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Apr 05

End of Year Awards: Need Your Help!

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By Mike Rice

Every year at this time, announcers and beat writers of all 30 NBA teams select individual NBA award winners for the following categories:

1. Coach of the Year
2. Rookie of the Year
3. Most Improved Player
4. Defensive Player of the Year
5. Sixth Man
6. Most Valuable Player
7. All – NBA Teams

I have not filled out my ballot yet because I am not sure of some of what I feel and believe. What I need is a little help from you guys – who all know a lot about the Trail Blazers and the NBA. So I am asking for you to send me your thoughts on who should win the award in these difficult categories. I will give you my thoughts on who’s in the running for each award, but if you have someone you think is more deserving – fire away.

Let’s start with Coach of the Year.

Scotty Brooks came out of nowhere to win the award for his great season with Oklahoma City last year. This year the coaches that have helped their teams the most are Nate McMillan, Tom Thibodeau of the Bulls, Doug Collins of the 76ers, Phil Jackson of the Lakers, Gregg Popovich of the Spurs and Rick Carlisle of the Mavericks. Maybe you have someone you feel also belongs on the list, but who worked their magic the best? Let me know.

Next is Rookie of the Year.

At the start of the year John Wall got a lot of attention. I know Mike Barrett and Antonio Harvey picked him at the start of the year. Others who have had good rookie season are DeMarcus Cousins of Sacramento, Landry Fields of the Knicks, Gary Neal of San Antonio and lastly Blake Griffin of the Clippers. Do you have a favorite? Let me know.

The next award is for Most Improved Player.

Last year Aaron Brooks got it and then was traded by Houston. This year you should think about Kevin Love of the Timberwolves, Dorell Wright of Golden State, Russell Westbrook of the Thunder, DeMar Derozan of the Raptors, Danilo Gallinari of the Knicks/Nuggets, Serge Ibaka of the Thunder and, of course, LaMarcus Aldridge of the Blazers.

Defensive Player of the Year.

Dwight Howard of Orlando has won it the past two years. Is there anyone you believe helps more on the defensive end than him? Serge Ibaka of the Thunder, JaVale McGee of the Wizards, Rajon Rondo of the Celtics – all have helped their teams this year on the defensive end.

Sixth Man of the Year.

Jamal Crawford of the Hawks scored enough for the Hawks last year to win it. I guess Lamar Odom has come off the bench enough to qualify – he did the same thing for the USA Team. Others you should think about are Jason Terry of Dallas, ‘Sweet’ Lou Williams of the 76ers, James Harden of the Thunder, Glenn Davis of the Celtics and Rudy Fernandez of the Blazers.

Finally, there is the Most Valuable Player.

I have always looked at this award as the player who has helped his team become a big winner. A player who, if he missed the season, his team would probably not be nearly as good. Any suggestions?

The All-NBA team has three tiers: first team, second team and third team. I will let you help me out with this one as well. Just give me 15 names of people who are the best in the league and what order you rank them.

Now please HELP ME FILL OUT MY BALLOT! I know it’s tough work, but I believe in you!

Previous Story: A Day that Couldn’t Have Gotten Any Better for Yours Truly

Next Story: My 2011 Mock Draft

18 Comments

one fro coach id say doug collins or gregg popvich third nate, not being a hater but that one is a real toss up, an the bulls coach so ouch,
rookie of the year wil most likely go to griffin wall is good but still dont say he will get it
most improved westbrook then la record beats ou the tie for me
ill give mcgee the defense player of the year i guess otu fo those threeguys
6th man i love rudy but lamar will get that i see
and mvp even tho i dotn see rose as the best player in the league but record wise i guess rose

by jamie (guy) on 4/5/2011 8:28 PM
Thanks for giving us a voice, Mike! Here are my suggestions:
COY: Tom T
ROY: Blake G
MIP: LaMarcus A
DPOY: Dwight H
6th Man: Lamar O
MVP: Derrick R

by Storyteller on 4/5/2011 8:54 PM
Oh I am bad at this. Now, I'll give my awards, not who I think will win them. If I was the decider of who got what, this is what I'd choose.

Coach of the Year - Doug Collins. I would pick Tom T, but I think that Doug Collins is taking an awful team to the playoffs and making them good. That team didn't change much from last season, and is completely flip flopped. I think they'll give the Celtics some troubles, and make noise. But seriously, without Doug Collins that team is down in the bottom.

Rookie of the Year - DeMarcus Cousins. I would pick Blake Griffin, if I felt he was a rookie. I'm on the bandwagon that says you have to be in your first year after being drafted to get this award. I like John Wall, but the road record concerns me a bit. I feel that Sacromento is a decent team when they are healthy with DeMarcus Cousins and Tyreke Evans playing.

