At the half-way point of this season (41 games), rookie center Quinten Post had made three total appearances and played less than 13 combined minutes for the Golden State Warriors.
Imagine saying then that Post would end his first year having received votes for the All-Rookie Second Team. Well that's just what happened when the teams were released earlier in the week, with Post receiving four votes for the Second Team after providing enormous impact over the final months of the regular season.
The Warriors acquired Quinten Post for cash considerations
Post finished his rookie season averaging 8.1 points, 3.5 rebounds and 1.3 assists in 16.3 minutes per game, having emerged as the floor-spacing big man that Golden State have long needed and yearned for.
It's hard not to wonder what Post could have done with more opportunity, with the 25-year-old ranking fifth among rookies in scoring per 36 minutes. He put up over one 3-point attempt more per 36 minutes than the next rookie to play at least 25 games, while his 40.8% shooting from the perimeter ranked not only first among rookies (min. 25 games), but also first on the Warriors ahead of Stephen Curry.
It's easy to forget that Golden State had to reacquire the draft rights to Post after initially giving up the 52nd pick to the Oklahoma City Thunder for Lindy Waters III. The pick ended up in the hands of the Portland Trail Blazers, with the Warriors regaining the pick for cash considerations.
While not a notable trade at the time, the deal looks even better for the franchise now in the wake of Post's All-Rookie Team votes. It's the second time in as many years that Golden State have traded into a pick in the 50's for a center that would go onto have considerable impact in their rookie year, with Trayce Jackson-Davis just missing out on All-Rookie Second Team honors last season.
Needless to say that Post was the latest pick in the draft to receive All-Rookie Team votes, while he and Toronto Raptors guard Jamal Shead were the only players selected beyond 40 to earn Second-Team votes.
For as impressive as Post's regular season was, there's certainly work to do after a disappointing playoff campaign where he saw his role diminish. The Dutchman averaged just 12.2 minutes and shot a paltry 33.3% shooting from the floor, having failed to play more than 10 minutes in any of the second-round series as the Warriors were eliminated by the Minnesota Timberwolves.