NBA Year End Awards According

NBA Year End Awards According to SI.com

League MVP
LeBron James
F, Cleveland Cavaliers
Previous Ranking: 1
PPG RPG APG FG%
29.8 7.2 8.6 50.5


To some, James' declaration that he could win the scoring title every year if he really wanted to just reeks of egoism. But come on: We know he's right. And as he inches toward a second MVP honor and leads the league in scoring, he's certainly backing up his claim.
Kobe Bryant
G, Los Angeles Lakers
Previous Ranking: 2
PPG RPG APG FG%
27.2 5.4 5.1 46.2


With the playoffs about three weeks away, Kobe isn't pleased with how the Lakers have played in splitting the first four games of their five-game road trip. "It's important for me to put my foot on the gas and have in our mind's eye the kind of urgency that we need to play with in order to defend [the championship]," Bryant told NBA TV. "The trap that you run into is you play with that sense of urgency when you're down 10, 12, 13 points and that's the kind of mentality I do not want us to have going into the postseason."
Dwight Howard
C, Orlando Magic
Previous Ranking: 4
PPG RPG BPG FG%
18.6 13.3 2.7 60.7


He may be the new Rasheed Wallace with his technicals (he's one away from earning a suspension), but the old Rasheed never led the league in blocks, rebounding and shooting. "What I do is not flashy," Howard told the Orlando Sentinel. "I might have to start grabbing rebounds with one hand and scream."
Kevin Durant
F, Oklahoma City Thunder
Previous Ranking: 3
PPG RPG APG FG%
29.6 7.6 2.7 47.6


There may not be a better pitchman for free agents this summer than Durant, who leads the NBA with a franchise-record 39 30-point games. "[Oklahoma City] is a great place to play," he told the Boston Globe. "We like each other. We have a close-knit community, and hopefully that attracts them."
Dwyane Wade
G, Miami Heat
Previous Ranking: --
PPG RPG APG FG%
26.4 4.8 6.7 47.1

With Miami's postseason hopes fading at the start of March, Wade has since steered the Heat comfortably into the playoff picture with an 11-3 mark this month. Wade led Miami in scoring and assists in 10 of those games, and he is averaging 5.6 boards a game for the month.
Rookie of the Year
Spotlight: A five-game break for a concussion shouldn't detract from Evans' performance this season (he posted a double-double in his first game back). But he better watch out: Brandon Jennings has guided the Bucks to a 21-7 mark since the start of February as the starting point guard. He hasn't always been pretty, but he's been effective. 1. Tyreke Evans, Kings (PR: 1)
2. Brandon Jennings, Bucks (PR: 2)
3. Stephen Curry, Warriors (PR: 3)
4. Darren Collison, Hornets (PR: 4)
5. Marcus Thornton, Hornets (PR: 5)


Sixth Man Award
Spotlight: Mike Woodson inexplicably hasn't earned a contract extension, but give him credit for pick-and-rolling Crawford into success. "That just opens up so much," Crawford said. "It creates some kind of mismatch or confusion, and that's what you want as an offensive player." 1. Jamal Crawford, Hawks (PR: 1)
2. Marcus Thornton, Hornets (PR: 5)
3. Jason Terry, Mavericks (PR: --)
4. Anderson Varejao, Cavs (PR: 4)
5. Carl Landry, Kings (PR: 2)


Coach of the Year
Spotlight: Skiles is making a late push in turning around a team most experts left for dead. But when you can mold the league's youngest opening-night starting lineup into the third-best three-point defense and are on pace to double last year's win total, you shouldn't be forgotten. 1. Scott Brooks, Thunder (PR: 1)
2. Scott Skiles, Bucks (PR: 2)
3. Gregg Popovich, Spurs (PR: 3)
4. Nate McMillan, Trail Blazers (PR: 4)
5. Larry Brown, Bobcats (PR: --)


Defensive Player of the Year
Spotlight: "Dikembe [Mutombo] told me with the way that I can move and jump that I should be the Defensive Player of the Year every year until I get old," Howard told NBA.com. Two in a row would be a good start. 1. Dwight Howard, Magic (PR: 1)
2. Gerald Wallace, Bobcats (PR: --)
3. Rajon Rondo, Celtics (PR: 5)
4. Andrew Bogut, Bucks (PR: 2)
4. Josh Smith, Hawks (PR: 3)


Most Improved Player
Spotlight: According to Kobe, Russell Westbrook may deserve a spot on this list next to teammate Durant. Bryant said recently that Durant has "improved leaps and bounds. Durant's a great player, but I think Westbrook's development has really helped elevate [the Thunder]." 1. Kevin Durant, Thunder (PR: 1)
2. Andrew Bogut, Bucks (PR: 3)
3. Marc Gasol, Grizzlies (PR: 2)
4. Aaron Brooks, Rockets (PR: 4)
5. Carl Landry, Kings (PR: 5)

NBA Opening Night Wrap-Up

CLEVELAND -- The NBA's best rivalry needed this. The home team had won the last 16 meetings before the visiting Celtics broke that spell Tuesday with an opening night 95-89 win over the Cavaliers (RECAP | BOX SCORE). After two years spent bear-hugging each other like wrestlers, a new dynamic has momentarily separated them.
At issue is Cleveland's recast style, based not only on the arrival of Shaquille O'Neal and two other newcomers but also the absence of troubled Delonte West, who was on the sideline while Ray Allen (16 points) was beating his defenders off the dribble or downcourt for threes in transition. The Celtics came into this game with the advantage of having fewer new parts to integrate, with Rasheed Wallace (12 points) and Marquis Daniels (7 points and 2 assists) fitting in as snugly off the bench as anticipated.
It would be a mistake to make too much of one result; but it would also be wrong to ignore the advantage the Celtics have seized toward a potential tiebreaker in April. "It's great psychologically to go in here and get a win,'' said Paul Pierce, who led the Celtics with 23.
The acquisitions of Rasheed and Shaq promise to elevate a rivalry that has no peer in the NBA. As much as everyone refers nostalgically to the age-old meetings of the Celtics and the Lakers, their disagreements come along twice a year apart from the occasional NBA Finals; and while Lakers-vs.-Spurs is often important it tends to fall short of creating the necessary emotional tension. That leaves the Celtics and Cavs to create a feud important enough to crowd both lockerrooms with reporters here Tuesday in the pregame hour, like a playoff game in May.
Pierce recognized the impact O'Neal had made. "You know how excited y'all get when Shaq comes to town,'' he said, sitting at his locker near the door of the visitors dressing room as the press wandered in and out.
"It's true,'' I admitted. "We just can't help ourselves.''
Across the room Celtics point guard Rajon Rondo was pulling on his jersey. "I don't think I've ever won in Cleveland my whole career,'' he said.
True enough: The Celtics had lost 11 straight here. I mentioned that some of them had been close losses.
"And some blowouts too,'' he answered quickly, as if he needed to put more pressure on himself.
The short of it is that this was more important than an opening night in Memphis or Philadelphia. The Cavs began the game playing like the younger and livelier team while hitting six of their first seven shots on their way to a 21-7 lead. But they have too many loose parts to tighten so early in the season, and by the second quarter the Celtics bench was ratcheting the defense to help set up a 51-45 Celtics lead by halftime.
LeBron James was typically spectacular with 38 points, 13 rebounds and eight assists to go with four blocks, including two that snuffed out Celtic breakaways (in the opening quarter he cleanly pinned a Rondo dunk against the glass as if upon a ladder putting up decorations). But too often the offense degraded into James needing to go one-on-one to beat the shot clock. "They took us out of a lot of our sets,'' he said of the Celtics.
There were several noticeable differences since last year. Both Rondo and Anderson Varejao looked much smoother shooting the ball, a sign of how hard both worked over the summer. More obvious was the presence of Shaq, who in the opening minute came out to set a high pick and obliviously shouldered Kevin Garnett (13 points, 10 rebounds and 3 blocks in 33 minutes) almost off his feet. Later when KG went up with the ball high he was met again by Shaq, who wrapped both arms around the ball and incidentally Garnett's head, before he slid hard onto his back. But from that and all other predicaments Garnett recovered instantly, a promising sign that he has recovered from his knee injury that cost Boston a chance at defending its championship last year. "Physically I'm OK,'' said Garnett. "I'd like to be better, and during the course of the season I'm sure I will be.''
Midway through the third the Celtics were up 62-47 and shooting 55.3 percent. Their efficiency dwindled to 44.4 percent overall by game's end, and so did the lead. James had brought the struggling Cavs within 87-83 when Garnett set an extremely high pick enabling Pierce to weave around LeBron and Shaq on his way to a layup with 1:03 remaining. Moments later Pierce canned a fallaway jumper over Varejao to rebuild the Celtics lead to 8.
The Cavs have some work to do. Shaq and Zydrunas Ilgauskas did not look good on the floor together, and their bench was outscored 26-10. Most important, perhaps, is that they'll miss the versatility of West's aggressiveness at both ends of the floor as well as his playmaking. But they are the younger team, and as the year wears on they'll certainly grow better while the Celtics may look older.
Or, more likely, the Celtics will also improve from this night as Garnett grows more comfortable -- he missed an uncontested dunk, apparently because he wasn't quite as high off the floor as he will be later in the year -- and Glen (Big Baby) Davis recovers from thumb surgery and the vise of their defense tightens. "I told them we have to be better than we played today,'' said Doc Rivers.
The Celtics coach was late coming out of his lockerroom after the win. "We were in there watching the ring ceremony,'' he said of TNT's coverage of the Lakers' opening-night championship celebration in Los Angeles. But his players didn't want to end a good night on such a bad memory. "They told me to turn it off,'' said Rivers. "No one wanted to watch it.''



