From Dennis Velasco,
Your Guide to Basketball.
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7. Who are the top performing rookies from the much-hyped 2007 NBA Draft?

Chip: Kevin Durant is scoring but not very efficiently. Hitting below 40% of your shots isn't exactly the best way to lead a team in scoring. Al Horford to me is the best rookie so far. He has five straight games with double figure rebounds as well as playing solid defense. Yi Jianlian has surprised me with his game as well among true rookies. Juan Carlos Navarro and Luis Scola seem a step ahead of most of the American rookies but at 27 that shouldn't be a big surprise. It will be interesting to watch how they hold up under an NBA schedule. The one rookie I have enjoyed seeing play in person was Jamario Moon. Another experienced rookie Moon seems to have the complete package.

Austin: Al Horford. Period. By far.

Scott: I’m so over this Kevin Durant stuff. Yes, the kid can score, but he hasn’t shown me anything incredibly special to this point. I’m firmly behind Al Horford’s ROY campaign, and I’m offering to drive the bandwagon. And the abovementioned Moon is third on the list.

Dennis: I loved Al Horford before the NBA Draft and knew he'd play right away because of his defense and ability to board... but never did I think I would choose him as the ROY over Kevin Durant. I'd like to see how the season finishes out and see who hits the dreaded "rookie wall." All bets are on Durant between the two I think... he couldn't bench press 185 or so pounds for one rep!

8. Any comment you want to make about the season thus far?

Chip: So far the Eastern Conference has surprised me not only with one elite team but two in Boston and Orlando. The rest of the conference has improved somewhat as well. The Southwest Division is by far the most difficult but since I cover that this division that may be a bit biased of an opinion.

Scott: My only question is, how does Isaiah Thomas still have a job?

Dennis: Being a New York Knicks fan all my life, I would like to know the answer to Scott's question.