NFL
By: Stephen Garner
The 2022-23 NBA season is here, already!
With the new season incoming also comes a slew of projections, predictions, and educated (at least from most..) guesses as to who wins what, all making for a great lense to gauge the new season through.
Last season, I was correct on my Coach of the Year pick, with all other picks placing in the race for the rest of the awards. Maybe this season will see my observations more accurate with (hopefully) injuries weighing a lot less in swaying the final results.
Without further adieu, let’s get into this season’s picks below.
Most Valuable Player
Joel Embiid, Philadelphia 76ers
Embiid has finished second each of the last two seasons, to the back-to-back MVP Nikola Jokic. It doesn’t get much more “knocking on the door” than that in terms of being positioned for this type of recognition.
Even more, Embiid’s team is well-equipped to help him be better positioned win-wise. Additions of PJ Tucker, Montrezl Harrell, etc. restore them with viable depth that they subsequently lacked as a result of acquiring James Harden at last season’s deadline in a blockbuster swap.
It also seems like a natural ingratiating to it for him as well, considering the voter fatigue dynamic and the fact that all of his competitors (sans Doncic) have all won it recently (see Jokic, Antetokounmpo, and even Curry). So long as Embiid can be at or near the 65 mark in games played, it’s his to lose. He and the Sixers are both in-sync and primed to make plenty of noise this season.
2021-22 Winner: Nikola Jokic – My preseason 2021-22 pick: Kevin Durant
Rookie of the Year
Paolo Banchero, Orlando Magic
Being drafted to a situation where there are no expectations, combined with a proverbial “leash” to experiment and grow on the NBA level, while also being multi-skilled, he’s perfectly positioned to snatch the ROY and probably run away with it early on in the season.
In my estimation, the Magic won’t be play-in competitive, but they’ll be better (or arguably much better) than expected amongst the lower tiered teams when it’s all said and done. They’ll compile a handful of those “the Magic did what?” type wins, with Banchero at the root of it all.
2021-22 Winner: Scottie Barnes – My preseason 2021-22 pick: Cade Cunningham
Defensive Player of the Year
Bam Adebayo, Miami Heat
For as much attention as Marcus Smart got last season for the collective team efforts that we saw from the Celtics on the less glamorous end, he was not my pick for the award. Amazing to see a guard do so again, however, my original pick was Draymond Green. He failed to reach the games played mark (46), which then actually had me pivot to Mikal Bridges, who played every game yet again (he hasn’t missed a game since high school for those that were wondering, the leagues ironman).
The point being, when it came to voting, with games played factored in, I had Bam slotted at second by the end of the season. For the style of defense the Heat run, he is the key to unlocking it all.
Switchable, versatile, gifted athletically, great measurables in stature, as well as a perfect IQ to execute numerous schemes and adjust on the fly when things go off schedule.
Whether it’s switching out on all-star guards to blow up pick and rolls at crucial moments to smother them for stops, banging in the post with the premier scorers on the block with no help, or defending in isolation on an island with the shiftiest or most clever of self creators, Bam has the strap. He has that dawg in him, and it comes out most when tasked with these varying scenarios on a game-to-game basis.
2021-22 Winner: Marcus Smart – My preseason 2021-22 Pick: Rudy Gobert
Sixth Man of the Year
Jordan Poole, Golden State Warriors
A much better flow in terms of the rotation and alignment within the lineups for Steve Kerr will bring much more stability to roles. That in itself perfectly positions Jordan Poole to make big things happen.
His role as a creator, both as a shifty and unpredictable scorer as well as a sneaky good passer off of the chaos he creates with the ball, make him the perfect match to run away with this one. He has a lot of the Jamal Crawford/Lou Williams feel to him, in an evolved version.
The 23-year-old, who’s never lacked his own juice, will now also play off of the momentum that putting pen to a 4-year/$140 million extension as well as the underlying trust that the franchise has bestowed upon him.
18.5 points, 3.4 rebounds, and 4.0 assists is a very solid bar he set for himself in last season’s efforts. I think he crosses the 20-point-per-game threshold and runs away with the SMOTY this season.
2021-22 Winner: Tyler Herro – My preseason 2021-22 pick: Jordan Clarkson
Coach of the Year
Chris Finch, Minnesota Timberwolves
This one’s tricky, as the field for this one includes some well-known names as well as new ones. Would not be surprised if, equipped with his full roster for the first time in over a year, Tyronne Lue came away with this award. He’s one of the best at coaching to the team he’s presented with, and is as elite of a tactician as there is.
Joe Mazzulla of the Boston Celtics takes the head coaching reins of a team that just made the NBA Finals, and lost no one from their main rotation while also adding Malcolm Brogdon. I have them finishing 1st in the East and that could very well make him the COTY and would not surprise me one bit.
There’s also Doc Rivers and Erik Spoelstra (who quietly has never won one) that will be lurking as they manage the regular season with professionalism.
In the end, I chose Finch because he isn’t a household name. He also is now equipped with the best rim protector to deploy his defensive schemes with. This was a glaring weakness for his team last season, and the front office addressed it as aptly as possible with adding Rudy Gobert. Should Finch press the right buttons again, as he did for a good majority of last season, the Timberwolves *could* find themselves in the top-5 of the Western Conference. Should he figure out the blend needed for his team to function with the Towns-Gobert tandem on defense (one-upping the strides his creative expertise took them to last season) and even more on the offensive end, they’ll be a force and he’ll receive plenty of votes.
2021-22 Winner: Monty Williams – My preseason 2021-22 pick: Monty Williams
Most Improved
Anthony Edwards, Minnesota Timberwolves
Having seen an uptick across the board in all of his statistical categories as well as in efficiency from his rookie season to year two, it’s only natural to project yet another uptick for the stud swingman.
Entering his age 21 (just age 21…. lol) season, Ant-Man is already a bonafide scorer. He found a great rhythm and flow with the evolution of his pull-up jumper, adding to his slashing and driving dynamic that was abundant and ever-present in his rookie season.
There were times he certainly settled, betting on his “new toy” in the pull-up via self-creation. After film sessions and as he matures, generally garnering a better feel for his game – the blend of his rim pressures, middy pull-ups, and self-created attempts from deep will be much more optimized.
The more his tools are used as a weapon versus as a fallback option, the higher he’ll ascend.
Of the stats where he improved last season were also in playmaking efficiency, going up an assist per game while limiting turnovers to closer to two a game. The better scorer he becomes and the better his feel grows, the more opportunities will come as well as the demand for him to playmake in an efficient manner.
In year three, he’s primed to make a bigger leap in points per game, and run away with the Most Improved Award.
2021-22 Winner: Ja Morant – My preseason 2021-22 pick: Jordan Poole
