The argument over what the NBA community deems a "Rookie" has raged on this year, after Ben Simmons was deemed eligible to receive the award. The Sixers' "Rookie" missed his entire first season after team officials decided to rest his foot injury post-surgery. Although there was no guarantee Ben Simmons would respond well to Therapy, it stands to reason that he benefited from being amalgamated into team affairs well before he got his feet wet on the court. The transition from the amateur ranks to the pros, is generally considered the biggest hurdle for a rookie player.
Simmons clearly profited from early immersion into professional sports. In twisted sort of way, he has a foot injury to thank for his rapid integration. NBA commissioner Adam Silver was asked to comment on the eligibility rule which allowed Simmons a second chance. He responded by keeping with the norm: "We've had that rule in place for some time. If we were to change the rule, we wouldn't do it midseason. We would at least wait until the winner of the award is announced. But there have not been any discussions about changing the rule."
It's hard to believe if it weren't for the heated "Rookie of the Year" race between Donovan Mitchell and Ben Simmons, we wouldn't be having this discussion, much the commissioner of the league. It's not as if Ben Simmons entered the league as a 30 year old, after receiving a decade worth of Soviet Biomedical Engineering, or did he?