Minnesota Timberwolves’ swingman Andrew Wiggins, who led all first-year players in scoring, is the recipient of the Eddie Gottlieb Trophy as the 2014-15 NBA Rookie of the Year, the NBA announced. He is the first Canadian-born winner of the award and the first player in the Timberwolves’ 26-year history to earn the honor.
"I am honored and humbled to be recognized by the media for this award," Wiggins said. "I'd like to thank our coaches and my teammates for all they have done to help me and support me this season. I'm looking forward to taking my game to an even higher level next year and helping our team make a significant improvement."
Wiggins averaged 16.9 points, the second-best mark by a rookie in Minnesota history, behind Christian Laettner’s 18.2 points in 1992-93. He appeared in all 82 games and ranked fourth in the NBA with a rookie-leading 36.2 minutes, the highest average ever by a Timberwolves rookie. Wiggins finished the season strong, scoring at least 20 points in 10 of his last 13 games.
The top pick of the 2014 NBA Draft, Wiggins was named the NBA Western Conference Rookie of the Month in October/November, December, January, and February. His best statistical month came in January, when he averaged 19.8 points on 47.1 percent shooting in 17 games, including a season-high 33 points against the Cleveland Cavaliers, who drafted Wiggins and traded him to Minnesota essentially in exchange for Kevin Love.
"Andrew's hard work and commitment to improving his game was evident by his production on the court this season," said Wolves head coach Flip Saunders. "We're thrilled to see him rewarded for this dedication. Andrew has proven that he is one of our key players and a main reason why we're excited about our future."
The 6-8 Wiggins led or tied for the Minnesota lead in scoring a team-high 25 times and reached the 20-point mark in 31 games. He finished ninth in the NBA in free throws made (354) and sixth in free throws attempted (466), good for 76.0 percent. Wiggins also averaged 4.6 rebounds and 1.05 steals, both top-10 marks among rookies.
Wiggins, 20, received 110 of 130 first-place votes and 604 total points from a panel of journalists. The Chicago Bulls’ Nikola Mirotic finished second with 335 points (14 first-place votes), and Nerlens Noel of the Philadelphia 76ers was third with 141 points (three first-place votes).
Others receiving votes included Elfrid Payton, Marcus Smart, Jusuf Nurkic, and the LA Lakers' Jordan Clarkson.
Below is the all-time list of winners:
1952-53 - Don Meineke, Fort Wayne
1953-54 - Ray Felix, Baltimore
1954-55 - Bob Pettit, Milwaukee
1955-56 - Maurice Stokes, Rochester
1956-57 - Tom Heinsohn, Boston
1957-58 - Woody Sauldsberry, Philadelphia
1958-59 - Elgin Baylor, Minneapolis
1959-60 - Wilt Chamberlain, Philadelphia
1960-61 - Oscar Robertson, Cincinnati
1961-62 - Walt Bellamy, Chicago
1962-63 - Terry Dischinger, Chicago
1963-64 - Jerry Lucas, Cincinnati
1964-65 - Willis Reed, New York
1965-66 - Rick Barry, San Francisco
1966-67 - Dave Bing, Detroit
1967-68 - Earl Monroe, Baltimore
1968-69 - Wes Unseld, Baltimore
1969-70 - Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Milwaukee
1970-71 - Dave Cowens, Boston (tie)
- Geoff Petrie, Portland (tie)
1971-72 - Sidney Wicks, Portland
1972-73 - Bob McAdoo, Buffalo
1973-74 - Ernie DiGregorio, Buffalo
1974-75 - Keith Wilkes, Golden State
1975-76 - Alvan Adams, Phoenix
1976-77 - Adrian Dantley, Buffalo
1977-78 - Walter Davis, Phoenix
1978-79 - Phil Ford, Kansas City
1979-80 - Larry Bird, Boston
1980-81 - Darrell Griffith, Utah
1981-82 - Buck Williams, New Jersey
1982-83 - Terry Cummings, San Diego
1983-84 - Ralph Sampson, Houston
1984-85 - Michael Jordan, Chicago
1985-86 - Patrick Ewing, New York
1986-87 - Chuck Person, Indiana
1987-88 - Mark Jackson, New York
1988-89 - Mitch Richmond, Golden State
1989-90 - David Robinson, San Antonio
1990-91 - Derrick Coleman, New Jersey
1991-92 - Larry Johnson, Charlotte
1992-93 - Shaquille O'Neal, Orlando
1993-94 - Chris Webber, Golden State
1994-95 - Grant Hill, Detroit (tie)
- Jason Kidd, Dallas (tie)
1995-96 - Damon Stoudamire, Toronto
1996-97 - Allen Iverson, Philadelphia
1997-98 - Tim Duncan, San Antonio
1998-99 - Vince Carter, Toronto
1999-00 - Elton Brand, Chicago (tie)
- Steve Francis, Houston (tie)
2000-01 - Mike Miller, Orlando
2001-02 - Pau Gasol, Memphis
2002-03 - Amar’e Stoudemire, Phoenix
2003-04 - LeBron James, Cleveland
2004-05 - Emeka Okafor, Charlotte
2005-06 - Chris Paul, New Orleans/Oklahoma City
2006-07 - Brandon Roy, Portland
2007-08 - Kevin Durant, Seattle
2008-09 - Derrick Rose, Chicago
2009-10 - Tyreke Evans, Sacramento
2010-11 - Blake Griffin, Los Angeles Clippers
2011-12 - Kyrie Irving, Cleveland
2012-13 - Damian Lillard, Portland
2013-14 - Michael Carter-Williams, Philadelphia
2014-15 - Andrew Wiggins, Minnesota
By Staff of TheDailySportsHerald.com and news services
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