Fullcourt Press is our weekly look at the latest headline news from around the league. We'll examine stat trends, injuries, depth chart battles and schedule breakdowns, along with notable performances throughout the NBA season.

On June 24th, 2004, league commissioner David Stern approached the podium and uttered the words, "With the first pick of the 2004 NBA Draft, the Orlando Magic select ... (dramatic pause for effect) Dwight Howard from Southwest Atlanta Christian Academy."

The crowd rose to their feet as the young teenager approached Stern and greeted him with a handshake and a grin from ear to ear. Cameras flashed, fans clapped and Magic fans pumped their fists in celebration. A total of 58 other players would hear their names announced later that night.

This is where it started for the 2004-05 rookie class. A long, arduous offseason ensued; rookies -- some fresh from high school -- made serious commitments to training, practicing, learning their new team's system and familiarizing themselves with their new mates.

The NBA season is a grueling, roller-coaster season. Rookies always go through emotional highs and lows. They go on sizzling hot streaks and frigid cold stretches. This week's Fullcourt Press will rank the top-10 first-year players.

1. Emeka Okafor PF Charlotte Bobcats

The cornerstone of the league's newest franchise has endured a very successful rookie campaign. With two games to play for each team, Okafor is leading all first-year players in scoring (15.2 PPG) and rebounding (10.8 RPG). He also put together a jaw-dropping streak of 19 straight double-doubles, second all-time among rookies.

Listed at 6-foot-10, 250 pounds, Okafor is already a dominating physical presence; he uses his brute strength to muscle opposing frontcourt players in the paint and control the glass. The 'Cats utilized him mainly in the post because his jump-shot is still a bit unproven. Although it was a considered a learning year for the Bobcats and the UConn grad, Charlotte's management has to be happy with Okafor's initial return. He's drawn comparisons to a young Alonzo Mourning and is the favorite to capture the league's Rookie of the Year honors.

2. Dwight Howard PF Orlando Magic

The No. 1 selection in last year's draft is looking to become the first rookie drafted directly from high school to play in all 82 games. He ranks third in scoring (11.8 PPG), second in rebounding (10.1 RPG) and third in blocks (1.7 BPG). Despite being just 19-years-old, Howard is one of just eight players in the league averaging a double-double. He's registered 10 20-point games and three 20-rebound contests, as well as 15 games with three-plus blocks.

While starting against bigger and more physical veterans, Howard's toughness was definitely challenged. He proved his resiliency by showing the league he won't back down from a challenge -- he even got into a small confrontation with K.G. during a game in March, and responded by finishing with 19 points and 19 boards. Expect Howard to work on his overall offensive game in the offseason and improve his scoring to around 15.0 PPG in his sophomore campaign.

3. Ben Gordon SG Chicago Bulls

After sharing a championship at UConn last year with Okafor, Gordon has been one of the most exciting rookies in the league. Despite logging just 24.5 minutes per contest, Gordon trails only Howard in scoring average (15.1 PPG). He ranks 11th in the league in points per 48 minutes (29.7), and his 139 3-pointers lead all first-year players by a landslide -- teammate Chris Duhon is second with 93 treys.

Gordon leads the league with 21 double-digit fourth quarter this season, including 22 in the final frame against Okafor's Bobcats. Only Boston's Ricky Davis and Dallas' Jerry Stackhouse have a higher scoring average among non-starters, so Gordon will likely be a finalist in both the Rookie of the Year and Sixth Man of the Year honors.

4. Andre Iguodala SF Philadelphia Sixers

Iguodala has played more minutes than any other rookie. He's averaging a respectable 8.9 PPG, 5.7 RPG and 2.9 APG while shooting 49 percent from the floor. The University of Arizona product leads all NBA freshmen in steals (1.7) and ranks eighth overall. He also compiled the only triple-double among rookies and is already the Sixers' defensive specialist because of his amazing quickness and deceiving strength.

5. Josh Childress SF Atlanta Hawks

After a slow start, Childress has been the Hawks' most reliable players over the past two-plus months. After averaging just 6.4 PPG in his first 45 games, Childress benefitted a great deal by the Antoine Walker trade. He was re-inserted into the starting lineup shortly before 'Toine was shipped to Beantown and has averaged 14.9 points in his past 33 games. He's also been a force on the glass -- registering 10 double-doubles in the second half. Unless the Hawks acquire another proven scorer, Childress will be the team's No. 2 offensive option behind Al Harrington next season.

