In the Rotation: NBA Week 12

With a full slate of games to be played on Monday, a cool new Martin Luther King Day tradition, 18 of the 30 NBA teams will have played at least half of their regular season games, with the rest of the league to catch up later in the week.

You know what that means: midseason awards!

It's as innate as walking or talking. Every season, regardless of the sport, every sports fan takes a mental inventory of the season at the halfway point and evaluates what he or she has seen. It's human nature.

Here inside the rotation, things are no different. There's no better time than the inexact halfway point to start projecting award winners.

This week's Starting Five is an early look at the front-runners for some of the most coveted hardware in the NBA, as well as a look at some of the players most likely to make a late-season charge at the award.

And the midseason winners are...

Starting Five

1. MVP: LeBron James

There's nothing more that can be said about LeBron's season so far. He's been the best statistically. His team has the best record in the league. He's shown up for every big game so far (except for the opening night loss in Boston, but he more than redeemed himself a few weeks ago). The Cavs are undefeated at home (in the Q!). He's playing like a first-team All-defensive player. He's even shooting a career-high free throw percentage.

I didn't just tell you anything you shouldn't already know about LeBron's 2008-09 season. He meets every criterion for the award possible. The MVP is his to lose.

Dark Horse: Kobe Bryant

The reigning MVP isn't going to pass the torch without a fight. Statistically, Bryant is putting up numbers on par with what he did a season ago, but his team is on pace to win eight more games and run away with the best record in the Western Conference.

He has also lived up to his reputation as the best clutch performer in the game lately, burying three game-winners in a four game stretch this week, and it would have been four game-winners in five games if Big Shot Roger, Jr. hadn't spoiled Kobe's go-ahead three and (spoiler alert!) cajones dance Wednesday night in San Antonio.

However, will all apologies to Chris Paul and LeBron, Kobe didn't exactly have this much competition last season. If LeBron played like this last year, he would have been MVP that season, too.

Still, if anyone can overtake the King for the MVP, it's Kobe. The Lakers still have two games against the Cavs: an MLK Day showdown at Staples and an ABC Sunday game in the Q on February 9th, with the real possibility that Cleveland's home winning streak is still intact.

Kobe loves the spotlight, and if he can steal the show against LeBron and outplay him in both of their head-to-head matchups, and the Lakers finish with the best record in the league, the gap between the two will narrow greatly when it's time to cast the MVP ballots.

There are a lot of big "ifs" I just mentioned, but it's not impossible. If anyone can do it, it's everyone's favorite ankle insurance salesman.

2. Defensive Player of the Year: Dwight Howard

Dwight Howard said before the season started he wanted to win the Defensive Player of the Year award. Through the first half of the season, he has lived up to his word.

Howard leads the league in blocks at 3.2 per game, but that is only half the story. Not only does he lead the league, but with the exception of Marcus Camby 2.6 per game, Howard averages a full block per game more than every other player in the league.

Not since the rest of the league got Eaton Alive in 1984-85 by Mark Eaton (5.6 blocks per game, the next best was Hakeem Olajuwon at 2.7) has there been the possibility of one player running so far away with the blocks per game title. A good second half or a Marcus Camby injury (both seem pretty likely) and Howard could be headed to a historic defensive season, one certainly worth of Defensive Player of the Year.

Dark Horse: Dwyane Wade

Wade is the only player in the NBA who ranks in the top 20 in both steals per game and blocks per game. If Howard's block numbers slip and Wade can climb the ladder in each of these categories, his all around defensive effort may be the kryptonite that keeps Superman from his first Defensive Player of the Year Award.

3. Rookie of the Year: Derrick Rose

The race for this season's ROY is probably the closest of any of the major awards at this point in the season. You could make a case for a few different players here, but to me, Rose has been the best rookie in the league for a majority of the season. O.J. Mayo, Michael Beasley, and Russell Westbrook have all shown flashes so far, but by and large Rose has been more consistent.

