Above the Rim: NBA Postseason Awards

With the NBA regular season winding down, it’s time to recognize the individual accomplishments of the season before the playoffs distract us with a new set of highlights. With the amount of young players improving this season and being among the frontrunners for various post-season awards, I wonder if the NBA is entering a new Golden Era with superstar led teams meeting in the playoffs annually.

MVP
Winner- LeBron James, Cavs
The race for MVP, in my opinion, has been a one-man race all season with everyone else vying for second place. The past few seasons, the main knocks against LeBron James winning the MVP award were that the Cavs have not won more than 50 games, were never higher than a 3 seed in the playoffs, and never won the division. Because the Cavs were unable to reach these heights, James’s monster seasons resulted in him finishing 2nd, 5th, and 4th in the last three seasons. This season, James is second in the league in scoring at 28.3 points per game and is the only player in the NBA averaging over 20 points, 7 rebounds, and 7 assists. James is accomplishing these stats despite routinely sitting out the fourth quarter as the Cavs coast to wins. In addition to his offensive prowess, James has stepped up his defensive efforts as well. Averaging 1.7 steals and 1.2 blocks per game, LeBron is leading the Cavs in points, rebounds, assists, steals, and blocks, trying to become the only the fourth player in NBA history (Kevin Garnett, Scottie Pippin, and Dave Cowens) to lead his team in all five categories. Finally, the Cavs have the NBA’s best record at 65-15, including 39-1 at home (1 win away from tying the 1985-1986 Celtics NBA-best 40-1 home record), have clinched the Central Division title and the #1 seed in the Eastern Conference (they are currently the #1 seed in the NBA, 2 games ahead of the Lakers), and are winning games by an average of 8.8 points per game showing that the Cavs have achieved the team success that has been LeBron’s main obstacle to winning the MVP.
The Field
The race for second place consists of Chris Paul, Kobe Bryant, Dwight Howard, Dwayne Wade, and, my darkhorse, Ron Artest. Paul transforms the New Orleans Hornets from a .500 team to a 50 win team while averaging 22.9 points, 5.5 rebounds, and leading the league with 11 assists and 2.8 steals. Paul is easily the best point guard in the NBA, but the team’s marginal level of success will hurt him with the voters, as it has with LeBron in the past.
Wade suffers the same plight, as his league-leading 29.9 points cannot overcome the Heat’s 41-38 record despite Wade contributing 5 rebounds, 7.5 assists, 2.2 steals, and 1.4 blocks per game. Wade’s all-around game rivals only LeBron, but the Cavs’ accomplishments this season far outweigh Wade’s Heat. Remaining consistent with past voting, the team accomplishments give LeBron the nod over Wade.
Kobe has the team accomplishments as the Lakers are running away with the Western Conference’s #1 seed, leading second place Denver by 10 games on Sunday. The Lakers trail only the Cavs for the best record in the NBA. In addition to the Lakers’ accomplishments, Kobe is averaging 27.1 points per game, third in the NBA behind Wade and James, 5.3 rebounds, and 4.9 assists. As good as this season is, all three statistics are actually a decline from Kobe’s MVP season last season. Also, as good as the Lakers have been, they are not noticeably better than the Cavs in terms of their record, although they are 2-0 against Cleveland this season and are responsible for the Cavs only loss at Quicken Loans Arena this season. Assuming team accomplishments are equal, LeBron’s individual statistics surpass Kobe across the board. Additionally, Kobe’s supporting cast of Pau Gasol, Andrew Bynum, Derek Fisher, and Lamar Odom are better than Mo Williams and Zydrunas Ilgauskas.
Dwight Howard is the best post player in the NBA, leading the NBA in rebounding and blocks at 13.9 and 3.9, respectively while contributing 20.7 points per game as well. However, the Magic are not as accomplished as either the Cavs or the Lakers and Howard’s statistics do not approach the all around achievements of the other players on this list. As a post player, Howard may have to be absolutely dominant for the best team in the NBA to overcome some of the monster seasons that James, Wade, Paul and Kobe are capable of putting up in the next five seasons.
Ron Artest rounds out my list for a few reasons. While his individual statistics have decreased since last season to 17.3 points, 5,3 rebounds, and 3.3 assists, Artest has been the catalyst behind the Rockets run to first place in the Southwest division. The Rockets are 32-13 in games Tracy McGrady has not played in this season as opposed to 20-46 in the previous 4 seasons. Artest, along with Shane Battier, have spearheaded the Rockets defensive approach and helped overcome the loss of McGrady and lead the Rockets to a potential 3 seed in the playoffs. This is the kind of performance that is usually classified as “Most Valuable” despite not consisting of the highest statistical achievement (think Kirk Gibson on the 1988 Dodgers). While this is not enough for Artest to win the award, it should be enough to garner a few votes and recognition for his season. Let’s not forget that this is Ron Artest completing a full NBA season without even a minor off-court or attitude issue in Houston. While players shouldn’t be rewarded for behaving, it may be a sign that Artest has turned a corner and makes his season an overlooked pleasant surprise this season.
Ballot
1. James, Cavs
2. Paul, Hornets
3. Wade, Heat
4. Bryant, Lakers
5. Howard, Magic
6. Artest, Rockets