Most Improved - LaMarcus Aldridge. Most players enter a new role that helps them a lot. They are normally placed into that role by a coach. LaMarcus put him in this new role. He added a whole new weapon to his arsenal and took the new role rather than having it come to him. We would be looking at a new, worse Blazer roster if LMA didn't improved.

Defense Player - Dwight Howard. Let's put it this way, he is the Magic. The Magic would be Golden State but worse without Howard. He sets the defensive tone, and takes on everyone that tries to attack the middle. He doesn't earn it because of blocks, he earns it because he goes after everything and stops everyone from attacking his basket.

6th Man - taking a loop here. I think James Harden. I like Harden a lot, which is strange because I can't stand the Thunder and his beard makes me personally want to shave it off if he doesn't, but this guys good. With the trade, he took on the 3rd scoring option. I'd pick Jason Terry and Lamar Odom but they really should be starting (well Lamar started too many for me to pick him). But Harden works well off the bench and there really is no room for him in the starting lineup like there is for J.Terry and L.Odom.

MvP - Dwight Howard. He's having a BEAST of a season. Rose is good, but he takes around 20 shots a game and a lot of the time makes about only 6 of them. I don't even think Rose is the best point guard. He doesn't pass the ball well for how often he controls it and his team is far more stacked than Howards. As I said earlier, Howard is the Magic, and he's the reason that team is still considered a contender. You take Rose off of the Bulls, they're still a top 5 team in the East. You take Howard off the Magic, they're about a 20 win team.

by Herr on 4/5/2011 11:23 PM
It would be hard to go against Storytellers picks. He runs the best website in the universe on such things

COY: Tom T
ROY: Blake G
MIP: LaMarcus A, Westbrook was good last year
DPOY: Dwight H
6th Man: Lamar O
MVP: Derrick R Or Kevin Durant.

by Hg on 4/6/2011 6:57 AM
COY: George Karl
ROY: Griffin
MIP:Love
DPOY:Howard
6th Man: Lamar Odom
MVP: Kevin Durant

by coreymjr on 4/6/2011 8:42 AM
MVP: Derrick Rose. Hands down. Going into the year, Chicago was thought to be the 4th best team in the East, at best, yet he has them in line to have the best overall record in the league.

COY: Greg Poppovich. Many thought this would be just another year in the Spurs decline, but he changed his philosophy and decided to play through his guards and pick up the pace. Now they are owners of the best record in the league.

DPOY. Dwight Howard

MIP: LaMarcus Aldridge. His game from this year compared to last year is like comparing night and day. A totally different player, different mentality. He has carried us this year.

6th Man: LaMar Odom

by DHawes22 on 4/6/2011 10:50 AM
COY: McMillan - Cmon you've gotta vote if your a fan ! and hes done a superb job improvising to make up for the oden and williams injuries

MVP: D-Rose

R.O.Y: Blake

DPOY : Gerald "Crash" Wallace !

MIP : Obviously Your Favorite Big Man And Mine LaMarcus "L-Train" Aldridge

6th Man : i would say B-Roy hes getting back into his offensive rythm , something we need as the season comes to a close

All-Nba You Say ?

Lamarcus Aldridge
Gerald Wallace
Nicola' Batum !
LeBrick James
Dwayne Wade
Dwight Howard
Lamar Odom
Andre Miller
Manu Ginobli
Steve Nash
Kevin Martin
Rudy Fernandez
Deron Williams
Amare' Stoudamire
Danilo Gallinari

by BlazerFan#24 on 4/6/2011 12:24 PM
MVP and DPOY: Dwight Howard. I know, I know, Derrick Rose is the sexy pick, but Dwight has, once again, lead his team to a top 4 seeding in the EC with less help than any other player on a truly elite team.

MIP: LaMarcus Aldridge. Most of the other candidates only got more minutes and a bigger role because another player was traded (Kevin Love), or have simply experienced natural progression (Russell Westbrook). LMA is where he is today because of the work he put in this offseason getting stronger and better at taking the rock inside more. He has truly revolutionized his game and deserves recognition for it.

COY: George Karl

ROY: Blake Griffin

Sixth Man: LaMar Odom. I hate the Lakers, but Odom is the best player in the league who isn't starting.

