My Predictions for NBA's ROY, MVP, and MIP
There is just so much talent in the NBA nowadays, especially this season. Players like James Harden and Ben Simmons have really made a name for themselves and maybe even some awards. In this I will be justifying my predictions for my three most anticipated awards of the year: rookie of the year, most valuable player, and most improved player.
ROY: There is just no doubt in my mind that Ben Simmons will receive the Rookie of the Year award. The man is an absolute tank. Averaging nearly 16 points, 8 rebounds, and 8 assists as a rookies is something unheard of. In fact, the only other rookie that has put up numbers like Simmons was LeBron James (20.9 points, 6 assists, and 6 rebounds). Although there is an argument about Donovan Mitchell receiving the award. Mitchell has put up some serious points on the board with 20 points per game, but he just hasn’t made the impact like Simmons has. Also, there are a lot of people that do not think he is “worthy” because he missed his actual rookie season due to injury, but he is still considered a legitimate rookie by the league’s rules. Standing at 6’10”, Simmons has proven more times than needed that he will be a threat to the entire league in the near future.
MVP: This is almost as easy as picking ROY, but it has to go to James Harden. Harden was on another level this season. With 30 points, 6 rebounds, and 9 assists per game he has shown everyone why he is deserving of it. With his deadeye-shooting and the best step-back move the league has ever seen, Harden snagged the number one seed in the western conference against one of the greatest teams of all time, the Golden State Warriors. This is an incredible feat to say the least. However, he does have one other somewhat decent player behind him, LeBron James. LeBron has had one of the best seasons he has ever had in the NBA. Averaging 27.5 points, 9 rebounds, and 9 assists for the season makes it clear that he is not running out of gas yet. But, with so many team changes this year, the Cavaliers struggled to make it to even the four seed this year which hurts his chances greatly. So, if Harden were to lose the MVP award, it will be another season where he gets robbed of his recognition for hard work and many broken ankles.
MIP: The most improved player of the 2017-2018 season has got to be Victor Oladipo. I do not know what got into his system, but he is putting up elite player level stats. Moving from averaging 16 points to 23 points per game is insane to say the least. Also, not only is his offense improving, but his defense has improved steeply. He has doubled his amount of steals from 1.2 to 2.4 steals per game. This may not seem like a lot, but when your team needs it most a steal could alter the entire game. There aren’t really any other candidates that could take this award away from Oladipo honestly. I would love to see his athleticism and shooting abilities be taken to another level for the future because if he can get some other players to support him, he may be on the run for MVP someday.
All in all, there can be many cases made for other players in the league to receive these awards. Good thing that this is my blog and I don’t have to hear those arguments.
