NY Knicks: Can Immanuel Quickley win ROTY with LaMelo hurt?

Immanuel Quickley will go down as one of the best draft steals in NY Knicks history, but can he steal some Rookie of the Year votes away from LaMelo?

In Saturday’s contest between the Los Angeles Clippers and the visiting Charlotte Hornets, rookie phenom LaMelo Ball suffered a fractured right wrist.

The third overall pick in the 2020 NBA draft is expected to miss the remainder of this season.

So, what does this mean for the Knicks, and more specifically their very own rookie sensation Immanuel Quickley?

Does NY Knicks’ Immanuel Quickley have a realistic chance at winning ROTY?

Most NBA fans and talking-heads would likely tell you LaMelo Ball has run away with the Rookie of the Year Award, and I would certainly agree.

Many of these same people, including yours truly, would also tell you that Quickley alongside Sacramento Kings’ combo-guard Tyrese Haliburton have been battling for second place.

Now that Ball’s season is potentially over, is there a path for Quickley to follow that can lead him to snag the award from Ball by season’s end?

A Difficult Path Ahead

Let’s be clear from the jump, this task would be incredibly difficult for any rookie to accomplish, Quickley included. That’s how incredible LaMelo has been in his first year.

Ball started off very inconsistent in time off the bench; often showing flashes of greatness along with very poor shooting splits and turnover issues.

Yet, after only a couple of weeks, Ball managed to settle in and began playing fantastic. After 20 games off of the bench, an injury to Devonte’ Graham moved him to the starting lineup.

Ball hasn’t relinquished the starting gig since. Ball has proven the hype right, averaging 15.9 points, 5.9 rebounds, 6.1 assists, and 1.6 steals while shooting 45% from the field and a very impressive 37.5% from three on 5 attempts per game.

And that is where the first hurdle for Quickley lies, in his stats.

Quickley’s numbers are also impressive in their own right, but they don’t rival Ball’s. If Quickley wants a shot at snagging the ROTY Award, his stats need to be better over the course of New York’s remaining 29 games.

IQ’s points per game average of 12.7 is good, and it is close to Ball’s 15.9. However, Ball has been far more efficient.

The 37% shooing from behind the arc on 5 attempts is better than LaMelo, but Immanuel’s field goal percentage is much lower and is frankly not great. IQ is only shooting 39% from the floor as a whole. When those floaters aren’t falling, it’s not pretty.

He will hopefully be able to get his efficiency and other numbers up a bit with more playing time as well, which brings us to the next challenge.

Better Play = More Opportunities

Another advantage Ball has over Quickley in the rookie race is that Ball has played great while doing so in 21 starts and helping his team to the current 8th seed.

For Quickley to build up his case for the award, he has to prove to Tom Thibodeau that his best contributions will come in a starter’s role, or at the very least in a larger role by playing more minutes than he currently does.

In a super limited sample size of 3 starts, Quickley’s averages are actually slightly down.

Compared to his 19.3 minutes off of the bench in 35 games, Quickley in those starts has averaged more points (14.7), but his assists (1.7), rebounds (2), and FG% (38%) aren’t better.

He has even seen a sharp decline in his 3P% which has dipped down to 30% when starting.

There is no excuse for Quickley to not take advantage of a larger role if he intends to take away Elfrid Payton’s starting job at some point.

He definitely can’t have a good enough logic behind being voted ROTY either if he fails to play better, especially with how crucial every game will be for the Knicks down the stretch with the team’s schedule increasingly gaining difficulty.

Is There Hope For IQ As ROTY?

I believe there is hope for IQ to be able to swing some votes in his favor, but he alone has to do a lot of the heavy lifting to earn those votes.

Ball has been as good as advertised and has looked special.

Even so, the Knicks have many games still ahead of them where Quickley can leave his mark.

The Knicks have been better than Charlotte this season, and no doubt Quickley is a big reason why. NBA award voters can be very stingy and stubborn about why they chose to vote for certain players with certain awards.

Quickley or even Haliburton may already be the leading options for some voters who feel they shouldn’t award Ball for only playing about 60% of the season, no matter how good he was in those 41 games.

If he can elevate his game by increasing his efficiency and overall stats, help the Knicks win several games, be a part of leading the team to their first playoff appearance since 2013, and do so with an increased workload, then Quickley will have his best chance of winning Rookie of the Year.

It might have been Ball’s award to lose, but with him indefinitely out, it surely still can be IQ’s to steal.