@gamingonlinux
I would rather recommend Linux Mint or Linux Mint LMDE to new users than Ubuntu, but yeah I guess Ubuntu could be fine too only because they will find support much easier if they need help. Small niche distros are absolutely will give a bad first taste for new users if they're not tech savvy and they just want to explore niche things for a fun of it. Most new users want something that just works and doesn't need too much maintenance.