9 rookies have maintained per-36 numbers of at least 16.0 points, 10.0 boards, 2.0 assists, and 1.0 blocks. Among them, Mirotic's .200 win shares per 48 minutes ranks second, behind only Hall-of-Famer Arvydas Sabonis -- and Sabonis was 31 when he did it.
Who else is on that short list? Guys you probably know.
| Player | Season | Age | TRB | PTS | FG% | eFG% | TS% | WS/48 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Arvydas Sabonis* | 1995-96 | 31 | 12.2 | 22.0 | 54.5% | 57.2% | 61.7% | 0.233 |
| Nikola Mirotic | 2014-15 | 23 | 10.1 | 16.0 | 43.6% | 53.0% | 59.3% | 0.200 |
| Tim Duncan | 1997-98 | 21 | 11.0 | 19.4 | 54.9% | 54.9% | 57.7% | 0.192 |
| Yao Ming | 2002-03 | 22 | 10.2 | 16.7 | 49.8% | 49.9% | 57.0% | 0.176 |
| Charles Barkley* | 1984-85 | 21 | 10.8 | 17.6 | 54.5% | 54.6% | 59.9% | 0.154 |
| Chris Webber | 1993-94 | 20 | 10.2 | 19.7 | 55.2% | 55.2% | 55.9% | 0.154 |
| Derrick Coleman | 1990-91 | 23 | 10.5 | 18.9 | 46.7% | 47.3% | 52.7% | 0.108 |
| Ralph Sampson* | 1983-84 | 23 | 12.2 | 23.0 | 52.3% | 52.3% | 55.1% | 0.108 |
| DeMarcus Cousins | 2010-11 | 20 | 10.9 | 17.8 | 43.0% | 43.2% | 48.4% | 0.022 |
Mirotic is playing at a significant level for the Bulls, and they're surely benefiting from his presence -- as part of a remade roster.
Offensive Renaissance
This year, the Bulls are scoring 103.1 points per game, seventh in the NBA. Last year, the Bulls ranked 30th in points per game at just 93.7. Their offensive rating, this year -- 108.8 -- is also seventh. Last year? It was 102.5, 28th in the NBA. Mirotic's personal offensive rating is 120, second on the team only to Butler (126).
Mirotic, of the 20 rookies who qualify for the minutes per game leaderboard, ranks first in win shares at 2.7, doubling up Jabari Parker's 1.3. His per-36 numbers 16.0 points and 8.8 defensive rebounds also lead rookies.
Mirotic's offensive rating (120) is also tops among those rookies, and his defensive rating (100) is best, too.
That's why his nERD (6.9) is best among those 20 rookies. Who's in second? Tarik Black (1.0). Aside from James Ennis (0.3), the other 17 rookies have a nERD less than zero, meaning they would cost teams wins if they were starters. Those three also have, unsurprisingly, the only three nF Efficiency marks greater than zero, which indicate point differential if the player was a starter. Black is at 0.9, and Ennis is at 0.3. Mirotic? 3.7. That's nearly nine full points better than Zach LaVine (-5.2).
Mirotic is only fifth in points per game out of the 20 and third in rebounds, but it's evident that he's by far and away the best rookie playing basketball right now, and his presence, on the level of Hall-of-Fame talent, has been key in the Bulls' reversal of mindset to play more offensive-minded basketball.