Derek

[ziggy]

Thanks for the advice, he has been great.  I have to say that he is easily in the top 3 rookies this year, and should be seriously considered for Rookie of the Year.  He is not a big scorer, but in Philly he isn't expected to be, with Iverson, Korver, Jackson etc scoring quite a bit.  
Looking at his game log, he has had just a few "bad" games, and quite a few solid games (one of which was against the Blazers, and he ate us up).  A little prone to TO's but that is to be expected for a rookie, but his rebounding, passing, and defense has been very consistent and solid.  He has shot a good % from the field, which I think shows a great deal of maturity, and he has made some 3's.  In time he will become a better offensive player, and he will develop his 3 point shot into a real weapon, while still retaining his slasher style.  He is the best Scottie Pippen type player I have seen in a few years.

[Derek Bodner]

The thing with Andre is he never really has a bad game.  With the defense he plays, he's always useful.  There are games where offensively he's off, or madingly not even looking for his offense, but he's never been a complete liability, and that's really not something you find often in rookies thrust into starting roles asked to play 32+ minutes/night.

He's a great defender, a good rebounder, can take his man off the dribble with regularity, and one of the best passers at the 2/3 I've seen in a bit.  Not just setting his man up (which he does well), but also ball movement.  He gets the ball and makes quick decisions with the ball.  The ball doesn't stop in his hands, and he really helps our ball movement.

My biggest complaint with him (and his biggest detriment in fantasy leagues) is that he isn't consistently aggressive.  He sometimes simply doesn't look for his shot.  And it's a great attribute to have.  The best thing about this kid seems to be his attitude.  Incredible work ethic and I've never seen anything about him to suggest he has an ego whatsoever.  But there are times I want him to realize that the best thing for the team is for him to take shots.  Because he could physically average 12-15 ppg right now if he wanted to.  But he doesn't look to.

The only other problem I have with him is finishing.  Obviously, he's an incredible dunker.  But when he isn't throwing it down, he's not an incredible finisher, and often looks to make a pass.  Not a horrible finisher, mind you, but not incredible.  And I think that will be his biggest detriment to ever being a #1 option.  His jumpshot is simply a matter of repitition.

[Rickortreat]

A.I.  (Igoudala) has been amazeing to me as a rookie.  He is obviously inexperienced, but has a real air of professionalism about him and is clearly a superior athlete.

He has a great vertical leap.  I see him standing under the basket and jumping to dunk without much effort, and without running first.  Just standing and leaping.

He has great court awareness and knows the game well enough to be the leading rookie in steals. He's 10th in the league in steals and considering he has ball-hawking teamates like Iverson, reveals his quickness.  

He's ahead of a lot of players at this point in his career as a rookie, very sound fundamentally.  The Sixers did a good job picking him, he's going to be a good player for a long time to come.

[Derek Bodner]

Iggy just loves the Trailblazers.  For some reason he becomes aggressive offensively, which isn't always the case.  He took 8 shots in the first half last night.  There are games he doesn't take that many.

But boy...did we make it seem like retro night last night.  Damon and NVE played like it's 1999.