Atlanta Hawks: Can Onyeka Okongwu battle for Rookie of the Year?

Despite missing the first ten games of the season, the question must be asked whether the Atlanta Hawks rookie, Onyeka Okongwu, has the potential to battle for Rookie of the Year honors. Let’s take a dive into his numbers so far.

Okongwu is currently ranked 38th in all rookies for game time having played 32 minutes due to injury. This is going to make it hard for him to catch the current top rookies. He is 44th in total points, 28th in total rebounds, and 27th in field goal percentage. One area where Okongwu is excelling is blocks per game where he is ranked third.

Due to him only playing in three games, it is very difficult to establish how much game time he will receive, nor the extent of the role he will play for the rest of the season. He is certainly going to get more regular playing time as he develops throughout the season.

Onyeka Okongwu is unlikely to have a large enough role with the Atlanta Hawks

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It is very unlikely that Okongwu is going to get the playing time required to challenge the likes of LaMelo Ball, James Wiseman, Anthony Edwards, Cole Anthony, Tyrese Maxey, and Tyrese Haliburton. All of these players are solid pieces within their team’s rotations and they are having a big impact on games.

Okongwu is playing behind Clint Capela who is putting up historical numbers and was the Hawks’ best player over the last month. He highlighted his versatility on both ends of the court with his recent triple-double which included 10 blocks.

The rookie will look to establish himself in the Hawks rotation as they get some really good players back from injury including fellow big man Danilo Gallinari. Okongwu can hope that he is able to start taking minutes from Solomon Hill whose contract was recently guaranteed.

If he can do this then Okongwu will start to push his case for the All-Rookie team. Unfortunately, this is probably the best he can hope for in terms of end-of-season rookie honors. Mind you, if he can do this, he will help the Hawks to a playoff berth this season.