Shaq, Cavs need time to create chemistry Wallace, Celtics already have
CBSSports.com
CLEVELAND -- It was early in the third quarter when Kevin Garnett tried to dunk on Shaquille O'Neal, which by Shaq's count would've been only about the third time someone's done that to him in 17 years. O'Neal contested the shot, and Garnett bounced off his body and landed with a thud.
Paul Pierce didn't flinch, because what he saw next was exactly what he expected.
"I just saw Kevin bounce back up and pound his chest, like typical Kevin," Pierce said. "I've seen him take those type of shots before. We know Kevin is gonna get back up. If he stays down, then I'll worry."
Nothing to worry about on this night for the Celtics, who used the occasion of Shaq's anticipated debut as LeBron James' teammate to record the first win for a road team in this rivalry in 17 games.
It was the most anticipated NBA regular-season game in years, and it had all the trappings -- if not the quality -- of a playoff game in May or June. Shaq & LeBron, the reunited Big Three, the debut of Rasheed Wallace and his Afro. Five certain Hall of Famers on the same court. A measuring-stick game on opening night.
The Celtics' 95-89 victory against the Cavaliers on Tuesday night ultimately will have very little to do with what happens seven months from now in the playoffs. But it taught us a few things. The most important one is this: The Celtics added Wallace, whose smooth shooting and scrappiness fit them perfectly. The Cavs added O'Neal, whose plodding style and fading impact clearly doesn't.
Not yet, anyway. Not even LeBron could deny they have a long way to go.
"If you're not on the same page offensively," James was saying at his locker afterward, "it can be difficult to score at times, no matter who's on the floor."
It's early, but you had to remind yourself as you watched these heavyweights open the season that Cleveland had the best record last year and Boston limped through the playoffs without Garnett. The Cavs, living in abject fear of LeBron's impending free-agent experience, swung for the fences and added Shaq, who needed a season-and-a-half to become effective in Phoenix. The Cavs have time to get this right, but not that kind of time.
"There's some things that we still need to work out," Cavs coach Mike Brown said, "and it starts with me. We're not where we want to be. I felt it before the game, but I still felt we're good enough if we defend and do some of the little things."
With Delonte West held out by what Brown called "the support staff" and GM Danny Ferry to deal with his personal issues, Brown's options were limited. He held O'Neal to 28 pedestrian minutes -- he had 10 points and 10 rebounds and made it clear that he could've played more -- and reverted to his most effective coaching technique when the game was on the line in the second half. Brown played James for the final 24 minutes, explaining afterward, "I wanted to see if the young fella could carry us."
He also wanted to see if Shaq and Zydrunas Ilgauskas could play together -- which they could, but not as long as Brown let them.
Despite 38 points, eight assists and four blocks -- two of them highlight-makers in transition -- LeBron could not carry Cleveland on this night. The Cavs are expected to sign Antonio Daniels, fresh off his buyout from Minnesota, to fortify the backcourt in West's absence. But until all of these "little things" Brown spoke of get resolved, James better get used to nights like this.
"It's really a transition period for us," James said.
It's a transition period for Boston, too -- back to 2007-08. With Wallace (12 points, 3 for 6 on 3-point attempts) and Marquis Daniels (seven points and plus-11 when he was on the floor), the Celtics' bench could be better than it was when they won the title two seasons ago. Garnett doesn't have his lift yet after knee surgery, but his defensive presence helped the Celtics hold Cleveland to .414 shooting from the field. Paul Pierce, Ray Allen, and Rajon Rondo looked awfully familiar, too. Pierce had 23 points and took over in the fourth. Rondo had eight points, 10 assists and three steels
"Any time you get a chance to play Cleveland, Orlando, L.A. [Lakers] -- it's definitely a measuring stick," Pierce said. "You want to play the best if you want to be the best. It gives a team confidence to know you can play with anybody in the league."
So on opening night, Garnett took Shaq's best shot and bounced back up. The Celtics cleared an important psychological barrier by finally winning a game on the King's home court. Through one game of 82, the Celtics' addition of Wallace trumps the Cavs' addition of Shaq.
"He just fits the mold of this ballclub," Pierce said. "He's a defensive presence, talks on defense, he's loud, he's scrappy, he can knock down shots. You talk about Celtic basketball, you talk about a defensive squad, a grind-it-out type of team, he fits the description."
Watching Wallace spread the floor with his jump shooting, giving Pierce another option out of pick-and-rolls, reminded me of something Doc Rivers said as the Celtics wrapped up training camp in Newport, R.I., a few weeks ago.
"We didn't upset our culture," Rivers said that day. "We kind of just added to what we had with our core."
This is why the Cavs' addition of Shaq was such a risk -- and a necessary one, all affected parties agreed, if Cleveland was going to get past Boston and Orlando to the Finals. It will take weeks, maybe months, to determine if the move upset the Cavs' culture.
For now, O'Neal wasted no time letting Brown known he was upset about his 28 minutes. When asked if he wanted to play more, Shaq said, "Yeah, I'd rather stay in and look over and tell him I need a rest. But we're still learning each other. He's the coach. You know, whatever the coach says, we always just have to deal with it."
That quote was Shaq's best work of the night. His debut as the man who would bring Cleveland its championship -- the man who would keep LeBron here -- left plenty to be desired.
"We'll be fine," Shaq said. "I've been at it 17 years -- 0-1, 0-5, 5-0, 10-0. Nothing matters unless you win the whole thing."
That part, he understands perfectly.






1 Celtics Show Cavaliers They Aren't On Their Level
www.espn.com
CLEVELAND -- By the hundreds -- no, make that by the thousands -- grimaces, glum looks and blank stares adorned the faces of the Cavaliers' faithful as they streamed through the exit doors of the Q Arena, all of them having borne witness to an inalienable truth.
Their team was clearly and decidedly the second-best on this floor on this first night of the 2009-10 NBA season, and that dream of a championship parade -- a dream that has gone unfulfilled in this Rust Belt city since 1964 -- will end up being no more than a pipe dream if this is how the Cavs are going to measure up against the Celtics this season.
Quite frankly, they don't measure up. Boston was deeper, Boston was more fluid, Boston was more confident. Practically any way you looked at it, Boston was just plain better.
And those were just the cold, hard facts on a night when the winter chill that lasts on the shores of Lake Erie from November and into May hadn't even made it to town yet, a night when folks were struggling to recall when -- or if -- a challenger had made a team coming off a 66-win season look quite so secondary.
Led by Rasheed Wallace, whose first basket as a Celtic was a 3-pointer over the outstretched, lunging arm of 7-foot-3 Zydrunas Ilgauskas, Boston's reserves outscored Cleveland's 26-10 as both coaches used only four reserves apiece.
Wallace (12 points and three 3-pointers) and Marquis Daniels (seven points and two assists) were the catalysts in the second quarter when Boston erased a 14-point deficit, and the Celtics were able to play from ahead throughout the third and fourth quarters led by Pierce (23 points, 11 rebounds), Garnett (13 points, 10 rebounds), Ray Allen (16 points) and Rajon Rondo (eight points, 10 assists, three steals).
And when it got to crunch time in the fourth, the Cavs' defenders were unable to efficiently contain the high picks Boston kept setting, luring Shaquille O'Neal out of the paint and letting Pierce use him as a screen to give himself enough room to create something on offense.
Yes, many of those possessions ended in misses. But with Boston playing the same stifling defense that was its trademark two seasons ago when banner No. 17 was won, the Cavs could never make a sustained finishing push.
Truth be told, the energy to make that push probably got sucked out of them when Boston, trailing 13-2 just 3:06 into the game, got an earful from Rivers during a timeout.
"I told them in that timeout that we wanted the lead back by halftime," Rivers said.
That was exactly what they did, Boston looked like a different team from that point forward, and the life got sucked out of the building before intermission even arrived.
The Celtics' lead grew as high as 15, and reality was staring Cavs' fans in the face.
Their team was not the equal of the visitors who came into their home and acted like they owned it, and with a few exceptions, all those Ohioans left the building feeling a whole lot worse about the chances of winning a title in the waning months before James can become a free agent and bolt town -- a move that could very well usher in another 45 years of misery.

2 O'Neal Gives Garnett A Welcome Back Tap

CLEVELAND -- With one thunderous bump from Shaquille O'Neal, Celtics forward Kevin Garnett spilled to the floor during Tuesday night's season opener in Cleveland.
Not that Garnett enjoys the bumps and bruises that come with crossing paths with O'Neal, but that collision was just another step in his recovery from offseason knee surgery.
Shaq's own little way of saying, "Welcome back, KG."
"That's the Diesel," Garnett said to reporters after the game. "I'm sure if any one of y'all ran up against the Diesel, the same thing would happen."
After missing 25 games last season, Garnett returned to regular-season action with a quiet 13 points, 10 rebounds and 3 blocked shots over 33 minutes.
Not eye-popping numbers, for sure, but combined with the emotional lift of having No. 5 back on the court, it was enough to help the Celtics emerge with a 95-89 win over the Cavaliers, another Eastern Conference superpower.
Garnett admitted after the game he's not where he wants to be physically, but -- don't start fretting about the knee -- it's more about getting in game shape.




3 Agent Zero Returns As A Low-Key Hero

DALLAS -- He drove fearlessly to the bucket. He drained a few clutch contested jumpers. He even talked to the media.
It would be a stretch to say that Gilbert Arenas dazzled Tuesday night in the Wizards' season-opening road win over the Mavericks, but he certainly turned in a complete game.
After all those knee problems that allowed him to play in only 15 games over the past two seasons, Arenas announced his return to prominence by ringing up 29 points and nine assists without a lot of highlight-reel material, capitalizing on vulnerabilities he sensed in Dallas' pick-and-roll defense with a steady performance that looks gaudier in the box score than it did in person.
Not that the Wizards mind steady.
"He did his talking on the floor," Wiz coach Flip Saunders said. "Gil showed glimpses of ... that unbelievable burst of speed and his ability to weave through people and score at the rim. I thought he ran our offense great as far as getting the ball to people.
"I think that anyone that had questions about where he's at ... he's just going to continue to get better and better."
Arenas didn't want to say much after Washington's impressive 102-91 triumph over the retooled Mavs -- keeping with his well-chronicled determination this season avoiding the media -- but eventually conceded that this return to prominence "feels great."
"Coach told me to be myself," Arenas said. "Don't let the outside world dictate how I play."
And he didn't.
Logging 38 minutes, Arenas instead managed to control the tempo throughout, with Dallas forced to scramble from behind for much of the evening after the Wizards rung up 35 points in the second quarter. The only displays of his old showmanship were nods in approval after a couple jumpers and teasingly leaving his shooting hand in the air after one late dagger from the perimeter.
In crunch time, Arenas' driving layup and that dagger snuffed out any hopes of a Dallas escape.
As for Arenas' newfound desire to keep his name out of the media game, Saunders said: "He talks to me. That's all that matters ... I think he's gotten to the point that no matter what he says, it doesn't matter, because everybody is going to judge him by what he does on the floor. I think at this point he says, 'I'm going to play and how I play is going to be first line of defense of what's going to be said about me."

