Luka Dončić of the Dallas Mavericks has won Rookie of the Year at the NBA Awards.
The 20-year-old small forward from Slovenia accepted his trophy from RJ Barrett, who went to the New York Knicks as the No. 3 pick in the NBA draft last week.
Dončić, 20, received first-place votes on all 100 ballots. He is the sixth player in franchise history to earn first-team honors and the first since Jason Kidd in 1994-95. He was one of only four NBA players to average at least 20 ppg, 7 rebounds and 6 assists in the 2018-19 season -- and he was the only rookie.
Dončić was the No. 3 pick last year.
The other finalists were Deandre Ayton of Phoenix and Trae Young of Atlanta.
Below is more on Dončić from the Mavericks.
Dončić (6-7, 218) averaged a team-high 21.2 points, 7.8 rebounds, a team-best 6.0 assists, 1.1 steals and 32.2 minutes per game in 72 games (all starts) for Dallas this past season. He joined Oscar Robertson as the only rookies in NBA history to average at least 20 points, 7 rebounds and 6 assists per game.
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Among all rookies in 2018-19, Dončić ranked first in scoring (21.2 ppg), second in rebounding (7.8 rpg), second in assists (6.0 apg), fifth in steals (1.1 spg) and first in minutes (32.2 mpg).
The former EuroLeague MVP knocked down 168 3-pointers in 2018-19, marking the third-most triples by a rookie in league history. Donovan Mitchell (187 in 2017-18) and Damian Lillard (185 in 2012-13) are the only players to hit more treys in their first NBA season. Dončić also set Dallas rookie records for free throws made (346) and attempted (485).
The 6-7 guard/forward finished the season with eight triple-doubles, marking the third-most by a rookie in NBA history. Robertson (26 in 1960-61) and Ben Simmons (12 in 2017-18) are the only rookies to produce more. Dončić also broke Magic Johnson’s record (7) for the most triple-doubles by a player before his 21st birthday (Dončić doesn’t turn 21 until Feb. 28, 2020).
Dončić swept the Kia NBA Western Conference Rookie of the Month Award, winning it all five times it was given out (for October/November, December, January, February and March/April). He became the only Maverick to win the Rookie of the Month Award four-plus times in a season and the first player from either conference to sweep the award since Minnesota’s Karl-Anthony Towns in 2015-16.
