Who's the midseason MVP? Handing out NBA awards at the halfway mark
We've reached the midway mark of the NBA season. As the cream is starting to rise to the top, it's time to hand out some hardware.
We polled our eight NBA editors for their votes on the league's seven major awards - Most Valuable Player, Defensive Player, Coach, Rookie, Sixth Man, Most Improved, and Executive of the Year - if they were handed out today. Editors each submitted three-person ballots, with five points being awarded for first-place votes, three points for second place, and one point for third.
Here are our half-season award winners (with voting point totals in parentheses):
MVP - LeBron James (36 points)
The Cavaliers as a whole have been underwhelming in a lot of ways, but amidst injuries, regression, defensive apathy, and age-induced sluggishness up and down the roster, James has done his damnedest to prop them up and keep them in the league's top tier. There are probably a couple players who have hit higher highs, but no one has been as consistently excellent as the 33-year-old machine still steamrolling dudes in his 15th season.
With Kyrie Irving gone and Isaiah Thomas on the shelf for nearly the entire first half, James has spent a large portion of those minutes playing point guard on offense, and his passing and pick-and-roll orchestration are as deadly as ever. With Tristan Thompson missing 20 games, James has had to play a lot of center on defense, and he's acquitted himself well as a back-line defender; he has a career-high block rate, and the Cavs' defensive rating with him at the five (102.0) would rank third in the NBA.
If James' counting stats (27.2 points, 8.2 rebounds, 9.0 assists, 1.7 steals, 1.1 blocks, .558/.389/.777 shooting, 29.9 PER), or his absurd crunch-time performance (49.3 points, 12 rebounds, 8.1 assists per 36 minutes) aren't justification enough, his staggering durability - averaging 37 minutes while suiting up for every game so far - put him over the top.
- Joe Wolfond
Others receiving votes - James Harden (24), Giannis Antetokounmpo (7), Kevin Durant (2), Stephen Curry (1)
Defensive Player - Al Horford (17 points)
With injuries hurting the cases for perennial candidates Kawhi Leonard and Rudy Gobert, the Defensive Player of the Year race is a virtual coin flip. The top four vote-receivers were separated by just six points, with Horford barely edging out the Thunder's Paul George.
The Celtics are the only team allowing fewer than 100 points per 100 possessions (99.7, to be exact), and Horford has been their backbone. With just 6.4 defensive rebounds, one block, and 0.6 steals per game, Horford would have never gotten his due in simpler times, but the emergence of advanced metrics paints a picture of one of the league's most versatile defenders.
Horford is tasked with locking down All-Star forwards and bigs almost every night, and can handle pretty much anything thrown at him. With Horford defending, opponents have shot just 30.6 percent on 3-pointers (better than Andre Roberson's 32.9 percent) and 55 percent on shots taken within six feet of the hoop (better than Anthony Davis' 56.4 percent). In year 11, the 31-year-old has been the tide that raises all ships for the Association's best defense.
- Andrew Potter
Others receiving votes - George (16), Draymond Green (12), Durant (11), Joel Embiid (8), Roberson (5), Andre Drummond (3)
Rookie - Ben Simmons (40 points)
Apologies to Jayson Tatum and Donovan Mitchell, but nothing's changed. Simmons has continued his terrific rookie campaign on both ends of the floor. Despite his complete lack of a jump shot, he has proven his effect in virtually every other area of the game.
The numbers have defended his case. The 76ers are 4.1 points better when Simmons is on the floor. His net rating of 2.5 on a .500 team demonstrates his value. Things get even better when he's paired with Embiid. The young tandem has a net rating of 12.7 in 648 minutes this season.
He's the first rookie since Oscar Robertson to average over 16 points, eight rebounds, and seven assists. He's currently one of two players to average 1.9 steals and 0.9 blocks per game and the first rookie since Ron Harper in 1987 to do so. His length has also placed him in the top 10 in deflections per game this season.