2009-2010 NBA Preview, Predictions and Pictures of the New Uniforms

Notice anything unusual in this NBA preseason photo? What about this one? Or this one?
Duh, it's so obvious: The rim design has been updated for this season. Look, it's like night and day!
OK, so the rim update is actually pretty subtle, but that should give you an idea of how comprehensive Uni Watch is being with this year's NBA season-preview column. New uniforms, new compression undergarments, new warm-up gear, new throwbacks, new court designs, the new rim -- it's all covered here.
So let's get to it. With the regular season due to tip off on Tuesday evening, here's what you can expect to see on the court:
• Unfortunate downgrade for the Bobcats, who have a new pinstriped uni set (here's the rear view). When will the NBA learn that pinstripes don't make sense on players who are already 37 feet tall? Even worse, Charlotte's NASCAR alternates now feature checkerboards and pinstripes, which is really pushing it. Meanwhile, the road uni is now blue instead of orange -- probably an improvement when viewed in a vacuum, but does the league really need another team wearing blue on the road?
• The Cavs have an anniversary patch, plus they'll periodically be wearing a late-'80s throwback, which will make its on-court debut on Dec. 2. In addition, they're featuring another "Cav Fanatic" mix-and-match throwback, just like last season. This time around it's the late-'80s design in 1970s colors -- weird but kinda cool -- which is slated to be worn on Jan. 10 and 21.
• If you can get all worked up one way or the other over the Grizzlies' new alternates, then you're way ahead of Uni Watch. And really, enough already with the shimmer fabric. On-court debut: Oct. 28.
• The trend toward abbreviations and nicknames continues, as the Hawks are adding an "ATL" road alternate uni, which will make its game debut on Nov. 26. Unfortunately, they can add all the alternates they want, but nothing can hide the fact that this uni set is utterly characterless.
• The Heat have made three small changes to their shorts, so pay attention. First, the old format of having the NBA logo on the left leg and the team logo on the right leg has been reversed (that's so the shorts match up with the jersey, where the NBA logo appears on the right-chest area). Second, the team logo on the red alternate shorts has been changed from the flaming ball to the flaming "MH." And third, team logos have been added to the waistband on all three shorts designs.
• Remember back around 1981, when the Jazz wore green road uniforms? Right, neither does anyone else, but you'll get a memory jog when when the team breaks out these awesome green throwbacks on Dec. 4.
• The Kings are wearing a 25th-anniversary patch. Here's a really nice close-up of it.
• Fabric change for the Knicks, who are changing from an open-hole mesh to a flat-back mesh, although you won't be able to tell unless you have a courtside seat. Who makes that kind of decision anyway? "In this case it was the equipment manager," says NBA apparel director Christopher Arena. "He felt the color wasn't holding up well enough in the laundry with the open-hole mesh."
• As per recent custom, the defending champions -- in this case, the Lakers -- will wear a special patch for their home opener, when their championship banner will be raised. They'll also have commemorative warm-up outfits and other gear for that game, which will be on Oct. 27.
• Mid-'90s pinstriped throwback set for the Magic. Yes, we've all seen that throwback before, but there's no denying that it looks better than their current road uni. On-court debut: Dec. 2.
• The Mavericks have a new blue alternate uni. It's basically the same as the team's P. Diddy alternate, but with a different color scheme, plus the uni numbers are now in the team's standard number font. Here's the rear view, and there's a video of the unveiling here. On-court debut: Oct. 30.
• The Nets have scrapped their blue "New Jersey" road uni and have promoted their garish red "Nets" uni from alternate to road status -- a bad move aesthetically and, as it turns out, politically.
• Last year the Nuggets wore green jerseys as an environmental-awareness thing. That initiative has been retired for this season, although a broader uni-based environmental program may be put in place for 2010-11.
• The Pacers are adding a memorial patch for longtime co-owner Mel Simon, although they haven't worn it during the preseason.
• Two uniform memorials for the Pistons: They're wearing a jersey patch for Hall of Fame coach Chuck Daly, and they've added "Mr. D" to their rear collar for Hall of Fame owner Bill Davidson. The Daly patch is just for this season, but the Davidson memorial is a permanent addition to the uniform -- the first permanent memorial in NBA uni history.
• Clever move by the Raptors, who are honoring Toronto's hoops heritage with 1946-47 Toronto Huskies throwbacks (for more on the Huskies, look here and here). Yes, the design is pretty plain, but hey, a Toronto throwback could've been much worse. Now let's hope they make use of the Huskies' old logo, too. On-court debut: Dec. 8.
• New alternate uni for the Rockets -- not bad, right? Additional photos here and here, and there's a really good article about how the design was developed here. On-court debut is slated for Nov. 6.
• Good news in Philly, where the Sixers have switched to a really nice retro-ish uni set. They've also resurrected their old ball-shaped logo, which will appear on the new shorts. Meanwhile, the team's alternate road uni has been mothballed. Further details here and here.
• Uni Watch knows this is hard to believe, but there was once a time when the numbers and letters on the Timberwolves' jerseys were actually legible. And they're proving it by adding this throwback design, which will make its on-court debut on Dec. 5.
• Has an announcer's signature phrase ever been the basis of a uni design before? That's the situation in Portland, where the Trail Blazers have introduced a "Rip City" alternate design that looks pretty sweet. (Don't know what "Rip City" means? Look here, and then check out the jersey's special tagging.) The plan is for the team to wear it only a couple of times -- once on Nov. 6 and again much later in the season -- but Uni Watch has a feeling we may see more of this one due to popular demand. Also: The Blazers will have a 1975 throwback in this season's rotation. On-court debut for that one is scheduled for Dec. 5.
• The Warriors have a great uni history that presents all sorts of intriguing throwback possibilities, but here's one you probably didn't see coming. Simple but cool, and dig the little arrow on the shorts logo patch! On-court debut: Dec. 3. (Looking ahead, a small item buried within this interview with team president Robert Rowell and GM Larry Riley indicates that the team will get a design makeover next season. Uni Watch has seen the preliminary mock-ups and can say with a fair degree of certainty that you will not be disappointed.)
• You won't have the Wizards' two-tone alternate uni to kick around anymore -- they've scrapped it.
• Several teams will once again be wearing green for St. Patrick's Day: the Bulls, Raptors and Celtics (who always wear green, natch, but the gold accenting is special for the holiday).
• The Knicks aren't on the St. Paddy's list this year, because they don't have a game scheduled for March 17. But they're playing at home against the Heat on Christmas Day, so they'll wear their green set and Miami will wear their red alternates, creating a Yuletide tableaux on the court. And for the second consecutive year, all teams playing on Christmas will wear snowflake patches.
• Next March, the league once again will be running its Noche Latina promotion, which will feature seven teams wearing "El" and "Los" jerseys.
• Heritage Week will be Feb. 21-28, 2010. Expect to see lots of number retirements and anniversary celebrations during this period, and five teams -- the Celtics, Knicks, Lakers, Pistons and Rockets -- will be wearing special warm-up gear celebrating their championships. Mock-ups of all five designs are shown here.
• The replacement refs who worked the preseason wore the same officiating uniforms from last year. But now that the lockout has been settled, the refs will get new black-trimmed jerseys (they may look a bit goofy from the back, at least judging by this video game shot) and black slacks (the old ones were navy but were so dark that they basically looked black anyway, so the change is mostly moot).
• Personally, Uni Watch can't work up much enthusiasm over shooting shirts, but the league is very excited about these. Each team will unveil them around Christmastime, after which they'll be worn at least for weekend home games, and maybe more often than that. They'll all be white with team-color trim. OK, so we all know what this is about, so let's just roll our eyes all at once and move on.
• Many players will be wearing a new line of adidas compression tanks, shorts and calf sleeves. Adidas has an exclusive on the tanks and shorts -- players can wear other brands of calf or arm sleeves, but only the adidas gear can carry a manufacturer's logo or show the underlying "ribbing" technology.
• Plus, adidas is getting into padded compression layers for the first time. Players have been wearing this type of gear under their uniforms for years, but this is adidas' first foray into this product category.
• What's that tape strip on Kevin Garnett's leg and J.R. Giddens' knee? It's called kinesio tape, and the Celtics are apparently in love with it. So expect to see more of it in Boston, and don't be surprised to see it spreading throughout the league.
• You may have noticed some players wearing undersleeves during the Sun-Warriors preseason game on Oct. 10. That's because the game was played outdoors, so the players had special permission from the league to wear sleeves. Could this eventually lead to sleeves being allowed for regular-season games? Something to keep an eye on.
• Are you one of those people who like to keep track of court designs? You can see all 30 of this season's floor layouts here.
• And just to bring things full circle, here's something else about that new rim: The new version has breakaway functionality on the sides, instead of just on the front. Watch for it on dunks coming from the sides of the basket.
That should be enough to keep you busy for now. And there are some additional uni details still coming this season, including one absolute bombshell, but Uni Watch isn't at liberty to discuss any of that yet. Stay tuned.


2009-10 NBA Power Rankings: Week 1
www.espn.com
RANK
1 (1) Lakers 65-17 Good line from Professor Hollinger: Only team in the West that can beat L.A. is L.A. But that's why we keep bringing up Ariza, because the likelihood of Hollinger's scenario goes way up with Artest in Ariza's spot.
2 (3) Celtics 62-20 Let's assume that everything goes right and the Celts manage to stay healthy. Then what? As one trusted scout recently told the committee (of one): "They are big, long, athletic and very hard to guard."
3 (2) Magic 59-23 There's never a good time for a 10-game suspension, obviously, but the Magic -- with no fewer than a dozen guys vying for legit PT -- should handle Lewis' absence as well as any team in the league could.
4 (4) Cavaliers 66-16 The way last season ended combined with the stress ball this season will be -- given that the Cavs can't prove anything until the playoffs, plus all the LeBron uncertainty -- is why they start out of the top three.
5 (5) Spurs 54-28 The Spurs, for what it's worth now, are the clear-cut biggest winners of the offseason. How do we know? Because they wouldn't even be in the top five/championship conversation without their summer moves.
6 (7) Mavericks 50-32 Dallas is deeper than it was when it went to the 2006 Finals. The problem: San Antonio can say the same about its current team and the 2007 title team. The competition at the top is so much deeper now, too.
7 (8) Trail Blazers 54-28 If preseason Greg Oden is the new Greg Oden, maybe it won't matter whether Miller starts or comes off the bench. Maybe we'll end up wishing we had touted Portland as the class of the Northwest Division. Maybe.
8 (6) Nuggets 54-28 Unlike Orlando, Denver doesn't have the depth or the reasonable early schedule to downplay J.R. Smith's seven-game suspension to start the season. Game No. 4 at Indiana starts a six-game Eastern swing.
9 (9) Hawks 47-35 One of my eds liked this line, so we're recycling: It's not something you print up on T-shirts, but the Hawks are indeed the clear-cut fourth best team in the East after adding Crawford and Joe Smith and losing little.
10 (12) Jazz 48-34 The cynic in me wonders whether the best thing we'll wind up saying about Utah's season is that it has the Knicks' lottery pick. Korver's injury is already sending a here-we-go-again vibe reminiscent of last season.
11 (13) Bulls 41-41 Maybe we expect too much to peg Deng for a seamless return from injury to replace Ben Gordon, but there's enough here regardless for modest improvement leading into the pivotal summer of 2010. More than enough.
12 (10) Suns 46-36 Judging by our staff picks, it appears I still like this team better than most. Guess it doesn't come as a huge surprise that this committee will pretty much be last off the ship when it comes to the SS Nash.
13 (11) Hornets 49-33 Okafor missed most of his first month in N.O., and doubts persist about CP3 and D-West getting sufficient scoring help from the wings. So brace yourself for the old line about how nothing's easy in the Big Easy for Paul.
14 (17) 76ers 41-41 The optimistic view for a team on the playoff bubble and on a tight budget: If Philly could go 41-41 amid all of last season's chaos, Eddie Jordan's arrival should steady the Sixers right into the 45-win range.
15 (14) Raptors 33-49 If the Raps can overcome their shortcomings on D to get off to a good start, that should hush at least a fraction of the incessant chatter about Bosh's future. If they don't, though, you can probably do the math.
16 (16) Heat 43-39 If we were ranking the teams in order of which ones will endure the longest regular season, Miami would be a top-five lock with Cleveland, New York and Sacramento. 2010 must feel forever away for D-Wade.
17 (15) Wizards 19-63 Jamison's shoulder injury means they're still waiting in the nation's capital to see a healthy Arenas/Butler/Jamison trio in a regular-season game again. They've been waiting since -- no joke -- April 1, 2007.
18 (18) Pistons 39-43 What will keep me tuned in to a Pistons team overloaded with scoring guards but desperately lacking bigs and a setup man? The sense that they'll make a trade sooner rather than later to address the imbalances.
19 (20) Clippers 19-63 Every time I want to believe my Clippers-versus-Lakers playoff fantasy has a shot -- like after hearing so much about how good Baron Davis looks -- I find myself reading about a new Blake Griffin injury.
20 (22) Rockets 53-29 Can the gutty little Rockets hang around No. 8 long enough for T-Mac to come back and drag them into the playoffs? Probably not ... but they won't fall as far in the West as teams like OKC and Memphis are hoping.
21 (21) Thunder 23-59 Leave it to Mark Heisler of the L.A. Times to neatly sum up our view that too much is expected from the young Thunder this season. "If this were a 25-and-under league," Heis writes, "you'd really like their chances."
22 (19) Bobcats 35-47 The team that should have signed Allen Iverson? The Bobcats have a glaring lack of scoring punch along with the coach, Larry Brown, who understands AI best, as well as a Grizz-like need for a box-office draw.
23 (24) Pacers 36-46 The good news: Indy has exceeded my downbeat expectations two seasons in a row. The bad news: "Exceeding" expectations meant ninth place in the East both times, which is realistically Indy's ceiling again.
24 (23) Warriors 29-53 Sad but true: Until Stephen Jackson is traded, pretty much all you're going to hear out of the Bay Area are Jack stories, no matter how much promise we see from A-Randolph, Steph Curry and Morrow.
25 (25) Nets 34-48 We repeat: If Russian billionaire Mikhail Prokhorov gets approved as the Nets' new owner, you could argue that nothing else in Jersey matters much this season. Or would you rather talk about L-Frank's status?
26 (26) Knicks 32-50 You know who probably doesn't mind baseball season stretching into November? Can't see the Knicks complaining about being overshadowed for a couple more weeks given how l-o-n-g their season is bound to be.
27 (29) Bucks 34-48 Thought of one more reason to tune in besides Brandon Jennings' flamboyance and the Redd/Bogut comebacks. With Redd unlikely to opt out of next season's $18.3 million, Milwaukee is bound to shop him.
28 (28) Grizzlies 24-58 Just to clarify: For all our fascination with the Grizz gambling on AI and Zach, we ask the question as much as you do: Why give Pau away, then trade for Randolph to pay him virtually the same money?
29 (27) Timberwolves 24-58 First Kevin Love stops tweeting to appease his bosses, then he goes down with a hand injury. Not the sort of start Minnesota was counting on in its hope that we'd all stop obsessing about Rubio's absence.
30 (30) Kings 17-65 One of our fave scouts says the Kings -- with a hotshot rookie (Tyreke Evans) and our fave rook (Omri Casspi) -- will be better than folks think. Last in the West, though, remains their probable destiny.