6th Man of the Year
Winner- Jason Terry, Mavericks
Terry is the Mavericks’ second leading scorer this season behind Dirk Nowitzki at 19.6 points per game. Surprisingly, in 60 games coming off the bench, Terry is averaging 19.6 points per game compared to 19.3 points per game in 11 starts. Terry is also shooting a higher percentage coming off the bench although his assist numbers are lower as a sub. Nonetheless, no other backup in the league produces like Terry does or is such a focus in their team’s offense.
Runner-up- Lamar Odom, Lakers
While Odom has started 32 games for the Lakers this season due to Bynum’s injury, he still qualifies for the 6th Man Award with 44 games as a sub. Although his numbers are much better as a starter, Odom still averages 9.4 points and 6.2 rebounds as a sub (as opposed to 14 and 11.2, respectively, as a starter). Additionally, on a team that features 7-footers Gasol and Bynum, Odom is the team leader in blocks with 1.3 per game. Odom’s ability to mesh with the different players on the Lakers and his willingness to come off the bench in a contract year, coupled with the rebounding and defense he contributes in addition to his high scoring average off the bench make him a worthy 6th Man Award winner. However, Terry’s higher statistical output overcomes Odom’s intangibles.

Coach of the Year
Winner- Rick Adelman, Rockets
Adelman has led the Rockets to a 52-28 record despite being without Tracy McGrady for much of the season (with McGrady’s decline this season, the Rockets were virtually without McGrady all season). Also, Adelman was able to mesh previously surly Ron Artest with a hardworking defensive team featuring Yao Ming and Shane Battier. Adelman was able to seamlessly inject Artest into this team without the Rockets showing signs of transition. While the real test of how far the Rockets have come this season will be if they can finally get past the first round of the playoffs, it appears that Adelman’s guiding hand may have helped them turn the corner.
The Field
Stan Van Gundy of the Magic and Mike Brown of the Cavs are in a virtual tie for second place for Coach of the Year. Van Gundy has led the Magic to the Southeast division title while Brown has led the Cavs to the NBA’s best record (and the best record in team history) and only the second division title in team history. Both coaches have also had to overcome injuries this season. Van Gundy lost all-star point guard Jameer Nelson for the season while Brown has lost starters Zydrunas Ilgauskas, Delonte West, and Ben Wallace for significant time this season and valuable role players Daniel Gibson and Sasha Pavlovic for weeks as well. However, Van Gundy has Dwight Howard, Rashard Lewis, and Hedo Turkoglu to fall back on and Brown has LeBron James and fellow all-star Mo Williams. While Adelman did have Yao Ming and Ron Artest to help overcome the loss of McGrady, Van Gundy and Brown did not have the potential personality conflicts that the Rockets had. Also, Van Gundy was given Rafer Alston to make up for losing Nelson, Brown has one of the deepest benches in the league and was able to add Joe Smith after the trade deadline. Adelman’s Rockets were not given an infusion of talent in midseason. Adelman’s team has relied heavily on previously unproven Aaron Brooks, Von Wafer, and Carl Landry. Adelman has won his division, just like Brown and Van Gundy, but has done so without the depth and resources to overcome injuries that Brown and Van Gundy have.
Ballot
1. Adelman, Rockets
2a. Brown, Cavs
2b. Van Gundy, Magic

