NBA Rookie Power Rankings: Ben Simmons seizes top spot from Lonzo Ball

There were some great rookie performances this week, but Simmons topped them all

We're downright spoiled by this rookie class.

With all due respect to Malcolm Brogdon and Dario Saric, this time last year we'd be hard-pressed to even name three or four NBA rookies, and this year we seemingly have three or four of them gunning for the top spot each week.

This week was no exception, as Ben Simmons, Donovan Mitchell and Lonzo Ball continued their tremendous production for three of the NBA's hottest teams. Simmons takes the No. 1 spot from Ball after nearly averaging a triple-double for the Sixers, but the competition was as close as it's been all season.

It's yet another week where we're picking from a host of strong performances, something that's become refreshingly familiar this season. Here are this week's Rookie Power Rankings:

This week's NBA Rookie Power Rankings

1	Ben Simmons Philadelphia 76ers PG
Last week: 2 Stats this week: 13.3 points, 10.8 assists, 7.3 rebounds Simmons is such a good passer that sometimes we take it for granted, but he made sure that wasn't going to happen this week. He averaged over 10 assists per game and tied a career-high with 15 in Sunday's loss to the Bucks. Then against the Hornets, he shot 8-for-9 from the field en route to 16 points, 13 assists, eight rebounds and just a single turnover in one of his most complete games of the season. Simmons is getting better as the playoff race intensifies, which is a scary thought for any potential first-round opponents.
2	Donovan Mitchell Utah Jazz SG
Last week: 3 Stats this week: 23.0 points, 4.3 rebounds, 4.3 assists After a slight All-Star Weekend hangover last week (figurative, not literal), Mitchell and the Jazz returned to form by rattling off four straight wins. Mitchell's been incredibly consistent, scoring 20 or more points in nine of his last 11 games, but there's one thing that might cause a bit of concern for the Jazz -- he's shooting a lot more 3-pointers. After averaging 6.4 3-point attempts per game in the preceding games, Mitchell's hoisted an average of 8.6 attempts over the last 11 games, while shooting only 33 percent. He's still getting to the line at a good clip, including a 10-for-10 performance this week against the Kings, so we'll give him a bit of a pass. But there's a chance that the fatigue of the longer season is causing Mitchell to settle for 3-pointers more often.
3	Lonzo Ball Los Angeles Lakers PG
Last week: 1 Stats this week: 14.7 points, 6.0 assists, 5.0 rebounds After surging to No. 1 last week, Ball takes a slight drop despite another solid three-game stretch. He clearly got a confidence boost from last week's hot 3-point shooting, as he put up an eyebrow-raising 30 attempts from deep this week, making 13 of them (43 percent). The Lakers play better when Lonzo is aggressive with his shot, but 10 per game might be a bit excessive. His brightest spot this week came in the final minutes against San Antonio, when he buried three late 3s to cement the Lakers' comeback win. This is the most confident we've seen Lonzo with his shot in his young career. .@ZO2_ caught 🔥 from 👌 to lead the @Lakers to a comeback win over the Spurs! pic.twitter.com/mQOAU5y1eI — NBA TV (@NBATV) March 4, 2018 The Lakers are one of the hottest teams in the league, Lonzo is balling, and all is right in Los Angeles -- for now, anyway.
4	Dennis Smith Jr. Dallas Mavericks PG
Last week: Unranked Stats this week: 22.0 points, 7.3 assists, 3.7 rebounds Smith had arguably his best week as a pro as the "not tanking" Mavs continue to struggle. He shot 45 percent from the field and 33 percent from the 3-point line this week, but his most impressive stat is his assist-to-turnover ratio (7.3 to 2.0), which was best among rookies who played more than 30 minutes per game this week. Rick Carlisle said earlier this season that he'd like to see Smith get more assists, and the fact that he did that this week without sacrificing his scoring numbers is a great sign for Smith and the Mavs moving forward.
5	Lauri Markkanen Chicago Bulls PF
Last week: Unranked Stats this week: 17.0 points, 7.3 rebounds, 0.7 steals The Bulls finally ran into two teams that actually might be worse than they are (the Mavericks and Grizzlies), which led to a 2-1 week. It's good timing after the Bulls were admonished by the NBA for sitting healthy players, but Markkanen got his full complement of minutes and produced with high efficiency (51 percent from the field, 44 percent on 3-pointers). The big man continued his stellar rookie campaign, and even managed to have a decent game against the stingy Celtics defense, scoring 12 points on 5-for-10 shooting.
6	Kyle Kuzma Los Angeles Lakers PF
Last week: 7 Stats this week: 14.0 points, 8.7 rebounds, 2.0 steals, 1.0 blocks Kuzma entered the starting lineup for the injured Brandon Ingram in all three of the Lakers' games this week, and the added defensive attention affected his efficiency on the offensive end (43.6 field-goal percentage, 31.3 percent 3-pointers), but his energy in other aspects of the game was obvious for the second straight week. Kuzma rebounded the ball and was active on defense, a great sign for his development. We all know Kuzma can score, so the Lakers will hope to see continued improvement on the defensive side of the ball, and with his playmaking, for the rest of the season.
7	Jayson Tatum Boston Celtics SF
Last week: 6 Stats this week: 12.7 points, 4.7 rebounds, 1.3 assists Tatum continued to play minutes in the low-20s as Brad Stevens attempts to keep him fresh for the stretch run. He's been remarkably consistent all season, and nothing much has changed, but if Jaylen Brown is forced to miss extended time after a nasty fall on Thursday night, the Celtics will demand more from Tatum on both ends of the court.
8	Dillon Brooks Memphis Grizzlies SF
Last week: Unranked Stats this week: 18.0 points, 3.0 rebounds, 2.3 assists Times are tough for the Grizzlies, losers of a depressing 15 straight games, but Brooks has been a faint glimmer of a bright spot. The rookie has been pressed into more offensive responsibility given the revolving door of a lineup Memphis is putting forward these days. He averaged 15 shots per game this week, compared to his season average of 8.3, and we're starting to see the scoring ability that he displayed during his career at Oregon. He put up a career-high 29 points in 28 minutes in Wednesday's loss to the Bulls, also knocking down a career-high five 3-pointers.
9	Bogdan Bogdanovic Sacramento Kings SG
Last week: 8 Stats this week: 12.3 points, 3.3 rebounds, 3.3 assists Bogdanovic has been one of the only consistent players for the Kings during recent weeks, so it was that much more shocking to see him go scoreless in 26 minutes in Wednesday's loss to the Pelicans. We'll chalk that up to a bad day, and focus on his other two games where he averaged 18.5 points and 3.5 assists without committing a single turnover. The 25-year-old has proven to be a tremendous 3-point shooter (43 percent since Jan. 1), but his ball-handling and playmaking abilities have been a huge bonus for Sacramento.
10	John Collins Atlanta Hawks PF
Last week: Unranked Stats this week: 11.3 points, 6.0 rebounds, 1.0 steals Collins has been getting more playing time since the Hawks bought out Ersan Ilyasova, but his stats haven't quite made the jump that many expected given his brilliant per-36 minute averages. It appears he may be on the cusp of a run, however, as this week he scored in double digits in two of the team's three games, including a 16-point, eight-rebound performance in a closer-than-expected loss to the Warriors. Collins has dished out two or more assists in each of his last four games after doing it just twice in his previous 20 games, a sign that he's becoming more comfortable in the offense and could eventually become more than just a scorer/rebounder/shot-blocker for the Hawks.

Dropped out

On the bubble