You can trial several distros, desktop environments, etc. on Live boot USB first, no need to rush that decision. But for no hassle configuration and day one 100% productivity, Mint or EndeavorOS. You won't look back.
Keep your home in a separate disk altogether, or at least a different partition.
Configure Timeshift or another system backup tool as soon as possible, because as a noob you will want to do things that might inadvertently break your system.
Ignore fanboys, distro warriors and zealots in general. The magic of Linux is that it is whatever you want to make of it.