Most Valuable Player
1. LeBron James - MIA - 24.4 pts, 6.7 reb, 7.3 ast (1)
LeBron was the Player of the Day for his Christmas Day triple-double against the Lakers, which he followed up with a double-double against the streaking Knicks. The Heat have now won 16 of 17, and James has been their best player so far this year, although Dwyane Wade is coming up fast in his rearview mirror.
2. Dwyane Wade - MIA - 24.5 pts, 4.2 ast, 6.5 reb (4)
Wade returned with a vengeance from his sore knee this week, notching back-to-back 40 point games and earning Player of the Day honors for both performances. The Heat's winning streak started when Wade started playing well again, which will give him a lot of weight with voters if the Heat remain red-hot for the rest of the season.
3. Dirk Nowitzki - DAL - 24.1 pts, 7.4 ast, .545 FG% (2)
Nowitzki scored 13 points in only 12 minutes before injuring his knee against the Thunder. With Nowitzki sitting on the bench in a suit, the Mavericks lost back-to-back games for just the second time this season. Only D-Wade's amazing week was enough to knock Dirk down a spot after a week when he showed just how valuable he is to the Mavs.
4. Kevin Durant - OKC - 28.1 pts, 6.4 reb, 3.1 ast (7)
Durant averaged 33 points, including 44 on Christmas Day against the Nuggets, to boost his league-leading average above 28 per game, and led the Thunder to wins over Denver and New Jersey and a close game against the second-place Mavericks. Durant is now completely back to form and the unquestioned leader of the Thunder.
5. Pau Gasol - LAL - 18.9 pts, 11.0 reb, 2.0 blk (3)
Gasol's downturn in productivity continued this week, as he averaged only 12 points per game, and the Lakers struggles also continued, as they lost to the Heat and Spurs, two of the primary contenders to take away their title this year. Gasol must return to form for the Lakers to rebound and defend their championship.
6. Derrick Rose - CHI - 24.0 pts, 8.5 ast, 1.2 stl (6)
Rose put together another respectable week, including 23 points, 12 rebounds, and 8 assists against the Pistons, but losing to the New York Knicks on Christmas cost him a chance to move up in the rankings. With Gasol and the Lakers struggling, he could make his move next week.
7. Kobe Bryant - LAL - 25.1 pts, 5.0 reb, 4.5 ast (5)
Kobe still seemed a little off his game this week, averaging less than 20 points while the Lakers went 1-2 against some of the toughest teams in the league. With both Gasol and Bryant struggling, the Lakers don't have a leader to give them a realistic chance at the title. If both can turn it around, they'll be tough to beat.
8. Russell Westbrook - OKC - 22.3 pts, 8.1 ast, 2.1 stl (8)
Kevin Durant's resurgence has relegated Westbrook to playing second fiddle for the Thunder again, but he seems to be adjusting to it just fine, and the handoff of power didn't seem to affect the direction of Oklahoma City's season. They were lucky Westbrook was there to hold down the fort while Durant got his rhythm back.
9. Amare Stoudemire - NYK - 26.4 pts, 9.1 reb, 2.3 blk (9)
Amare put together another pair of 30 points games this week, and moved into second place among the league scoring leaders, but the Knicks lost both of their road games in Florida, despite his best efforts. Amare has proven he is one of the best players in the league, and he has turned the Knicks around faster than anybody expected, but they are still not championship caliber.
10. Deron Williams - UTA - 22.3 pts, 9.4 ast, 1.2 stl (10)
Williams scored 31 points in a loss to the Trail Blazers this week, and mildly injured his wrist in the same game, and it has showed in the past two games, both of which were a bit below his averages for the season. It doesn't appear to be serious, so he should recover this week.
Trying to crash the New Year's Party:
Carmelo Anthony, Dwight Howard, Al Horford, Carlos Boozer
Rookie of the Year
1. Blake Griffin - LAC - 21.5 pts, 12.4 reb, 3.2 ast (1)
The double-double streak now stands at 20, and the past 9 games in that streak have all included at least 20 points. Griffin is currently one of the 10 best players in the entire league, and an All-Star Game without him would not be a true showcase of the best the league has to offer.
2. Landry Fields - NYK - 10.0 pts, 7.5 reb, 1.0 stl (2)
Fields played very well in the Knicks' Christmas Day win over Chicago, putting up 14 points and 11 rebounds for his second straight double-double, but scored a total of only 3 points on the Florida road trip that ended with 2 losses. He's a good rookie, but average overall.
3. John Wall - WAS - 15.4 pts, 8.6 ast, 2.0 stl
Wall returned from his knee injury this week, and his minutes and production gradually increased throughout the week. His shooting percentage this week was only 28.6%, which will have to improve if he hopes to become the full-time starter for the Wizards.
4. DeMarcus Cousins - SAC - 11.5 pts, 7.7 reb, 1.5 ast (3)
Cousins' punishment for his choking gesture against the Warriors appears to be over, as evidenced by his 21 points and 16 rebounds in 37 minutes against the Grizzlies two nights ago. If he can mature a little bit, I can see him being a very solid producer for a long time, but it's up to him.
5. Eric Bledsoe - LAC - 7.3 pts, 4.4 ast, 1.0 stl (4)
Bledsoe's role with the Clippers seems to be diminishing, as you can see by looking at the 10 points he scored over 3 games this week, and it may be partly due to shooting only 3 for 16 in those 3 games. It may not be long before Gary Neal, Evan Turner, or Wesley Johnson pass him and join the top 5 rookies.