NBA Preview and Predictions
www.cbssportsline.com
It was an unmistakable case of the rich getting richer in the NBA this past offseason. League powers Boston, Cleveland, Orlando, San Antonio and of course the defending champion Lakers made bold moves to fortify themselves for a title run.
It's the perfect time, really, for the flaws in the NBA's attempts at achieving parity to come to the forefront. This season will be dominated by a handful of powerful, high-revenue teams while the weaklings can only hope for some concessions in a new collective bargaining agreement. Those negotiations will serve as a backdrop to the ho-hum coronation of a new champion culled from the same old list of suspects.
You don't need me to tell you that the Celtics, Cavaliers and Magic are the overwhelming favorites in the Eastern Conference. In the West, things are a little more open once you get past the Lakers, who will dominate the regular season once again. Things won't get treacherous for L.A. until the conference semifinals; that's where the likes of the Spurs, Nuggets, Trail Blazers and Mavericks will have realistic chances of slowing down the Lakers' bid for a repeat.
With a healthy Kevin Garnett and the addition of Rasheed Wallace, the Celtics are the strongest team in the East. I'm amazed by how easily folks are dismissing the Magic, who are a much better, deeper and more potent team than the group that lost to the Lakers in the Finals. The irony is that Orlando -- with Vince Carter replacing Hedo Turkoglu -- will be easier for Cleveland to defend this time in the likely event they meet again in the postseason. Shaquille O'Neal will take some of the burden off LeBron James, but I think the Celtics and Magic improved more.
So what are my predictions? I have a lot of them, as you'll see below. As for the most important ones -- who plays in the Finals and wins the 2010 NBA title -- it'll be the Celtics over the Spurs. I love the size and scoring punch San Antonio added with Richard Jefferson, Antonio McDyess and Theo Ratliff -- not to mention the added benefit those players afford coach Gregg Popovich. Pop can now monitor and limit minutes for Tim Duncan and Manu Ginobili to his heart's content, without worrying about a significant drop-off in production. Plus, that added size -- and fresh legs under Duncan -- will be a tipping point in the Western Conference finals against the Lakers.
Whether the Celtics face the Cavs or Magic in the Eastern Conference finals is immaterial; as long as Garnett is healthy, Rajon Rondo is focused and Wallace is under Doc Rivers' spell, Boston is better than both of them. However it plays out, it's going to be a thrilling finish. Unless you happen to own one of the 22 or so other teams that don't have a chance.

MVP: LeBron James, Cavaliers. It will once again be a duel between good pals LeBron and Dwyane Wade, with some Kobe Bryant thrown in and a legitimate push by Dwight Howard. But with regard to 1 and 1(a), the debate will be the same: Does Wade deserve more credit than LeBron because he has less talent around him? In the end, LeBron's otherworldly numbers across the board, combined with a team that will be in the hunt for a 70-win season, will tip the scales in his favor. What about Bryant, who finished second to LeBron in 2008-09? It's time for Kobe to let off the pedal a bit in the regular season to preserve his body for another title push. Winning that championship without Shaq reminded Bryant how much more important a ring is.

Rookie of the Year: Tyreke Evans, Kings. Even my original pick, the Clippers’ Blake Griffin, came with the caveat that Evans would present a formidable challenge. The broken left knee cap that will keep Griffin out for at least the first six weeks (20 games) of the season tilts the race in Evans’ favor. Not even Griffin, the No. 1 overall pick who is expected to lead the Clippers’ resurgence, can overcome losing 25 percent of his rookie season. Evans’ aggressive approach and plethora of opportunities to shine for a last-place team would’ve pushed a healthy Griffin. With this setback, Evans is now the favorite.

Coach of the Year: Rick Carlisle, Mavericks. The Celtics' anticipated dominance of the East and the egos that go along with it will create plenty of buzz for Rivers, who will certainly be a deserving candidate if he can control Wallace and make him happy in a reserve role. As everyone is well aware, Rondo isn't the easiest point guard in the league to coach, and as everyone should be aware by now, Garnett isn't the easiest superstar to coach -- largely because he thinks he's the coach. But I'm betting that the Mavs will make a dramatic improvement with the addition of Shawn Marion and re-emergence of Josh Howard, asserting themselves as a worthy challenger to the Lakers, Spurs and Nuggets in the West. A coach who guides a team to an unexpectedly long playoff run typically collects a lot of votes along the way.

Executive of the Year: Kevin Pritchard, Trail Blazers. Several worthy candidates have made excellent cases for themselves, starting with R.C. Buford in San Antonio, who will deserve all the praise he gets for stealing Jefferson from the Bucks, drafting rebounding machine DeJuan Blair and grabbing big men McDyess and Ratliff, who can let Duncan rest his weary knees during the regular season. Oklahoma City's Sam Presti -- a Buford disciple -- will get some attention, too, and deservedly so. But while the Thunder will show great improvement, the award will go to the executive whose team is ready to join the elite in the West now -- not the exec whose team will join those ranks in another year. Pritchard didn't do much this summer besides sign point guard Andre Miller and get jilted by free agent Turkoglu. His creative offer sheet for Utah's Paul Millsap didn't work, either. But he'll get the honor for his body of work -- thanks to dramatic improvement by 2007 No. 1 pick Greg Oden and the coming-out party for a versatile roster that has been assembled patiently. Yes, it was assembled with billionaire Paul Allen's money, too. But money doesn't always buy happiness, much less a championship-caliber NBA team. Just ask the Knicks.

Defensive Player of the Year: Rajon Rondo, Celtics. This will be wide open for a few reasons that I'll explain. I would give the nod to Garnett, except I'm not convinced his knee is 100 percent yet, meaning that Rivers will dial back his minutes along the way. Dwight Howard won it last year, so voters will exercise human nature and look for reasons to vote for someone else. Shane Battier remains one of the top perimeter defenders in the game, but he'll find out that defense is a team sport and won't get the same credit without Yao Ming defending the basket. LeBron certainly will be deserving, but how many awards can one guy win? So I'm betting that Rondo, on a mission to prove his doubters wrong, will use the enormous chip on his shoulder to lead the league in steals and dominate opposing point guards in marquee matchups with Orlando and Cleveland. Sorry, Danny Ainge; Rondo just became that much more difficult to retain as a restricted free agent, assuming you're not signing him to an extension by Oct. 31.


Sixth Man of the Year: Rasheed Wallace, Celtics. This is by far the most interesting race, with mainstays Ginobili, Jason Terry and Lamar Odom in the mix. Jamal Crawford, envisioned as a Terry clone off the bench in Atlanta, will get noticed, as will Ben Gordon in Detroit. But I have a feeling Terry will wind up starting a good bit when the Mavs decide to play to their strength with a smaller lineup and I'm not convinced Gordon will come off the bench all year with the Pistons. Odom rarely gets recognized for his impact and is often lumped in with the Lakers' starters when discussing what makes them great. So I'm going with Wallace, whose value to the Celtics as a stretch forward and post defender will be overwhelmingly obvious from Day 1.

Most Improved Player: Greg Oden, Trail Blazers. There is no shortage of outstanding candidates here, starting with Golden State's Anthony Randolph, the Lakers' Andrew Bynum and the Raptors' Andrea Bargnani. I'm going with Oden because he will deserve it after all the criticism he has endured during a rookie season lost to injury and an underwhelming 2008-09. If he can put the health concerns to rest, Oden will establish himself as a consistent threat on both ends and become a big part of Portland's success.

First to be traded: Stephen Jackson, Warriors. It's with some hesitation that I grant this dubious honor to Jackson over Utah's Carlos Boozer. Here's why: The Jazz need to trade Boozer only to get luxury tax relief, and those payments aren't locked in until the trade deadline. So GM Kevin O'Connor can be patient and wait for the best deal. The Warriors clearly need to offload Jackson as quickly as possible to have any chance of restoring some semblance of sanity. Jax wants out, Don Nelson wants him out, so what usually happens in such cases is that the player gets his wish.

First expiring contract to be dumped: Tracy McGrady, Rockets. Houston GM Daryl Morey probably would prefer to let this play out and benefit from McGrady's $23 million deal falling off the cap next June. Frankly, I don't think the Rockets are going to be as hopeless without Yao as most people do, but McGrady hasn't contributed much to their recent success anyway. And there will be several teams jockeying for 2010 cap space who will entertain taking on McGrady as a ploy to sell some tickets in the meantime. Primarily, I'm referring to the Knicks, who could pawn McGrady off on the fan base as an "All-Star" and help the 2010 plan at the same time. The problem is the Knicks need to subtract Eddy Curry and/or Jared Jeffries to have enough space to sign two max free agents. Can't imagine Houston taking either one.

First coach to be fired: Lawrence Frank, Nets. As a lame duck in the last year of his contract, Frank has lost his trump card. He survived the league-wide coaching purge last November and December because the cash-strapped Nets didn't want to hire a new coach in 2009-10 and pay Frank $4.5 million. The one thing working in Frank's favor is that his most logical interim replacement, Brian Hill, bolted for the Pistons when the Nets announced plans to reduce their coaching staff. But with the Nets' Brooklyn plans still up in the air and their roster not going anywhere until they see what the 2010 free-agent class yields, there's no harm in turning things over to longtime assistant Tom Barrise until all those issues are resolved.

NBA Summer League Stats and Stars

Overall Rankings - Summer League


1. Blake Griffin(notes), F, L.A. Clippers
G MPG PPG RPG APG SPG BPG FG% 3P% FT%
5 34.6 19.2 10.8 3.2 1.0 .4 .500 .143 .459

Drafted: 1
Blake Griffin wasted little time proving he's the real deal. Griffin was a man among boys in Las Vegas (granted, against guys who may not soon—or ever—see an NBA roster), averaging a double-double (19.2 ppg, 10.8 rpg) in the Clippers' five games. No wonder ESPN.com's J.A. Adande is already wondering whether Griffin will go down as "one of the greatest No. 1 picks ever." If Las Vegas was any indication, that may just happen.




