved Rookie of the Year.