Rose leads first top 10 of season

When it comes to first-year players, it's easy to get overexcited by a couple of promising performances.

Take the hometown announcers whose broadcasts are syndicated nationally through the NBA League Pass. Just this week, according to various local commentators, we've witnessed the second comings of Jason Kidd (in Chicago) and Karl Malone (in Sacramento).

Not so fast. It's early still. Perhaps the soundest advice comes from Timberwolves rookie Kevin Love, himself the target of a Wes Unseld comparison or three over the years.

"People are going to have to realize that for a rookie, there's always ups and downs," Love told USA Today. "Nobody's ever perfect."

Sage words from the former UCLA big man. So with Week 1 in the books and expectations appropriately tempered, we present our first Rookie Rankings of the season.

(Statistics and records are through Monday's games.)

NBA Rookie Rankings

1	Derrick Rose, Chicago Bulls The No. 1 pick of the 2008 draft is impressing observers with his professionalism off the court and his NBA-ready skill set on it. The Chicago native, who grew up just a couple of miles from the United Center, has averaged a team-best 17.3 points, 4.5 rebounds and 3.5 assists in helping the Bulls split their first four games. In Saturday night's victory over Memphis, Rose exploded for a game-high 26 points (on 11-for-20 shooting) to go with six boards and three assists. But it's his act-like-you've-been-there disposition that's drawn the highest praise from opponents. "He made a beautiful play the other night and he had no reaction, just got back on defense," Celtics coach Doc Rivers told the Chicago Tribune. "For a rookie guard, it's how hard he plays, and he plays for the wins. A lot of young guys come in and play for the show. They want to show what they can do. He has a style of his own. He's a tough kid."
2	Jason Thompson, Sacramento Kings The 6-foot-11, 250-pound forward out of Rider has drawn the aforementioned comparisons to Malone for his ability to run the floor and finish in transition. Playing behind starting power forward Mikki Moore, Thompson has averaged 14.3 points (on 62.5 percent shooting) to go with 7.0 rebounds and 2.0 assists in only 23.0 minutes. The South Jersey native wrapped up his debut week in Philadelphia on Monday night with a team-high 17 points (on 8-for-12 shooting), six rebounds and five assists in front of a large gathering of friends and family at the Wachovia Center. One thing Thompson hasn't been able to accomplish is getting the Kings in the win column through four games.
3	Marc Gasol, Memphis Grizzlies Pau's younger brother erupted for 27 points (on 9-of-11 shooting), 16 rebounds and three blocked shots in 36 minutes against the Warriors on Monday. The 23-year-old from Spain is the lone rookie averaging a double-double (13.0 points and 10.3 boards in four games) and has experienced little difficulty adjusting to the physicality of the NBA. "It's one of those games where you see huge potential," teammate Kyle Lowry told FIBA.com. "I don't think anybody knew how good he was. On the national team, he's a big banger. But he has everything in his game."
4	Rudy Fernandez, Portland Trail Blazers The explosive Spaniard, who was the No. 24 pick in the 2007 draft, is averaging 14.0 points and 3.7 rebounds in three somewhat uneven performances. Fernandez, 23, followed up a Halloween-night dud -- six points on 1-for-6 shooting in 30 minutes against San Antonio -- with a 20-point effort off the bench against Phoenix. He's lived up to billing as a long-range bomber capable of providing a spark off the bench, connecting on 40 percent of his three-point attempts. Look for Fernandez to rise in these rankings as his production increases with his minutes.
5	Michael Beasley, Miami Heat The offense is coming along (highlighted by a 25-point, 10-of-16 outing against Charlotte on Sunday), but Beasley's defense needs work. "He's going to be a great player," teammate Udonis Haslem told the Miami Herald. "He has a great future in this league. But he doesn't have it all figured out right now. There's some things he has to learn." Beasley's second week in the NBA doesn't get any easier, as the Kansas State product goes against three All-Star power forwards in four days: Philadelphia's Elton Brand on Wednesday, San Antonio's Tim Duncan on Friday and New Orleans' David West on Saturday.
6	Brook Lopez, New Jersey Nets The 7-footer out of Stanford averaged 9.0 points, 8.0 rebounds and 2.0 blocked shots in 22.0 minutes off the bench as the Nets won in Washington and dropped their home opener to Golden State. But the 20-year-old has experienced trouble adjusting to the officiating, fouling out Sunday against the Warriors after just 19 minutes. Lopez opens his second week on Tuesday night against a familiar foe when Phoenix comes to town: his twin brother, Robin, a reserve center with the Suns. "It could get ugly," said Alex, the oldest of four Lopez brothers, to the Arizona Republic. "I think they will both flash each other a smile when they first see each other on the court. But knowing them, they'll both go to war."
7	Kevin Love, Minnesota Timberwolves Love is averaging 8.3 points, 5.3 rebounds and 1.3 assists through three games as a reserve power forward. He's struggled offensively against opposing frontcourts and seemed to regress a bit during the week, recording just four points and four rebounds in Saturday's come-from-ahead loss to Oklahoma City. Off the court, Love is blogging for NBA.com. A sampling: "Up here, unlike in college, even playing in the Pac-10 against a lot of guys who would be drafted into the NBA, everybody is at the elite level of athleticism and physicality. Everybody's big, everybody's strong, everybody's fast."
8	Mario Chalmers, Miami Heat The 22-year-old point guard made a rapid ascent up the Heat depth chart during the preseason and opened the regular season alongside Dwyane Wade in the starting backcourt. The Kansas alum rose to the challenge in the opener, collecting 17 points, seven rebounds and eight assists against the Knicks at Madison Square Garden. His numbers dipped in subsequent games with Sacramento and Charlotte, but the Anchorage native and defensive dynamo still leads all rookies in assists (6.0 per game). The baptism by fire continues this week, as dates with Philadelphia's Andre Miller, San Antonio's Tony Parker and New Orleans' Chris Paul loom.
9	O.J. Mayo, Memphis Grizzlies One thing's for certain: Mayo's not gun-shy. He hoisted up 20 shots (missing 15) in 40 minutes against Houston in his 10-point NBA debut. The 20-year-old starting guard demonstrated more disciplined shot selection against Orlando (5-of-11, 17 points), Chicago (7-of-15, 16 points) and Golden State (5-of-13, 13 points). His statistical averages through one week rank favorably against any first-player: 14.0 points, 4.8 rebounds, 1.8 assists and 1.3 steals in a rookie-high 39.3 minutes.
10	Russell Westbrook, Oklahoma City Thunder After tweaking his ankle in the team's final practice before the regular-season opener, Westbrook turned in a pair of so-so games in losses to the Bucks and the Rockets. But the 19-year-old point guard shone Sunday in a comeback victory over the Timberwolves, getting consecutive steals down the stretch and scoring the last of his 14 points on a layup that put the Thunder ahead for good. "We're going to have to be scrappy to win games," Westbrook, who's averaging 11.0 points through three games, told The Associated Press.
Honorable Mention DeMarcus Nelson, Warriors (6.3 points, 2.0 assists in four starts); Darrell Arthur, Grizzlies (5.8 ppg, 7.8 rpg in three games); D.J. Augustin, Bobcats (7.0 ppg, 3.0 apg in three games); Luc Richard Mbah a Moute, Bucks (6.5 ppg, 4.8 rpg, 1.3 spg in four games), Ryan Anderson, Nets (8.5 ppg, 3.5 rpg in two games).