2. Jonny Flynn(notes), G, Minnesota Timberwolves
G MPG PPG RPG APG SPG BPG FG% 3P% FT%
5 27.8 15.0 2.4 7.4 .8 0.0 .480 .583 .909

Drafted: 6
Who needs Ricky Rubio(notes) when you have Jonny Flynn? The Timberwolves' second point-guard pick looked like a starter (and talked like one, too, in this NBA TV interview), showing off his unbelievable quickness while averaging 15.0 points and 7.4 assists. Flynn was in control and may just end up being the better of the Wolves' two rookie point guards.




3. Tyreke Evans(notes), G, Sacramento Kings
G MPG PPG RPG APG SPG BPG FG% 3P% FT%
5 30.2 19.2 6.2 4.2 1.0 .2 .403 .286 .784

Drafted: 4
Outside of Griffin, no one looked more NBA-ready than Evans. His best game came in a showdown with Brandon Jennings(notes) in which Evans had 33 points (getting to the line 19 times), nine boards and seven assists. The Bucks got the win, but Evans' quickness and defensive mindset impressed many in Las Vegas.




4. James Harden(notes), G, Oklahoma City Thunder
G MPG PPG RPG APG SPG BPG FG% 3P% FT%
9 27.9 14.7 3.3 2.4 1.6 0.2 .506 .375 .811

Drafted: 3
One thing is clear after the Thunder's Summer League stints in Orlando and Las Vegas: Harden will compete for the starting two-guard spot. Thunder head coach Scott Brooks said recently that Harden will have to fight for minutes, but you have to think Harden will be able to steal the minutes from last year's starters (Kyle Weaver(notes) and Thabo Sefolosha(notes)).




5. Brandon Jennings, G, Milwaukee Bucks
G MPG PPG RPG APG SPG BPG FG% 3P% FT%
5 32.4 14.6 2.6 8.2 3.6 0.2 .379 .429 .778

Drafted: 10
The Bucks went 4-1 in Las Vegas thanks in large part to Jennings' pass-first mentality. Jennings led all rookies with 8.2 assists per game, but his loud-talking play caught the attention of at least one team exec. "He better keep his mouth shut," the anonymous player personnel director told NBA.com's Art Garcia. "He's a wise ass. And what's going to happen is he's going to go into the lane and one of those monsters is going to knock him on his ass and he's going to be sorry he was a smart aleck. He's been that way most of the games." Good thing he's got this guy to help him out.




6. Ty Lawson(notes), G, Denver Nuggets
G MPG PPG RPG APG SPG BPG FG% 3P% FT%
5 35.8 16.6 7.0 3.6 0.6 1.0 .397 .154 .771

Drafted: 18
After two brutal games, in which he was just 1-for-15 from the floor, Lawson picked up steam. In the Nuggets' final three games (all wins), Lawson averaged 23.6 points on 57 percent shooting and looked like the quick-yet-polished point the Nuggets traded for on draft night to back up Chauncey Billups(notes).




7. Dante Cunningham(notes), F, Portland Trail Blazers
G MPG PPG RPG APG SPG BPG FG% 3P% FT%
4 31.5 18.3 5.8 0.8 1.5 0.5 .476 .000 .722

Drafted: 33
With as much depth as the Trail Blazers have, it's unlikely Cunningham will have much impact in his rookie season. But that didn't stop Portland's second-round pick from showing off his potential in Las Vegas. Cunningham's performance—the Villanova product was fifth among rookies with an 18.6 scoring average—came as no shock to teammate Jerryd Bayless. "I've said it from the start—I think Dante has a chance to be special," the point guard said earlier this week.




8. DeJuan Blair(notes), F, San Antonio Spurs
G MPG PPG RPG APG SPG BPG FG% 3P% FT%
3 25.0 16.3 8.7 0.0 0.7 0.3 .529 .000 .813

Drafted: 37
Dropping into the second round may end up a blessing in disguise for Blair. Not only will the Pitt All-American join a perennial contender in San Antonio, but he may be able to contribute right away. Blair averaged 16.3 points and 8.7 rebounds in three games and could prove to be a steal for the Spurs, who could use his toughness off the bench.




9. Austin Daye(notes), C, Detroit Pistons
G MPG PPG RPG APG SPG BPG FG% 3P% FT%
5 33.8 17.0 8.8 1.0 1.4 0.4 .471 .294 .762

Drafted: 15
The No. 15 overall pick answered questions about his bulk and athleticism (or lack thereof) by averaging 17 points and seven rebounds as the Pistons went 4-1. Still, it was the Pistons' second-round pick, DaJuan Summers(notes), that may have had the more surprising week. Summers, the 6-foot-8, 240-pound forward out of Georgetown, led the team in scoring (18.0 ppg).




10. Tyler Hansbrough(notes), F, Indiana Pacers
G MPG PPG RPG APG SPG BPG FG% 3P% FT%
5 25.3 18.2 5.6 2.0 1.0 0.4 .444 .400 .854

Drafted: 13
Hansbrough is out to prove he's more than just an inside presence. At North Carolina, Hansbrough took just 12 treys in his four-year career. In Orlando, the 6-foot-9 forward hit two of his five attempts and while averaging 18.2 ppg in the Pacers' five games."He can really shoot," Pacers teammate Roy Hibbert(notes) told the USA Today. "People don't really know that. Obviously, with me in the post, it sucked people in and he hit 3s. That'll widen up the floor for us."





Other notable performers: DeMar DeRozan(notes), Raptors—Looked like the real deal, showing quickness while averaging 17.0 points on 49 percent shooting; Marcus Thornton(notes), Hornets—Only played three games, but led all rookies in scoring with a 20.7 average; Stephen Curry(notes), Warriors—His 2.4 steals per game overshadowed his poor shooting (.325 percent from the field); Rodrigue Beaubois(notes), Mavericks—the athletic guard had 34 points and eight assists in a win over Houston; Hasheem Thabeet(notes), Grizzlies—The No. 2 pick looked disinterested and outmatched. Averaged 8.2 points and 4.6 rebounds and it's hard seeing him having much impact offensively for the Grizzlies.

Can You Say Another Sweep for the Cavs

All the different articles on the Cavs Sweep of the Hawks right here for you on one site!!

Pity the poor Cleveland Cavaliers. All they’ve done is win every one of the eight playoff games they’ve played by double digits — something no NBA team has ever done — and what do they get for their troubles? A bunch of people bloviating about how maybe it would be better for them if they lose a game.
You’re going to start hearing that line of non-thinking any day now, if you haven’t already. It’s the standard fall-back position for commentators everywhere whenever a team makes winning look too easy.
And for the first two series of this postseason, the Cavaliers have made winning look as easy as brushing their teeth. Eight games, eight wins. They’re playing like the 76ers of 1983, when Moses Malone so eloquently explained his team’s playoff goal: “Fo, fo, fo.” That was when just three series led to the championship. Today, it’s fo, fo, fo, fo. No fis or fums need apply.
As things worked out, the 76ers played four, five, four, going 12-1 on the way to Dr. J’s only NBA title. But no one suggested they needed to lose a game to refocus themselves or somehow ensure victory.
Nor did anyone on the 2001 Lakers cite that team’s one loss in a 15-1 postseason as the reason Los Angeles ultimately stormed to a title. The only thing the Lakers’ one loss and the Sixers’ loss in their near-perfect runs proved was that the other teams are trying to win, too, and sometimes they accomplish that.
Still, the idea that teams that win too easily and too often could be in danger of collapsing once the pressure mounts refuses to die. There’s a certain specious logic to it. It goes like this: Sooner or later, every team gets challenged in a championship run. And if a team has had too easy a time of it, it won’t be prepared to meet that challenge.
It sounds so good, but it’s so utterly wrong. Nobody ever said losing builds character after winning. That’s a line you use to find something good about a loss. If losing were such a valuable life experience, every team would give the entire starting unit the day off once in a while — just so that the team can benefit from the salubrious effects of a good thumping.
I’m not suggesting the Cavaliers will go 16-0 in these playoffs. It is possible but unlikely; possible because neither the Celtics nor the Magic have shown that they can sustain excellence in every game of a long series, unlikely because both Boston and Orlando have shown that they can play at an extremely high level — when the stars and planets are aligned just right.
If you’ve watched much of the Cavs so far, though, you don’t get the feeling that losing a game will do anything other than anger LeBron James, who shows every night why he’s the NBA’s 2009 MVP.
Cleveland isn’t a great basketball team — not yet. They have King James, the greatest example of power, speed and all-court skills the game has ever seen. But they do not have a second great player to complement him. What they have is a great mix of youth and experience, size and quickness. Mo Williams and Delonte West are an excellent guard combination, either one of whom can play point and both of whom combined for 29 points a game during the season. Zydrunas Ilgauskas is fragile, but he’s a big man with excellent shooting range and superior ball-handling skills who also rebounds. Anderson Varejao provides enormous energy and great offensive rebounds at power forward. And James does whatever the heck he wants to do.The Hawks played as good a game as they were capable of in their Game 4 loss. They even had a seven-point lead at the end of the first quarter, the first time in the series they had led at the end of a quarter. But at the end, James took the ball, drew half the defense to him, and either took it to the hole with three guys hacking him and trying to tackle him, or dished to a teammate standing all alone beyond the arc for an easy three.
The game was close, but never in doubt, and in the end, the Cavs won by double digits again. The reason it wasn’t in doubt is the same reason they have no intention of taking a game off — LeBron.
He’s coming of age in these playoffs, and the Cavaliers are responding to his lead. They play the best defense in the NBA. They out-rebounded the Hawks by double digits. In the final minutes, when the Hawks had to get the ball back, Cleveland got three consecutive offensive rebounds — and three more 24-second clocks.
At no time have they looked like a team that needs to lose, just to remember what it feels like. They look like a team that is intent on giving no one even the slightest shred of hope.
And now they’re looking like a team that’s going to go home, take a day or two off, then get back to work while waiting to see who emerges from the Boston-Orlando season to try to do what no one has yet been able to accomplish this year: Not to win a series, but to win a game.



Cavs' sweep not a celebration, just another step in humble title quest.

