As we've blown through the first quarter of the most heralded rookie class since 2003, best known as the Year of LeBron, it's a little hard to fathom the trio of rookies that have made the most impact.

OK, who's got the lowdown on Jamario Moon?

If you want to break it down to the rookie who has made the most impact on a good team, it would have to be Moon, although Glen Davis - you know the "Big Baby" of the Celtics - has had his moments in a limited role.

Everybody knew Juan Carlos Navarro, hardly a rookie considering his 10 years of experience in Barcelona, would have an impact on the Grizzlies . . . then again, they are still holed up in the 13th slot in the Western Conference. And to Navarro's credit, he certainly has given them a lot more than what the Rockets have gotten from Argentinean Luis Scola, who came to Houston with great expectations with his credentials from international play.

Granted, No. 3 overall pick Al Horford deserves props for helping the Hawks continue their rise in the East into the seventh seed, above .500 this late for the first time since the year of the lockout. He's playing more than 30 minutes a game.

And apologies to Bucks general manager Larry Harris are in order for battering him over the decision to take Chinese forward Yi Jianlian, who has stepped right in and contributed significantly as the Bucks take their annual ride on the playoff-lottery fence in the East.

But let's step back for a moment and look at the 2007 lottery.

There was no getting around the shock and disappointment in Portland with the microfracture knee surgery of the next great big man, No. 1 overall pick Greg Oden, ending his season before it began. He's a special personality as well as a physical specimen, who has been busy bulking himself up and supporting the team. The expectations, if not fear of the unknown, continue to be very high for next season.

And that's not to minimize the performance of equally hyped and gifted Kevin Durant at No. 2 to the Sonics. He has scored at an impressive 19.6 points per game with some major 30-plus point efforts that led to rare victories in their record-setting slow start. The hope is his erratic play is more a byproduct of his teen years as opposed to just being swallowed by the ineptitude and turmoil of the Sonics franchise overall. The same goes for No. 5 pick Jeff Green, who has been up and down, but most importantly came in the Sonics trade with the Celtics that handed Boston Ray Allen.

Meanwhile, at No. 4, physically underdeveloped point guard Mike Conley figures strangely on a Grizzlies team, with Navarro, Kyle Lowry and Damon Stoudamire. Meanwhile, the wretched Timberwolves aren't getting much help from the No. 7 pick, Corey Brewer, still not able to reach 30 percent shooting from the field on a team that can't seem to shoot the ball into any of its 10,000 lakes.

Yeah, it's early, but heading right down the list, Joakim Noah (Bulls), Spencer Hawes (Kings), Acie Law (Hawks), Thaddeus Young (Sixers), Julian Wright (Hornets) and Al Thornton  (Clippers) have yet to provide the dividends that such a heralded lottery class promised.

So what about this Moon in Toronto? It's almost as if he landed as opposed to being acquired. At 6-foot-8, 205 pounds and 27 years old, he's a product of Meridian (Miss.) Community College, been through the minor leagues in Albany of the CBA and Gary of the USBL, and battled his way through the trenches of the Mexican Basketball League before being signed by always-daring Raptors president Bryan Colangelo.

Although obviously very slim, Moon set a franchise record with at least one block in 12 consecutive games and has been huge for Toronto in the wake of injuries to Chris Bosh and Jorge Garbajosa. On a team challenging for the fourth seed in the East, he's averaging just less than 30 minutes a game, while contributing 8.1 points, 6.7 rebounds and 1.7 blocks.

With so many games remaining, there are plenty of rookies that may yet rise or fall before the NBA reaches the spring. The prevailing expectation is that Durant will continue to separate himself from the pack, but Yi has proven to be superb and the Nets' Sean Williams (No. 17) is beginning to make an impact with his toughness inside and exceptional shot-blocking ability.

The key is sustaining it: Will the Heat's Daequan Cook continue to shoot 43.4 percent (32.1 on 3-pointers)? Are Hawes' knees capable of playing through an 82-game season to help the Kings? Can Law battle his way back from the ankle injury to be the point guard the Hawks sorely need, so to speak?  There is still plenty to be learned this season and beyond, since it generally takes 3-4 years to sort out the impact of a draft class.

Certainly, we have been blown away by the Class of 2003 - considering not only James and Bosh, but Carmelo Anthony, Dwyane Wade, Chris Kaman, Kirk Hinrich, and many others all the way down to the final two picks of the first round - Leandro Barbosa and Josh Howard. And that's not to mention at least six impact players from the second round, beginning with Luke Walton, Mo Williams, Keith Bogans and Steve Blake.

So we've got a long way to go before anything major is decided about this year's group. At the end of the first quarter, we've landed on Moon in the Class of 2007.

2007 Lottery stats 

1. Greg Oden, Portland, out for season with knee surgery
2. Kevin Durant, Seattle: 33.2 min., 19.6 pts., .396-FG, .851 FT, 4.4 reb. 2.0 ast.
3. Al Horford, Atlanta: 30.9 min., 8.8 pts., .503-FG, .636 FT, 9.7 reb., 1.1 ast.
4. Mike Conley, Memphis: 14.4 min., 5.6 pts., .474-FG, .818 FT, 1.0 reb., 4.2 ast.
5. Jeff Green, Seattle: 22.9 min., 8.7 pts., .430-FG, .697 FT, 5.4 reb., 1.1 ast.
6. Yi Jianlian, Milwaukee: 27.3 min., 10.3 pts., .454-FG, .814 FT, 5.8 reb., .9 ast.
7. Corey Brewer, Minnesota: 23.2 min., 5.2 pts., .297-FG, .735 FT, 4.7 reb., 1.6 ast.
8. Brandon Wright, Golden State: 7.0 min., 2.7 pts., .414-FG, .500 FT, 2.2 reb., .4 ast.
9. Joakim Noah, Chicago: 12.6 min., 4.4 pts., .413-FG, .818 FT, 3.2 reb., .8 ast.
10. Spencer Hawes, Sacramento: 9.4 min., 3.2 pts., .397-FG, .813 FT, 2.4 reb., .2 ast.
11. Acie Law, Atlanta: 19.1 min., 4.6 pts., .375-FG, .800 FT, 1.3 reb., 2.7 ast.
12. Thaddeus Young, Philadelphia: 9.8 min., 4.3 pts., .478-FG, .636 FT, 2.6 reb., .2 ast.
13. Julian Wright, New Orleans: 9.8 min., 1.9 pts., .417 FG, .625 FT, 1.9 reb., .6 ast.,
14. Al Thornton, Clippers: 15.5 min., 6.2 pts., .363 FG, .658 FT, 3.1 reb., .3 ast.