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Old 11-05-2004, 11:58 PM   #1
hairball02
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Default can someone post the espn insider article "Good, Bad and Upside"

they are talking about all of the rookies, including Devin Harris.

It is on the front page of NBA on ESPN.

thanks
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Old 11-06-2004, 12:02 AM   #2
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Default RE: can someone post the espn insider article "Good, Bad and Upside"

It doesn't say much.


By Chad Ford
NBA Insider
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Dwight Howard, meet Emeka Okafor. The two top rookies in the draft class of 2004 square off on Saturday night in Charlotte for the first time.

Each is coming off of a solid pre-season campaign. They should battle all season for the Rookie of the Year honors.

And they couldn't be more different.

Okafor is a three-year college player. He flew under the radar as a high school player and slowly built his game from raw to dominant at UConn. He has a national championship ring, a college degree in finance and one of the most humble demeanors you'll ever encounter in pro sports.

Howard is a four year-high school player. He was virtually anointed as the No. 1 pick in the draft before his senior season even started. Like Okafor, he's a grounded kid, but he's also cocky.

While Okafor strictly will talk about his performance in the context of his team, Howard already ison record that he'll win the Rookie of the Year honor and that, eventually, he believes he can be one of the greatest players to ever play the game.

The conventional wisdom heading into the season was that Okafor was the most NBA ready prospect in the country and that Howard had the most upside.

Through the summer league and pre-season, both players have been turning that wisdom on its head. Okafor's upside is bigger than anyone has let on, especially on the offensive end. And Howard is much further along than we once thought. He's already a starter on a playoff contender.

After the draft, Insider graded each team's draft and gave you a sneak preview of what to expect from the Class of 2004. Now that the summer league and preseason are behind us, where do they stand now?

Here's our first look at the rookies – the good, the bad and the upside.

THE GOOD


Dwight Howard, Magic: The thinking on draft night was the Howard had the most upside of anyone in the draft, but it was going to take a while. Scratch that. Howard hit the weight room this summer, added an inch and 20 pounds of muscle and came into the preseason looking like a warrior. He easily won the starting job in training, ranked second in the league in rebounds in the preseason and even showed some potential on the offensive end of the ball. His first game on Wednesday night was a solid double-double. 12 points. 10 rebounds. Four blocks. The kid seems to get better every game.

Emeka Okafor, Bobcats: The book on Okafor was that he was the most NBA ready rookie in the draft. Defensively he already had all the tools -- the body, the rebounding and the shot-blocking skills. Offensively, things were going to go much slower. Throw out the book on Okafor as well. In the preseason, he looked much better than expected on the offensive end. His regular season debut in Charlotte last night was fantastic. 19 points. 10 rebounds. One block. We know he's going to be a defensive force this season. If he can keep up the offense the race for Rookie of the Year with Howard will be a dead heat all year.



Harris comes to play on defense, too.
Devin Harris, Mavericks: Most scouts felt that Harris was the most NBA-ready point guard on draft night. Obviously, head coach Don Nelson agreed. Nelson stunned everyone by naming Harris the starter on opening night over veteran Jason Terry. He did it for good reason. Harris did a better job in the preseason initiating the offense and he exceptional on the defensive end of the ball, leading all players in the preseason in steals. He's going to split time on the court with Terry during the season, but expect him to play a very significant role. His play-making skills, perimeter shooting and quickness make him a handful to deal with. Donnie Nelson told me in the pre-season that Harris reminds them a lot of a young Steve Nash. . . maybe they won't miss Nash as much as everyone thought.

Luol Deng, Bulls: There was a point,leading up to the NBA draft, when many scouts believed that Deng was the consensus No. 3 pick in the draft. Scouts were a little disappointed with his athleticism and shooting in workouts and he inexplicably slipped to No. 7th on draft night. That's looking like a big mistake. Deng has been much more steady than the Bulls No. 3 pick, Ben Gordon. He led all rookies in scoring in the pre-season at 13.4 ppg. Again the conventional wisdom didn't hold up with Deng. While he might not excel in individual drills, his athleticism and perimeter shooting were better than advertised. He shot 45 percent from three (9-for-20) in the preseason, ran like a deer up and down the floor and ranked third on the Bulls in rebounding behind Tyson Chandler and another rookie, Andres Nocioni. Expect him to be the starting small forward in Chicago for a long, long time.

