Post by Los Angeles Lakers on Oct 19, 2006 17:14:12 GMT -5
Season Predictions[/b]
I'm going to go through some of the major awards and recoginitions this league has and predict the forecast for the 2004-2005 Season.
Rookie of the Year
Emeka Okafor
Third pick in the draft and he looks right now to be the best player out of this years big three so far. Sucks for him too to be traded and not even given a chance by the team that drafted him but he's in a good situation. He looks like he can be a force offensively and defensively compared to Melo and Stoudemire. The fact that his team might be landing in the playoffs while the other two may not will probably also factor into him winning this award.
Sixth Man of The Year
Dajuan Wagner
He's a rookie but he's very talented. Wagner should see a lot of time this year to spell both Kenny Anderson and Michael Redd. He's definitely instant offense off the bench and may get some big numbers and a lot of highlight time just because he's playing on a contender.
Most Improved Player
Tayshaun Prince
There plenty of expectations with Tayshaun coming into the league but he didn't seem to meet them his first couple years. He even regressed a bit in his progress a season ago. However, he looks ready to go and he's gonna get plenty of touches with a point guard like Stephon Marbury around.
Breakout Player
Marquis Daniels
To think that a couple years ago this guy was the 18th pick in the draft is unthinkable now - especially with the gaudy numbers he put up in preseason. Daniels landed in the right situation with the Kings and it's helped turn into a surprise player from that draft. Expect him to finally play a key piece on this Kings team.
Comeback Player
Jamal Crawford
Crawford was looked at as the heir apparent to Steve Nash two seasons ago but his production fell off last year and the Mavs failed to make the playoffs. This year, Jamal is on a new team and with a renewed interest in the game. He's improved most of those aspects that hampered him as a player a season ago and he's going to get back on track to being the player who was annointed to be two seasons ago.
Defensive Player of the Year
Ray Allen
I could go with another Rocket (Ben Wallace) but Ray Allen is gonna epitomze the idea of a shut down defender this year. He's gonna be a dual-threat - offense and defense - but expect his defense to be an even greater factor in the Rockets road to a repeat.
Most Improved Team
Utah Jazz
Utah made some big moves in the offseason and they will definitely pay off this year. Acquiring a former MVP in Kevin Garnett is huge and picking up a young point guard in Kirk Hinrich is also huge. They basically add those two to a fairly young team that has experience in Andrei Kirilenko and Brendan Haywood. I can definitely see this team cracking the playoffs this year in the west.
Most Valuable Player
Kevin Garnett
He's still the best player in the league and I doubt that being traded a couple of times is going to decrease his motivation to win. KG is going to have a mounstrous year and might actually take his game to the next level this year in Utah.
Champions
Atlanta Hawks
Last year, the Hawks suffered a devastating upset to the 8th seeded New Jersey Nets but they will bounce back this year. When they were eliminated and with the KG debauckle, Houston had no one really in their way of claiming the ultimate prize. They're younger and they've got tons of talent; enough talent to rival that of Houston's.
I'm going to go through some of the major awards and recoginitions this league has and predict the forecast for the 2004-2005 Season.
Rookie of the Year
Emeka Okafor
Third pick in the draft and he looks right now to be the best player out of this years big three so far. Sucks for him too to be traded and not even given a chance by the team that drafted him but he's in a good situation. He looks like he can be a force offensively and defensively compared to Melo and Stoudemire. The fact that his team might be landing in the playoffs while the other two may not will probably also factor into him winning this award.
Sixth Man of The Year
Dajuan Wagner
He's a rookie but he's very talented. Wagner should see a lot of time this year to spell both Kenny Anderson and Michael Redd. He's definitely instant offense off the bench and may get some big numbers and a lot of highlight time just because he's playing on a contender.
Most Improved Player
Tayshaun Prince
There plenty of expectations with Tayshaun coming into the league but he didn't seem to meet them his first couple years. He even regressed a bit in his progress a season ago. However, he looks ready to go and he's gonna get plenty of touches with a point guard like Stephon Marbury around.
Breakout Player
Marquis Daniels
To think that a couple years ago this guy was the 18th pick in the draft is unthinkable now - especially with the gaudy numbers he put up in preseason. Daniels landed in the right situation with the Kings and it's helped turn into a surprise player from that draft. Expect him to finally play a key piece on this Kings team.
Comeback Player
Jamal Crawford
Crawford was looked at as the heir apparent to Steve Nash two seasons ago but his production fell off last year and the Mavs failed to make the playoffs. This year, Jamal is on a new team and with a renewed interest in the game. He's improved most of those aspects that hampered him as a player a season ago and he's going to get back on track to being the player who was annointed to be two seasons ago.
Defensive Player of the Year
Ray Allen
I could go with another Rocket (Ben Wallace) but Ray Allen is gonna epitomze the idea of a shut down defender this year. He's gonna be a dual-threat - offense and defense - but expect his defense to be an even greater factor in the Rockets road to a repeat.
Most Improved Team
Utah Jazz
Utah made some big moves in the offseason and they will definitely pay off this year. Acquiring a former MVP in Kevin Garnett is huge and picking up a young point guard in Kirk Hinrich is also huge. They basically add those two to a fairly young team that has experience in Andrei Kirilenko and Brendan Haywood. I can definitely see this team cracking the playoffs this year in the west.
Most Valuable Player
Kevin Garnett
He's still the best player in the league and I doubt that being traded a couple of times is going to decrease his motivation to win. KG is going to have a mounstrous year and might actually take his game to the next level this year in Utah.
Champions
Atlanta Hawks
Last year, the Hawks suffered a devastating upset to the 8th seeded New Jersey Nets but they will bounce back this year. When they were eliminated and with the KG debauckle, Houston had no one really in their way of claiming the ultimate prize. They're younger and they've got tons of talent; enough talent to rival that of Houston's.