Just Beginning to Shine
In this category of NBA youth each individual is on the verge of breaking out and consistently putting his team 
into the playoffs. Its obvious each of theses guys are the best player on their respective teams who will be the center for their teams to build upon and have an unlimited upside. Chris Paul has not got there yet in terms of carrying the whole load, but without him the Hornets would not even manage 20 wins. He drops dimes with the best of them, the offense is
still improving. He needs a few more pieces around him as well. Iguodala is probably the rawest of the bunch. He is a freak in terms of athleticism, but he doesn't know yet how to put all the pieces together. Philly has little talent to surround him, so unless he develops a more consistent jumper the 76ers will have a tough time. Dwight Howard also falls here. He got the Magic into the playoffs in the 8th spot in the East this season, but that doesn't say much. He is another crazy mad athlete, but his inside 
post scoring needs a lot of polishing. If he wasn't allowed to dunk he would have trouble scoring. The Magic have a few nice players, but don't have a title threatening team yet. Eddy Curry of the Knicks falls in this group too. He is a beast in the post to defend, but he lacks consistent effort to dominate.
into the playoffs. Its obvious each of theses guys are the best player on their respective teams who will be the center for their teams to build upon and have an unlimited upside. Chris Paul has not got there yet in terms of carrying the whole load, but without him the Hornets would not even manage 20 wins. He drops dimes with the best of them, the offense is
still improving. He needs a few more pieces around him as well. Iguodala is probably the rawest of the bunch. He is a freak in terms of athleticism, but he doesn't know yet how to put all the pieces together. Philly has little talent to surround him, so unless he develops a more consistent jumper the 76ers will have a tough time. Dwight Howard also falls here. He got the Magic into the playoffs in the 8th spot in the East this season, but that doesn't say much. He is another crazy mad athlete, but his inside 
post scoring needs a lot of polishing. If he wasn't allowed to dunk he would have trouble scoring. The Magic have a few nice players, but don't have a title threatening team yet. Eddy Curry of the Knicks falls in this group too. He is a beast in the post to defend, but he lacks consistent effort to dominate.Showing Signs of Getting There
Right now this group is just starting to understand their po
tential. Deron Williams of the Jazz had a breakout 2007 Playoff showing. He impressed me a lot with his ability to score. I didn't think he was capable of putting up 26 a night, I did think he could put the 8-10 assists a game. Without Williams, the Jazz would not have gotten past the Rockets or won a game against San Antonio. He reminds me of Jason Kidd with more offensive ability less rebounding and physicality. Then there's Chris Bosh. His athleticism and size make him an extremely tough match up. As another amazing product of the 2003 NBA draft, he is showing tremendous confidence and progression. The Raptors, built around him, will be an annual Eastern Conference power.
Amare Stoudemire
Simply put, a beast down low. Not even Duncan can stop him in the post and that speaks volum
es. He has an attitude of the up most confidence in himself and that's really good, sometimes. STAT (Standing Tall And Talented), as he nicknamed himself, is a key component for the Suns. Nash does make him better but his power and athleticism make him unguardable. His attitude does make him a nuisance at times though. He was the second most T'd up player in the league besides Rasheed Wallace this past season. Also, he gets into foul trouble way too easy. I especially saw this in the San Antonio playoff series. When he was on the court, led by him Phoenix was going to win. When he was in foul trouble, being in and out of the game, Phoenix couldn't get over the hump to win. He needs to be on the court for his team to win.
Carmello An
thony
Melo is a very smooth and savvy player. He has a great feel for the game and offensively is going to put up 25-30 a night with another 8 boards. I really like how he is one of only a few players who utilizes the mid range jumper. Not only does he have a great jumper, but he can take it to the rack and throw them down. Hes got a post up game to go along with it too. Defensive is where he needs to improve. Hes not a great on the ball defender and off the ball is not always rotating right. The acquisition of AI in Denver I think will prove to be very beneficial to his career. I know he will not be expected to take as many shots anymore, but now hes going to be taking more efficient shots. When Denver beat San Antonio in game 1 of the opening series, everyone got a glimpse at the possible future of the Nuggets led by Melo.
Dwayne Wade
I'm not going to lie, hes my favorite player. He is very tough to stop offensively and plays defense too (a rarity from a any player today). I love watching him play, he dunks all over people, knocks down the mid range, and hustles his ass off. I mean, he's a 6'4'' shot blocker off the ball!! WTF to that. He knows how to step up in the clutch, one attribute only the greats have. Evidence is seen through his performance in the 06 Finals and he took home the Finals MVP too. The problem is he turns the ball over too often and finds himself getting hurt too much because he has no regard for his body. I hope he can continue to play with his usual style of Fall down 7 Get up 8, but he's not Superman. He's got one ring to his name and the potential for more is in his hands.