All NBA (in order)
First team:
LeBron James
Dwight Howard
Dawyne Wade
Deron Williams
LaMarcus Aldridge
Second Team:
Rajon Rondo
Manu Ginobili
Kevin Durant
Pau Gasol
Andrew Bynum
Third Team:
Chris Paul
Steve Nash (Ray Allen if you need a real SG)
Paul Pierce
Dirk Nowitzki
Tim Duncan

by TheDude on 4/6/2011 12:43 PM
okay, here's my take:

COY: Tom Thibodeau. he turned the bulls into a serious threat, while adding some new faces and battling through some injuries.

ROY: Landry Fields. no other rookie has done more to complete his team (yeah, like i'm NOT going to vote for the stanford guy!). seriously though, Grifin is probably the consensus favorite, but i'm not buying into the hype.

MIP: LaMarcus Aldridge. not only did his role change, but the entire offense changed and was built around him and he answered the call. let's not forget that he earned western conference player of the month honors for february and the conference player of the week twice.

DPOY: Serge Ibaka. instinct says give this to Howard, but i just can't help but wonder where the thunder would be without Ibaka inside. he leads the league in blocks while averaging just 27 minutes on the floor.

6TH MAN: Glenn Davis. i just think the celtics would have been much less impressive without their big baby.

MVP: Derrick Rose. who cares if it's the trendy pick; he's earned it. he's also a huge contributing factor as to why his coach should be named COY.

FIRST TEAM: Derrick Rose, Chris Paul, Kevin Durant, LeBron James, LaMarcus Aldridge.

SECOND TEAM: Dwayne Wade, Russell Westbrook, Kobe Bryant, Amar'e Stoudamire, Dwight Howard.

THIRD TEAM: Rajon Rondo, Andre Iguodala, Carmelo Anthony, Kevin Garnett, Dirk Nowitski.

HONORABLE MENTION: Kevin Love, D.J. Augustin, Pau Gasol, Paul Pierce, Nene, Demar DeRozen, Joe Johnson, Gerald Wallace, Manu Ginobli, Jamal Crawford.

~ Kassandra

by Kassandra on 4/6/2011 1:03 PM
1. Tom Thibodeau
2. Blake Griffin
3. LaMarcus Aldridge
4. Dwight Howard
5. LaMar Odom
6. Derick Rose
7. First Team: Derick Rose, Kevin Durant, LeBron James, Lamarcus Aldridge, Dwight Howard.

Second Team: Russell Westbrook, Kobe Bryant, Carmelo Anthony, Amare Stoudemire, Nene.

by Nick Stockton on 4/6/2011 2:02 PM
If I were voting, it would look like this:

Coach of the Year: Tom Thibodeau. He has lead his team to the top of the East despite key injuries throughout the season, all in his first season in Chi-town. Honorable mention: Nate McMillan, George Karl.

Rookie of the Year: Blake Griffin. I'm not a fan of the media hype or of the dunk contest results, but people in LA are actually going to Clipper games. What other rookie could accomplish that? Honorable mention: Gary Neal, John Wall.

Most Improved Player: LaMarcus Aldridge. We've all witnessed his incredible transformation this season, and I figure this would help to rectify his recent All Star snubbing. Honorable mention: Derrick Rose, Kevin Love.

Defensive Player of the Year: Dwight Howard. To me, no one else even comes close. This will be his third straight year earning this award, a feat that has not been achieved since the award's inception in 1982. Honorable mention: Tyson Chandler, Serge Ibaka.

Sixth Man of the Year: Lamar Odom. I know he's started a lot of games and he's a Laker, but this is the obvious pick, and I can't see anyone else winning. Honorable mention: James Harden, Jason Terry.

Most Valuable Player: LeBron James. He's won the past two years, and his numbers are better than ever. If I had to choose one player from the entire league to build a franchise around based on this season's performance, it's LeBron. Honorable mention: Derrick Rose, Kevin Durant, Dwight Howard.

1st Team: Dwight Howard, Kevin Durant, LeBron James, Kobe Bryant, Derrick Rose.
2nd Team: Dirk Nowitski, Amar'e Stoudamire, LaMarcus Aldridge, Dwayne Wade, Deron Williams.
3rd Team: Kevin Garnett, Carmelo Anthony, Chris Paul, Rajon Rondo, Russell Westbrook.

by BlazerStache on 4/6/2011 2:48 PM
1. Coach of the Year- Tom Thibodeau- CHI
2. Rookie of the Year- Blake Griffin- LAC
3. Most Improved Player- Derrick Rose- CHI
4. Defensive Player of the Year- Dwight Howard- ORL
5. Sixth Man- Jason Terry- DAL
6. Most Valuable Player- LeBron James- MIA

1st team- Derrick Rose PG-CHI, Kobe Bryant SG-LAL, LeBron James SF-MIA, Amar'e Stoudemire PF-NY, Dwight Howard C-ORL

