Another regular season is soon coming to a close, and the Brooklyn Nets are headed to the NBA playoffs for the second straight year. After a terrible 10-21 start to the season, the Nets turned it around after the new year and pushed their way to a postseason berth.
If we were to predict, in the first month or two of the season, these very same awards that I'll be announcing here, I can almost guarantee they'd be totally different. With Brook Lopez going down for the season, Jason Kidd spilling drinks and D-Will playing like D-Wont, the start of the 2013-2014 season was rough. But then came along the buzzer beaters, the Mirza laughing at the LeBron, and the sweeping of the Heat, the season was officially changed for the better.
There are a few individual awards to hand out for the Nets, and there are quite a few players that are deserving. I'll announce the winner first and then mention a runner up for the award, since there can only be one winner. So without further ado, here are our winners:
Most Improved Player: Mirza Teletovic
Runner up: Shaun Livingston
This one is pretty easy for me to give out. I've been a supporter of Mirza since he signed that contract in 2012 for the mMLE. But this choice wasn't made out of bias.In the 2012-13 season, he had trouble finding minutes under Avery Johnson and PJ Carlesimo. It was expected when he came over to the NBA that he'd be an important piece of the Nets' rotation. His ability to shoot the ball from behind the three point line is exactly what the Nets lacked, but he still couldn't find a way
to crack the rotation. His averages of 3.5 points, 1.8 rebounds, 38 percent from the field and 34 percent from behind the three point line gave him the title of a "bust" among Nets fans. It didn't help that he only averaged 9.4 minutes per game.
Fast forward to 2013-14, Mirza finally found a role under new head coach Jason Kidd. He has become an absolute threat from beyond the three point line, and has taken a huge step forward on the defensive side of the ball (yeah, he blocked LeBron James TWICE). He's allowing his man to shoot just 39% from the field, which shows that a player that was strictly known for his shooting is now a pretty good defender.
His numbers have gone up across the board this year. He's averaging 8.6 points, 3.7 rebounds, shooting 41.8 percent from the field and 39 percent from behind the three point line in 19.4 minutes per game. It goes to show exactly what Mirza can do. All he needed was an opportunity.
By the way, he has the most epic troll face of all time and isn't afraid of fouling the superstars hard (sorry, LeBron).
Rookie of the Year: Jason Kidd
Runner up: Mason Plumlee
The Nets started the season 10-21 before the new year. With that came the "fire Kidd" chants, the "they never should have hired a rookie coach" claims, and even led to a scout calling him THE worst coach in the NBA. He was sitting in his chair for entire games without getting up at all, he wasn't calling plays like head coaches do, and he was spilling his drinks on the floor for an extra timeout. All of this together made it look like he was on the hot seat.
When Mikhail Prokhorov gave the team 25 more games to turn things around, the message was clear that losing wouldn't be tolerated with such a talented roster. Then something magical happened. On December 31, 2013 in a game against the San Antonio Spurs, Jason Kidd wore a tie for the very last time.
Call it crazy, call it superstition, call it whatever you please. Since Kidd stopped wearing his tie, the Nets turned around a 10-21 start and have a 34-15 record. But that isn't what makes Kidd a good coach. It's the fact that, since "demoting" Lawrence Frank, he has taken the reins completely and is showing his leadership abilities from the sidelines. His switch to a small lineup featuring Deron Williams, Shaun Livingston, Joe Johnson, Paul Pierce, and Kevin Garnett when Brook Lopez got hurt was pure genius, and that is where the season made a complete 180 degree turn.
Defensive Player of the Year: Kevin Garnett
Runner up: Shaun LivingstonLet's be honest, is anyone really surprised by this? KG has been a defensive anchor for all three teams he has played on in his career.
Garnett has forced his man to shoot just 40 percent from the field against him, which is absolutely insane, especially for a 37 year old who is just now wrapping up his 19th NBA season. When he's on the court, the Nets give up 105 points per 100 possessions. Compare that to the teams 109.6 points allowed per 100 possessions, and that shows the impact of Kevin Garnett on the defensive side of the ball. Also when he's on the floor, opposing teams have an effective field goal percentage of 48.5 percent compared to 51.5 percent when he isn't on the floor.
When Lopez went down, Garnett was forced to go back to playing the center like he did for a couple of seasons in Boston. He doesn't prefer it, but the numbers say that at this point, he's a much better center than he is a power forward.
Most Valuable Player: Joe Johnson
Runner up: Paul PierceThis is probably the toughest award to give out. I can think of three guys who can be considered the MVP, but I went with Joe Johnson because, on both sides of the ball, the Nets are a better team with him on the floor than they are without him.
The stats don't really do Joe Johnson's season justice whatsoever. He's leading the team in scoring at just 15.8 points per game, but he's shooting 45.5 percent from the field, his highest since 2009-10, and is also shooting 40.1 percent from behind the three point line, which is his best since 2004-2005.Johnson sparked the Nets' 2014 turnaround with a game winning buzzer beater against the Oklahoma City Thunder, and was named an all-star for the seventh time in his career, the only Net to make it this season. Joe stepped up his game big time when the Nets needed him most, averaging 17.1 points on 48.2 percent shooting since the all-star break. But this is to nobodies surprise, as Joe is known for stepping up when his team needs him.
With Joe on the court, the Nets are scoring 107.8 points per 100 possessions compared to 106.1 points per 100 possessions with him on the bench. But the more impressive numbers are his defensive ratings. The Nets are allowing 110.2 points per 100 possessions with Johnson on the bench, but they're only allowing 107 points per 100 possessions with him on the floor. Joe Johnson isn't the greatest perimeter defender, but his impact on the defensive side of the ball does not go unnoticed.
Joe Johnson has gone above and beyond what people thought he would do this season, and has been the Nets' best player from start to finish. He has been asked to do a lot this season, including changing to the Nets' starting small forward while Shaun Livingston got the start at shooting guard. He has played just 26 percent of his minutes at small forward, though, but while he's there he is having a tremendous impact. The Nets score 99.7 points per game with Johnson at the small forward, and they allow just 92.3 points. That's a +7 compared to them being a -2.1 with Joe at the shooting guard spot.
So there you have it. The awards have been handed out, and now it's time for some playoff basketball. If you don't agree with one of the winners, feel free to share your winners with us.
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