6. Josh Smith PF Atlanta Hawks

J-Smoove is the flashiest rookie to hit the hardwood this season. He's drawn comparisons to Dominique Wilkins, the Human Highlight Film, because of his acrobatic, rim-rocking dunks. He was named the Slam Dunk winner thanks to three perfect 50-point scores in the final three rounds. The left-handed, 19-year-old phenom has a golden opportunity while playing with the lowly Hawks. He'll likely see around 25-30 minutes per game next season and should be targeted in the middle rounds on Draft Day, especially in Rotisserie formats.

His 1.94 BPG are tops among all rookies and rank 11th in the league. Since he blocked a season-high 10 shots in late December against the Mavericks, Smith has compiled 28 multi-block efforts in his past 50 games. He's also averaging 15.3 PPG, 9.2 RPG and 2.2 BPG in the month of April.

7. Nenad Krstic PF New Jersey Nets

Drafted in the first round of the 2002 Draft, Krstic was New Jersey's primary frontcourt scoring option during his first year. After scoring just 2.0 PPG in the month of November, the Yugoslavian eased his way into the Nets' rotation. The season-ending injury to Richard Jefferson generated more playing time -- and consequently, more production. In the month of April, Krstic actually tallied better numbers than ex-Net Kenyon Martin -- Krstic averaged 12.4 PPG and 6.1 RPG in 15 contests, while K-Mart scored 13.0 and 4.9 RPG in just eight contests. The return of Jefferson will hurt Krstic's value slightly on Draft Day next season, but New Jersey remains committed to giving the 21-year-old quality minutes.

8. Jameer Nelson PG Orlando Magic

The Cuttino Mobley for Doug Christie deal all but ruined the Magic's postseason hopes, but ironically yielded a major opportunity for playing time for the team's rookie floor general. Nelson was inserted into the starting lineup on Feb. 26 and has never looked back. Since then, he's averaged 15.4 PPG, 4.9 APG and 1.5 SPG while shooting a respectable 47 percent. Next season, Steve Francis plans on exclusively playing the shooting guard position to create more of an opportunity for Nelson, who is more of a pure point guard.

9. Luol Deng SF Chicago Bulls

A wrist injury ended Deng's season prematurely, but not before he made a nice impression. At 6-foot-8, 220 pounds, the Duke product is an imposing figure -- especially for somebody that was a teenager just three days ago. He jumped on the scene by averaging 19.2 PPG in his first handful of games as a pro and finished the season fourth in scoring average among first-year players (11.7 PPG).

10. J.R. Smith SG New Orleans Hornets

New Orleans' tumultuous season was a blessing in disguise for their talented, teenage rookie. Smith was averaging just 2.9 PPG after his first 21 contests and was seeing minimal court time. However, the Hornets' horrible start inspired management to deal their high-priced veterans and start a rebuilding phase. The departures of guards Darrell Armstrong, David Wesley and Baron Davis opened up a spot in the starting lineup for Smith. He was named Rookie of the Month in January when he averaged 14.6 PPG with 17 3-pointers and again in February when he tallied 16.8 PPG with 23 3-pointers. He'll get some votes for the season's top rookie honors, but it's not likely he'll win the award.

The Hornets have opened up a ton of money to spend in the next few years so Smith will likely have competition for playing time in the near term. It's vital for him to work on his shooting this offseason if he wants to get consistent playing time -- he is shooting just 39 percent from the floor and 29 percent from behind the arc. Target Smith in the later rounds as a sleeper candidate.

Honorable Mentions

11. Sebastian Telfair - averaging 10.6 PPG and 5.4 APG since March
12. Al Jefferson - No. 7 in the league in FG% (53 percent), averaging 6.7 PPG, 4.7 RPG
13. Andres Nocioni - averaging 8.3 PPG and 4.7 RPG
14. Chris Duhon - leads all rookies in assists (4.8 APG), second in 3-pointers (93).
15. Shaun Livingston - averaging 10.0 PPG and 8.0 APG in April.

Please e-mail your unique commissioner rules to Matt Lawrence at fullcourt@sportsline.com. Be sure to put Attn: Full Court in the subject field. We will highlight some of the more interesting ideas in Fullcourt Press when the Fantasy season comes to its conclusion.