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MVP/RoY Rankings, Part IX

The ninth edition of the Blogger MVP/RoY rankings has just been published at Hornets247.com.

Here are links to my posts about the previous eight editions:

MVP/RoY Rankings, Part I

MVP/RoY Rankings, Part II

MVP/RoY Rankings, Part III

MVP/RoY Rankings, Part IV

MVP/RoY Rankings, Part V

MVP/RoY Rankings, Part VI

MVP/RoY Rankings, Part VII

MVP/RoY Rankings, Part VIII

Here is my complete ballot for the ninth edition exactly as I submitted it (MVP and RoY votes are scored on a 10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1 and 5-4-3-2-1 basis respectively, so Bryant is my top MVP pick and Durant is my top RoY pick):

MVP

10-Kobe Bryant: With Gasol out and Bynum still sidelined, Kobe came up big and kept the Lakers in first place in the tough Western Conference.
9-LeBron James: LeBron is having a great season but Kobe's team is in first place in the stronger conference while LeBron's Cavs are locked into the fourth spot in the East. How can LeBron get this year's MVP when Kobe did not win the MVP last season when he not only was even more dominant offensively than LeBron is this season but he also made the All-Defensive First Team ?
8-Chris Paul: Paul may take the assists crown from Steve Nash and it is becomingly increasingly obvious that Paul has already taken the crown as the league's best point guard.
7-Dwight Howard: He became a forgotten man somewhere in the MVP race around the time that Orlando's record dipped a bit and his coach blasted him publicly but Howard is the most physically imposing player in the league.
6-Kevin Garnett: His individual statistics are not eye-popping but he has helped to completely change the team culture of the Celtics.
5-Tim Duncan: The Spurs hit a couple bumps in the road but Duncan is still the key to everything they do offensively and defensively.
4-Tracy McGrady: His scoring, passing and ability to draw double teams helped Houston put together a historic winning streak. When he is healthy, he does those three things nearly as well as Kobe and LeBron do but he has not been as healthy or productive as they have throughout the entire season.
3-Amare Stoudemire: Shaq's arrival has really opened up scoring opportunities for him and he is taking full advantage.
2-Dirk Nowitzki: His numbers are solid but something seems to be missing in Dallas.
1-Steve Nash: His shooting percentages have gone up and his assists have gone down since the Suns acquired Shaq.

ROY

5-Kevin Durant: He finally picked up his field goal percentage, otherwise I would have voted for Horford.
4-Al Horford: He recently had 15 rebounds and six assists in back to back games for a team that is contending for a playoff berth.
3-Luis Scola: He has responded well to the additional playing time he has received since Yao got hurt.
2-Carl Landry: Very productive player whose absence has definitely been felt recently in Houston.
1-Al Thornton: Excellent athlete whose numbers have been going up throughout the season.

Labels: Al Horford, Chris Paul, Kevin Durant, Kevin Garnett, Kobe Bryant, LeBron James

posted by David Friedman @ 6:41 PM

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