Andre Iguodala, Sixers: Iguodala ranked fourth on the Insider big board on draft night, but suffered a Paul Pierce-like slip, falling all the way to No. 9 and the Sixers. Scouts were worried about his perimeter shot and his relative lack of offensive. None of that has bothered head coach Jim O'Brien. The coach stunned a lot of people when he named Iguodala the Sixers starting small forward over Glenn Robinson. But Iguodala clearly earned the honor. Defensively, he's already the complete package. He's fast, strong and physical and has a real knack for getting his hands on the ball. Offensively? You guessed it, he's been better than expected. He's shot more than 40 percent from the field from three, has become a critical ball handler in their offense and is murder on the fast break. He won't average 18 ppg his rookie year, but a 12 ppg, 6 rpg, 5 apg average for the season is definitely in reach.

J.R. Smith, Hornets: With the exception of Howard, he's been the best high-school performer in the Class of 2004 so far. He possesses a lethal combination of athleticism and perimeter shooting and proved in the preseason that he can use both with sometimes spectacular results. After starting Smith in every game in the preseason, head coach Byron Scott mixed things up on opening night and brought Smith off the bench. Don't expect that to continue. The Hornets are shopping David Wesley to clear out a full-time role for Smith. They're going to showcase Wesley a little bit until they find a taker. Once the path is clear, Smith should be one of the top rookie performers in the class this year.



Iguodala has some offense to complement his defense.
Andres Nocioni, Bulls: He's 24, was one of the top players in Europe last year in the Euroleague, and he helped lead Argentina to a gold medal in Athens. So why isn't anyone talking about Nocioni as a potential Rookie of the Year sleeper? Nocioni looked very solid in the preseason, crashing the boards, dishing out assists and shooting threes but he isn't going to reach his full potential until head coach Scott Skiles gets it out of his head that Nocioni is a two guard. Nocioni played the "4" in Europe and doesn't have the quickness nor the instincts to play the position which explains his poor shooting percentage in the preseason. Skiles has no choice, given how poorly Gordon has played. But if the position situation ever gets remedied, Nocioni has the chance to be very, very good.

Carlos Delfino, Pistons: Delfino, like Nocioni, comes to the NBA with a pretty impressive resume. He was a big-time player for one of the top four teams in the Euroleague last year and a member of Argentina's gold medal squad. Unlike the other guys on this list, Delfino will not crack the starting line-up barring an injury. Head coach Larry Brown is asking him to come off the bench and play 15 to 20 minutes a night. But watch him. He's been as solid as any rookie in the league. He's got a great all-around game and does a little bit of everything for the Pistons. His numbers won't be as good as the other guys on the list, but his impact on the court could be as significant.

THE BAD




Gordon, a scorer at UConn, is finding it hard to create his own shot in the NBA.
Ben Gordon, Bulls: It's too early to write off anyone this early, but no one has raised more red flags than Gordon in the preseason. After being dubbed as a preseason favorite for the Rookie of the Year honor, he's laid a pretty big egg so far. Forget his stats, which were awful (24-percent field-goal shooting from the field and a poor turnover-to-assist ratio). Gordon is another player whom the Bulls are playing out of position. At 6-foot-2, and like so many other hyped, under-sized two guards (Dajuan Wagner anyone?), he's struggled to get his shot off playing the shooting guard position. He's facing guys who are four to five inches taller, and just as athletic, every night. Can Gordon bounce back? Sure. He's gifted in virtually every area of the game, but many scouts feel he's going to have to play the point to realize his full potential. With Kirk Hinrich firmly entrenched at the two in Chicago, that isn't going to happen.

Josh Childress, Hawks: He's been a huge disappointment so far for the Hawks. Childress started every game in the preseason and virtually disappeared every time he stepped onto the court. It wasn't that he was bad, per se, it was more like he was irrelevant. Given the lack of talent on the Hawks, that isn't good. No one's panicking yet. He played his best game in the opener, scoring 10 points on 3-for-6 shooting and grabbing four boards. Childress has a history of slow starts in high school and college and when you look at his wingspan, athleticism, fundamentals and basketball intelligence, it's hard to conclude that this kid won't succeed. But there's no question he's off to a pretty rocky start.

Rafael Araujo, Raptors: Everyone knew that the Raptors really reached for Araujo on draft night. But the thinking at the time was that the Raptors really needed a center and Araujo was one of the few big guys in the draft that was capable of playing right now. He was 24 years old, big and physical and very skilled. So far the Raptors haven't seen much of it in the preseason or their opener. Araujo looked overwhelmed by the speed and athleticism of the bigs in the league. He's clever and should eventually be able to get a handle on the situation and become a solid NBA player, but had the Raptors understood it was going to take him so long, would they have drafted him this high?

