Jaden Ivey already getting punished for Pistons’ tank job

Jaden Ivey was one of the only bright spots for the Detroit Pistons in a season where they managed to win just 17 games.

When Cade Cunningham went out after game 12 with a shin injury, Ivey was thrust into a more prominent role as the team’s lead ball handler and initiator on offense.

This was predictably inconsistent, as rookie guards with high usage rates usually struggle with turnovers, decision making and shot selection, which Ivey certainly did at times.

But he continued to improve as the season progressed and finished on a sustained run at the end of the season.

Will it be enough for All-Rookie voters to overlook his team’s struggles and put Jaden Ivey on the 1st team? So far, the evidence doesn’t look great for Ivey’s chances.

Detroit Pistons: Jaden Ivey getting punished for the tank job

Jaden Ivey continued to play hard and improve all season even though the Detroit Pistons just kept getting worse. Detroit pulled out all the stops in an egregious tank job after the All-Star break, as they sat all of their veterans and left Ivey playing with a cast of fellow rookies and guys signed to short-term contracts.

Ivey surpassed guys like Bennedict Mathurin in individual stats (depending on what you like), but most of the players battling for spots on the All-Rookie 1st team were on teams in the playoffs or at least trying to win games.

I wondered if Ivey (like Cunningham before him) would be punished in the All-Rookie voting for being on a terrible team, and some of the evidence is already pointing towards yes.

On the most recent KIA Rookie Ladder, ESPN senior writer Steve Aschburne revealed his ballot for Rookie of the Year (Paolo Banchero) and the All-Rookie teams:

All-Rookie First Team

• Paolo Banchero, Orlando Magic
• Jalen Williams, Oklahoma City Thunder
• Walker Kessler, Utah Jazz
• Bennedict Mathurin, Indiana Pacers
• Keegan Murray, Sacramento Kings

All-Rookie Second Team

• Jaden Ivey, Detroit Pistons
• Jabari Smith Jr., Houston Rockets
• Jalen Duren, Detroit Pistons
• Andrew Nembhard, Indiana Pacers
• Tari Eason, Houston Rockets

As you can see, he has both Jaden Ivey and Jalen Duren on the second team, saying this about Ivey:

"“Jaden Ivey showed his many skills but slots in as a Second Team choice because of Detroit’s aimless season.”"

Aschburne followed the recent trend of punishing rookies who are on bad teams even though they have no choice in the matter and can only play with the hand they are dealt.

The question is whether other voters will do the same and reward players who are on better teams.

In my totally biased opinion, Ivey is a better player than Mathurin and had a better season overall, but the Pacers won twice as many games. They weren’t good, but they weren’t epically bad like the Detroit Pistons.

Ivey had a season that would be worthy of a 1st team selection most years, but his team’s choice to phone it in may end up costing him.