Derrick Rose Wins Rookie of the Year

It's been a forgone conclusion for awhile, but on Wednesday it became official: Derrick Rose is the NBA's 2009 Rookie of the Year. He received the Eddie Gottlieb Trophy during a press conference earlier this afternoon.

There were several impressive rookies this year but Rose was the run-away winner of the award, receiving 111 of a possible 120 first-place votes; O.J. Mayo (five first place votes), Brook Lopez (two) and Russell Westbrook (two) accounted for the rest.

The point guard position is the most difficult to learn in the NBA as it requires awareness of what every other player on the court is doing at all times. Even so, Rose, with just a single year of college under his belt to prepare, embraced the responsibility and excelled, making plays for himself as well as his teammates.

Rose averaged 16.8 points and 6.3 assists per game, and as solid as those numbers look on the surface, it takes a bit of historical context to truly appreciate how rare it is to see a first-year player control the game with such ease. In the history of the NBA, only eight other players have averaged at least 16 points and six assists in their first year: Oscar Robertson, Magic Johnson, Isiah Thomas, Anfernee Hardaway, Damon Stoudemire, Allen Iverson, Steve Francis and Chris Paul.

Even if Rose doesn't improve a single skill, he could easily average 20 points a night next season simply for having the respect of the officials as an NBA veteran. He's already one of the best slashing guards in the game and yet he averaged just 3.1 free throws per game his first year; jump-shooting teammate Ben Gordon, on the other hand, averaged 4.7.

That said, there's absolutely no reason to think Rose won't continue to develop his skills, especially considering he's still just 20 years old. Where might his ceiling be? His future is so bright it's hard to say, but while most pundits compare him to the league's best point guards, one name that keeps popping into my head as I watch him play is a young Dwyane Wade. When you see their rookie numbers side-by-side, it's eerie just how similar they really are.

Like Rose, Wade didn't (and still doesn't) have a reliable outside shot, but thanks to a devastating ability to cut through any defense and get to the rim, he's forced his way into the MVP conversation. Even though Wade prefers to play off the ball, he still ranked seventh in the league by averaging 7.5 assists per game; if he manned the position for an entire season, he'd likely top 20 and 10. Only time will tell if Rose can reach those heights, but he's certainly off to a good start.