by Eugene on Mon Nov 25, 2002 3:26 am
Rookie watch revisited...
Well, there have been some interesting developments, pertaining specifically to a certain 7' 5" Chinese center...
Which motivates me to put up another Rookie Watch.
This one won't go down the list of lottery picks. I'll just list Rookies as I see fit starting with...
Yao Ming: Ming Dynasty? Showing signs of it. He's killing, but against a centerless Lakers, Shawn (sticks) Bradley, and a combination of Kwame Brown and Brendan Haywood. 5 years ago, this would've meant close to nothing, but in this league of pseudo-centers, Yao has become one of top 10 centers. He's still young, and there's really no taking away what he already did, regardless of who he did it on. Conclusion: Houston's waiting for Shaq to retire, at which point they claim the best center in the league.
Drew Gooden: Still putting up solid numbers. Still my pick for ROY, but only because he started out strong and kept it up. Yao's catching up fast. I've said this before and I'll say it again, Drew Gooden has nice post moves, which puts him ahead of 80% of all PF/C in the league.
Jay Williams: Been pretty consistent. Trey-Dub was an exception, and I'd like to see it become a trademark. Still my main man, but not there yet as far as ROY is concerned. I'm not worried though, he's already better than a number starting points on other squads. It's just a matter of time before he's at the level of Jason Kidd and Gary Payton.
Caron Butler: Putting up solid numbers on a bad, bad Miami Heat squad. They should start making trades and focus building around Caron Butler. He's the only one that's not expendable on this squad, if only for his youth and potential.
Mike Dunleavy Jr: Junior has game, of that there's no doubt. As well as Golden State is playing right now, this isn't the year they make the playoffs or do anything significant, so why not play Junior some more? You don't bury your 3rd overall pick like that. All the rookies that went in the lottery -- the one's that are getting minutes -- are producing numbers, and 4 of the 5 five are killing. Give Mike the benefit of the doubt.
Lonny Baxter: Far from a lottery pick as far as draft position is concerned, but should have gone ahead of Chris Wilcox, at least. Actually, almost everyone should have gone ahead of Wilcox, but I digress. Baxter comes in, brings his Maryland toughness, and takes over the forward spot from Marcus Fizer -- fourth overall only 3 drafts ago. Fizer's not going to bloom anytime soon, so trade him and get a back-up center, and use Baxter more exclusively. It just goes to show you, too, what a few years in college will do -- it'll drop you in the draft, but you're better prepared for the L than those wet-behind the ears early entries. I'm rambling now, so I'll move on.
Dan Gadzuric: He's supposed to be really good, but I've never seen him play. So, why am I writing about him? I don't know. I'm falling apart. There's someone else I need to write about, but I forget. Bear with me.
Casey Jacobsen: Phoenix should just spot him up at the three-point line and let him shoot nothing but threes.
Emanuel Ginobili: We heard a lot about him at the start of the season, but not so much recently. Averaging 18 minutes and putting up 7 pts, one and half dime, shooting 26 percent from three. Some thought he'd be ROY. I'm not buying it.
Amare Stoudamire: I saw him play a while back. He's a highschooler? Freakish build. I can't imagine seeing someone like him college, much less high school. And putting that chiseled frame to good use for Phoenix. Which reminds me -- Kudos to Steph for playing so well this season. As well as Googs and Penny have played, Steph is the game breaker on this squad. He's stepping as a leader. He gets a little better as far as shooting, he'll reclaim his spot as one of premier points in the league.
I think that's it for now. Shout out to Desmond Mason, Brent Barry, Gary Payton, all three of whom are breaking out (second time for the last two) for Seattle, pushing them towards the playoffs. Yay!
Doesn't it feel good to see someone play well, regardless of who it is? I know I'll be the happiest man alive when Vince plays well, but it ain't gonna happen -- the man has the pain tolerance of a tough 4 year old kid. Come on, Vince.
Oh, Tayshun Prince! Mr. Versatility, to quote Dickie V. I'd love to see him doing well. Let me check the stats. Oh, nothing impressive. I'd like to see him play more though.
Juan Dixon, too. Best leadership skills of all rookies except for Jay-Will. He should play more. Maybe him and Mike and Stack? Dixon is quick enough to guard most points, and you're telling me he can't dribble past half court and pass to either Mike or Stack? Believe me, points guards in Washington has the easiest job this side of Derek Fisher.
Okay, so that's really it. Good night!
The task of the artist is to translate for us the essence of things we take for granted.