Rookie Watch

Rookie Watch

With the dawn of another NBA season, we are once again exposed to a new and talented crop of rookies. (And some not so talented ones…more on that later from another exclusive Alex Terry report). With the last two number one picks set to debut, this year’s class should look to continue the instant success experienced by last’s year premier rooks, Tyreke Evans, Brandon Jennings, and Steph Curry to name a few. Now obviously, because they were high draft picks, these top rookies are playing for some less that noteworthy teams, making this article focused on their prospective individual accolades, aka who is going to win Rookie of the Year.

The Long Shot- Demarcus Cousins, PF/C, Sacramento Kings

Outside of the number 1 picks, and the allure that they carry inherently, Cousins is the most interesting and promising rookie in this class. Despite being a first team All American during his lone year at Kentucky, Cousins was passed over by a number of teams that could have definitely used his services (here’s looking at you Philly, New Jersey, and Minnesota), most notably for what I’ve heard described as “pervasive character issues.” Now I don’t want to pigeon hole anyone but I am going to go out on a limb and say that Mr. Cousins can’t tell me what exactly pervasive means (allegedly he had a GPA of 1.8 at UK…just for those keeping track, the total GPA for the entire Kentucky team was 2.01, keep bringing in winners though Coach Cal.) But I know damn well that you don’t need a stellar vocabulary to excel in the NBA, and that’s exactly what Cousins will do. He is an almost automatic double-double (which only 11 guys averaged in the entire league last season), and is a bona fide scorer in the low post, which is an even rarer find these days. Think about it…to how many bigs in the NBA today, can a team throw the ball down into the post and have them score on a consistent basis? I can think of maybe three… (Gasol, Zach Randolph, Al Jefferson), with hopefully Dwight Howard getting there this year. I know cases can be made for guys like Bogut, Brook Lopez, or maybe Yao in his limited time, but even including these players, the list is not very long. But you’re right Philly why go get this asset when you have Elton Brand, or Minnesota when you have Darko, good calls GMs. I think eventually Cousins can be a 20-12 guy a night (had 14-8 in only 27 minutes in his debut), but he needs a coach that is going to provide the appropriate discipline to control him and Evans…not sure Westphal is the guy, but we will see. The Kings aren’t going to go anywhere fast (except maybe out of Sacramento), but they have two solid pieces to build off of, and if they handle it right and surround these two guys with the right pieces, both talent and personality wise, they should begin to see results within the next few years. And if not, then they are destined to be the reincarnation of the Jail-Blazers, either way, it will be intriguing.

The Dark Horse- John Wall, PG, Washington Wizards

Disclaimer: Because I have spent a large amount of time around a certain person from New Jersey, I will not use any names, let’s just arbitrarily call this person Canadian Mist…my legal department is making me clarify that the term ‘dark horse’ is in no way, shape, or form racially charged, even though John Wall happens to be African American and incredibly fast, it is simply an expression…wait this isn’t a real article, no one of substance reads it anyways, and I don’t have a legal department, well then, on with the story…

Well since the last “savior” PG of the Wizards was more concerned with intimidating teammates who owed him gambling debts then actually being smart and winning, the team has decided to start over. I’d say John Wall is a pretty good start. I think he has the most NBA applicable skill set of anyone in last year’s draft, and Jay Bilas would need to be sitting to talk about his raw physical attributes. That said I also think that one of his greatest assets, his speed, can at times be his major deterrent. Just because he can go faster than everyone, doesn’t necessarily mean he needs to try all the time. The one major knock on him at Kentucky was his high turnover rate, and most of that was due to his going too fast, getting in trouble, and not making smart decisions. Don’t get me wrong, his quickness and burst are a major plus, especially in transition, but he needs to learn how to control these tools and translate them into becoming an effective point guard (see Rondo’s transformation from when he first came in the league). Speaking of Rondo, another knock on Wall is his inconsistent jump shot, but as number 9 in green has shown us, that doesn’t mean you can’t still dominate. And improving a jumper turns out to be the most correctable talent on a basketball court. Watching his debut last night was a bit skewed because the Wizards were just woefully overmatched against the Magic (who looked so efficient it made me real happy for their show against Miami tonight) that the game was out of hand early, and Wall got most of his production in garbage time. As I mentioned he is prone to, he played too fast at times, took some ill advised shots, and for one game at least didn’t live up to his high expectations. I’m willing to throw it out, and I really do believe that he will have a very solid season and spectacular career, but I just don’t think he has enough around him this year to make the Wizards relevant again, or slide into the top rookie spot.

The Favorite- Blake Griffin, PF, Los Angeles Clippers

To start, if you haven’t seen this guy play yet, I have three words for you…BELIEVE THE HYPE! Wednesday was the first time I sat down and watched him for an extended period of time, and all I can say is wow. You wouldn’t believe me if I tried to explain his athleticism, so instead I’m just going to show it to you. You know what they say, that first impressions are everything…well, this was Griffin’s first basket in the NBA (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mswjjN68S30)(url direct links not working for some reason, just copy and paste, it's worth it believe me). That should not be allowed, especially a year removed from major knee surgery. I want to check them for the surgical equivalent of corking a bat in baseball, because I don’t know if I have ever seen explosion like that from a power forward. It’s very easy to get lost in his marveling athleticism, I know I did, but looking closer, he is a very complete basketball player as well. He can shoot out to 18 feet, has a high basketball IQ, is prolific with both hands, and he is an above average defender as well. But apart from all of that, the thing that stood out the most to me was his hustle, will, and determination. Almost anything about the NBA that Hubie Brown says I welcome with open arms, because let’s face it, I’m pretty sure he was there when the game was invented, and has seen and coached more basketball than I will ever experience. So when he was calling the game on Wednesday and said that the hardest thing to do in the NBA is get offensive rebounds, I agreed with him. And when he said that Blake Griffin was as good as anyone he had ever seen at getting offensive rebounds, I started to pay attention and just follow Griffin around on offense, even when he didn’t have the ball. That is where he truly wowed me, and showed me his great knowledge of the game. Dennis Rodman, one of the best rebounders in NBA history, was never the tallest or the biggest guy, but he always got rebounds because he understood the angles. He knew if a shot was taken from there, by that teammate, that the ball was most likely to going in a specific position, and he got himself to that position. Griffin does the exact same thing. Even before a shot goes up, he is already positioning himself to be in prime location for the ball after a miss. And when there is a miss, combining the position and his athletic advantage over the defender, you get things like this…(http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pCW-arqrYto). After this dunk, J.A. Adande tweeted that he wants the Clippers to miss every shot now, just so he can see Blake Griffin get 50 put back dunk attempts…I agree…keep shooting step back 3s Rasoul Butler. Just to add how good of an offensive rebounder Griffin is, he finished with 9 offensive boards on the night, I went and did some research around the rest of the league. There were 25 other NBA teams in action on Wednesday night...13 of them got 9 or less offensive rebounds as a TEAM. Should put it in some perspective for you. Because he is the best rookie, and barring any major injuries (knocking on wood vigorously), he will win Rookie of the Year, and he is already well on his way after a debut of 20-14. Man is it a shame he plays for the Clippers…

No F-ing Chance- Luke Harangody, PF, Boston Celtics

When I asked my new special reporter for any insights he had into this rookie column he responded with, and I quote “Luke Harangody sucks donkey dick?” Yes, he included the question mark, like he wasn’t exactly sure. And nothing else. With provocative stories like that I am not sure how much longer I am going to be able to keep this talent away from ESPN. Also one last random note, I think I would do just about anything to hear KG and Delonte rookie haze Mr. Irish, or see what they make him do...I bet he still has nightmares.