Atlanta Hawks: Could Kevin Huerter Make All-Rookie First Team?

With the recent injury to Jaren Jackson Jr., could Kevin Huerter of the Atlanta Hawks make it onto the All-Rookie First Team?

The Atlanta Hawks drafted three talented rookies in the first round this season, and all of them have contributed in different ways this season. Trae Young is already one of the best passers in the NBA. Kevin Huerter, despite limited playing time, might be even more impactful than his point guard counterpart. Omari Spellman might be the forgotten rookie of the three, but his production in less than 20 minutes a game is stellar.

This year’s rookie class is fairly stacked, but Huerter has deftly outplayed his status as a mid-first round pick by a wide margin. In a 2018 re-draft released by Bleacher Report earlier this season, Huerter rocketed up to 10th overall to the Philadelphia 76ers.

However, has Red Pepper produced enough this season to stake his claim to an All-Rookie First Team spot? Let’s explore that.

Last season, there was a strong statistical argument that John Collins should’ve made the All-Rookie First Team over Lauri Markkanen. Looking back on that after how this season has gone, the decision to choose Lauri Legend over John the Baptist seems even more foolish.

Will voters make the same mistake again?

There are four shoo-ins for First Team All-Rookie this season: Luka Doncic, Deandre Ayton, Jaren Jackson Jr. and Huerter’s teammate Trae Young.

Though Jackson will probably not play a ton of minutes the rest of the season, he has already played 58 games, which was nearly double what Joel Embiid played in his First Team All-Rookie campaign of 2016-17. In those games among qualified rookies, Jackson is 4th in field goal percentage (50.6%), 6th in three-point percentage (35.9%), 5th in rebounds (272), 2nd in blocks (82) and 5th in steals (52). That looks like a First Team resume to this writer.

Now, it comes down to the final spot. Sadly, Huerter’s quiet brilliance and lack of all-around counting stats might count against him in a flashy, more cosmetic category like All-Rookie voting. Here’s where someone like Collin Sexton or Kevin Knox (who are some of the lowest-ranked players in ESPN’s Real Plus/Minus and other advanced metrics) might one-up our redheaded sniper.

Despite being 4th in three-pointers made among qualified rookies (95), 4th in three-point percentage (38.9%), 10th in scoring (500 total points), 5th in assists (152) and ranking highly in various net rating and on/off numbers for the Atlanta Hawks, Huerter’s low usage and unassuming play style might hurt him when voting occurs for this award category.

Though Sexton has the lowest on/off rating of any rookie (-510 total) and a negative win share of -1.4 versus Huerter’s 0.9, Sexton is admittedly shooting quite well from the field at large, three-point territory and the free throw line.

Perhaps Kevin Huerter of the Atlanta Hawks will insert himself into the All-Rookie First Team category more as the season progresses, but if the voting occurred right now, he would probably be on the outside looking in – despite some sterling advanced statistical numbers (all stats courtesy of NBA.com and Basketball Reference).