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Nice to see him getting the recognition he deserves!
Rookie Rankings: One challenging roster to concoct
By Drew Packham, NBA.com
The All-Star break is just three weeks away which means just one thing (at least in my world)—the T-Mobile Rookie Challenge.
And when they say challenge, they mean it—in more ways than one.
The rookies have lost the last seven matchups with the sop res, but the real challenge may fall on the assistant coaches around the league, who have to narrow the field to just nine players.
The assistants will receive their ballots Thursday and have until Monday to vote for four frontcourt players, four backcourt players and one wild card.
So, in the spirit of lending a helping hand, I offer up my nine-player roster for the Rookies.
Starting Five: PG Brandon Jennings SG Tyreke Evans SF Omri Casspi PF Taj Gibson C DeJuan Blair
Bench: G Stephen Curry G Jonny Flynn F Jonas Jerebko WC James Harden
The starting five was pretty easy to nail down, but the final two spots (Jerebko and Harden) weren't as clear cut. Jerebko gets the nod in the frontcourt because of his size and hustle while I give Harden the nod over Ty Lawson because a shooter and defender would be more crucial than a fifth point guard.
With a team loaded with backcourt talent, it will be interesting to see how the roster is juggled in the game. Will the rookies go with a small-ball lineup of four guards and a big man to shake things up? And how will the rookies match up without a true center? The sop res could feature a pair of 7-footers in the Nets' Brook Lopez and the Grizzlies' Marc Gasol, so the rookies' leading rebounders—Blair, all 6-foot-7 of him, and Gibson, 6-foot-9—will definitely have their work cut out for them.
The results of the voting will be announced Jan. 27.
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6. DeJuan Blair, San Antonio Spurs
G MPG PPG RPG APG SPG BPG FG% 3P% FT%
40 17.6 7.2 6.3 0.7 0.5 0.6 .563 .000 .520
Last Week: NR | Drafted: 37
"I don't know how he does it." That's what Spurs coach Gregg Popovich had to say of Blair after his 28-point, 21-rebound performance this week in a win over the Thunder. (It was the first 20-20 game for a rookie since Tim Duncan had 26 and 21 on March 22, 1998.) "I wanted to come in strong," Blair said after the 109-108 overtime victory. "I didn't get much playing time [against the Lakers] so I wanted to be an energy guy tonight. No one has given me anything in this world or in this game. I'm just trying to earn respect." In four games this week, Blair averaged 13.5 points and 14.5 rebounds and earns a spot in the rankings for the first time since Nov. 17.
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1. Tyreke Evans, Sacramento Kings
2. Stephen Curry, Golden State Warriors
3. Brandon Jennings, Milwaukee Bucks
4. Jonny Flynn, Minnesota Timberwolves
5. Omri Casspi, Sacramento Kings
7. James Harden, Oklahoma City Thunder
8. Marcus Thornton, New Orleans Hornets
9. Taj Gibson, Chicago Bulls
10. Jonas Jerebko, Detroit Pistons
Nice to see him getting the recognition he deserves!
D. Blair starting would be unreal! God knows the guy deserves it, if he was in a mediocre team he'd be putting up 20-20s every other night lol
WOW!!! Blair is the F'n man!
Give Blair the minutes and he will become the next "consistent" 20/20 man. No, I'm not talking about the 20/20 television program.
good for him...hopefully he throws down a couple nasty dunks....lord knows Pop wont let him.
TD has been mentoring Blair all season. Now he can introduce him to the All-Star weekend.
If Blair was given 30 minutes I have no doubts in my mind that he would be a 15/10 guy his rookie season. The guy goes crazy for those boards.
He would have blasted thru the rookie wall much earlier.And I think hee'd be a 10/15 guy, which I would prefer to 15/10.
There is a good pic of him on ESPN.com
That's the one. Thanks D228
Hope Blair cracks that starting lineup
Goddamn, what a handsome beast
I'd go...
Starters: PF- Casspi, SF- Evans, C- Blair, SG- Curry, PG- Jennings
Bench: PG- Flynn, PF- Gibson, SG- Harden, SF/PF- Jerebko
Toughest omission: PG- Lawson
Surprised Blair wasnt ranked already in the Rookie Rankings
Is this the same article as the one on ESPN that's en led "Riding The Waves"?
No, this is from NBA.com. The ESPN one is an Insider if someone wants to post it.
Can someone post the ESPN insider rookie rankings?
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