Tweet of the Night: Magic Johnson’s prediction for ROY is Michael Carter-Williams

When the Miami Heat loses 114-110 to the Philadelphia 76ers – a team that some experts believed might have single-digit wins this season – you expect them to suffer serious backlash. Usually, that is the burden of being a two-time champion, and it’s what happened on Tuesday night, when the Los Angeles Clippers surprisingly got run over by the Los Angeles Lakers and took some serious heat from ESPN analyst Bill Simmons. It didn’t matter that the Heat missed Dwyane Wade due to a sore knee. They should have no excuse for letting this game get out of hand so early, allowing the Sixers to get out to a ridiculous 23-2 lead.

In Wednesday’s case, however, the brilliant play of rookie Michael Carter-Williams overshadowed anything else that happened in the contest. After struggling for much of the preseason and casting plenty of doubt in the process, the point guard posted a jaw-dropping line in his first game as a pro:  22 points on six-of-10 shooting, four-of-six shooting from the 3-point line, six-of-eight free throws, seven rebounds, 12 assists, nine steals and just one turnover. The nine steals are the most ever by a rookie in a debut game.

After the contest, Magic Johnson predicted that the guard out of Syracuse would be this season’s rookie of the year:

I just got done watching the guy I think will be the Rookie of The Year, Michael Carter-Williams of the 76ers.

— Earvin Magic Johnson (@MagicJohnson) October 31, 2013

 

Michael Carter-Williams put up 22 pts, 7 rebs, 12 ast and 9stl tonight in the win over the Heat.

— Earvin Magic Johnson (@MagicJohnson) October 31, 2013

If Magic made this prediction before this game took place, hats off to him. If he did so after this game, thanks, Sherlock. It’s just one game, but it’s hard to argue that Carter-Williams has already separated himself as the favorite to win the award. He simply did too much on the floor to call it a fluke, and it will be highly intriguing to see what else he may have in store as the season progresses, although it will be tough to match this one. If he’s going to be this good, you do have to wonder if the organization is at least a bit concerned with how the team will fare this season – more wins equate to less ping pong balls.

Tweet of the Day: Finally Official, Allen Iverson Is Retired

Tweet of the Night: Bill Simmons rips the Clippers after seeing them lose to the Lakers

James Park is the chief blogger of Sheridan Hoops. You can find him on twitter@SheridanBlog.