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From ESPN.com (David Thorpe)
Top 50 Rookies
1. Kevin Durant (Seattle Supersonics) (same)
2. Al Horford (Atlanta Hawks) (same)
3. Yi Jianlian (Milwaukee Bucks) (same)
4. Jamario Moon (Toronto Raptors (+2)
5. Sean Williams (New Jersey Nets) (-1)
6. Luis Scola (Houston Rockets) (-1)
7. Daequan Cook (Miami Heat) (+1)
8. Juan Carlos Navarro (Memphis Grizzlies) (-1)
9. Nick Young (Washington Wizards) (same)
10. Joakim Noah (Chicago Bulls) (+3)
11. Jeff Green (Seattle Supersonics) (-1)
12. Glenn "Big Baby" Davis (Boston Celtics) (-1)
13. Corey Brewer (Minnesota Timberwolves) (+1)
14. Mike Conley (Memphis Grizzlies) (+14)
15. Al Thorton (Los Angeles Clippers) (same)
16. Thaddeus Young (Philadelphia 76ers) (+2)
17. Jason Smith (Philadelphia 76ers) (-1)
18. Aaron Gray (Chicago Bulls) (-6)
19. Arron Afflalo (Detroit Pistons) (-2)
20. Aaron Brooks (Houston Rockets) (same)
21. Jared Dudley (Charlotte Bobcats) (-2)
22. Chris Richard (Minnesota Timberwolves) (-1)
23. Julian Wright (New Orleans Hornets) (-1)
24. Acie Law (Atlanta Hawks) (-1)
25. Rodney Stuckey (Detroit Pistons) (-1)
26. Spencer Hawes (Sacramento Kings) (-1)
27. Mario West (Atlanta Hawks) (-1)
28. Javaris Crittenton (Los Angeles Lakers) (+1)
29. Marco Belinelli (Golden State Warriors) (+1)
30. Brandan Wright (Golden State Warriors) (+1)
31. Kyrylo Fesenko (Utah Jazz) (+1)
32. Wilson Chandler (New York Knicks) (+1)
33. Morris Almond (Utah Jazz) (+1)
34. Jermareo Davidson (Charlotte Bobcats) (+1)
35. Taurean Green (Portland Trail Blazers) (+1)
36. Gabe Pruitt (Boston Celtics) (+1)
37. Alando Tucker (Phoenix Suns) (+1)
38. Dominic McGuire (Washington Wizards) (+1)
39. Joel Anthony (Miami Heat) (+1)
40. Coby Karl (Los Angeles Lakers) (+1)
41. Carl Landry (Houston Rockets) (+1)
42. Josh McRoberts (Philadelphia 76ers) (+1)
43. D.J. Strawberry (Phoenix Suns) (+1)
44. Ian Mahinmi (San Antonio Spurs) (+1)
45. Nick Fazekas (Dallas Mavericks) (+1)
46. Demetris Nichols (Chicago Bulls) (+1)
47. Cheick Samb (Detroit Pistons) (+1)
48. Marcin Gortat (Orlando Magic) (+1)
49. Ramon Sessions (Milwaukee Bucks) (+1)
50. Darius Washington (Free Agent) (-23)
Notes:
The rookies have reached the new year. How are they progressing? Here are my latest observations:
• Rodney Stuckey reminds me of a young Tim Hardaway in that he's terrific with his stop-and-start dribble drives. He's a difficult guy to stay in front of. Since he just returned from an injury last week, he's just now learning that beating his defender is a small part of the battle in the NBA. He's getting 48 percent of his shots from near the rim, but shooting just 38.5 percent on those shots, with 23 percent of those shots blocked, according to 82games.com. Compare that to a similar-sized guard in rookie Acie Law, who gets 43 percent of his shots off drives and has had only 5 percent of them blocked.
• Aaron Gray and Joakim Noah should not expect to see much action in the near future, because interim coach Jim Boylan is shortening his rotation in his effort to revive the Bulls. Gray's size is always a plus inside, but as teams forced him to make plays one-on-one, his effectiveness diminished.
• Thaddeus Young showed some clutch shooting by draining two late free throws in a win over Memphis. But he rarely gets to the line, something we should watch for as his season unfolds. His combination of athleticism and timing should make him a guy who gets to the line a decent number of times each game.
