In honor of Sunday's 80th Annual Academy Awards (and because they kept distracting me while I was trying to write), I thought I'd hold my own Oscars party, Rookie Rankings style. So, the envelopes please: Best Actor in a Leading Role (awarded to top rookie): Kevin Durant, Sonics. Without a doubt, the Seattle swingman is the go-to guy. Also nominated: Al Horford, Hawks (top rebounder among rookies); Al Thornton, Clippers (second in scoring among rookies). Best Director (awarded to the best point guard): Mike Conley Jr., Grizzlies. He leads rookies with 4.7 assists per game. Also nominated: Rodney Stuckey, Pistons (second in assists among rookies); Acie Law, Hawks (third in assists among rookies). Best Supporting Actor (awarded to the best rookie in a supporting role): Jamario Moon, Raptors. Moon's play on the defensive end has helped Toronto contend for a top four playoff seed. Also nominated: Horford (leading rebounder for playoff contender); Luis Scola, Rockets (has been solid as Yao Ming and Tracy McGrady have battled injuries). Best Screenplay (awarded to the best story): Moon, whose rags-to-riches tale is well-documented. Also nominated: Coby Karl, Lakers (cancer survivor is fan favorite in L.A. -- those "Co-by" chants should not be confused with "Ko-be" chants); Carl Landry, Rockets (second-round pick has become big contributor off the bench). Best Picture (awarded for best highlight from a rookie): Durant hits game-winning three-pointer at buzzer to beat Hawks. Also nominated: Sean Williams' alley-oop to himself in Rookie Challenge. Best foreign film (awarded to best foreign player): Horford, as many forget that he was born in the Dominican Republic and spent most of his childhood there. Also nominated: Juan Carlos Navarro, Grizzlies (Spaniard has proved to be reliable long-range threat); Scola (Argentine playing huge role in Rockets' success); Yi Jianlian, Bucks (early front-runner has tailed off). (Send comments, complaints or hype for your favorite rookie to Drew Packham at drew.packham@turner.com.) | NBA Rookie Rankings |
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Durant was honored with his first bobblehead night in Seattle -- and didn't even show. Durant came down with the flu in the first game after the break and fans weren't happy. When the PA announcer asked fans to send Durant well wishes, the Key Arena crowd booed the rookie. In the three games since, Durant has averaged 17.3 points and 6.0 rebounds while going 18-for-41 from the field (slightly better than his season mark of 40 percent).
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The raves just keep coming in for Horford, who is this close to supplanting Durant atop the rankings. "He's a grown man already," veteran Pistons forward Antonio McDyess said after facing the rookie before the All-Star break. "And he's no rookie, not anymore." Former teammate Lorenzen Wright believes the Hawks' big guy should get ROY consideration. "I hear these people talking about Durant winning Rookie of the Year, and I'm trying to figure out what NBA people have been watching when they say that," Wright said before being dealt to Sacramento in the Mike Bibby trade. "Because in my mind, Big Al should have that [honor] locked up already."
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The only drawback to Moon's All-Star weekend? Not getting to meet his favorite player. "I wanted to see Scottie [Pippen]," Moon said in the National Post, referring to the player after whom he fashioned his game. "I thought Scottie was going to be down. But he didn't come through. I thought he would be there, at least to shake my hand." Moon came out of the break hot, averaging 12.3 points and 9.3 rebounds in three games.
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As Thornton goes, so go the Clippers. "The bottom line for us right now is that when Al has a big game, we win," coach Mike Dunleavy told the Los Angeles Times. Thornton has eclipsed the 20-point mark eight times this season (seven in 2008), and L.A. is 5-3 in those games. Watching Thornton, you can tell he's becoming more and more comfortable and confident on the floor. "It's a little easier now," Thornton said. "I think I'm more patient and not so much in a hurry. ... Now I'm picking and choosing." In four games last week, Thornton averaged 18.0 points, raising his season average to 11.0, second only to Durant among rookies.
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The Rockets are rolling (12 straight as of Sunday), and Scola is a big reason. The Rockets are 11-0 in his 11 starts at power forward, and he kicked off the return from the All-Star break by averaging 12.7 points and 7.7 rebounds in four wins. "He can hurt the other team," coach Rick Adelman told the Houston Chronicle. "[Teams] really concentrate on Yao so much, we have to have somebody there they can worry about. The other thing Luis does is he runs the floor. He's constant energy."
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"For a guy coming out of college, he's been pretty special." So said 76ers coach Maurice Cheeks in the Philadelphia Inquirer last week. Young continues to improve: He came out of the break by averaging 11.0 points and 5.7 rebounds, and had a career-high 20 points in the Sixers' 30-point rout of the Knicks last Wednesday. Young has found his way into Cheeks' starting lineup, and he's stayed there thanks mostly to his work on the defensive end.
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Despite putting up fairly solid scoring numbers, Navarro's shooting percentages have slipped since the break. While the Spaniard averaged 11.0 points in four games, he made just 4-of-17 three-point attempts and was 16-for-43 (37.2 percent) from the field overall. It's possible Navarro misses his friend Pau Gasol down low for the inside-outside game.
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Williams had two of the most memorable moments of the Rookie Challenge -- at least for me. First, the Nets' big man showed off his ball-handling skills before throwing down the best dunk of the game, an alley-oop off the glass to himself. Then, after the game, cameras caught Williams flipping the bird and dropping an f-bomb on LaMarcus Aldridge in postgame handshakes. Of course, in a chat on NBA.com, Williams shrugged off the encounter as "showing brotherly love to my friend from Texas." So, if the big guy ever flips you the bird, you can take it as a compliment.
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The Grizzlies may be struggling (losers of five straight after Sunday's 109-89 loss to the Cavs), but Conley is consistently improving. In four games last week, the point guard averaged 11.2 points and 4.7 assists while going 16-for-39 (41.0 percent) from the field. Still, Conley's biggest transition may be off the court. "There are a lot more things to worry about, being young and having to deal with money," Conley told the Columbus Dispatch. "I'm all new to it. It's almost a culture shock. One year you're living in a dorm and begging your mom for a couple of bucks so you can order pizza on the weekend, and now I can spend money on whatever I want. It's a weird feeling to be able to do that."
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With the Rockets' 12th straight win Sunday, it's time to give Landry his due. The 6-9 forward out of Purdue, inactive for much of the season, has cracked the Rockets' rotation, and opponents are starting to take notice. "I'm hearing things on the court," Landry told the Houston Chronicle. "'Keep him off the glass.' They say that all the time. As I'm trying to get the offensive rebound, defensive rebound -- 'keep him off the glass, he goes to the glass.' You got to like it. I love it." If he keeps up his recent play (10.0 ppg, 6.7 rpg in last four games), he'll be getting a lot more attention.
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Honorable mention: Jeff Green, Sonics (10.6 ppg, 9.0 rpg since break); Yi Jianlian, Bucks (6.6 ppg, 3.3 rpg since break); Joakim Noah, Bulls (14 points, 10 rebounds in rout of Nuggets on Friday) |
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