There was a bit of NBA history made in the Milwaukee-Minnesota game Wednesday.
The matchup was billed as the first meeting between Andrew Wiggins and Jabari Parker, the top two picks in the 2014 draft. But for the first time, four teenagers played in the same game. The Bucks had Parker and second-year forward Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Timberwolves had Wiggins and fellow rookie Zach LaVine.
Not only did all four teenyboppers play, they all started. And not only did they all start, they all played pretty well.
Wiggins won the statistical duel, collecting 14 points, eight rebounds, four assists and two blocks, including one on Parker. However, Wiggins did have six turnovers.
Parker totaled 11 points, seven rebounds and three assists, helping Milwaukee continue its surprising start with a 103-86 road win.
Even LaVine wasn’t bad. Elevated to starting point guard due to Ricky Rubio’s injury and Mo Williams’ illness, he played 37 minutes and had 12 points and four assists.
Wiggins has overtaken Parker as the top scoring rookie. The question is whether he can overtake Parker for Rookie of the Year.
Working in Wiggins’ favor is Minnesota’s desire to develop its collection of young talent, which also includes second-year players Shabazz Muhammad and Gorgui Dieng. Even Rubio is still on his rookie contract.
Working in Parker’s favor is that the Bucks are fourth in the Eastern Conference with a 9-7 record, including a 4-5 mark on the road. Last season, they didn’t get their ninth win until Feb. 3.
After Friday night’s game against Detroit, the schedule gets tougher for the Bucks, who have yet to travel west. Fourteen of their next 17 games will be against 2014 playoff teams. The other three are road games against Cleveland, Phoenix and Sacramento.
Parker and Wiggins meet for the second and last time this season on Jan. 9. By that time, we should know more about Parker’s ability to help keep the Bucks in playoff contention and Wiggins’ ability to carry the Wolves’ offense.
On to the rankings.
1. JABARI PARKER, F, MILWAUKEE: He no longer is the leader among rookies in any category – 
unless you count double-doubles (2) – but no class member is playing a bigger role on a more successful team right now. Parker averaged 11.5 points, 6.7 rebounds and 1.5 steals in four games this week. More important, Milwaukee went 2-2 in those games, a pace that may get the Bucks in the playoffs. LAST WEEK: 1
2. ANDREW WIGGINS, F, MINNESOTA: He became the leading scorer among rookies by averaging 
19.0 points in three games this week, including a 29-point eruption vs. Sacramento. Wiggins is shooting 41 percent overall, and that won’t get better until his more experienced injured teammates return. But he is shooting 50 percent from the arc and starting to get to the line, too. LAST WEEK: 3
3. K.J. MCDANIELS, F, PHILADELPHIA: He has season highs in minutes (33), points (18), rebounds 
(6), shots (15) and makes (7) in Wednesday’s loss to Broklyn, capping a strong week. In four games, McDaniels averaged 12.3 points while making 17-of-37 shots overall. His 3-point shooting remains steady at just under 39 percent and he continues his willing defense against skilled wing opponents. LAST WEEK: 4
4. SHABAZZ NAPIER, G, MIAMI: He has become a legitimate weapon in Erik Spoelstra’s rotation with 
six straight games in double figures, averaging 12.3 points in that stretch. Napier is one of just two newbies shooting better than 40 percent from the arc and leads all rookies with 1.39 points per shot. He has to take better care of the ball, though, as two turnovers late vs. Golden State hurt. LAST WEEK: 7
5. NERLENS NOEL, F-C, PHILADELPHIA: He leads all rookies in rebounds (6.3), blocks (1.3) and steals (1.6), but given his length and athleticism, he probably should. He showed a little bit more prowess on the offensive end with consecutive games in double figures, but it remains tough for the Sixers to play through him because his skills are so rudimentary. He needs to be more than a jumping jack. LAST WEEK: 5
6. KOSTAS PAPANIKOLAOU, F, HOUSTON: He compensated for a blah scoring week (5.7 ppg, 6-of-
22 shooting) by doing other things in three wins – seven rebounds vs. Dallas, two blocks vs. New York, five assists vs. Sacramento. His minutes have remained steady while playing both forward spots. It will be interesting to see how much he plays once Terrence Jones returns from injury. LAST WEEK: 6
7. BOJAN BOGDANOVIC, F, BROOKLYN: His inconsistency is starting to show. After consecutive 
games last week of 19 and 22 points, he managed just 11 points in three games this week on awful 2-of-17 shooting, including 1-of-9 from the arc. BoBo actually missed 16 straight shots over parts of four games, and he hasn’t been doing much of anything else to compensate for his lack of marksmanship. LAST WEEK: 2
8. ELFRID PAYTON, G, ORLANDO: He may have been out of his depth as a starter but has played much 
better since the return of Victor Oladipo relegated him to a bench role. For the week, Payton averaged 11.0 points, 4.3 assists and 1.5 steals in four games, all as a reserve. He also finally found a bit of consistency in his shot, knocking down 18-of-33 from the field. LAST WEEK: NR
9. NIKOLA MIROTIC, F, CHICAGO: The only rookie besides Parker and Noel with a double-double, 
going for 24 and 11 boards in a loss at Portland. It should be noted that much of that came in garbage time. Mirotic has been rebounding well of late but needs to become a more consistent scorer, especially with the current uncertain statuses of Derrick Rose, Joakim Noah and Taj Gibson. LAST WEEK: 9
10. ZACH LAVINE, G, MINNESOTA: He will return to a reserve role once Mo Williams gets over his 
illness and may even be dispatched to the D-League once Ricky Rubio returns from his ankle injury. That makes his presence in this table tenuous at best. But the kid deserves some credit for taking the reins of an NBA offense as a teenager and at the very least has been intriguing to watch. LAST WEEK: NR
DROPOUTS: Joe Harris, F, Cleveland (8); Dante Exum, G, Utah (10).
FIVE TO WATCH: Tarik Black, C, Houston; Spencer Dinwiddie, G, Detroit; James Ennis, F, Miami; Damjan Rudez, F, Indiana; Nik Stauskas, G, Sacramento.
Chris Bernucca is the managing editor of SheridanHoops.com. His columns appear Monday during the season. You can follow him on Twitter.
It’s early. We’ll see which rookies can lead their teams to playoff berths and what kind of performance they can put together in the playoffs. I have a feeling Shabazz Napier and the Heat will put together a good showing in the Eastern Conference playoffs next summer.