Defensive Player Of The Year: Draymond Green
Don’t get me wrong here Rudy Gobert and Kawhi had great seasons on the defensive end as well, but Draymond has been amazing this season. He’s had multiple game deciding defensive plays, but the triple double with 10 steals set him ahead in this race. 154 steals and 106 blocks in 76 games is insane. The last player to touch 150+ steals & 100+ blocks in a season was D Wade in 2009!
Most Improved Player Of The Year: Giannis Antetokounmpo
I was torn on this one. I usually go with with a lower tier player that finally shows serious growth in their game. Would have been nice to say this belongs to Javale Mcgee after Steve Kerr has made him a player of value to the best team in the league, but Giannis went from being good to debatable top 5. 1st player in history to finish top 20 in 5 different stats. Runner up to me ended up being Nikola Jokic.
6th Man Of The Year: Andre Iguodala
My first pick was Eric Gordon who has had a great season, but outside of shooting what does he really add to the Rockets? We've seen others win this award solely off being instant offense off the bench but Iggy is a 2 way threat. This became a case of numbers not telling the whole story. Iggy is an instant spark to Golden State on offense and defense. The way he stepped up when Kevin Durant was injured sealed the deal for me.
Rookie Of The Year: Dario Saric
Joel Embiid only played 31 games so I had to pick the 2nd best. Dario has been playing like a vet all season while the other rookies showed that they were a work in progress. Saric was also the 1st rookie in NBA history with 1000 points, 500 rebounds, 150 assist, and 100 three's. Philly didn’t have a dramatic drop in wins when Embiid went down like I expected. They just leaned on Dario and it worked. If we can get a healthy season out of Ben Simmons, Embiid, and Dario this could be a playoff team next season. #TrustTheProcess
Coach Of The Year: Quin Snyder
Kerr and Popovich have been doing great this season, but I feel like this has to go to the coach that made the biggest jump. Utah hasn’t seen 50+ wins since 2010. Snyder (former Duke assistant) has made the Jazz a serious threat on the low. Utah Jazz finished 3rd in defense and 5th in wins.
MVP: Kawhi Leonard
Opening night as me and my friends watched the Spurs blow the doors off the Warriors I said my picks for MVP are Kevin Durant and Kawhi Leonard. Up till the all star break KD was a lock for me to win because he was having the best defensive year of his career while still being a savage on offense then he got injured. Westbrook and Harden were putting up insane numbers but weren’t winning at a high clip like the Spurs so I really wasn’t moved. They hunted down stats while Kawhi hunted down wins. With the over-sensationalized triple double media narrative I can understand how CASUAL fans bought into the hype. Kawhi stepped up his offensive production while still being top 3 in an area Westbrook and Harden lacked…..DEFENSE. Also Kawhi ended the season with only 154 turnovers. That puts him at 310 turnovers behind the NEW ALL TIME SINGLE SEASON TURNOVER LEADER James Harden. Kawhi handles the ball and scores at a more efficient rate than Westbrook and Harden. 48% FG, 88% FT, and 38% from the 3 point line exceeds both Westbrook and Harden in each area on the floor. He scores precisely, takes charge on defense, and upheld the Spurs gold standard of winning with a roster full of inexperienced young guys and bigs past their prime. Patty Mills might be the only guy on the Spurs playing at his peak so let’s not act like they’re a loaded team. Parker and Ginobili are nowhere close to what they once were. I think right now Kawhi Leonard is literally the perfect basketball player. So while everyone is in awe over triple doubles I’m pointing out the guy that has scrapped up all your favorite players this season with his defense and won 61 games as the heir to the throne in San Antonio.
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