Rookie of the Year
Winner- Derrick Rose, Bulls
Rose and O.J. Mayo are both worthy of this award statistically, but when Rose’s role with the Bulls is included, he is given the edge over Mayo. Rose is averaging 16.7 points, 3.9 rebounds, and 6.2 assists per game, running the Bulls offense as they have clinched a playoff spot. Rose’s high level of achievement while leading a team through the anxiety and pressure of a playoff push gives him the award.
The Field
Mayo has been everything he was expected to be when he was drafted third by the Timberwolves (and then traded to the Grizzlies) averaging 18.4 points, 3.8 rebounds, and 3.2 assists per game. Mayo should continue to improve and should be the centerpiece of the Grizzlies turnaround and return to the playoffs.
Marc Gasol is the second reason why the Grizzlies should improve and push towards the playoffs within a few seasons. Gasol, whose rights were acquired in a trade last year from the Lakers, has been a pleasant surprise for the Grizzlies this year averaging 11.8 points and 7.4 rebounds per game. Gasol should form a nice inside-outside combination with Mayo for years to come as the Grizzlies build back towards contention in the Western Conference.
Russell Westbrook is one of the main reasons why I think the Thunder could be the Blazers of next season, a young team that is building talented depth at numerous positions and will have a high draft pick this June. Westbrook averaged 15.3 points, 4.9 rebounds, 5.3 assists, and 1.3 steals per game and looked like he had been playing in the NBA for a few seasons as opposed to a 20 year old rookie. Westbrook’s leaping ability may also make him the most exciting rookie of this season.
Kevin Love has rebounded from a slow start to put up a very productive rookie season in the post for the Timberwolves. The thought of Love and Jefferson playing together in the post for a full season next year has to have GM/Coach Kevin McHale pretty excited for next season. Love averaged 11.1 points and 9 rebounds per game and had teammates raving about his rebounding ability. Love and Jefferson should be able to play off of each other next year and the T-Wolves young towers should begin pushing for the playoffs, along with the Grizzlies.
Brook Lopez was possibly the most productive rookie big man this season as he averaged 13.1 points, 8 rebounds, and 1.8 blocks per game for the Nets. The Nets were so pleased with Lopez’s production as a rookie, they declined to retain Nenad Kristic and allowed him to leave for the Thunder. With Lopez and young point guard Devin Harris in place, the Nets should be able to add a third piece in the draft this year as the push to return to the playoffs next season.
Ballot
1. Rose, Bulls
2. Mayo, Grizzlies
3. Westbrook, Thunder
4. Lopez, Nets
5. Love, Timberwolves
6. Gasol, Grizzlies

All-NBA Defensive Team
PG- Chris Paul’s 2.8 steals per game make him the leader by far
SG- Dwayne Wade/Kobe Bryant. Wade has had possibly the best defensive season for a player under 6’4” in the history of the league with 2.2 steals and 1.4 blocks per game.
Bryant is routinely one of the best perimeter defenders in the league and I cannot justify leaving him off of this list despite the seasons that Paul and Wade have had.
SF- LeBron James not only is averaging 1.8 steals and 1.3 blocks per season, but he also has routinely taken the challenge of guarding the opposition’s best player late in games (a la Kobe Bryant) including point guards like Chris Paul. James has also perfected the “run down block” where he catches up to an opponent’s fast break and smacks it off the backboard (his block of Jason Richardson’s attempted 360 dunk may be my favorite highlight of the season).
PF- Ron Artest/Shane Battier- Considering these two players usually alternate on the opposition’s best forward. I didn’t think it would be fair to include one and not the other. Both are defensive warriors who routinely limit all-stars to scoring below their averages.
C- Dwight Howard is leading the NBA in rebounding by 2.1 over the runner-up and in blocks by .5. Howard’s ability to affect a game within 10 feet of the hoop is unmatched by anyone in the NBA right now. This is the only position where I don’t have to cheat and put 3 players on my team because Howard is so much better than every other center in the league. Howard is the Defensive Player of the Year as well with Wade finishing second.

