Houston Rockets rookie Amen Thompson, who was drafted in the 2023 first round, was named Monday to the NBA’s All-Rookie second team for the 2023-24 regular season. Combined, the first- and second-team honors go to 10 players from the previous year’s draft class.
Fellow rookie Cam Whitmore, also a 2023 first-round draftee of the Rockets, received votes but not enough to make the team.
Someone who disagreed with that result is second-year forward Tari Eason, who was a second-team member in his rookie season one year ago.
After Monday’s announcement, Eason posted this message to X (complete with thinking and face-palm emojis):
Go and watch film. Tell me if you can definitively say there are nine rookies better than Cam Whitmore.
Go and watch film tell me if you can definitively say there’s 9 rookies better than cam whitmore🤔🤦🏾♂️
— Tari Eason (@TAR13ASON) May 20, 2024
Much of this debate comes down to voting criteria. Whitmore averaged 12.3 points (45.4% FG, 35.9% on 3-pointers) and 3.8 rebounds in only 18.7 minutes for the Rockets. On a per-minute basis, those numbers make him one of the most dynamic scorers of his class.
However, Whitmore only played in 47 NBA games. While very athletic, he entered the league at 19 years old and was viewed by many around the league as being a raw talent. Thus, he spent much of his first two months as a professional with Houston’s G League developmental affiliate, the Rio Grande Valley (RGV) Vipers.
When the calendar turned to 2024, Whitmore made himself a rotation fixture, and there’s a strong case to be made that he’s among the top-10 players from his draft class when it comes to potential and upside. Thus, by film and deciding who the currently “better” player is — seemingly Eason’s criteria — it’s hard to argue against it.
But, some voters likely made their selections based on total production to date, including the sheer volume of rookie-year output.
There are cases to be made both ways, but Whitmore’s teammate clearly has his back, and perhaps that’s the most important thing.
#Rockets Amen Thompson voted 2nd team All-Rookie. Thompson received 10 1st team votes, 80 2nd team votes – was listed 1st or 2nd team on 90 of 99 ballots. Cam Whitmore received three 2nd team votes. pic.twitter.com/4Ing64fXuf
— Adam Wexler (@AdamJWexler) May 20, 2024
