By Aaron J. Haberman

Amare Stud-emire is rocking his rookie class

Coming into this season, basketball talk was fixated on Houston’s prized 7’5 center that had the footwork of a guard and was as fundamentally sound as anyone—Yao Ming. However, halfway through Yao’s rookie campaign, the real surprise of the draft has been Phoenix’s Amare Stoudemire. He is one of an increasing amount of players jumping from high school to the NBA. None of these players have had rookie seasons like Amare. The young sensation has raised eyebrows with his acrobatic dunks and ability to grab boards. Only one of the eight players drafted before him average more points, and no rookie grabs more rebounds per game.

Amare’s stats are obviously exceptional, but it is the circumstances under which he has achieved them that surprise me. He has gone from a high school in Orlando all the way west to Phoenix in just a few months. He changed high schools six times; one of the transfers actually forced him to sit out from basketball as a junior in high school. Amare’s basketball career could have been ruined after he was tricked into going to a phony high school that consisted of only one room a basketball team. He comes from a tough life-style (his father died when he was young and his brother is currently jailed) but has developed into a mature man on and off the court. Amare is explosive, making his moves with little ability to go left. Fellow college-skippers Kwame Brown and Tyson Chandler came from similar positions. They still haven’t matured in the NBA. So why is it that Amare has? He was supposed to come in as a backup, a development over time. However, he is being looked at for an All-Star spot in just his first year. To answer the previous question, it’s Amare’s determination; he is not shaken by his past, he feeds off of it and looks solely towards the future. It’s not what he’s bad at to him, it’s what he can improve. He has a positive attitude on the court, and has improved game-by-game. Not to mention, even if you know he’s going right, you can’t stop him; yeah, that helps.

Amare’s outplaying other rookies, but that’s not what makes him special on the court. It’s what he has done for his team. Phoenix finished second-to-last in their division last year, and with no other major acquisitions but Amare, they currently sit 3rd in their division. Noted high-school-to-NBA players such as Kobe Bryant, Kevin Garnett, Tracy McGrady and Rashard Lewis didn’t have averages as good as Stoudemire. He plays a lot like his teammate Shawn “Matrix” Marion, a fellow 9th pick. However, not even Marion, who spent a year in college, had numbers this good as a rookie. Even though Amare’s average is already close to a double-double, it is clear that the potential within him has yet to be fully exposed. Teams such as Denver, New York, the Clippers, and Vancouver, who are all struggling, overlooked him. They are left to wonder where they could be had they drafted Amare. Phoenix has clearly developed an ability to draft stars.

Coming out of high school, lots of guys have undeveloped bodies and immature games -- over-committing themselves, dribbling into traffic, unnecessary loose ball fouls, and forced shots. The 6’10, 245 pound Stoudemire has established himself as one of the most athletic, talented forwards in the league. He ranks third among all players in offensive rebounds per game, and is 11th in double-doubles with 18. The presence of a star defending him has not shaken him; he scored a career-high 38 while being guarded by Kevin Garnett, and had 24 against the Duncan-lead Spurs. He shoots well from the field, and has fouled out just twice. There is not only no question that he’s the top rookie, there’s also no questioning his stardom already.


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