Most Valuable Player
1. LeBron James - MIA - 26.1 pts, 7.4 reb, 7.3 ast (1)
Do you know who the last player to average at least those numbers for a full season was? Michael Jordan in 1989, when he averaged 32.5 points, 8.0 rebounds, and 8.0 assists. It has only been done by 3 other players in history: Larry Bird, John Havlicek (twice), and Oscar Robertson (6 times).
2. Dwyane Wade - MIA - 25.4 pts, 6.9 reb, 4.3 ast (2)
Only two guards in the last 45 years have ever had the kind of season that Wade is having, Michael Jordan and Clyde Drexler, both in 1989. While LeBron may be the better and more famous player of the pair, Wade is nearly his equal in both categories.
3. Derrick Rose - CHI - 24.9 pts, 4.4 reb, 8.2 ast (3)
Only two guards in history can match Rose's contributions this year, Jerry West and Oscar Robertson, and none has done it in the past 40 years. Even the great Michael Jordan never reached the assist totals that Rose has attained so far, and now Rose is joining the two above him on this list as starters for the Eastern Conference this weekend.
4. Kevin Durant - OKC - 28.9 pts, 7.0 reb, 2.8 ast (4)
Kevin Durant, much like D-Rose, had his breakout MVP-candidate season in his third year in the league. Unfortunately, the only category in which Durant has shown an increase this year is minutes played, but even with him just a notch below last year, Durant is one of the best in the game.
5. Russell Westbrook - OKC - 22.2 pts, 5.0 reb, 8.6 ast (7)
Only one other player in history has had this kind of productions in one of his first three seasons, and his name was Oscar Robertson, who did it in each of his first three seasons. The only players to ever do it later in their career were Magic Johnson, Gary Payton, and Chris Paul. And to think he wasn't named an All-Star starter.
6. Kobe Bryant - LAL - 25.1 pts, 5.4 reb, 4.8 ast (5)
No player Kobe's age (32) has ever put up the numbers he is putting up this year, which is pretty good considering that he never seems to be completely healthy. The closest was Larry Bird, who put up similar numbers at age 31.
7. Pau Gasol - LAL - 18.8 pts, 10.4 reb, 1.8 blk (6)
Of foreign-born NBA players, only Hakeem Olajuwon, Patrick Ewing, and Yao Ming have even had the scoring, rebounding, and shot blocking numbers Gasol has turned in this year. He's dropped off a lot since the beginning of the year, but it's still a career year for him.
8. Dirk Nowitzki - DAL - 22.7 pts, 6.6 reb, 2.6 ast (8)
Dirk's numbers may be average for him, but he is the best player on the team by far, and the Mavericks are having their best season since 2007, when they had the best record and Dirk was named the MVP.
9. Dwight Howard - ORL - 22.8 pts, 13.8 reb, 2.1 blk (9)
The last player to record the same scoring, rebounding, and shot blocking numbers that Howard has put up so far this year was Kevin Garnett in his MVP season (2004). If Howard can get the Magic closer to the top of the East, he would have a real argument for the award.
10. Amare Stoudemire - NYK - 26.1 pts, 8.6 reb, 2.2 blk (NR)
Only two players in history have had a season like Amare's in their first season with a new team: Shaq and Kareem, both in their first seasons in Los Angeles. Amare's career year has kept him in the MVP race despite New York's .500 record.
Dropping out:
Al Horford
Just outside:
Carlos Boozer, Al Horford, LaMarcus Aldridge
Rookie of the Year
1. Blake Griffin - LAC - 22.8 pts, 12.6 reb, 3.5 ast (1)
Griffin isn't the runaway Rookie of the Year just because it's a weak class this year. Only two other rookies in history have been this good, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Elgin Baylor, both first-ballot Hall-of-Famers. He is very deserving of his spot on the All-Star team.
2. John Wall - WAS - 15.0 pts, 4.2 reb, 8.9 ast (2)
Wall's rookie season has been overshadowed by Griffin's, but the only other rookie ever to put up the numbers Wall has was Oscar Robertson, one of the greatest players of all time. Not bad company to be keeping, even if he's not Rookie of the Year.
3. DeMarcus Cousins - SAC - 14.0 pts, 8.3 reb, 1.8 ast (3)
In his last 10 games, Cousins is averaging 19.3 points and 11.6 rebounds, not too far off from what Griffin is averaging for the season. The problem is that he keeps getting in trouble, getting fined and suspended by the team for starting a fight with a teammate after he didn't get to take the last shot against Oklahoma City this week.
