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The winner of the 2012 NBA Rookie of the Year award was never in doubt. Cleveland Cavaliers point guard Kyrie Irving -- the No. 1 overall pick in the 2011 NBA Draft -- had the best season of any rookie by far, and he won the honor in a landslide. Even so, Irving as ROY was not unanimous. Denver Nuggets forward Kenneth Faried recieved a single first-place vote, along with New York Knicks guard Iman Shumpert and San Antonio Spurs small forward Kawhi Leonard. Minnesota Timberwolves PG Ricky Rubio finished in second-place thanks to 49 second-place votes, while Faried placed third, Leonard fourth and Shumpert fifth overall in the voting.
Perhaps the strangest vote anyone cast (ballot are anonymous) was the single vote for Memphis Grizzlies rookie Josh Selby, who finished the season with an average of 2.3 points per game, 1.1 assist and an unsightly Player Efficiency Rating (PER) of 3.36.
Faried, the No. 22 overall pick in the 2011 NBA Draft, averaged 10.2 points on 58.6 percent shooting to go with 7.7 rebounds per game and a PER of 21.94. Meanwhile, Kyrie Irving produced 18.5 points, 5.4 assists and 3.7 rebounds per contest, good for a 21.49 PER and a true shooting percentage of 56.7.
Here is a complete list of the 2012 NBA Rookie of the Year voting results (via AOL Sporting News):
| Rookie | 1st Place Votes | 2nd Place Votes | 3rd Place Votes | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kyrie Irving, Cleveland Cavaliers | 117 | 2 | 1 | 592 |
| Ricky Rubio, Minnesota Timberwolves | 49 | 23 | 170 | |
| Kenneth Faried, Denver Nuggets | 1 | 30 | 34 | 129 |
| Kawhi Leonard, San Antonio Spurs | 1 | 9 | 15 | 47 |
| Iman Shumpert, New York Knicks | 1 | 7 | 7 | 33 |
| Klay Thompson, Golden State Warriors | 5 | 15 | 30 | |
| Isaiah Thomas, Sacramento Kings | 6 | 10 | 28 | |
| Brandon Knight, Detroit Pistons | 6 | 3 | 21 | |
| Chandler Parsons, Houston Rockets | 3 | 5 | 14 | |
| MarShon Brooks, New Jersey Nets | 1 | 1 | 4 | |
| Kemba Walker, Charlotte Bobcats | 3 | 3 | ||
| Josh Selby, Memphis Grizzlies | 1 | 1 |
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