By Bill Trocchi, SI.com
The Cavaliers advanced to the Eastern Conference finals by pulling out another gutty road win and extending their playoff win streak to eight games. Right?
"We have nothing to celebrate. What is there to celebrate? We have bigger goals than this. We won a game and we're moving on. That's about it," said center Zydrunas Ilgauskas after the Cavs' 84-74 victory (RECAP | BOX).
Guard Mo Williams, who burned the Hawks' double-teams of LeBron James with four three-pointers, agreed with his big man.
"It is not a celebration because this is not home for us. This is not where we want to be," he said. "Home for us is holding up that ball (the NBA championship trophy). That is when our celebration starts. That is all that we think about."
Such is life with the favorites to win the NBA crown and end the city of Cleveland's championship drought. Eight straight wins, all by double-digits, and it is met with a collective shrug of the shoulders. Things are going so well for the Cavs right now, they can have almost twice as many turnovers as their opponents, miss 12 free throws and still stick a road 'W' in their suitcases and head back to Cleveland.
"We ought to feel good about this win, because we got it in an ugly manner," said Cavs coach Mike Brown. "I'm sure Atlanta probably feels like they didn't play their best. I know offensively, we didn't play our best."
The possession that officially clinched the Cavaliers' four-game sweep took a remarkable 64 seconds. Leading by five with 1:56 to play, the Cavs milked the clock before James drove to the hoop and missed a layup. Anderson Varejao was there for the rebound, and the Cavs reset. James again ended up driving with little time on the shot clock, and again Varejao was there to tip the rebound. He missed his attempt, but Ilgauskas grabbed the ball and kicked it out. With the shot clock running down a third time, James was doubled in the corner and hit Williams for a back-breaking three. Cavs 82, Hawks 74, 52 seconds to play. Hello, Eastern Conference finals.
James did not dominate as he did in Game 3, but he still managed 27 points, eight rebounds and eight assists. Delonte West was the Cavs' other star, going for 21 with six assists in 45 minutes. Included in there was a baseline slam over Marvin Williams early in the fourth quarter that James said surprised even West.
If the Hawks were able to knock down a few more open jumpers, their season would not be over. They shot 32 percent for the game, including a woeful 2-for-13 from three-point range. Josh Smith scored 26 and had eight boards, and Joe Johnson squeezed off 18 points around the tight defense of West.
"The effort was definitely there tonight," Johnson said. "They got a lot of loose balls, a lot of hustle plays that they beat us to. If I know my guys, I think this will leave a sour taste in our mouths all summer."
The Cavs still have plenty of basketball left to play. The Magic or Celtics are the next obstacle standing in their way. The Atlanta sweep already seems like a thing of the past.
"Why should we celebrate?" James said. "We are a team that is fighting for a championship. Advancing is advancing, whether it is four games or seven. We're not taking it for granted. We're excited we're playing great basketball. But we are not satisfied."
Stud of the Night
Delonte West. The Cavs guard had 21 points, six assists and four rebounds in 45 quality minutes. West's dunk early in the fourth quarter came with the Cavs clinging to a two-point lead, and his defense on Johnson all series was a big factor in the sweep. "Defense wins championships, and that's what I want to do. I want to put a ring on my finger," he said.
Dud of the Night
Mike Bibby. In what could have been his final game as a Hawk before he hits the free-agent market, Bibby had three points in 31 minutes and shot 1-for-6 from the floor. The point guard also had just one assist. "If I did anything more than I did tonight, I think we would have had a good chance to win the game," he said.
Turning Point
With 10 minutes to play, the Hawks trailed 64-62 and allowed just two points in the next 3:30. Unfortunately for them, they came up empty at the offensive end on seven straight possessions, missing a golden opportunity to seize control from the temporarily out-of-sync Cavs. A James three snapped Cleveland from its funk and the Hawks were never closer than four again.
Stat of the Day
The Cavs outscored the Hawks 11-2 to start the second quarter when James took his only rest of the game.
Courtside Confidential
As he did prior to Game 3, James tossed in an underhand shot from the intersection of midcourt and the sideline during warmups. It took him seven attempts on Monday, four more than Saturday. ... The jumbotron tried to draw inspiration for the Hawks from other notable underdogs such as the 1980 U.S. Olympic hockey team, Appalachian State and the New York Giants.
Looking Ahead
Cleveland will enjoy another mid-playoff vacation, as it waits for the Eastern Conference finals (starting as early as Sunday) against the Boston-Orlando survivor (series tied at 2). Will the layoff hurt? It certainly did not seem to affect the Cavs against the Hawks after they sat idle for nine days before the series. For the Hawks, it's time to reflect on a season where they improved their wins by 10 and advanced a round further in the playoffs. "I told those guys in the locker room I don't want them hanging their heads," said Hawks coach Mike Woodson. "This was a positive year for the Atlanta Hawks."



Mission accomplished … sort of.
www.espn.com
The Cleveland Cavaliers completed a four-game sweep of the Atlanta Hawks with an 84-74 win to advance to the conference finals, but they weren't exactly popping champagne corks afterward.
"Why should we celebrate?" LeBron James asked after the game. "We're trying to win a championship. We're excited because we're playing great basketball, but we're not satisfied."
At least this time the Cavs showed they could grind out a tough win, rather than blowing another overmatched team off the floor.
"Sometimes you have to win ugly like this, and it's good to know that you can," Cavs coach Mike Brown said. "I'm sure Atlanta feels like they didn't play their best. I know offensively we didn't play our best. But the way we defended tonight allowed us to make some mistakes."
"Some" might be an understatement: Cleveland shot 14-of-26 from the line, including three straight misses by Wally Szczerbiak and Zydrunas Ilgauskas to end the first half, and committed 18 turnovers. But in a contest that looked more like a Grizzlies-Wolves game in mid-January than a second-round NBA playoff game, it was ultimately Cleveland's airtight defense that allowed it to complete the sweep. The Cavs held the Hawks to 31.5 percent shooting and permitted only 36 points in the second half.
"Our defense allowed us to turn the ball over 18 times for 22 points, to shoot 53 percent from the free throw line," Brown said. Those are not impressive numbers at all, but in the playoffs on the road, you have to have an anchor. Our guys have that, and they believe in it."
It was the first real test of the postseason for the Cavs, who had posted double-figure wins in their first seven playoff games. This went in the books as a double-figure win, too, but it wasn't decided until Mo Williams hit a 3-pointer with 52.1 seconds left to put the Cavs up by eight.
That shot ended a fateful 63-second Cleveland trip that featured two of the defining elements of this series -- the Cavs owning the boards, and Cleveland attacking the defense of Atlanta's Mike Bibby. The possession began with 1:55 left and the home crowd in full lather after the Hawks cut the deficit to 79-74, but Anderson Varejao and Ilgauskas each rebounded James misses to keep the possession alive for more than a minute.
Then, after a foul on Joe Johnson created a dead ball, the Hawks failed to go offense-defense and take Bibby out of the game. Cleveland created a switch that left Bibby guarding James in the post, Atlanta doubled, and when the next-closest defender, Josh Smith, turned his head to call out a rotation behind him, James snapped a pass out top to Williams -- who took advantage of the extra split second it took Smith to react to nail a backbreaking triple.
"It's a game of inches," James said. "I see a lot of plays before they happen. I knew the double was going to come, and I knew Mo was going to have an open look because they weren't rotating quick enough to our guards."
The two offensive rebounds on that trip were symptomatic, as well: Cleveland owned the rebound battle 48-33, after doubling the Hawks' rebound total in Game 3. Varejao and Ilgauskas combined for 21 of those boards, including 12 on the offensive end.
"We realized we don't want to have to jump with these guys on every possession, we need to put a body on somebody and then go pursue the rebound," Brown said. "Once we decided to do that, we had some great results."
However, the reason the Cavs were in that game at all by that point was because of their suffocating defense -- one that completely eliminated the Hawks' secondary scorers. Although Johnson (7-of-18) and Smith (8-of-16) shot reasonably well, their teammates were a ghastly 8-for-39. Starters Bibby, Al Horford and Marvin Williams combined to score seven points on 2-for-19 shooting.
"It goes all the way back to childhood: Defense wins championships," said Delonte West, who guarded Johnson for most of the series. "We've been learning that since day one."
Unusually, James was more good than great in this one -- he finished with 27 points, eight rebounds and eight assists, but shot only 9-for-22. He even committed three fouls, after being whistled for just 10 in his first seven playoff games combined.
Nonetheless, the Cavs will get another long layoff before they play Game 1 of the Eastern Conference finals. That game might not be for nine days, depending how the league's other second-round series play out, so rust is a concern going forward.
"We have to manage our time correctly," West said. "We have to get some days of rest and some days where we get a good sweat in."
As for the Hawks, they bow out after exceeding all expectations and making the second round of the playoffs for the first time in a decade. Plus, it might be the second year in a row they got knocked out by the eventual champion. But injuries to starters Johnson, Williams and Horford made an already difficult task all but impossible against the Cavs.
"I just wish we had a healthier team," Hawks coach Mike Woodson said. "It's hard to judge our team in this series, not being healthy. "
"We just didn't have enough. They're playing at a very high level, and they have a legitimate shot at winning the title."

LeBron James 2009 NBA MVP

All of the different articles about LeBron James winning the NBA MVP here on one site for you. (espn.com si.com msnbc.com)

CLEVELAND - Unstoppable at both ends of the floor this season, LeBron James is the NBA’s Most Valuable Player.
James, who led the Cleveland Cavaliers to a team-record 66 regular-season wins and the top overall seed in the playoffs, will receive the award Monday, a person with knowledge of the choice told The Associated Press. James chose Akron St. Vincent-St. Mary High School, his alma mater, for the presentation, said the person, who spoke on condition of anonymity because the announcement has not been made.
The Cavaliers announced a “major” news conference for 4 p.m. at the school, but did not give the reason.
James is the first Cavaliers player to win the award. He averaged 28.4 points, 7.6 rebounds and 7.2 assists this season, his sixth as a pro. He also finished second in voting for defensive player of the year, making him perhaps the league’s most dominant two-way player since Michael Jordan.
At 24 years, 106 days on the final day of the regular season, James is the youngest player to win the award since Moses Malone (24 years, 16 days) in 1978-79. Wes Unseld was 23 when he won it in 1968-69.
James vied all season for MVP honors with the Los Angeles Lakers’ Kobe Bryant and Miami’s Dwyane Wade. The three played on the U.S. gold medalist Olympic team last summer and seemed to upstage each other nightly this season.
Focused right from the start, the 6-foot-8, 250-pound James sharpened his already formidable skills this season.
He started a career-high 81 games and set personal bests in field-goal (49) and free-throw (79) percentages. James became the second player to post five straight seasons of at least 27 points, six rebounds and six assists. The other is Oscar Robertson, whose extraordinarily versatile game is the one James’ is most often compared.
James nearly averaged a triple-double — 32 points, 11.3 rebounds and 7.5 assists — as the top-seeded Cavaliers breezed through the first round of the playoffs, sweeping the Detroit Pistons in four games. Cleveland will host the Atlanta Hawks in Game 1 on Tuesday.
It’s no surprise James would select his high school for the ceremony. It’s where he won three state basketball championships and where he burst onto the national scene, becoming a Sports Illustrated cover subject at just 17 years old. He announced plans to skip college in the Fighting Irish’s quaint gym and recently filmed a “60 Minutes” interview there.