4. Landry Fields - NYK - 10.1 pts, 7.1 reb, 2.0 ast (4)
Fields is one of only two players in all of my rankings that finished college before jumping to the NBA (Jason Terry is the other). The maturity he gained in four years at Stanford are probably a big part of the reason that he's been able to contribute so quickly on a playoff team, which no other rookie can say.
5. Evan Turner - PHI - 7.2 pts, 4.4 reb, 2.1 ast (NR)
This year's rookie class is so bad overall that Turner has re-entered the rookie rankings after a bad week. He scored 10 points in Philly's win over Houston on Wednesday, the first time he reached that milestone in February.
Sixth Man of the Year
1. Jason Terry - DAL - 15.9 pts, 1.9 reb, 4.3 ast (1)
Terry is still scoring at the same pace he has for most of his career, but his assist totals this season are the highest he's had in 4 years. He recorded 7 assists in each of Dallas' road wins this week.
2. Ramon Sessions - CLE - 12.3 pts, 2.9 reb, 5.3 ast (2)
Sessions scored a season-high 32 points in his return to the bench on Wednesday, and the result was a huge upset over the defending-champion Lakers. His stay on the bench may be short-lived, though, because rumor is that Mo Williams is injured again.
3. Jamal Crawford - ATL - 15.0 pts, 1.7 reb, 3.4 ast (3)
The people who still think Crawford should win this award just need to look at his stats compared to Terry's. Terry is averaging higher numbers across the board, and happens to be playing for a better team. Advantage Terry.
4. Shawn Marion - DAL - 11.6 pts, 6.6 reb, 1.2 ast (5)
Four straight double-digit scoring games from Marion off the bench results in 3 wins and a one-point road loss. Looks like Terry isn't the only important player coming off the bench in Dallas.
5. Thaddeus Young - PHI - 12.1 pts, 5.0 reb, 1.1 ast (4)
Young averaged 20 points over the 76ers' last 3 games, but only put up 4 points on 2-9 shooting against the Spurs last Friday. Maybe he's just more comfortable playing on the road.
Most Improved Player
1. Dorell Wright - GSW - +9.4 pts, +2.4 reb, +1.9 ast (1)
Wright bounced back from the absolute shutdown the Suns put on him last week by improving his scoring in each game this week, finishing up with 22 points in the Warriors' win at Utah on Wednesday.
2. Kevin Love - MIN - +7.1 pts, +4.5 reb, +0.1 ast (3)
Love has 51 double-doubles in 56 games this season, breaking the record for double-doubles before the All-Star break that was set by George Mikan in 1950. Love definitely deserves his spot on the All-Star team, and if the Timberwolves weren't so horrible, he'd be in the running for MVP.
3. D.J. Augustin - CHA - +7.8 pts, +1.6 reb, +3.7 ast (2)
Augustin is playing with an injured wrist, and it's obviously having an impact on his production. This week he averaged only 5 points on 26% shooting from the field. The All-Star break is coming at a good time for the Bobcats' point guard, because he'll be able to rest it for a few days.
4. Nick Young - WAS - +9.0 pts, +1.3 reb, +0.6 ast (4)
Young was great in Washington's first road win of the season, scoring 31 points as the Wizards beat the Cavaliers, but he scored only 4 points the night before against San Antonio, resulting in an ugly loss. He missed Wednesday's game against Orlando with a knee injury, but he probably wouldn't have played well anyway.
5. Eric Gordon - LAC - +7.2 pts, +0.6 reb, +1.5 ast (NR)
Gordon has missed the last 13 games with a wrist injury, but could rejoin the team after the All-Star break, which would be great news for the Clippers, who have struggled in his absence. He made his way back into the top 5 this week after Jrue Holiday had a very bad week, and no one else stepped up enough to take his spot.
NBA Player of the Day
Derrick Rose - CHI - 42 pts, 5 reb, 8 ast, 18-28 FG, 6-6 FT
Rose set a new career high in points last night and hit a ton of huge shots down the stretch as the Bulls pulled away to beat the league-leading San Antonio Spurs heading into the All-Star break. Rose has proven that he deserves his starting spot on the All-Star team and consideration for the league MVP.
Predictions - 18 Feb
Upset picks are in italics.
College Basketball
(12) Connecticut at (16) Louisville - Louisville by 6
Prediction Results - 17 Feb
NBA: 2-0 (1.000) 459-194 overall (.703)
College Basketball: 4-0 (1.000) 446-102 overall (.814)
Upsets: 1-0 (1.000) 118-77 overall (.605)
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