It's been a wild season for the Sixers as they fight for a playoff spot after several years dwelling in the basement. You can thank Simmons, Philadelphia.
- Wael Saghir
Others receiving votes - Tatum (17), Mitchell (14), Kyle Kuzma (1)
Coach - Brad Stevens (40 points)
Boston is flourishing, and Stevens deserves a lot of credit. The fifth-year bench boss was tasked with leading a roster almost completely overturned from last season. With only four returning players, the Celtics were expected to need some time to figure things out, especially with incoming All-Stars Kyrie Irving and Gordon Hayward looking to prove themselves and re-affirm their respective decisions to leave the only franchises they knew.
But mere minutes into opening night, Hayward suffered a gruesome injury that ended his campaign and Boston's hopes of contending ... or so we thought. Stevens' men have been incredibly resilient, bouncing back from an 0-2 start with 16 straight victories and staying atop the East for the majority of the season, despite injuries to key players and an absurdly front-loaded schedule that's seen them play more games than any other team. Through it all, the C's boast the league's stingiest defense and have found ways to close out games, with Irving crediting Stevens as the mastermind behind their success.
- Victoria Nguyen
Others receiving votes - Dwane Casey (16), Gregg Popovich (15), Tom Thibodeau (1)
Sixth Man - Lou Williams (40 points)
Williams has always been instant offense off the bench, but the 31-year-old guard is hitting levels new to even him. He's scoring 22.9 points per game, and is lighting it up from deep at a career-best 41.2 percent on a career-high 6.8 attempts from 3-point range.
The Clippers score 6.3 more points per 100 possessions with him in the game than they do when he sits. You can knock him for his inability to stop other teams from scoring (opponents own an offensive rating of 109.5 when he’s on the court), but Williams' claim to fame was never his defense. He's a massive reason the banged-up Clippers can still even sniff the playoffs, and if he keeps this pace, "Lou Will" won't just win his second Sixth Man award, he'll need another shoutout on Drake's next album, too.
- Jonathan Soveta
Others receiving votes - Will Barton (10), Dwyane Wade (8), Marcus Smart (4), Domantas Sabonis (4), Tyreke Evans (3), Julius Randle (1), Rodney Hood (1), Shabazz Napier (1)
Most Improved - Victor Oladipo (40 points)
A reshaped figure, coupled with the freedom to run his own team, has allowed Oladipo to reach his potential as a former No. 2 pick. He's thriving in a high-tempo offense as the Pacers' undisputed go-to player, and with a newfound ability to pull up from deep, he finds himself with more room than ever to get to the rim.
Oladipo's stats (24.6 points, 5.3 rebounds, 4.1 assists, 60.2 true-shooting percentage) should easily earn him his first All-Star nod in February. His breakout season is already making critics rethink their assessments of the Paul George deal.
- William Lou
Others receiving votes - Aaron Gordon (15), Spencer Dinwiddie (6), Antetokounmpo (3), Drummond (2), LaMarcus Aldridge (1), Kristaps Porzingis (1), Evans (1), Brandon Ingram (1)
Executive - Danny Ainge (27 points)
The Celtics currently have seven more victories than they did at this point in the season a year ago, despite beginning the 2017-18 campaign with just four players from its Eastern Conference finals roster. And that's with their big offseason signing in Hayward having played a grand total of five minutes due to injury.
Trading down from the first overall pick to snag Tatum two spots later was a bold move that's paying dividends. Moving Avery Bradley cleared enough space to bring on Hayward, and in return, Marcus Morris has provided solid production at the four spot. And then there's Irving, who's flourishing as the primary option for the East's No. 1 team. Retooling a proven winner to this degree was no easy task, but Ainge pulled it off seamlessly.
- Chris Walder
Others receiving votes - Daryl Morey (23), Sam Presti (7), Masai Ujiri (4), Kevin Pritchard (1), Tom Thibodeau (1)
(Photos courtesy: Getty Images)