LeBron James
In my eyes, easily the best of this bunch. His performance in Game 6 (48 pts, 9 reb, 7 ast ) of the Eastern Conference Finals tonight (5/31) is the reason I'm writing this post. He proved tonight that he just might be in that class of Bird/Magic/MJ. The Cavs have no support for him and he is still probably going to take the team to the Finals. He possesses all of the great skills needed and really is a m
old of MJ and Magic put together. The athleticism and power of MJ taking it to the hoop (throws them down much stronger too) and the unselfishness and passing vision of Magic. A once in a lifetime player, his only faults are his free throw shooting and drive to dominate. I often read Bill Simmons and other writers, they all see it just as I do, he needs to be in the MJ mindset all the time that nobody is going to take anything away from him and he will not let his team lose. When hes in this zone, as he was tonight, there's no stopping him and man is it fun to watch. Number 23 is destined to have multiple rings if he decides to embody the MJ mindset. Wade is the only one with anything on him in this mess of ballers, already winning a title.
tential. Deron Williams of the Jazz had a breakout 2007 Playoff showing. He impressed me a lot with his ability to score. I didn't think he was capable of putting up 26 a night, I did think he could put the 8-10 assists a game. Without Williams, the Jazz would not have gotten past the Rockets or won a game against San Antonio. He reminds me of Jason Kidd with more offensive ability less rebounding and physicality. Then there's Chris Bosh. His athleticism and size make him an extremely tough match up. As another amazing product of the 2003 NBA draft, he is showing tremendous confidence and progression. The Raptors, built around him, will be an annual Eastern Conference power.The Elite
Amare Stoudemire
Simply put, a beast down low. Not even Duncan can stop him in the post and that speaks volum
es. He has an attitude of the up most confidence in himself and that's really good, sometimes. STAT (Standing Tall And Talented), as he nicknamed himself, is a key component for the Suns. Nash does make him better but his power and athleticism make him unguardable. His attitude does make him a nuisance at times though. He was the second most T'd up player in the league besides Rasheed Wallace this past season. Also, he gets into foul trouble way too easy. I especially saw this in the San Antonio playoff series. When he was on the court, led by him Phoenix was going to win. When he was in foul trouble, being in and out of the game, Phoenix couldn't get over the hump to win. He needs to be on the court for his team to win.Carmello An
thonyMelo is a very smooth and savvy player. He has a great feel for the game and offensively is going to put up 25-30 a night with another 8 boards. I really like how he is one of only a few players who utilizes the mid range jumper. Not only does he have a great jumper, but he can take it to the rack and throw them down. Hes got a post up game to go along with it too. Defensive is where he needs to improve. Hes not a great on the ball defender and off the ball is not always rotating right. The acquisition of AI in Denver I think will prove to be very beneficial to his career. I know he will not be expected to take as many shots anymore, but now hes going to be taking more efficient shots. When Denver beat San Antonio in game 1 of the opening series, everyone got a glimpse at the possible future of the Nuggets led by Melo.
Dwayne Wade
I'm not going to lie, hes my favorite player. He is very tough to stop offensively and plays defense too (a rarity from a any player today). I love watching him play, he dunks all over people, knocks down the mid range, and hustles his ass off. I mean, he's a 6'4'' shot blocker off the ball!! WTF to that. He knows how to step up in the clutch, one attribute only the greats have. Evidence is seen through his performance in the 06 Finals and he took home the Finals MVP too. The problem is he turns the ball over too often and finds himself getting hurt too much because he has no regard for his body. I hope he can continue to play with his usual style of Fall down 7 Get up 8, but he's not Superman. He's got one ring to his name and the potential for more is in his hands.LeBron James
In my eyes, easily the best of this bunch. His performance in Game 6 (48 pts, 9 reb, 7 ast ) of the Eastern Conference Finals tonight (5/31) is the reason I'm writing this post. He proved tonight that he just might be in that class of Bird/Magic/MJ. The Cavs have no support for him and he is still probably going to take the team to the Finals. He possesses all of the great skills needed and really is a m
old of MJ and Magic put together. The athleticism and power of MJ taking it to the hoop (throws them down much stronger too) and the unselfishness and passing vision of Magic. A once in a lifetime player, his only faults are his free throw shooting and drive to dominate. I often read Bill Simmons and other writers, they all see it just as I do, he needs to be in the MJ mindset all the time that nobody is going to take anything away from him and he will not let his team lose. When hes in this zone, as he was tonight, there's no stopping him and man is it fun to watch. Number 23 is destined to have multiple rings if he decides to embody the MJ mindset. Wade is the only one with anything on him in this mess of ballers, already winning a title.
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