Wednesday, January 23, 2008
The First Annual NBA Oscars
Remember when the Oscar for Best Picture used to always be a really good movie that everyone had seen and loved? You could have a real debate about which film should win because you had actually seen the nominees. Every year, there would be at least two or three movies that deserved to win and you didn't really care which of them won because they were all so good, capped off in 1995 when "Forrest Gump," "Pulp Fiction," and "The Shawshank Redemption" were all nominated. Then the winners got kind of weak and you found yourself thinking things like, "I hope 'Gladiator' wins, at least I've seen that" for a few years.
What does this have to do with anything you ask? Two things: first, the Oscars looked like they were back after three really good movies won Best Picture in a row: "Million Dollar Baby," "Crash," and "The Departed." Then, all of the sudden, this year's nominations were announced Tuesday and the academy blindsided us with an array of period pieces and Best Actor/Actress nominees from movies I've never heard of. No one I know that's seen "American Gangster" or "The Bourne Ultimatum" has said it was anything less than spectacular. Yet they get nothing but a supporting actress and best sound nomination, respectively.
And don't even get me started on "The Simpsons Movie" not getting any recognition for Best Animated Film. Is the category Best Animated Film/90-Minute Babysitter/Excuse to Get My Kids Out of the House? If so, then I apologize. I was under the impression that because "The Simpsons Movie" was animated, and a good film, that it might fall into the Best Animated Film category.
As you can see, I'm not going to take these oversights lightly, which leads me to my second point. The writers' strike has already robbed me of my favorite awards show (the Golden Globes, which covers both film and TV and everyone is hammered) and as I've noted, I'm not happy with the Oscars this year. I can't go an entire year without an awards show. I just can't.
That's why I've combined my two of my favorite things, NBA basketball and awards shows, to bring you the first ever NBA Oscars! Throw on your best tuxedo t-shirt and walk with me down the red carpet as we examine the list of inaugural nominees for the First Annual NBA Oscars!
Most Disappointing Season (Team)
Nominees
New York Knicks
Chicago Bulls
Utah Jazz
Miami Heat
And the winner is ... the Miami Heat!
This one is tricky for me because I am not disappointed in the Heat at all. In fact, I'm ecstatic. I absolutely hate the Heat, as I've documented in this space before. What disappoints me is that after an 8-32 start, everyone knows how terrible this team really is. They've stopped comparing Dwyane Wade to Jordan and have accepted the fact that Shaq is done. I don't even get the privilege of rooting against them for four games this April in the playoffs as they get swept again. So even though Utah made it to the conference Finals last year and are on the outside looking in this year, I'm still more disappointed that John Q. Basketball Fan finally realizes how bad the Heat truly are.
Most Disappointing Season (Player)
Nominees
Shaquille O'Neal
Kevin Durant
Jason Kidd
Tayshaun Prince
And the winner is ... Kevin Durant!
Each nominee in this category has been disappointing for a different reason. It is disappointing to see Shaq fall so hard from grace. It is disappointing to hear Jason Kidd just accept the fact that both he and his team have been grossly overrated for many years. Any Piston fan will tell you ad nauseam how bad Tayshaun Prince has been all year. But to me, the most disappointing thing about the first half of the 2007-08 season has been the fact that Kevin Durant is still a long way from being a superstar.
Maybe he'll turn into the super-scorer that I hoped he'd be coming out of college sooner rather than later, but based on what I saw from him at Texas, I thought he'd be more explosive than this. He's had more games where he scored in single digits (4) than in the 30's (2). He looks lost out there at times and his shot selection has been brutal. Maybe my expectations were too high coming in, but I thought by now he'd already had some games where he flirted with 40.
Most Surprising Player
Nominees
Marcus Camby
Brandon Roy
Andrew Bynum
Rudy Gay
And the winner is ... Andrew Bynum!
