Utah Jazz's Ace Bailey Barely Misses Eye-Catching Rookie Honor

Another month, another Rookie of the Month award that Utah Jazz first-year wing Ace Bailey has just missed out on.

According to an announcement from the NBA, February's Rookie of the Month honors have gone to San Antonio Spurs guard Dylan Harper for the Western Conference, and Charlotte Hornets wing Kon Knueppel for the Eastern Conference.

Other nominees…

West: Ace Bailey (UTA), Cooper Flagg (DAL), Maxime Raynaud (SAC) and Javon Small (MEM)

East: VJ Edgecombe (PHI), Will Riley (WAS) and Nolan Traoré (BKN) https://t.co/Fz0xzH8GIr
— NBA Communications (@NBAPR) March 3, 2026

Bailey would instead be listed as the first other nominee in the Western Conference to be left out of the honors, coming out of one of his most productive months since entering the league.

However, he'll instead be left empty-handed, and will look towards the month of March to land those honors.

Was Ace Bailey Snubbed of Rookie of the Month?

There's certainly at least a case to be had for Bailey to have won February's award over his former Rutgers teammate, Harper. And it might just be a more appealing argument than what the other competitors in the field may have, even when factoring in number-one overall pick Cooper Flagg, who played in just four games in February.

In the 11 games the Jazz rookie played through his February stretch, Bailey averaged 14.3 points, 6.4 rebounds, 2.0 assists, 1.1 steals, and just under a block a game while shooting 40.4% from the field and 28.1% from three.

It's strong numbers for the fifth-overall pick as he's begun to get more and more comfortable in his role starting on the wing for Utah, and especially as his scoring responsibilities have been elevated in the time that the Jazz have been without guys like Keyonte George and Lauri Markkanen.

Feb 28, 2026; Salt Lake City, Utah, USA; Utah Jazz forward Ace Bailey (19) warms up before the game against the New Orleans Pelicans at Delta Center. Mandatory Credit: Chris Nicoll-Imagn Images | Chris Nicoll-Imagn Images

However, Harper has had some strong performances in his own right. The Spurs rookie guard had played in 10 total games throughout February, chipping in for 12.5 points, 3.9 rebounds, and 4.9 assists while shooting 55.4% from the field.

In all, it's more efficient numbers from Harper in fewer minutes and zero starts, but also came during a time in which the Spurs saw real success as a whole; logging a perfect 11-0 record through the month of February, and a 10-0 record when their second-overall pick was available and coming off the bench.

Within raw counting stats and numbers on a box score, Bailey might have a narrow edge. But when digging deeper into efficiency stats and how said rookie has impacted the bottom line of winning, Harper wins that battle easily, and might've just been the catalyst to give him the slight nod for February's best rookie in the conference, and his first time doing so of the season.

As for Knueppel, his Eastern Conference Rookie of the Month honors make for his fourth consecutive time winning it this season, and the longer that Flagg remains out, the better and better chance the Hornets’ rookie has of becoming the Rookie of the Year once the end of the season hits.

However, there still remains one more month and some change to go in the NBA regular season, and one more Rookie of the Month award to hand out. Perhaps then, Bailey can finally have his shot at winning that hardware with a few good weeks, and can give him a bit of deserved respect at the end of the season after gradually developing into his own within year one in Salt Lake City.