In the spirit of John Hollinger, it is time for the Saturday Morning Sports All-Breakout team. These are five players who may not be household names, but are primed for big years this season.
PG: Marcus Williams- Golden State Warriors
Williams' move from the Nets to the Warriors will benefit him greatly. A chance to play "Nellie Ball" in Golden State's wide open offense and the possibility of a starting job now that Monta Ellis is out for a long while mean the former UConn star will see more minutes, and more opportunities for points and assists this season.
SG: Nick Young- Washington Wizards
The second year guard from USC will see more playing time this year in the nation's capitol. Young scored 10 points in 18 minutes in the Wizards' season opening loss to the Nets on Wednesday. With Gilbert Arenas on the shelf for a while, Young will almost certainly see more minutes than Washington's listed backup point guard, Juan Dixon. He's a strong combo guard who will continue to develop in '09.
SF: Thaddeus Young- Philadelphia 76'ers
Young will most assuredly benefit from the team's signing of power forward Elton Brand. A better offense in Philly will mean more touches for the explosive 20-year old. While he only scored eight points in his season debut, he fell into early foul trouble in that game and never truly recovered. He usually does a good job of staying out of foul problems though, and should recover just fine in his second year in the league.
PF: Hakim Warrick- Memphis Grizzlies
Warrick, entering his fourth year with the Grizzlies, is on a team that benefits his style of play. He is big, strong, and super athletic, just like teammates Rudy Gay and OJ Mayo. Warrick's tremendous wingspan will continue to help him match up with players slightly taller than his 6'9 frame. At 26, he is amazingly one of the older players on this roster. He's played nearly 25 minutes a game each of the past two seasons, and should be getting at least that many minutes for the Grizz this year.
C: Carl Landry- Houston Rockets
Landry, who's really only a center for purposes of this discussion played extremely well for Houston last year. With Yao Ming's inability to stay healthy, and rookie Joey Dorsey being the only other center on the roster, Landry may see increased time in the middle for the Rockets. He averaged eight points and five rebounds in nearly 17 minutes a game last year. With Tracy McGrady and Ron Artest taking the majority of the shots (not to mention shoot first point guard Rafer Alston), Landry should put up solid rebounding numbers while he's out on the floor for Rick Adelman's club.
Other players to look for include Andray Blatche (Wizards), Amir Johnson (Pistons), and Ronnie Brewer (Jazz).
Friday, October 31, 2008
THE SATURDAY MORNING SPORTS ALL-BREAKOUT TEAM
Labels:
basketball,
breakout year,
Carl Landry,
Hakim Warrick,
NBA,
Thaddeus Young
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