Sixth Man of the Year
1. Jason Terry - DAL - 15.6 pts, 4.6 ast, 1.5 stl (2)
Terry was expected to carry more of the load with Nowitzki out, but he only managed to score 8 points in the Mavericks' loss to San Antonio yesterday. His move to #1 happened because Wilson Chandler has become a starter in New York, not because of an increase in production.
2. Antawn Jamison - CLE - 14.8 pts, 5.7 reb, 1.4 ast (3)
Jamison averaged 21 points per game this week, but the results didn't change for the Cavaliers, who have lost 5 in a row and 15 of their last 16 games. Jamison has been one of the few bright spots for Cleveland since the exodus of LeBron.
3. Gilbert Arenas - ORL - 15.5 pts, 5.5 ast, 1.4 stl
Arenas has been coming off the bench since his trade from the Wizards, and although he is only averaging 10 points per game since then, his scoring is the only thing that is down. It remains to be seen if he can actually play a full season, something he hasn't come close to doing since 2007.
4. Daniel Gibson - CLE - 13.7 pts, 3.4 reb, 3.0 ast (4)
Gibson scored in double figures in both games he played this week, but he left the Cavaliers' game against Charlotte with a thigh contusion, and it's unclear how long he'll be out or whether he will even miss any time.
5. Nick Young - WAS - 15.1 pts, 2.3 reb, .394 3P%
Young's time on this list will be short-lived, as he became a starter after Gilbert Arenas was traded away. He has scored over 20 points in 6 of the last 8 games for Washington, and is finally showing the promise that made him a first-round pick in 2007.
Most Improved Player
1. Dorell Wright - GSW - 15.7 pts, 6.2 reb, 3.1 ast (1)
Despite setting new career highs in every category, including a jump of 7.8 in scoring average, Wright continues to be overlooked by many of the experts. For example, he is not even mentioned in ESPN's Awards Watch column. Maybe his 32 points and 11 rebounds against Atlanta will make someone take notice.
2. D.J. Augustin - CHA - 13.6 pts, 5.9 ast, .907 FT% (3)
New coach, new D.J. Since Paul Silas took over coaching duties in Charlotte, Augustin has scored 27 and 28 points in consecutive games while shooting 69% from the field. That's pretty impressive for a point guard, especially one who had only scored 20 once so far in the month of December.
3. Kevin Love - MIN - 20.8 pts, 15.5 reb, 2.4 ast (2)
Love has extended his double-double streak to 19 games, just one behind the Clippers' Blake Griffin, and continues to lead the league in rebounds. In my opinion, Love is now the best forward in the Western Conference, even with Durant, Nowitzki, Griffin, and Gasol included.
4. Daniel Gibson - CLE - 13.7 pts, 3.4 reb, 3.0 ast (4)
Gibson is a contender for two major awards this year, but it appears that there is too much competition for him to achieve both. His best chance may be if he becomes a starter, in which case he won't win the Sixth Man, but he'll improve his odds at earning the Most Improved Player.
5. Eric Gordon - LAC - 23.8 pts, 4.6 ast, 3.3 reb
Many people do not realize this, but Gordon is actually the Clippers' leading scorer, even though you hear so much more about Blake Griffin. In LA's win over Sacramento on Monday, Gordon scored 31 points and hit 6 of 7 3-pointers, both of which are becoming more commonplace for the former Hoosier.
NBA Player of the Day
Dwight Howard - ORL - 24 pts, 18 reb, 8-19 FG, 8-13 FT
While his shooting percentages weren't exemplary, he took care of business in the paint as the Magic were able to avoid being upset by the Knicks and Amare Stoudemire, who scored 30 points in the game. Howard did pick up his 12th technical foul of the season, which leads the league, so he needs to be careful not to pick up #13 and the suspension that accompanies it.
Predictions - 31 Dec
Upset picks are in italics.
College Football
South Florida vs. Clemson - Clemson by 6
Notre Dame vs. Miami - Notre Dame by 1
Georgia vs. (25) UCF - Georgia by 5
(20) South Carolina vs. (23) Florida State - Florida State by 4
NBA
Hornets at Celtics - Celtics by 9
Nets at Bulls - Bulls by 13
Wizards at Pacers - Pacers by 6
Warriors at Bobcats - Bobcats by 1
Raptors at Rockets - Rockets by 7
Hawks at Thunder - Thunder by 4
Pistons at Suns - Suns by 5
76ers at Lakers - Lakers by 9
College Basketball
Northwestern at (11) Purdue - Purdue by 13
(12) Kentucky at (20) Louisville - Louisville by 5
(2) Ohio State at Indiana - Ohio State by 14
South Florida at (4) Connecticut - Connecticut by 18
(13) Minnesota at (19) Michigan State - Michigan State by 9
Coppin State at (14) Texas - Texas by 31
North Florida at (17) Kansas State - Kansas State by 22
McNeese State at (18) Texas A&M - Texas A&M by 31
Washington at UCLA - Washington by 8
Hartford at Saint Mary's - Saint Mary's by 28
Prediction Results - 30 Dec
College Football: 0/4 (.000) 44/69 overall (.638)
NBA: 1/3 (.333) 211/292 overall (.723)
College Basketball: 7/7 (1.000) 175/206 overall (.850)
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