Sebastian Telfair, Blazers: I know it's probably too harsh to pick on a high school point guard this early in the draft. The Blazers never really had any real intention of playing him big minutes this year, so if he sits on the bench, it's not necessarily his fault. However, two things send up big red flags where Telfair is concerned. One, the book on him was that he would really struggle to shoot the ball at the NBA level. He wasn't a good shooter in high school and his lack of size and relative leaping ability put him at an even bigger disadvantage in the pros. His stats so far: 29-percent shooting from the field and he's 0-for-8 from the NBA three point line. Worse, his mentors are Damon Stoudamire and Nick Van Exel. For a kid who probably had more baggage than most coming into the league, that alone might push him over the edge.

THE UPSIDE


Shaun Livingston, Clippers: Livingston might have as much or more talent than anyone in this draft class, but it's going to take a little while before we see all of it. Livingston is the first point guard ever to make the leap directly from high school. His frail frame and steep learning curve suggest that this might be a brutal year. He was solid in the preseason but never really got a chance to show everything he can do. Once he bulks up a bit and gets his feet under him, he has a chance to be one of the best pure point guards in the league. Keep an eye on him this season, but don't expect too much.

Luke Jackson, Cavs: Jackson was another guy that we might have misread a bit. The thought was that, as a four-year senior, he was one of the few players in this draft who could come in and contribute right away. Apparently head coach Paul Silas doesn't see it that way. Jackson spent most of the preseason and the Cavs' first two games, planted firmly at the end of the bench. The Cavs claim that they love his basketball IQ, shooting stroke and athleticism, but they're stacked at his position. We might have to wait until next season to get a really good handle on what he's going to bring to the table.

Andris Biedrins, Warriors: He was solid in the summer league and the preseason with his rebounding and put back points in the paint, but head coach Mike Montgomery is going to go slow with him. The Warriors have two veterans -- Adonal Foyle and Dale Davis -- in the middle and the team is making a push toward the playoffs. Biedrins might see more time if it becomes apparent that the Warriors aren't contenders. But for right now, he has to watch and wait.

Sasha Vujacic, Lakers: After getting significant time in the preseason Vujacic has been mired at the end of the bench through the Lakers' first two games. That comes as a bit of a surprise. Vujacic looked more than solid for the Lakers this fall, ending the pre-season with two straight eight-assists games. He's got a fantastic touch from the perimeter and has great size for a point guard. Right now the team is using Chucky Atkins and Tierre Brown exclusively at the point. But both have been shaky in the early going. Is it just a matter of time before Vujacic gets the call?



This is an inside tip from Larry Bird and Donnie Walsh who both couldn't stop raving about this kid when I talked to them last week. Walsh claims that Harrison might be the best center the Pacers have had since Rik Smits. Bird called him the steal of the draft.


David Harrison, Pacers: His numbers in the preseason don't jump out at you . . . but this is an inside tip from Larry Bird and Donnie Walsh who both couldn't stop raving about this kid when I talked to them last week. Walsh claims that Harrison might be the best center the Pacers have had since Rik Smits. Bird called him the steal of the draft. He slipped to No. 29 on draft night because scouts questioned his attitude, work ethic and love of the game. So far, the Pacers say he's been great both off and on the court. His talent no one has every questioned. He's big, athletic and can score in the paint. Watch him closely this season. Both Bird and Walsh think he might become a contributor. If he's as good as advertised, he should be the starter sooner rather than later.

Anderson Varejao, Cavs: Varejao slipped into the second round on draft night amid suspicions that he's wasn't athletic or offensive minded enough to make a big impact in the league. But so far the word out of Cleveland is that Varejao could become a key contributor in the Cavs' run at the playoffs this year. Varejao is an energy guy who seems to get his hand on the ball every chance that he can. He had seven points and four rebounds in 10 minutes of play versus the Heat on Thursday. His numbers won't blow you away but he should be a key reserve this season.

Trevor Ariza, Knicks: Ariza was ranked by Insider as the fifth-best small forward in the draft last season, but slipped well into the second round on draft night amid questions about his maturity and an overbearing mother. However, the scouts that Insider talked to said he would've been a lottery pick had he stayed at UCLA another year or two. To date, no second-round pick has done more with his shot than Ariza. He's already a key rotation player for the Knicks. He does a little of everything for them, he scores, he defends, he can handle the ball and he can rebound. In another year or two, he will likely be this team's starting small forward. He's that good.



Chad Ford covers the NBA for ESPN Insider.
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Old 11-06-2004, 12:04 AM   #3
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Default RE: can someone post the espn insider article "Good, Bad and Upside"

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