Although on second thought, maybe he should have won for most disappointing player after the brilliant start of the season he had put together, only to dislocate his kneecap when he was at the peak of his game so far. But I have to believe that everyone besides GM Mitch Kuptchack and his own personal Mr. Miyagi, Kareem, were surprised by how strong Bynum came on this season.
Bynum has averaged 14.6 points, 10.7 rebounds, and 2.3 blocks and shot 65% from the field in the 25 games he's started this year. Either Kobe talking trash on a cell phone camera or the vote of confidence he got from management when they refused to trade him for Jason Kidd or Jermaine O'Neal last season has sparked life into the 20-year-old future superstar. His knee should heal up to right around 100% shortly before the playoffs. If Kobe can keep the Lakers afloat while Bynum's out (which he will), the Lakers could be an upset waiting to happen in the first round of the playoffs.
Most Surprising Team
Nominees
Boston Celtics
Los Angeles Lakers
New Orleans Hornets
Portland Trailblazers
And the winner is ... the New Orleans Hornets!
All apologizes to the Portland Trailblazers and your 13-game winning streak and 17-3 home record, but did anybody see New Orleans finishing the first half of the season with the best record in the Western Conference coming? The point guard play of Chris Paul has been outstanding, and stands as the main reason why the Hornets are where they are right now. Paul has joined the likes of Allen Iverson and Steve Nash as one of my favorite players watch with the ball. Even when he's not shooting well, he can still get to any place on the court he wants, and he does it with a certain flare that only great point guards possess.
Combine that with the fact that Tyson Chandler has continued to build on his breakout season of a year ago and developed into a very formidable big man and you've got one pretty unstoppable duo. Byron Scott has gotten the most out of his role players and even though I don't think they will finish the season with the best record in the conference, their play to this point has been both the most surprising and most impressive.
Best Performance by a Coach
Nominees
Byron Scott
Nate McMillan
Doc Rivers
Phil Jackson
And the winner is ... Phil Jackson!
First of all, let me say that Best Performance by a Coach is not the same award as Coach of the Year. I think the Coach of the Year should go to the coach who gets the most wins out of the least amount of talent at the beginning of the season. This season's front-runner is Nate McMillan. That is not the criteria for Best Performance by a Coach, however. To me, the best coaching job this season has been by Phil Jackson.
The reason is because in the past three seasons the Lakers have made a total of one major free agent signing (Derek Fisher) and gotten significantly better using young players that they have developed themselves. Phil Jackson has once again shown that he is a great basketball mind and teacher as he has taken a group of mostly low-talent but high-potential players and force-fed them the triangle offense for four seasons until it finally set in, and now the Lakers look like a machine on offense most nights. Whether it's Kobe scoring 48 like he did in Seattle or 18 like he did in the Denver game on MLK Day, the Lakers can score with any team in the league.
Add that to the fact that Jackson has somehow convinced Kobe to have his most unselfish season yet even amid the trade talks and I'd say that this has been one of Phil's all-time great coaching performances.
Best Team
Nominees
Boston Celtics
New Orleans Hornets
Detroit Pistons
Phoenix Suns
And the winner of tonight's biggest award is ... the Boston Celtics!
No surprise here. Boston is on pace to win 69 games. I'll admit I was skeptical at the beginning of the year, and I still have my doubts as to whether or not they can beat an elite team in a playoff series, but I have to give the Celtics a lot of credit. They have blown away my expectations and have done so in convincing fashion. However, as we've seen in recent years, teams that have the most success at year's end tend to make a significant roster move at some point during the season.
Maybe the C's will bring in a veteran point guard or big man and be the team that makes the best move. Maybe they are content with what they've got and will ride these guys into the playoffs. But rest assured that with buyouts and the trade deadline fast approaching, plenty of teams will get better between now and the end of the season.
Peaking early means nothing if you can't do it again in June. Nonetheless, congratulations to the fast starting Boston Celtics and their win of the First Annual NBA Oscars Best Team award.