All- NBA team
I am going to get creative again because the five best players deserve to be on this list. So Kobe is now a small forward and LeBron becomes a power forward, where he does play when Mike Brown goes with a small lineup.
PG- Paul
SG- Wade
SF- Bryant
PF- James
C- Howard
The fact that this is basically my All-NBA defensive team shows how complete these players are and how far ahead of the rest of the league they are.

Above the Rim: Buyout Provide a Fantasy Boost

Last year the Boston Celtics won the NBA championship after being propped up by two veterans that savvy GM Danny Ainge picked up down the stretch in P.J. Brown and Sam Cassell. Neither started for the Celts, but both provided experience and production off the bench for Boston helping them to the championship. The Celtics were at their usual tricks again by picking up both Stephon Marbury and Mikki Moore for the stretch run, but the Cleveland Cavaliers pickup of Joe Smith may be the most valuable addition.

Marbury- I have written about Marbury going to the Celts twice before in this column. Starbury has let me down. I was never sold on him being a good teammate in Boston, but to this point I have not heard anything about him having a negative attitude. However, I also thought that Marbury would be productive backing up Ray Allen and Rajon Rondo and that has not been the case. The only thing I was marginally accurate about was Marbury going to Boston, and I thought it was going to happen months before it did.
Marbury has been struggling since he came to Boston. Maybe he is rusty after hardly playing in the past year or maybe he is having trouble adjusting to coming off the bench. Either way, Marbury is only averaging 2.9 points and 2.9 assists while shooting 30.2% from the floor, 9.1% from 3-point range and 50% from the free throw line. In 6 of 12 games, Steph has shot below 25% and has been held to 2 points or less in 7 games (scoreless in 3). It may be time to cut Stephon loose because I don’t see him coming out of this and scoring the 8-10 points that I thought he was capable of when Boston picked him up.

Moore- Mikki Moore has been a gritty player since coming into the league and he is the perfect player to fill the void that P.J. Brown left in the Celtics rotation. While youngsters Leon Powe and Glen Davis can be productive, Moore provides the veteran approach and more consistency. Since his signing, Moore has averaged 4.2 points and 4.1 rebounds while shooting 56.1% from the field and 81.8% from the free throw line. Down the stretch, Moore should continue to produce as he has experience playing in the playoffs with the Nets in 2006-2007. Moore should continue to produce even with Kevin Garnett back in the lineup. While he is not going to consistently be a triple-double threat, Moore should provide solid minutes in the rotation and can put up 10-15 points if he gets hot.

Smith- Joe Smith may have been the perfect pickup for any team after the trade deadline. The Cavs were thin up front with Ben Wallace’s fractured leg and Smith played with the Cavs after a deadline deal last season so he is familiar with Coach Mike Brown’s system. With Wallace out, Smith is the first big man off the bench, usually coming in for Zydrunas Ilgauskas late in the first quarter. Smith is averaging 7 points and 4.2 rebounds so far for the Cavs while shooting an efficient 57.7%. This is consistent with what Smith provided last season for the Cavs as he averaged 8.1 points and 5 rebounds during that playoff push while splitting time with Anderson Varejao off the bench. When Wallace comes back, the rotation will consist of Varejao and Smith off the bench just like last season, so don’t expect much of a drop-off from Smith. Also, because Big Ben does not provide much in terms of offense, Smith will not lose shots to him when he returns.

