I've decided to post my suggestion as well as a prediction. Not all of them match up.
Most Valuable Player: Steve Nash
Prediction: Steve Nash
Last year I felt he was given the award by default, somewhat riding the hype; I felt it went against tradition/the standard unnecessarily. This year, I have to eat my words. The Suns' roster is new, Amare is out and yet they are still a dangerous team, still up there in the West.
I know a lot of people will want to give the award to Kobe, and he has been carrying the Lakers while scoring at will. But I still don't feel comfortable with the idea of someone on a seventh seeded team getting the MVP. To me, Kobe is more of a "MVP by default" choice, take him away and the Lakers will be terrible simply because they are that thin. Also, one has to consider that whether they're struggling or on a roll, Kobe's been playing the same way. Sometimes he can carry them, sometimes he can't. Thin as his supporting cast may be, they probably don't get enough credit.
Sixth Man of the Year: Mike Miller
Prediction: Mike Miller
Earlier on I might have said Maurice Williams, but he has missed a bunch of games. Andres Nocioni has been playing well for the Bulls off the bench but they're sub .500 and even though he's started few enough games to qualify, he's back in the starting five now which would probably draw attention away from what he's done coming off the bench. Likewise, Ben Gordon won't be going back to back even though he's improved statistically; even if the Bulls were doing better, he'll end up having started more than 50% of the games he's appeared in.
I'd have to agree with Mike Miller. He's posting some of the best all around numbers of his career and doing so in a reserve role. It's the classic sixth man role: he gets a good amount of minutes, he's productive anchoring the second unit and playing with starters, and he'll start if need be.
Defensive Player of the Year: Andrei Kirilenko
Prediction: Ben Wallace
I know, Gerald Wallace's stats are amazing. But he's missed more than 20 games, which could go against him. Andrei Kirilenko is in the same boat. He's a versatile defender and has nice stats but he's missed time due to injury. Having said that, I'll give AK-47 the slight nod over Wallace.
However, because both have missed time I wouldn't be surprised if both are snubbed and the award goes to the more durable Ben Wallace. He's got the stats and the reputation to justify selection, if those two are eliminated because of missed time.
Most Improved Player of the Year: Boris Diaw
Prediction: Boris Diaw
Yes, he probably was already this good. But his stats are suitably and significantly up from last year and he deserves some recognition for his versatility and the contributions he's made to Phoenix remaining a top team in the West.
Rookie of the Year: Chris Paul
Prediction: Chris Paul
Very simple: he's been the best rookie this year. He's got the stats; 16.4 ppg, 5.2 rpg, 7.9 apg and 2.28 spg. The Hornets are doing better than most people expected, even if they have fallen out of the top eight. Charlie V and Frye deserve a mention but Chris Paul is the clear favourite.
Coach of the Year: Flip Saunders
Prediction: Flip Saunders
Normally I don't like to just hand the COY award to whoever's coaching the team with the best record. If that was the be-all, end-all criteria, there's a lot of coaches throughout history who have been cheated. Perhaps it's a case of too much Larry Brown worship but I don't think many people expected the Pistons to have this kind of regular season when he left for New York. That's not a knock on Flip, simply the fact that conventional wisdom says there's an adjustment period, even with a great team and the kind of start Detroit enjoyed is very rare to say the least.
He came in, took the reigns and they're winning more than they did last year. You have to applaud the effort of taking a great team and making them look even better. Turning around a terrible team is a great effort too, but it's easier to spot. But when results like those Flip has achieved with the Pistons so far stand out, he deserves just as much recognition.
GM of the Year: Danny Ferry
Prediction: Danny Ferry
The Cavaliers are in the playoffs and he made some nice additions over the offseason. True, Cleveland only just missed out on the postseason last year but I don't think there's any other standout candidates this year.
Last edited by
Andrew on Thu Apr 06, 2006 12:49 pm, edited 1 time in total.