Of all the awards given out in pro sports, the NBA’s Most Improved Player is perhaps the most arbitrary. (We won’t include hockey’s Lady Byng Trophy for sportsmanship.) There’s no single stat that indicates how much a player has improved from one season to the next. And why has that player improved? Is it just from increased playing time, or are there other factors involved? There’s just a whole mess of gray area involved. [Read more…]
There are less than three weeks left in the NBA season. Three weeks. And I’m having a breakdown. It’s up to me to rank the Most Improved Players in the league this season, but I might as well be tasked with coming up with the goofiest Lopez brother, the dumbest “Real World” contestant, or the craziest old lady on “The View.” Here’s the thing: I just can’t decide which of the candidates have risen above the rest. There are so many players
Back in November, the Spurs sat out their best players (earning a fine from the league) and almost won in Miami. Last night, the Heat turned the tables. [Read more…]
An incredible fourth-quarter comeback led by Dirk Nowitzki (35 PTS, 7 REB) kept the Mavericks’ playoff dream alive. He hit 14 of 17 shots including five triples, and scored the final eight points of a 15-1 closing run. [Read more…]
Here’s a little something LeBron James may not have wanted Taj Gibson to share with the rest of the world: he tried to recruit the Chicago Bulls power forward during the summer to join forces with the Miami Heat. This was likely nothing but playful chatter between the two players in reality, given the amount of money Gibson was going to command – he was given a four-year, $38 million contract at the start of the season. That’s just too rich
If you know the difference between a basketball and a bocce ball, you know that upstart Florida Gulf Coast has come out of absolutely nowhere to capture the nation’s attention and become the first 15-seed in NCAA history to advance to the Sweet 16. What does this have to do with the Most Improved Player Rankings? Well, FGCU coach Andy Enfield called his team “the most improved team in the nation.” You know that caught our attention. That. of course, and
It’s time for Week 3 of the Greatest Fake Tournament in the history of sports columns. Let’s get right to the games, with Gus Johnson and Bill Raftery on the call. GUS JOHNSON: Welcome back to Most Improved Player Madness. I’m Gus Johnson alongside Bill Raftery, and Bill, It’s been a thrilling tournament so far, and it has left our readers completely speechless. They can’t even click on the link because of all of the spontaneous excitement. I’m so happy I
It’s Week 2 of possibly the most ill-conceived bracket columns in sports history — the prelude, not the rankings. Last week, we introduced you to Most Improved Player Madness with a special three-page blowout edition of the Rankings. I sense a lot of excitement out there about Week 2. So without further adieu, we present to you the Most Improved Sweet 16! Let it fill your senses with indescribable excitement and joy! [Read more…]