Mid-Season Grades

41 games down. It feels like 410. The following grades are based on a very scientific process which is too complicated to explain.

Antonio Daniels: He gets a D minus. Not only does he look older and slower, but he also seems to infect the PGs he's supposed to back up with the injury bug.

Mike James: He gets a D. Yes, he was brought into a bad situation, but that's no excuse for missing as many open shots as he has. A "scoring" guard who can't make open shots = worthless. The only thing saving him from an F is his soon-to-be-expiring contract.

Javaris Crittendon: I'm gonna give him a C minus. In many ways, he reminds me of a younger AD. He can't shoot worth a lick, but he's athletic, plays tough D, and has pretty good vision. I wouldn't mind him being my back up PG for the next few years.

Gilbert Arenas: He gets an A (A in this case stands for Anfrenee Hardaway).

Deshawn Stevenson: He gets an F plus. I don't want to beat the guy up, but I don't remember a player having a worse half-a-season. He gets the plus because he has a good attitude and he hates Lebron.

Nick Young: I'll give him a C plus. His productive streaks have been extremely productive. His disappearing acts have been Houdini-like. But the more he plays, the more comfortable he looks. Over the next 41, I'd like him to realize how important he is to our success and for him to play with more fire.

Caron Butler: B plus. I'd like to give him an A, but he's had a lot of unforced turnovers this year. Many of them have come during crunch time. I know he's had to press and that he's playing with some bad teammates, but he needed to find some way to pull out a few more of those last-minute in-the-balance games. That being said, his shot over Granger was 100% nasty.

Dominic McGuire: C plus. I love the rebounding and the defense, but the thing that impresses me the most is his nonchalance about the box-score stats. On a team with 3 bonafide scorers (AJ, GA, and CB) and a competent center (BH), his role would be perfect. Unfortuantely, we're dealing with reality and his offensive limitations are still glaring.

Oleksy Pecherov: F. A few shots here and there mean nothing. He either needs to starting hitting his 3-ball with regularity or stop taking them altogether. What's worse is that he's a non-factor in all other facets...except jokes.

Antawn Jamison: A minus. Unlike Caron, I do not hold AJ accountable for games decided in the 4Q. He proved to me a long time ago that he's a 1Q-3Q player. That being said, he's having a great year stats-wise, but more importantly, he has not been shy about calling people out. Sure, he sounds whiney sometimes, but this team needs more fire, not less.

Andray Blatche: C plus. He didn't make the big leap necessary for us to go anywhere this year, but he also didn't fall on his face. As poorly as he played under EJ, he was playing just as well (if not better) just before his injury. If this team ever gets healthy and his role turns into something he can manage, Blatche could really thrive.

Javale McGee: a rock-solid B. Since I was expecting nothing, his contributions have been all the better. His good plays are so spectacular that they more than make up for his constant mistakes. If there is a greater power in this universe, it has to make up for the agony of this franchise by letting Javale turn into the monster he's shown flashes of being.

Etan Thomas: His expiring contract gets an A plus.

Brendan Haywood: Incomplete. There's no way he makes such a difference, is there?

Eddie Jordan: F. He tried to win with offense using no legit center, pg, or sg. His inattention to defense bordered on criminal.

Ed Tapscott: F. He's tried to win with defense using no legit center, sf, or pg. His inattention to Javale McGee has bordered on criminal.