NBA Rookie of the Year Power Rankings: Unicorns unleashed

The Charlotte Hornets have to be thrilled with the early returns on Brandon Miller. The No. 2 pick has played exactly as advertised, offering a consistent 3-and-D wing with flashes of legitimate secondary creation upside. He's averaging 15.5 points, 5.8 rebounds, and 2.0 assists on .468/.421/.833 splits in 29.5 minutes per game. Miller isn't starting yet, but one has to imagine Gordon Hayward's days are numbered there.

Miller was one of the best players in college basketball as a freshman. This shouldn't come as a huge surprise. He is well situated in the Hornets' offense, surrounded by an all-world facilitator in LaMelo Ball, as well as a potpourri of ancillary ball-handlers and connective passers on the wing. Miller is an elite 3-point shooter with excellent positional size at 6-foot-8. It's only natural for him to find success out of the gates.

As the season progresses, it will be interesting to watch Miller's role evolve. He made serious noise as a pick-and-roll operator at Alabama. He doesn't have the quickest first step or the tightest handles, but Miller can whip impressive passes on the move. He sees the floor well and his pull-up shooting flashes suggest legitimate go-to upside. The Hornets still run through Ball on offense, with a healthy dose of Terry Rozier, but at some point, the No. 2 pick should probably be fully embraced as the No. 2 on offense.

Miller has been rock-solid on defense too, cementing a well-rounded awards case in the season's early going. Given the size of his role and the immediate translation of his jumper, it's difficult to imagine Miller falling very far here. Expect Scoot Henderson to start putting up numbers eventually, but Miller has the top-3 inside track at the moment.