2nd team- Deron Williams PG-NJ, Dwayne Wade SG-MIA, Kevin Durant SF-OKC, Dirk Nowitzki PF-DAL, Pau Gasol C-LAL

3rd team- Russell Westbrook PG-OKC, Ray Allen SG-BOS, Ron Artest SF-LAL, Chris Bosh PF-MIA, Andrew Bynum C-LAL

by supereagle20 on 4/6/2011 5:54 PM
Mk,

CoY: Tom T. Bulls broek to 8th seed last year, and I do not recall them being mentioned as a strong team at all for the first couple weeks as "elite" let alone first couple months. He's made a team of above-average players (DRose is the only stellar player there, and that's more for his shooting than playmaking) number one in the East in the face of the new threats (Heat) and old and favored guard (Celtics).

RoY: John Wall. In truth I have nothing against Blake Griffin, but I feel he has a pretty big advantage over "freshman" thrown right into the league by having a year to see games courtside and hear strategy. He wasn't expected to carry the team on his shoulders immediately either, which Wall and Cousins were asked to do.

MiP: LaMarcus Aldridge. I love Westbrook, but as someone already posted above, LA had to revolutionize his gameplay, which is beyond hard. It might not show up as any incredible stats change, but taken as a whole I think it astronomical in improvement.

DPotY: Dwight Howard. Magic completely suck without him.

SM: James Harden. This guy is great at defense and offense, specially for a second year, and fun to watch.

MVP: Dwight Howard. Though I like D-Rose and the self-proclaimed King, both of those teams could at least function (ok, Heat not very well, but Wade and Bosh can do some damage) when their man is out. Magic fall apart completely and Herr is right that this team would be a bottom-feeder if not for Howard.

1st Team: Derrick Rose, Kobe Bryant, LeBron James, Kevin Durant, Dwight Howard.

2nd Team: Russell Westbrook, Dwayne Wade, LaMarcus Aldridge, Dirk Nowitzki, Amare Stoudemire.

3rd Team: Chris Paul, Rajon Rondo, Blake Griffin, Pau Gasol, Joahkim Noah.

by Symokoto on 4/6/2011 11:10 PM
Coy: Tom T.
ROY: Blake Griffin
MIP: LaMarcus
Defensive Player: Dwight Howard
Sixth Man: Jason Terry
MVP: Lebron James

1st: Dwayne Wade, Lebron James, Kobe Bryant, Dwight Howard, Derrick Rose

2nd: Kevin Durant, Dirk Nowitzki, Carmelo Anthony, Chris Paul, Rajon Rondo

3rd: Amare Stoudemire, LaMarcus Alderidge, Deron Williams, Paul Pierce, Manu Ginobli

by George Alikin on 4/7/2011 7:42 AM
COY: Thibodeau
ROY: Griffin
MIP: Lamarcus. Regardless of what Love has done statistically, LA picked up a team, recognized HE needed to change (not just be given more run by the coach), and helped his team WIN!
DPOY: Howard
6th Man: Odom. He's an amazing player off the bench, CONSISTENTLY
MVP: Rose. But Howard can certainly make a case.
15 Best Players: Lebron, Kobe, Dwight Howard, Durant, D-Wade, Rose, Dirk, Amar'e, Rondo, Blake, Westbrook, Ray Allen, D-Will, CP3, and Lamarcus

by SisillaRiann on 4/7/2011 7:44 AM
Collins, Griffin, Aldridge, Howard, Crawford, Durant---reluctantly. No Kobe, no James, no Wade, no Rose, no Marshmellow, no Amare, no Odom, no Love, no Dirk, no Westbrook, no any Laker!!!!!!

by fanatickathy on 4/8/2011 11:16 AM
COY: McMillan, or Thibodeau (Although i love Nate, i got to give it to Thibodeau)
ROY: Griffin, obviously
MIP: LA, without him where would the blazers be? on the outside looking in, sitting on the couch waiting for next season to start after these next 2 games
DPOY: Howard.
6th man: Odom, great player, must be great to have that waiting on the bench
MVP: Rose, Thibodeau has helped this 61-19 bulls team win, but w/out D. Rose, the Bulls would be at best 8th. and thats the east, which sucks.

1st team:
Rose, Wade, LeBron, Kevin Durant, Howard

2nd team:
Rondo, Nowitzki, Anthony, Paul, Bryant

3rd team:
Williams, Monta Ellis, Aldridge, Pierce, Stoudemire

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by Timothy James Folkman on 5/14/2011 12:17 PM