Chuck's Take:
Expectations were low for Celtics rookie class of 2008. Good thing, because we got very little in return.
Bill Walker is loaded with talent and potential. He has a bigger upside than 1st round pick J.R. Giddens. Walker didn't see much court time until KG went down in February. When he did take the court, he occasionally treated us to a flashy and powerful dunk. I also love this guy's moxie.
I know very little about Giddens (other than the fact he needs to buy some new sportcoats/suits). He played in just 6 games this season. The highlight coming Feb 23 when he logged 4 minutes and scored 4 pts in a blowout win against the Nuggets. Statistically speaking, Giddens did play rather well in the NBDL - 17 ppg, 57%FG.
Both have guaranteed contracts for next season. Walker at $736,420 and Giddens at $1,028,880. But young, raw players on a veteran team with championship aspirations rarely see significant action. If either see more court time next year, it will be because of their work on the defensive end. Look for Walker to stick on the roster, while Giddens has a less certain future.
John's Take:
The hardest thing for hometown fans to judge is the quality of their young talent. We always fall in love with their promise and athletic ability... which is always exhibited in situations that don't exactly test the young fellas. As much as we'd like to make judgments, summer league, pre-season and garbage time don't exactly tell you what you have with your rookies.
But with the C's in salary cap hell, Giddens and Walker will be looked at as potential contributors this summer. I might have higher hopes for Giddens than Chuck, but I agree that it looks like Walker has more of the mentality that will makes him work in Boston. Walker is clearly a finisher, but his defense will be the reason he sticks around.
Giddens, on the the other hand, has the potential to slide into an "off the bench scorer" role as next season progresses. I think Giddens' has the potential to eventually be a go-to guy in this league. He's still got a lot of learning to do, but I'm going to really keep a close on Giddens to be the big surprise for the Celtics heading into next season.
Other "reassessing" articles: Brian Scalabrine, Eddie House, Mikki Moore