Whose Start Is More Impressive, Porzingis or Towns?
The
NBA's early Rookie of the Year race is as crowded as it's been in quite some time.
So far, though, Karl-Anthony Towns and Kristaps Porzingis seem to be leading the pack. In less than a month of NBA service time, each has managed to rejuvenate a suffering franchise and reinvigorate scores of once-forlorn fans.
Towns, the No. 1 pick out of Kentucky, has lived up to that top billing and then some. He's proven to be a quick study under mentor, teammate and frontcourt partner
Kevin Garnett and might already be the Minnesota Timberwolves' best and most impactful all-around player.
Porzingis, the No. 4 pick from Latvia by way of Spain, has ridden the periodic New York Knicks
hype train to a prominent spot on the marquee at Madison Square Garden. Along the way, he's turned Carmelo Anthony, once
a supposed skeptic, into one of
his staunchest supporters.
Both clearly have bright futures in basketball, but which of these potentially franchise-changing talents has been better to date?
At a Glance
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By and large, Towns has been the more productive of the two rookies from the get-go. He ranks second among rookies in scoring (16 points per game), behind only Jahlil Okafor, and paces his peers in rebounding (10.4 boards per game) and shot-blocking (2.4 blocks per game).
Porzingis isn't all that far behind Towns, statistically speaking. Within his class, the "Zinger" is a top-three scorer (13.2 points), rebounder (8.8 rebounds) and shot-blocker (1.5 blocks).
But where Porzingis' numbers are great for a player of his experience, Towns' are already elite compared to the entire league.
He's sixth in rebounding, ahead of All-Stars like Anthony Davis,
LaMarcus Aldridge,
Pau Gasol and
Chris Bosh. He's tied for fifth in blocks, neck-and-neck with elite rim protectors like
Roy Hibbert and
Serge Ibaka.
And only Andre Drummond, the league leader in rebounding, and
Russell Westbrook, tops in the Association in assists, can claim more double-doubles than Towns' eight.
Porzingis, though, is no slouch. He already has six double-doubles to his credit.
The Details: Offense
Troy Taormina-USA TODAY Sports
Towns' eye-popping box scores don't mean he's the more polished player between the two. As one scout told
Sporting News' Sean Deveney:
The funny thing to me is, if you look at the numbers, you would assume he has it all figured out, that he is pretty much NBA-ready. But if you watch him, he is not even close. He's still sort of confused about a lot of things out there. I mean that in a good way, because it is like he is doing all that he is doing on just his instincts and his natural ability.
Porzingis has plenty of his own rough edges to sand down, but his skills are already evident. His outside stroke is smooth and effortless, especially for a player of his size (7’3”). He shoots it with confidence from anywhere and at any moment, as he did on a near-game-winner against the Charlotte Hornets:
His overall percentages (42.7 percent from the field, 30.8 percent from three) are far from sparkling, though he’s upped the ante considerably since Veteran’s Day:
Kristaps Porzingis, Before and After Veteran's Day
Games Mins Pts FGA FG% 3P%
Before 8 23.7 11.8 10.9 37.9% 21.7%
After 6 29.3 15.2 11.7 48.6% 43.8%
Basketball Reference
"His shooting stroke is as pure as
any big to come into the NBA ... as good as Dirk's,” Scott Roth, who worked with a young
Dirk Nowitzki in 1999 and with Porzingis in Spain, told
ESPN’s Marc Stein. “He also has no fear and, more importantly, he has no ego. This is just a great kid with a great work ethic and a real love of the game.”
The same could just as easily be said of Towns. He may not have the freedom to launch the nearly three threes per game that Porzingis does, but he’s actually outshooting his Knicks counterpart inside the arc:
Towns vs. Porzingis: Shooting Inside the Arc
0-3 Feet 3-10 Feet 10-16 Feet 16 Feet < 3
Towns 67.3% 44.7% 42.9% 50%
Porzingis 55.3% 40.6% 35% 50%
Basketball Reference
“We all know I can hit 3s,” he told
ESPN’s Zach Lowe. “But for now, I’m taking what the defense gives me.”
The Details: Defense
Adam Hunger-USA TODAY Sports
Despite his wiry frame (7’3”, 240 pounds), Porzingis has done a decent job of locking down the paint. According to
NBA.com, he has held opponents to 49.4 percent shooting at the rim, ahead of average across the Association (61.5 percent, per
Basketball Reference).
Towns, though, has held his foes to a lower percentage at the rim (45.5 percent) while facing nearly twice as many attempts (10.3) as has Porzingis (5.9). It helps that he, at 7'0" and 250 pounds, has a stronger build to throw around.
Not that Towns isn’t susceptible to getting smacked by more experienced opponents. In his fourth game, Towns managed just six points on 3-of-13 shooting against Miami Heat center Hassan Whiteside.
His Timberwolves lost that game but have since bounced back to beat the Heat in Miami, courtesy of a 14-point, 14-rebound effort from Towns.
As it happens, Minnesota and New York have each given up 100.7 points per 100 possessions, per
NBA.com. Porzingis, though, has had a more dramatic effect on the Knicks’ defense than Towns has had on that of the T-Wolves:
Porzingis vs. Towns: Defensive Efficiency On/Off
Porzingis Towns
Defensive Efficiency ON 97.5 99.3
Defensive Efficiency OFF 104.4 103
Differential +6.9 +4.3
Basketball Reference
And if wins and losses count when considering these two, Porzingis' 8-6 Knicks come out ahead of Towns' 5-8 Timberwolves.
Pick Your Rookie
Jim Mone/Associated Press
In some respects, Porzingis should be more of a game-changer than Towns right now and not just because he’s three-and-a-half months older. In basketball years, the gap is greater than that. While Porzingis was honing his game against seasoned pros in Spain, Towns was busy dominating teenagers at the high school and college levels.
In the bigger picture, Towns has had the better start, despite what all the hubbub in the Big Apple would suggest. While Porzingis' production has been a plus for a veteran Knicks squad, Towns might already be Minnesota's best player.
Who will have the better NBA career?
Porzingis Towns Submit Vote vote to see results
But the first four weeks of basketball won't likely define the careers of these two precocious talents. At some point, both will be tasked with taking leading roles in the renaissances of their respective franchises.
For now, they can focus on becoming the best ballplayers they can—and chasing the Eddie Gottlieb Trophy.
All stats are accurate as of games played on Nov. 22, 2015.