Fantasy Stars
While you will not be able to acquire LeBron James, Dwayne Wade, Kobe Bryant, and Chris Paul to improve your team, I feel that we need to recognize the video games seasons these guys are having.

James- LeBron is averaging 28.6 points, 7.6 rebounds, and 7.3 assists while shooting career highs of 48.8% from the floor and 76.8% from the free throw line. His 33.1% 3-point percentage is the third highest of his career after 33.5% in 2005-2006 and 35.1% in 2004-2005. James has also been contributing on the defensive end with 1.8 steals and 1.3 blocks. The blocks may be the most impressive part of his game this season as at least a quarter of them have come from running down opposing players on the fast break and swatting away a sure two points, including his rejection of Jason Richardson’s 360 dunk earlier this month. I went to the Cavs-Hawks game on Saturday and left feeling that LeBron had an off-game. The King finished with 22 points, 7 rebounds, and 5 assists to go with 3 steals and 1 block. No one in the NBA averages 22-7-5, with the exception of Wade who averages 30-5-7, and most players would consider that their best performance of the season, but for LeBron it is actually below average. The realization that we expect him to approach a triple-double every game is a testament to how phenomenal a season LeBron is having. LeBron “rebounded” with 30 points, 11 rebounds, and 8 assists on Sunday against the Nets.

Wade- D-Wade is the only player in the league that can match LeBron’s statistics on offense with 30 points, 5.1 rebounds, and 7.6 assists. Wade also surpasses LeBron’s numbers on the defensive end with 2.2 steals and 1.4 blocks. In any other season, Wade is probably the front runner for the MVP, but this season he is third or fourth behind James, Kobe, and maybe Chris Paul. Beyond the season averages, James and Wade have also put up some of the biggest all-around games in recent memory. First LeBron came within a rebound of a 50 point triple-double, then Dwayne missed a 50 point triple-double by one assist. On the season, Wade has 2 50-point games and 9 40-pointers while LeBron has 3 50-point games and 6 in the 40’s.

Bryant- We can talk about all-around averages and high scoring games all we want, but fans need to remember that Kobe is the most dangerous of the three in terms of exploding for 60 or 70 points on any night, which he did with 61 against the Knicks on February 2nd (Kobe also has 3 40-point games this year). As good as LeBron and Wade are, Kobe has one of the smoothest jump shots I have ever seen and is the best pure scorer of the three. On the season Kobe is averaging 27.7 points, 5.4 rebounds, and 4.9 assists which are outstanding although a little below LeBron and Wade’s averages. Kobe destroys the two youngsters in terms of free throw percentage 86.3% to LeBron’s 76.8% and Wade’s 76.5%. And while Kobe does not get the blocked shots the other two get, Kobe is the best defender of these three as well. One reason why Wade and James put up higher defensive numbers is their ability to thrive playing help defense, but Kobe is much more of a lock-down defender, especially on the perimeter. This defensive prowess is often overlooked because it does not show up in the stat sheet.

Paul- Paul is easily the best point guard playing in the NBA right now. He averages 22.2 points and leads the league with 10.9 assists and 2.9 steals. Despite these numbers, many of the analysts have not included Paul in the MVP race. While I personally consider it a two man race between LeBron and Kobe, if you are going to include Wade, you have to talk about Paul as well who is at least as important to the Hornets as Wade is to the Heat. Like Wade, Paul is putting up numbers that are more suited for NBA Live, and not NBA reality, and would be an MVP in most seasons. However, the absolute dominance of James, Kobe, and Wade have overshadowed Paul’s season, possibly due to the Hornets not fighting for the league’s best record like the Cavs and Lakers and because Paul is not putting up 50 point games like Wade. However, Paul is second in the league with 6 triple-doubles, just behind LeBron’s 7.

The NBA has been looking for the post-Jordan golden era of the NBA. With LeBron, Wade, and Paul all younger than 28 and Kobe still a superstar at 30, that age seems to be on the verge of happening or already here. In a season or two, players like Dwight Howard and others are going to take steps into this highly elite group of players and then David Stern may have a new era of superstars to aspire to.