Who is the NBA's MIP.

[Diesel]

Most improved Player. It's a mighty big award... Pick one.

[bronnt]

My top two candidates aren't even in the poll. I'd go with Durant, and then Nene. Harris is a decent choice also-the big thing is that his usage is up a great deal. Nate Robinson is pretty similar, only he's become a more efficient scorer while the rest of his game hasn't changed very much-that pairs up well enough with a team concept that creates more possessions.

Granger also is basically the same guy with higher usage (and less rebounding). Villanueva actually improved also, but like Harris, his usage increased (the loss of Michael Redd didn't hurt). Roger Mason is interesting-by a lot of measures, he's actually LESS effective than he was last year. Andrew Bynum is the same way-when he was playing, he didn't look quite as good as he was last year.

Millsap only improved slightly, he's just playing a lot more minutes this year.

Rondo might be a favorite for this award, though. He was a man with under-appreciated skills last year, and on a big stage he did have marginal improvements that were flaunted because he's dominating the dribbling more than last year. That's often the recipte for success

Which brings us to Marvin Williams. He's actually shown across the board improvements-certainly not deserving, but it's all very promising stuff. He's scoring more efficiently, rebounding at a higher rate, having a greater impact on offensive and defensive efficiency, and blocking shots at a higher rate while turning the ball over less often. A lower usage rate (almost pitiful compared to some of the other guys I looked at) combined with a team playing at a much slower pace, have reduced his per36 (or per40, if you prefer) numbers in a couple of areas (mainly scoring), so his season doesn't look as impressive as it might.

Numbers mostly courtesy of http://www.basketball-reference.com/

Edited March 9, 2009 by bronnt

[Diesel]

Granger also is basically the same guy with higher usage (and less rebounding).

Granger plays the same minutes and his scoring (like Harris') has skyrocketed up 6 ppg. He has made the jump from being fringe star to allstar.

[Diesel]

My top two candidates aren't even in the poll. I'd go with Durant, and then Nene.

I didn't consider Durant. I never noticed the change in FG%. Boy what a difference that makes.

[capstone21]

I didn't consider Durant. I never noticed the change in FG%. Boy what a difference that makes.

I would have to say Granger or Harris. Its hard to pick Durant simply because his is more of a progression of his career since last year was his rookie year. I find it hard to pick a sophmore for a MIP award.

[TruJerz]

I would have to say Granger or Harris. Its hard to pick Durant simply because his is more of a progression of his career since last year was his rookie year. I find it hard to pick a sophmore for a MIP award.

My choices would be Devin Harris or even Nene Hilario. Nene has the most improved numbers I think. His PPG are almost up 10! but he didnt play much last season. And he has like the best FG% in the league this year. But I still would give it to Devin Harris before him because Devin is one of the best PGs in the league with his first full year as a Net. He is a true star now

[benhillboy]

All of these guys you can make a case for, but someday, arguably, Kevin Durant will be worth as much as all of these guys combined.

[capstone21]

All of these guys you can make a case for, but someday, arguably, Kevin Durant will be worth as much as all of these guys combined.

sure but what does that have to do with MIP. Durant's improvement from last season is good but Harris has improved so much more this season then last season

[AHF]

I would not make anyone in their first 3 years in the league eligible for the award. You expect dynamic growth from a reasonable % of young players. In my opinion, this award should not be for young players who develop - it should be for veterans who improve themselves later in their careers.

I would go with Nene Hilario if he stays healthy enough and Devin Harris otherwise.

[bronnt]

I understand the love for Devin Harris, but he's not really even close to my MIP award.

I mean, his FG% is down, and his eFG% is down as well. his TS% is just about even with last year, yet his scoring is up. Why is that? Well, last year he took 12.3 shots per36, and this year he's taking 15.5 shots. The area in which he's making improvement is in his assist rate. He's doing a better job of that and turning the ball over less, despite dominating the ball more than he did last season. That's a significant improvement, but so many people look at scoring and think that that's the be-all end-all.

[crimedog]

Re: Durant. Obviously he's a major improver, soph or not. Isn't it interesting though, that he goes out and his previously pathetic team goes 5-1 and counting? Suddenly they learn how to play D, suddenly role-players feel more comfortable.

[AHF]

I understand the love for Devin Harris, but he's not really even close to my MIP award.

I mean, his FG% is down, and his eFG% is down as well. his TS% is just about even with last year, yet his scoring is up. Why is that? Well, last year he took 12.3 shots per36, and this year he's taking 15.5 shots. The area in which he's making improvement is in his assist rate. He's doing a better job of that and turning the ball over less, despite dominating the ball more than he did last season. That's a significant improvement, but so many people look at scoring and think that that's the be-all end-all.

Ball-handling and assist rate are big parts of his improvement. His increased shooting without a real decrease in TS% is also an improvement in my book. I expect efficiency to suffer with most significant increases in shot attempts.