Surprising no-one, O.J. Mayo finished second in the NBA’s Rookie of the Year race, behind current Chicago Bull and former University of Memphis Tiger Derek Rose.
Mayo was the leading rookie scorer but by playing point guard on a team that made the playoffs, Rose became the clear favorite, garnering 111 of 120 first-place votes. Mayo, with five first-place votes, was a clear second in the race. New Jersey’s Brook Lopez and Oklahoma City’s Russell Westbrook finished third and fourth, respectively.
Griz center Marc Gasol finished eighth.
The full standings:
Rookie, Team 1st 2nd 3rd Total
Derrick Rose, Chicago 111 5 4 574
O.J. Mayo, Memphis 5 64 29 246
Brook Lopez, New Jersey 2 28 33 127
Russell Westbrook, Oklahoma City 2 13 24 73
Eric Gordon, L.A. Clippers – 4 10 22
Kevin Love, Minnesota – 2 10 16
Michael Beasley, Miami – 2 1 7
Marc Gasol, Memphis – 1 1 4
Robin Lopez, Phoenix – 1 – 3
Rudy Fernandez, Portland – – 3 3
Mario Chalmers, Miami – – 2 2
Courtney Lee, Orlando – – 2 2
Nicolas Batum, Portland – – 1 1
