So, today, the Sonics are eight games through the season. That's not nearly enough time to be a statistically significant sample, but it's already a tenth of the way through the season. Is that hard to believe or what? It seems like opening night was just a day ago, but the Sonics have already played a significant portion of their schedule. Weird. One of my cohorts, Heavy D, has repeatedly mentioned that we should review our pre-season predictions for the Sonics after the team is 3-5. Well, lo and behold, after their East Coast Trip, the Sonics are 3-5.

And I feel okay with that.

2-5 didn't feel so good -- not necessarily because of the record itself, but because the Sonics' poor defensive play against Boston and New Jersey left a bad taste in one's mouth. Today, the Sonics put the clamps down on defense, and that makes me for one feel a ton better.

So, without further ado, (extremely) premature grades on the roster (please note that the grades are somewhat based on expectation -- a B for a reserve does not necessarily mean the same thing as it does for a starter.):

G Gary Payton: The numbers are inarguable. Through ten games, Payton is distributing better than he has throughout his career, already recording five double-doubles during the eight games. After a slow start, Payton's shooting has come around the last two nights, as he's gone over 30 points each time. My one main criticism -- too often on defense, Payton is left standing around watching while an opponent shoots from the perimeter, as opposed to running out hard.
Grade: A-

G Brent Barry: Despite a poor-shooting road trip, other than yesterday's finale, Barry remains the Sonics' top player in terms of points per shot, and one of the best rated according to my own efficiency rating. Barry has been doing a fine job of distributing the ball while Payton plays off the ball, and has been unexpectedly phenomenal on the boards thus far. As well, his defense hasn't been that bad. Grade: B

F Rashard Lewis: Aside from his monster game against Orlando, Lewis has actually shot the ball rather poorly thus far. On the other hand, he is taking the ball to the hole more frequently, and rebounding at a better clip, leading the team thus far. Defensively, Lewis hasn't looked particularly good this year, but his ballhandling has also been better. Still, the shot needs to be consistently dropping .... Grade: C+

F Vin Baker: It's inarguable that Vin Baker has been vastly improved from last season. As I've said before, his merely running the court and playing hard would be enough to get him out of the doghouse. Baker's been doing more than that, however, scoring in the post enough to keep defenses honest and also knocking down the jumpshot (though I wonder if anyone else has noticed that Baker seems incapable of making the jumper out of the box -- it seems to come around after he gets into the flow of the game). He's been solid on the boards, often tipping the ball to a teammate or forcing the opposition to knock it out of bounds, so perhaps his 7.9 rebounds per game understates his contribution. On defense, Vin has been blamed for the Sonics allowing 15 points to Sean Marks and 29 to Todd MacCulloch. This is unfair in my opinion. Baker should share in the blame, but the whole team, including weakside perimeter players, has been failing to rotate in time, and that's what's allowed these players to go off, not necessarily Baker.
Grade: B+

C Calvin Booth: After a strong second half on Opening Night, Calvin Booth has provided absolutely nothing. The ankle has clearly bothered him offensively and defensively, and finally Coach McMillan made the necessary decision, sitting him out the final three games of the road trip. Really, Booth can't be judged yet.
Grade: Inc.

G/F Desmond Mason: I'll admit, I seriously doubted it. Dale Ellis is going to make Mason a jump-shooter? Sure, and by standing next to Calvin Booth, I'll become 6-11. But, to the great pleasure of my cousin (responsible for most of the html application of this site and a big Mason fan), Desmond suddenly has become deadly from 16-18 feet, adding to the Sonics' offensive arsenal of little guys. No longer does Mason look like Kendall Gill without the attitude, he now looks like he could be much, much more. I'm starting to see big things for Mase, with the green and gold blinders completely off. If I could complain, Mason's rebounding -- very strong last season -- has been down this year, but that's grasping at straws.
Grade: A+

F Vladimir Radmanovic: Radmanovic is clearly a rookie, as evidenced by his piling up turnovers, but he's also a very talented one, as evidenced by his 5-9 performance from beyond the arc thus far. He's done a better job than expected on the boards and has already made strides on defense. His aggressiveness is admirable on the offense end; once he learns to avoid the charge, he will be that much better.
Grade: B

C Jerome James: James brings to mind what is primarily a baseball phenomenon -- the 5 o'clock slugger. That references a player who demonstrates prodigious power during batting practice, but is completely anemic when the game begins. James looked tremendous during the practices I saw and during pre-season games, but, aside from the first half against Sacramento, has been utterly hapless during the regular season. Doing the math from Booth's section, that's one good game all told from the two centers. Ouch. How can a 7-1 guy shoot 35% from the field?
Grade: C-

G Earl Watson: Watson has, along with Mason, been the top surprise of the season to date. As opposed to looking overmatched during his rookie season while backing up a Hall of Famer, Watson has looked right in place. Defensively, Watson has been a gnat, bothering bigger opponents and displaying great ups on defense to block three shots already. Offensively, he's distributed the ball well and held down turnovers, and displayed surprising ability from three point range. If Watson learns to finish in traffic on the break, he could be the Sonics' backup point for years to come.
Grade: B+

F Art Long: Art can rebound. Beyond that, his value is dubious, but he redeemed himself in my eyes, at least, with a solid 10 point, 10 board effort yesterday when the Sonics' entire projected frontcourt sat out with injuries. Despite the solid effort, he still had four turnovers, bringing his total for the season to 11 in 78 minutes -- far less than two whole games. That can't continue.
Grade: C-

F Olumide Oyedeji: Can someone explain this logic to me? The Sonics start Olumide against Boston after not playing him a minute all year. The rationale is that Coach McMillan wants more rebounding against the Celtics, tough inside. Oyedeji grabs 3 boards in 4 minutes. He doesn't return. What part of that makes sense?
Grade: Inc.

F Antonio Harvey: Can someone remind me why he's active again? His only contribution appears to be leadership.
Grade: Inc.

F Predrag Drobnjak: The Sonics need a thug on the interior to make sure players fear driving the line. Paging Peja .... This may not be his ideal role, but he's all we have -- and doesn't he look kinda like a thug?
Grade: Inc.

G Shammond Williams: Watching Watson's play through two weeks, you can't help but think Shammond is doing anything he can to get back on the court. Expect the pre-deadline rumors to be flying about him again this year.
Grade: Inc.