Let me see if I can make this clear without getting myself in trouble:
I expected LeBron James, who arrived in the pros as an 18-year-old drawing intense scrutiny and facing extraordinary expectations, to have screwed up by this time. Not a Jeff George-level screwup, i.e., clashing with coaches and consistently underperforming. Not a Michael Phelps-level screwup, i.e., getting photographed with a marijuana pipe. Not necessarily a Kobe Bryant-level screwup, i.e., committing a sexual indiscretion that cost him a reputation that he has only recently begun to salvage.
But some kind of screwup. Show up late or not at all for one game. Miss a practice because of a Nike commitment, then say it doesn't matter all that much. Shove an unruly fan who got in his face in a club. Get frustrated from double- and triple-teaming and lash out at an opponent. Complain about teammates not giving him enough help.
But here we are in the 24-year-old's sixth season, and it's as if he's following a script written by a couple of hip, yet image-conscious screenwriters. Let yourself groove a little, LeBron, but stay within the lines.
And, so, as the Cavaliers' young superstar accepts the MVP hardware that is so deservedly his, I ponder not the specifics of his exquisitely played season or the promise that he will bring the starving city of Cleveland a championship, but the fact that he has yet to make a major false step.
Incredible. Simply incredible.
Now, just because someone lives an Ozzie and Harriet upbringing, as Michael Jordan did, and someone else grows up hard, as James did, does not guarantee a certain life path. But Jordan himself credited his ability to flourish both on and off the court at least partly to a stable, two-parent boyhood, three blissful campus years at Chapel Hill under the tutelage of Dean Smith, and having superagent David Falk to blaze his marketing trail. James' hardscrabble background, in Akron, Ohio, was the polar opposite of Jordan's. He had no college coach to help check his compass. And at the end of the 2004-05 season, James fired his agents, the Goodwin brothers, and hired a group of friends to take over his endorsement career. (He would later select Leon Rose as his new agent.)
Ticket to disaster? Hardly.
James handles everything thrown at him -- criticism, marketing challenges (would anyone deny that he's a more natural performer than Jordan in his ads?), questions about not winning the big one, etc. -- as easily as he handles hounding defenses. When Washington Wizards guard DeShawn Stevenson called him overrated, James simply turned it away by comparing himself to Jay-Z and Stevenson to one-hit wonder Soulja Boy. It's got a degree of cockiness, sure, but it was right for the moment. When Charles Barkley criticized James for talking too much about the free-agent summer of 2010, James responded hotly -- "He's stupid. That's all I've got to say about that" -- and moved on. Again, it was exactly right. Say your piece -- where's the law that someone can't come back at Charles? -- and forget about it.
As he thanked the Cavaliers' fans at the team's final regular-season home game last month, LeBron added, "If we win 99-20, don't boo us because you don't get a free chalupa." He had been upset that Cavs fans sometimes booed when the team didn't score 100 points to trigger a fast-food prize. Again, I thought it was the perfect note, a finger-wave at the fans but a gentle one and one James eminently deserved to make.
His play has been both sensational and exemplary. They're not always the same thing. Remember it wasn't too long ago that James' ability to take -- and make -- the big shot was being questioned. Now he's become a doubly clutch player because he may take the shot but he may also find an open teammate. It wasn't too long ago (the summer of 2006) when a lackadaisical performance at summer camp led some to ponder whether he should even be on the Olympic team. He got the message, and two years later LeBron, Bryant and Dwyane Wade carried the majority of the water on the way to the gold medal.
But the fact that James became a superstar in the tradition of Jordan/Bryant -- let's hold those exact comparisons until we see what happens the rest of the way -- is not really a surprise. It's the way he conducts himself on and off the court that has gotten my attention. True, most of the time, James seems to be reading from a teleprompter in his head, and I would prefer the less scripted, more spontaneous James, the James who calls Barkley stupid. But the kid has grown up fast, under a white-hot spotlight, and, man, what a job of growing up he has done.




The NBA will announce LeBron James as its MVP on Monday, The Plain Dealer of Cleveland and The Associated Press have reported, citing unnamed sources.
A day before the Cleveland Cavaliers begin their second-round series against the Atlanta Hawks, the league will anoint James, 24.
The announcement will be made at James' alma mater, St. Vincent-St. Mary High School in Akron, Ohio, the reports said. The Cavaliers called a news conference for 4 p.m. ET but didn't specify the nature of the event. ESPNEWS will carry the Cavaliers' news conference, expected to announce LeBron James as the NBA's MVP, at 4 p.m. ET
His Cavaliers teammates were expected to attend.
James, whose Cavaliers swept the Detroit Pistons in the first round of the playoffs, averaged 28.4 points, 7.6 rebounds and 7.2 assists during the regular season, his sixth in the NBA, in which Cleveland won a team-record 66 games and earned the top overall seed in the playoffs.
James' coach, Mike Brown, also was honored by the NBA last month as its coach of the year. Since the ABA/NBA merger, it is only the fourth time the MVP and coach of the year came from the same team that also finished with the league's best record. The last time it happened was 2004-05 (Mike D'Antoni coach, Steve Nash MVP, Phoenix Suns), but in the group of four, only the 1995-96 Chicago Bulls, who won 72 games, won the championship.
The Cavs host Atlanta on Tuesday after the Hawks finished off the Miami Heat in Game 7 of their first-round series Sunday.
James, who will become the first Cavaliers player to win the award, finished second in voting for defensive player of the year.
At 24 years, 106 days, he will be the youngest player to win the award since Moses Malone (24 years, 16 days) in 1978-79. Wes Unseld was 23 when he won it in 1968-69.
Focused from the start of the 2008-09 season, the 6-foot-8, 250-pound James sharpened his magnificent skills this season.
He started a career-high 81 games and set personal bests in field-goal (49) and free-throw (79) percentages. James became just the second player to post five straight seasons of at least 27 points, six rebounds and six assists. The other is Oscar Robertson, whose well-rounded game is the one James' is most often compared.
James was in a three-way battle all season with Los Angeles Lakers star Kobe Bryant and Miami's Dwyane Wade for MVP honors. The trio -- teammates last summer on the U.S. Olympic team that won gold -- seemed to upstage each other on a nightly basis.
It's not a surprise that the loyal James would select his high school for the ceremony. It's where he won three state basketball championships and where he burst onto the national scene, becoming a cover subject for Sports Illustrated as a 17-year-old. He announced his intention to skip college in the Fighting Irish's quaint gym and recently filmed a "60 Minutes" interview there.

2009 NBA Awards

the following are different articles dealing with the nba awards race from espn, cbssports, and si. i thought you would like to have all in one article so it would be easier to read. i agree with most of them: i have LeBron as MVP, Mike Brown as Coach of the Year, Danny Granger as Most Improved, D. Howard as Def. MVP, OJ Mayo as Rookie of the year, I also have a new award...... Biggest Disappointment of the Year: GREG ODEN! What do you think?????????




www.espn.com's NBA mvp votes 18 total votes from 18 diff. sports writers at espn. As you can tell only one idiot voted against LeBron for 1st place........ Jon Barry!! Maybe that is why he didn't last in the league very long. DUH!!!!!!


The tally
1. LeBron James: 89 points (17 first-place votes, 1 second)

2. Dwyane Wade: 62 points (1 first-place vote, 8 second, 7 third, 2 fourth)

3. Kobe Bryant: 53 points (8 second-place votes, 5 third, 1 fourth, 4 fifth)

4. Dwight Howard: 31 points (1 second-place vote, 2 third, 10 fourth, 1 fifth)

5. Chris Paul: 22 points (3 third-place votes, 3 fourth, 7 fifth)

6. Chauncey Billups: 8 points (1 third-place vote, 1 fourth, 3 fifth)

7. Paul Pierce: 3 points (1 fourth-place vote, 1 fifth)

8. Tony Parker: 2 points (2 fifth-place votes)





NBA Awards picked by www.si.com Ian Thomsen and Chris Mannix

MOST VALUABLE PLAYER
Ian Thomsen
LeBron James
FORWARD
PPG RPG APG SPG
28.4 7.6 7.2 1.69
2. Kobe Bryant, G, Lakers
3. Dwyane Wade, G, Heat
4. Chris Paul, G, Hornets
5. Dwight Howard, C, Magic
To think that LeBron has yet to peak. At 24, he has led the Cavs to the league's best record and an improvement of at least 21 victories while accumulating the numbers of a modern-day Oscar Robertson. Bryant edges Wade for second because nothing in the regular season is more valuable than leading a team into championship contention. Which does not diminish the accomplishments of Wade, who is the reason Miami is back in the playoffs after its 67-loss season in 2007-08.
Chris Mannix
LeBron James
FORWARD
PPG RPG APG SPG
28.4 7.6 7.2 1.69
2. Kobe Bryant, G, Lakers
3. Dwyane Wade, G, Heat
4. Chris Paul, G, Hornets
5. Dwight Howard, C, Magic
In addition to his overwhelming offensive play, James has developed Tayshaun Prince-like defensive skills (if he's within 30 feet of the ball when a fast break starts, he's a threat to block a shot) and a Steve Nash-like ability to raise his teammates' games. The truly frightening fact is that the six-year veteran is far from a finished product. With some improvements in his on-the-ball defense and post game, James could be the runaway winner of this award for the next five years.

ROOKIE OF THE YEAR
Ian Thomsen
Derrick Rose
GUARD
PPG RPG APG FG%
16.8 3.9 6.3 47.5
2. Brook Lopez, C, Nets
3. O.J. Mayo, G, Grizzlies
Not only does Rose promise to eventually join Chris Paul and Deron Williams among the top point guards in the league, but he also showed instant leadership of a Bulls franchise that had been seeking an elite star since Michael Jordan. The Nets have their center for the next decade in Lopez, a huge steal with the No. 10 pick. Mayo holds on for the bronze despite a second-half sprint to the finish by Oklahoma City's Russell Westbrook.
Chris Mannix
Derrick Rose
GUARD
PPG RPG APG FG%
16.8 3.9 6.3 47.5
2. O.J. Mayo, G, Grizzlies
3. Brook Lopez, C, Nets
I had Mayo on top most of the season, but his swoon in March combined with Rose's leading the red-hot Bulls into the playoffs clinched it for the Chicago point guard. Manning the NBA's most complex position like a 10-year vet, Rose has been consistent from start (18.9 points, 6.1 assists in November) to finish (19.0 points, 6.8 assists in April). Mayo may still turn out to be a star, but Rose is poised to join the elite class of point guards next season.

COACH OF THE YEAR
Ian Thomsen
Mike Brown
WINS LOSES
66 15
2. Rick Adelman, Rockets
3. Erik Spoelstra, Heat
A dozen others could be recognized but no one is more deserving than Brown, who has emphasized defense while building a team around LeBron that resembles the dynamic Phil Jackson created in Chicago several years ago. Adelman started the year developing a half-court offense through Tracy McGrady and finished it winning with two young, up-tempo point guards (Aaron Brooks and Kyle Lowry) and a defense anchored by Shane Battier, Ron Artest and Luis Scola. Spoelstra put together the league's biggest one-year improvement as a rookie coach.
Chris Mannix
Stan Van Gundy
WINS LOSES
58 23
2. Mike Brown, Cavaliers
3. Nate McMillan, Trail Blazers
You could make a case for the coach who has taken his team from rags to riches (Spoelstra); the coach who has led his young team to the brink of hosting a first-round playoff series (McMillan); the coach whose team has dominated all season (Brown); or a few other strong candidates. But Van Gundy gets my vote for transitioning from one starting point guard (Jameer Nelson) to another (Rafer Alston) without skipping a beat, for developing spindly Rashard Lewis into an All-Star power forward and for molding a team of fourth-quarter killers (51-1 when leading with five minutes left).

SIXTH MAN AWARD
Ian Thomsen
Jason Terry
GUARD
PPG APG FG% FT%
19.5 3.4 46.1 88.0
2. Nate Robinson, G, Knicks
3. Chris Andersen, F-C, Nuggets
Terry, a starter most of his career, has a higher scoring average than any of the last 18 Sixth Man winners. He has been a steady presence for playoff-bound Dallas. Robinson (16.6 points in 62 games as a sub) had several big performances for the Knicks. Andersen (2.46 blocks) provided crucial production in limited minutes.
Chris Mannix
Jason Terry
GUARD
PPG APG FG% FT%
19.5 3.4 46.1 88.0
2. Nate Robinson, G, Knicks
3. Travis Outlaw, F, Trail Blazers
Terry is a valuable contributor on a playoff team who always seems to be operating under control. Robinson is also an explosive scorer; that's the good. The bad is that he is reckless with the ball, makes as many boneheaded plays as he does spectacular ones and often has looked to be one turnover away from being throttled by his coach. Advantage, Terry.

