NBA weekly awards: Week 20
On the up
Can you ignore the Lakers any more? Dwight Howard is finding his niche once again, and barring an elongated time out for Kobe, the Lakers are going to be one nasty match up for one of the top seeds in the Western Conference.
The Lakers have rallied to an 11-3 record after the All-Star break and now stand four above .500, but will have to do at least two games without Kobe.
Going down
Remember the New York Knicks? They had set off on a record pace, and were the talk of the town in the early goings as they started the season on a 18-5 run. Now, the wheels seems to have suddenly fallen off and four losses last week are just a testament to the fact.
With the trio of Carmelo Anthony, Tyson Chandler or Amare Stoudemire missing, the Knicks have been short-handed and looking like the Old York Knicks that many had predicted pre-season.
Best Team of the week
For the third straight, its the Miami Heat who are in the midst of a 23-game winning streak, and until that ends, there can hardly be a team that I can mention in the same breath.
With the Heat gunning for the record 33 game winning streak of the 1971-72 Lakers, the talk has shifted from whether they are the best team in the league to whether this team is one of the best of all times.
Worst Team of the Week
Jose Calderon’s presence hasn’t been able to stop the Detroit Pistons from going into free fall. The Pistons have been malfunctioning of late, as they have gone 8 games without a win, having won only once in their last 12.
This team is surely being built for the future, and these are times that test the mental strength of youngsters like Greg Monroe and Andre Drummond.
Worst of the Week
Its hard to associate Manu Ginobili with the word “worst”. But the past week was a struggle for Argentine wizard, who shot a paltry 30.8 percent from the field while producing two games in which his points tally didn’t cross 7. All of a sudden, the genius from Latin America doesn’t seem so impervious.
Best of the Week
Death, taxes and Tim “The Fundmental” Duncan playing basketball at the highest level seems to be three surest things in the world these days. While his Argentine team-mate may shows signs of ageing, the big old man of San Antonio Spurs continues to mature like fine wine.
In the two games that Duncan managed to play this week after coming back from injury, he managed to average 29 points on 64.1 percent shooting. Oh and yes, he is 37.