• In my last report, I suggested that despite having a huge game against the Spurs, Al Thornton still has some serious learning to do. Remember, he's already 24 years old, so there's concern that his upside may be small. I don't share those concerns, because I've seen players improve well into their 30s. But with Al going 10-for-29 from the field last week, it shows that he is still struggling with his shot selection. However, he did have one assist in each of his past four games, the longest such "assist streak" of his young career.
• The NBA has so many "energy" guys who quickly fade away after a solid week or two, their contributions mitigated by increased attention from the other team. Jamario Moon is proving to be the real deal, though, bringing his exceptional agility and desire almost every minute he plays. He has to be accounted for on both ends of the floor.
• The light shining on Kevin Durant casts a shadow on a few other rookies who in most seasons would be ROY candidates -- none moreso than his teammate, Jeff Green. The more I watch him, the more I think Green may be a top-tier player in this league. Scottie Pippen to Durant's Michael Jordan? Not quite. But his multiple offensive skills and basketball IQ, combined with Durant's scoring talent, means that in many big games in Seattle's future, defenses that aim to slow Durant are going to have fits defending Green. He'll be too good to have just anybody rotate onto him.
• Javaris Crittenton got 16 minutes to show his stuff vs. the Celtics, a season high. But his coaches cannot be thrilled at the young point guard's game action. A look past the box score shows a player not nearly ready to contribute to a playoff team. Too many dribbles, too many circus pass attempts, not enough simple basketball plays. In the new year, I'd like to see Crittenton resolve to play at a pace similar to that of teammate Jordan Farmar, who has learned to flourish within the system instead of playing outside of it.
• Corey Brewer does a lot of things on the offensive end poorly, but one thing he does better than most rookies is running to the rim in transition. Most players who don't have an obvious layup or dunk often stop on the perimeter looking for their perimeter jumper, but Brewer typically keeps trying to stretch the defense by racing all the way to the rim. When defenders focus on slowing the ball, they may forget the skinny wing who is standing next to the basket because he kept running, resulting in an easy basket for Brewer.
• A player must be patient when using a ball screen, but when he finally uses the screen he should be coming off of it at a fast pace -- the same pace as if he were trying to break down his defender without the benefit of a screener. That puts pressure on both his defender and the screener's defender. Aaron Brooks is terrific at this, and because he's so quick coming of the screen, he's effective at splitting the screen or turning it down (going opposite the screener).
• Nick Young looks really comfortable shooting perimeter jumpers with a slight fade on his release. This makes him a prime candidate to get looks as the shot clock winds down, when the importance of ensuring that the ball reaches the rim is highest. Young can get away his shot, including his step-back jumper, against almost anyone.
• Sean Williams clearly has talent on the defensive end of the court, and can be an effective rebounder in open spaces. But his offensive game depends on the plays made by his teammates -- he generates little on his own. That is OK for a rookie, but bears watching to help project just how effective a player he'll grow to be.
• It will be interesting to see how Kevin Durant handles his first NBA injury. Some guys rush back (too soon on occasion). Better for him to make sure he's fully healed.
• Morris Almond looked like a solid shooting guard when I watched him play at Rice. And he's killing the D League, averaging 30 points per game in his first eight games. But with Utah acquiring Kyle Korver, I'm not sure Almond will have any real chances to show his game at the NBA level this season. And remember, Utah also has C.J. Miles, who at only 20 years old has shown he may have the stuff to be a good player in the league. And Ronnie Brewer, the starter, is actually almost two months younger than Almond. The draft is just one night -- after that, it's typically a fight to get in the game. Almond, as much as any other 2007 first-round pick, knows exactly what that means.
• Al Horford looks good at the free throw line, so when he shot 55 percent from the line in November, I assumed it was a combination of rookie nerves and lots of things going on in his head. He has settled down since, shooting 79 percent in December.
• It's hard for the average fan to understand just how tall most of these NBA players are. Most of these players move so well that they look like much smaller men. Remember: most of the football and baseball players we see on TV are about the same height as NBA point guards, or smaller. Yi is a great example -- he's so fluid that he looks like an ordinarily-sized man, but then you'll see him finish a hook shot by throwing the ball down toward the rim and realize he's about a foot taller than most football and baseball players.