MOST IMPROVED PLAYER
Ian Thomsen
Danny Granger
FORWARD
PPG RPG BPG 3PG%
25.7 5.0 1.42 40.0
2. Devin Harris, G, Nets
3. Kevin Durant, F, Thunder
Granger does a lot of scoring and a good deal of everything else for the Pacers, who were forced to rely entirely on him because of a near-year-long knee injury to Mike Dunleavy. Harris made the most of the opportunities drawn up for him by coach Lawrence Frank to join Granger as a first-time All-Star. Durant turned from an erratic rookie into a budding star who looks like he'll be dominant sooner than later.
Chris Mannix
Devin Harris
GUARD
PPG APG SPG FT%
21.3 6.9 1.65 82.0
2. Paul Millsap, F, Jazz
3. David Lee, F, Knicks
I don't understand some voters. Kevin Durant? He was the No. 2 pick in the draft last season. Danny Granger? He was already nearly a 20-point-per-game scorer and good enough to warrant a $60 million contract in the offseason. This award belongs to a player who burst onto the scene to become a star. No player fits that description better than Harris, who improved his scoring average an NBA-best 6.5 points.

DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE YEAR
Ian Thomsen
Dwight Howard
CENTER
DRPG BPG SPG MPG
9.6 2.92 .97 35.9
2. LeBron James, F, Cavaliers
3. Kevin Garnett, F, Celtics
Known as a finesse three-point team, the Magic rank No. 3 in field-goal defense because Howard controls the defensive boards and the paint. James has committed to defending, which is a big reason why the Cavs rank in the top two in scoring and shooting defense. Though KG sat for most of the final two months, his fingerprints are all over Boston's NBA-leading field-goal defense.
Chris Mannix
Dwight Howard
CENTER
DRPG BPG SPG MPG
9.6 2.92 .97 35.9
2. Kevin Garnett, F, Celtics
3. Kobe Bryant, G, LA Lakers
As tempted as I was to vote for Shane Battier, Ron Artest or Bryant, it's impossible to overlook Howard's accomplishments for the Magic, who have become a top defensive team. Howard is set to join Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Bill Walton, Hakeem Olajuwon and Ben Wallace as the only players to lead the NBA in rebounding and blocked shots.

ALL-NBA TEAMS
First Team
Ian Thomsen
Kobe Bryant
GUARD
PPG RPG APG SPG
26.8 5.2 4.9 1.46

Dwyane Wade
GUARD
PPG RPG APG SPG
30.2 5.0 7.5 2.19

LeBron James
FORWARD
PPG RPG APG SPG
28.4 7.6 7.2 1.69

Paul Pierce
FORWARD
PPG RPG APG FG%
20.5 5.6 3.6 45.7

Dwight Howard
CENTER
PPG RPG BPG FG%
20.7 13.9 2.92 57.4


Chris Mannix
Kobe Bryant
GUARD
PPG RPG APG SPG
26.8 5.2 4.9 1.46

Dwyane Wade
GUARD
PPG RPG APG SPG
30.2 5.0 7.5 2.19

LeBron James
FORWARD
PPG RPG APG SPG
28.4 7.6 7.2 1.69

Tim Duncan
FORWARD
PPG RPG APG BPG
19.3 10.6 3.5 1.69

Dwight Howard
CENTER
PPG RPG BPG FG%
20.7 13.9 2.92 57.4



Second Team
G Chris Paul, Hornets
G Brandon Roy, Trail Blazers
F Tim Duncan, Spurs
F Pau Gasol, Lakers
C Yao Ming, Rockets
G Chris Paul, Hornets
G Brandon Roy, Trail Blazers
F Paul Pierce, Celtics
F Dirk Nowitzki, Mavericks
C Yao Ming, Rockets

Third Team
G Tony Parker, Spurs
G Deron Williams, Jazz
F Dirk Nowitzki, Mavericks
F Chris Bosh, Raptors
C Shaquille O'Neal, Suns
Pierce is a first-teamer because of his leadership in Garnett's absence. Gasol stepped into Andrew Bynum's role at midseason while posting terrific numbers. Roy is a shadow MVP as the league's least-recognized fourth-quarter star. Bosh is to Toronto as Garnett was recently to Minnesota, a proud star who holds up his end regardless of others' failings. The most difficult omissions were Joe Johnson (nosed out by Parker) and KG (who missed too many games).
G Tony Parker, Spurs
G Deron Williams, Jazz
F Kevin Garnett, Celtics
F Pau Gasol, Lakers
C Shaquille O'Neal, Suns
Wade's season was enough to bump Paul from the first team. Williams, who was slowed by an ankle injury early in the season, came on strong in the second half to edge Joe Johnson on the third team. Shaq returns to the All-NBA team thanks to his best season in three years. There was no room for New Orleans forward David West, among others. Along with Paul, West has kept the injury-plagued Hornets viable in the Western Conference.





articles on nba awards
ken berger www.cbssports.com
Awards: By royal decree, King James ends MVP debate

It's the argument that never ends. What does MVP mean? It's time to stop it. It's not that hard.
Stop trying to dissect, redefine, interpret and reinterpret what should be the simplest award in any sport. Don't get caught up in trivial matters such as the meaning of words. The ultimate team award in any sport is the championship trophy. It goes to whichever team wins the championship -- the team that had the best season. And so the greatest individual honor in any sport should be decided the same way. It should go to the player who had the best season.
You can try to parse the meaning of the award by offering whatever spin you like on the meaning of the word "valuable." But that is the ultimate subjective judgment. Year-end awards are always subjective by nature, but that doesn't mean I have to decide them based on hypotheticals. How do we know how good Cleveland would be without LeBron as compared to, say, how good the Heat would be without Dwyane Wade, the Magic would be without Dwight Howard, or the Thunder would be without Kevin Durant, for crying out loud? That's not the point. The point is, how good were these teams with their best player?
So, enough. The MVP trophy is the greatest individual honor, and it goes to the individual player who had the best season.

Pretty simple. That's why the MVP ballot I'm submitting to the NBA by 3 p.m. ET Thursday looks like this:

1. LeBron James
2. Dwyane Wade
3. Kobe Bryant
4. Chris Paul
5. Dwight Howard

LeBron was the most dominant force in the game by any measure -- individual statistics, team success and how those two were related. He imposed his will more than any other player on all aspects of the game -– halfcourt offense, halfcourt defense and transition. His team had the best record in the league, largely because of him. You can carve up the statistics of my top three -- James, Wade and Bryant -- any way you like. They're comparable in most significant areas and divergent in every way you'd expect. (James, a small forward, was a better rebounder. Bryant, the perimeter assassin, was the best 3-point shooter. Wade, a great off-ball defender, was second only to Paul in steals.) Among them, the Big Three accounted for seven of the 10 50-point games in the league this season –- three apiece for James and Wade, one for Kobe. And Kobe's was the most memorable, the Roger Maris (61) he dropped at Madison Square Garden in February.
So with such closely matched statistical accomplishments, what should the tipping point be? It's a question I posed to all three of my finalists -- or was present when someone else posed it -- at one point or another this season. LeBron had the best answer.
"No idea," he said. "I'm glad I'm not on the board of selecting the MVP. There's a lot of MVP candidates out there -- myself and Kobe and Dwyane and Dwight and Chris Paul. There's a lot of guys. For me as an individual, I just try to put our team in position to win ballgames every time we go out there. And that's all I can do."
And that's what he did, better than anyone else in the NBA. He did it with his offense, his passing, his defense -- both on and off the ball -- and with his leadership, charisma, speed and brute force. I don't know how else to explain it, other than to say he was the best player in the league this season, and I defy anyone to tell me otherwise.

Here's the rest of my awards ballot for 2008-09:

Rookie of the Year
1. Derrick Rose, Bulls
2. O.J. Mayo, Grizzlies
3. Brook Lopez, Nets

Rose had the biggest impact of any rookie, starting at point guard from Day 1 and leading his team to the playoffs. Not only that, he kept the Bulls on course after a deadline trade that changed the offensive and locker room dynamics.
Russell Westbrook came on around midseason, but Mayo had the more consistent year, shot a higher percentage (overall and on threes), and toiled in just as much obscurity. I gave Lopez the slight edge over Minnesota's Kevin Love because he started more games, shot a higher percentage, and blocked more shots.

Coach of the Year
1. Rick Adelman, Rockets
2. Stan Van Gundy, Magic
3. George Karl, Nuggets

The Rockets started the season without Shane Battier, finished it without Tracy McGrady and made the whole Ron Artest thing work. If that doesn't earn you Coach of the Year honors, tell me what does.
Van Gundy got a talented, sometimes nonchalant group to focus on the details -- and didn't panic when Jameer Nelson went down. The Spurs' Gregg Popovich deserves plenty of consideration, especially considering the injuries to Tim Duncan and Manu Ginobili and the way the coach seamlessly integrated Matt Bonner, Roger Mason, Ime Udoka and rookie George Hill into the most startlingly efficient -- if banged-up -- operation in the league. But my third vote goes to Karl, who had his hands full with Carmelo Anthony and J.R. Smith and who provided the most important part of the following equation: great point guard + great coach = team success.

Defensive Player of the Year
1. Dwight Howard, Magic
2. LeBron James, Cavaliers
3. Dwyane Wade, Heat

When you lead the league in rebounds and blocks, as Howard did, you have pretty much staked your claim to this award.
Battier should be on this list every year except this one; he missed too many games. Same for Kevin Garnett. So that opened my mind to some out-of-the-box thinking. For an award usually dominated by specialists, I'm going with great all-around players for my other two picks. According to 82games.com, LeBron led all the top contenders in defensive efficiency; when he was on the floor, the Cavs gave up 7.3 fewer points per 100 possessions than when he wasn't. Wade was the only player in the league with at least 100 blocks and 100 steals and became the first player 6-4 or shorter to record 100 blocks in a season.


Sixth Man Award
1. Jason Terry, Mavericks
2. Travis Outlaw, Trail Blazers
3. J.R. Smith, Nuggets

It's hard to average 20 points a game in the NBA; even harder when you come off the bench. Thus Terry (19.5 ppg) gets the nod.
You can't leave a member of the most productive bench in the league off your sixth-man ballot; thus, Portland's Outlaw slides into the two hole. Smith doesn't like coming off the bench in Denver, but there's no debating he's good at it. Smith had 18 20-point games, and sealed his status as a top sixth man with 45 Tuesday night against Sacramento. His play has been one of the biggest reasons the Chauncey Billups trade paid such lofty dividends.

Most Improved
1. Devin Harris, Nets
2. Danny Granger, Pacers
3. Paul Millsap, Jazz

If I'd been deciding this at the All-Star break, my first vote would've gone to Chris Duhon, who went from being a pariah in Chicago to a capable floor general in New York. But Duhon's nagging injuries and the dramatic drop in his production knocked him out of my top three.
The change of scenery and increased role in New Jersey certainly agreed with Harris, who increased his averages in all the major categories and earned his first All-Star nod. It's scary to contemplate where the Mavericks would be if they hadn't traded him.
Granger became the first player in NBA history to increase his scoring average by five or more points in three successive seasons. Without Millsap, the Jazz would've been dead in the water when Carlos Boozer went down.
One caveat: Nene deserves a nod here, considering he came back from testicular cancer and increased his scoring average (5.3 to 14.6) and rebounding average (5.4 to 7.8). But those numbers aren't dramatically higher than his averages two years ago (12.2 ppg and 7.0 rpg), so it's hard to justify a most-improved vote. If the NBA still awarded Comeback Player of the Year, Nene would've gotten my vote.