San Antonio Spurs general manager R.C. Buford won NBA Executive of the Year on Wednesday. Should he have? Unlike the other postseason awards, Executive of the Year is voted on by fellow executives, not the media. So it’s difficult to question the validity of the winner when he has been chosen by his peers. Still … [Read more…]
I caught some grief from all corners today after news came out that I was the only voter among 125 who had Blake Griffin second, behind Kevin Durant and ahead of LeBron James, in the NBA’s Most Valuable Player voting. Quite frankly, I am stunned I was the only one. Doc Rivers made the case in April that Griffin was the better No. 2 candidate, and that was something I decided, too, over the final two months of the season — a time
No surprise that Kevin Durant is the NBA’s MVP. Should we be surprised that he was not unanimous? That was a question I posed in the latter editions of the MVP rankings I published every Wednesday during the regular season, and in one of the final versions I wrote that some members of the South Florida media would likely vote for LeBron James, denying Durant a unanimous vote. Turns out that six first-place votes were cast for James — but none from South
The nice thing about the voting for NBA awards this season is that we don’t always have to concentrate on the winner, we can concentrate on the voters at times, too. Like when the news of who won is not all that unexpected. The most important thing to know is that Michael Carter-Williams of the Philadelphia 76ers won the award with 104 of 124 first-place votes, including mine. Victor Oladipo of the Orlando Magic was second, picking up 16 first-place votes; and Trey
Phoenix Suns point guard Goran Dragic, once [presumably] hailed as Steve Nash’s heir-apparent, made great strides this year, leading his team to 48-34 record—a 23-game improvement from 2012-13, just missing the final playoff spot in the Western Conference. His play was markedly better, improving his scoring from a career average of 9.5 points to 20.3 this year. That’s an impressive amount of growth. His play earned him the NBA Most Improved Player Award. Our own Chris Sheridan broke down Dragic’s performance and
NEW YORK – Phoenix’s Goran Dragic, who helped lead the Suns to a 23-win improvement while establishing career highs in scoring and field goal percentage, is the winner of the 2013-14 Kia NBA Most Improved Player Award, the NBA announced today. Dragic received 408 of a possible 1,134 points, including 65 first-place votes, from a panel of 126 sportswriters and broadcasters throughout the United States and Canada. Lance Stephenson of the Indiana Pacers (158 points, 13 first-place votes) and Anthony Davis of
NEW YORK – The San Antonio Spurs’ Gregg Popovich is the recipient of the Red Auerbach Trophy as the 2013-14 NBA Coach of the Year, the NBA announced today. Popovich’s Spurs posted the league’s best record at 62-20 (.756), which provides them with homecourt advantage throughout the postseason. [Read more…]
NEW YORK – Chicago Bulls center Joakim Noah, the centerpiece of a defense which held opponents to a league-low 91.8 ppg, is the recipient of the 2013-14 Kia NBA Defensive Player of the Year Award, the NBA announced today. Noah becomes the first Bulls player since Michael Jordan in 1987-88 to earn the honor. Noah received 555 of a possible 1,125 points, including 100 first-place votes, from a panel of 125 sportswriters and broadcasters throughout the United States and Canada. Indiana’s Roy Hibbert (166