Young and old, short and tall, wide and skinny, NBA rookies of all shapes and sizes made their debuts this week. Here’s how some of them fared:
The Good
DeJuan Blair, F, San Antonio » The Wizards passed on the 6-foot-7, 265-pound wide body in the second round of the draft for what was essentially a $2.5 million payment on the approximately $6 million they owe in luxury tax this season. While they eventually added training camp invitee Paul Davis (who?) to their opening day roster, Blair had 14 points on 7-for-10 shooting, 11 rebounds and three assists in 23 minutes in his debut with the San Antonio Spurs.
The Great
Ty Lawson, G, Denver » There are few things in the game of basketball greater than Carmelo Anthony’s steal and rim-rattling facial on Paul Millsap, but it wasn’t the only notable moment from Denver’s win over Utah. Lightning-quick Lawson couldn’t be caught at North Carolina, and he might not be caught in the NBA either. Finishing with 17 points and 6 assists, Lawson crossed over fellow rookie Eric Maynor so badly — twice — that the former VCU star was forced back to the bench after 90 seconds at the start of the fourth quarter.
The Bad
Tyreke Evans, G, Sacramento » It’s not fair that Evans is tasked with turning around an awful team. Especially when it appears he isn’t ready for the job. In his Kings debut against Oklahoma City, Evans had to play 35 minutes, during which he missed 11 of 16 shots, including a host of layups, and handed out just two assists while committing five fouls and three turnovers. On the other bench, James Harden — drafted one spot ahead of Evans — had his first dainty cup of NBA coffee: 13 minutes, five points (on 2-for-2 shooting), two rebounds and a turnover.
The Brutal
Hasheem Thabeet, C, Memphis » After trading away 7-footer Pau Gasol two seasons ago for the rights to his cheaper brother, Marc, the Memphis Grizzlies added 7-foot-3 Thabeet with the second overall pick in June. (They also traded for Zach Randolph, who will earn $16,000,000 this season — the same as Pau, but that’s another story). The former Connecticut big man had two rebounds, two missed shots and two fouls on opening night vs. Detroit. Sounds like the next Greg Oden.