Rose ranks second among rookies in points per game at 16.8, first in assists with 6.3, and is shooting 46% from the floor and 78% from the free throw line. He also has the Bulls just a game out of the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference.

Yes, Rose may have hit the notorious "rookie wall" a few weeks back where he had a 10-game stretch in which he only averaged 14.2 points 5.2 assists, but he's rebounded nicely with 16.5 points and 8 assists per game in his last five games.

It's Rose's consistency (only four single-digit scoring games and one game with zero assists through his first 41 games) that has me giving the nod to Derrick Rose as the front-runner for Rookie of the Year at this point.

Dark Horse: O.J. Mayo

To me, O.J. Mayo has been the biggest surprise of the 2008 draft class. Most of us expected Rose and Michael Beasley to come out and produce immediately, but there was always a big question mark hovering over Mayo.

It didn't take Mayo long to erase all doubt and establish himself as a ready-made NBA scorer, dropping for 31 and 33 respectively in just his seventh and eighth games as a pro. Mayo has scored at least 20 points in 20 of the Grizzlies 39 games.

However, the Grizzlies are just 4-16 in the 20 games in which Mayo has scored 20. No one is disputing the fact that he can score, but unless he starts making his teammates better (he has just two games of more than 5 assists) or finds a way to start racking up more victories (Memphis is on a 23-win pace), Rose should be able to hold him off down the stretch and win the Rookie of the Year.

4. Most Improved Player: Devin Harris

Harris has absolutely blossomed this year for the New Jersey Nets. His numbers are up in points, rebounds, assists, steals, blocks, and free throw percentage from a season ago, and his 22.3 points per game has him ninth-best in the league, while his 6.4 assists has him ranked 13th. Last year he ranked 67th and 15th, respectively.

Harris' play has helped lead the somewhat surprising Nets to a tie for the eighth and final playoff spot in the east and has also made a strong case for him to represent the East in the all-star game next month in Phoenix.

Dark Horse: Danny Granger

You could make the case that Paul Millsap is a strong contender for MIP, as well, but I'm not sold on that. Sure, Millsap is averaging 6.9 points and 3.7 more rebounds per game than he did a season ago, but he has also seen a significant increase in minutes played, as well, with the injury to Carlos Boozer allowing Millsap to play nearly 11 minutes per game more than he did last season.

Millsap's stats per 36 minutes are close enough to what they were a season ago to indicate to me that Millsap isn't the most improved player in the NBA, but he certainly has the title of "Most Improved Situation."

Meanwhile, Danny Granger has elevated his game to the point that he has become one of the most deadly scorers in the NBA. His 13 games of at least 30 points or more ranks him third only behind LeBron James and Dwyane Wade. He's increased his scoring average from 19.6 a season ago 26.3 this year, a jump that's taken him from 34th in the league in '08 to currently 4th in the NBA in scoring.

Not only has his points per game gone up, but his numbers across the board have increased, as well, indicating that Grangers hasn't just improved as a scorer, but has also begun the transformation into one of the most complete players in the league.

If he can continue to put up big numbers for the Pacers in the second half of the season, he has a very good chance of becoming the Most Improved Player for 2009.

5. Coach of the Year: Stan Van Gundy

The Magic have quietly gone about the first half of the season taking care of business by starting the season off at 33-8 and sit just percentage points behind Cleveland for the best record in the league. The Magic have the best road record in the NBA and are on pace to increase their win total by 14 games from a season ago.

They've also established themselves as one of five teams (Lakers, Cavs, Celtics, Spurs, and Magic) that have given the impression throughout the first half of the season that they are legit title contenders.

With no Pat Riley waiting in the wings to steal his job once the team reaches its apex, Van Gundy will finally have a chance to show his coaching chops with a contending team in the playoffs as he tries to navigate the inexperienced but talented Magic through the minefield that is the top of the Eastern Conference.

Dark Horse: Jerry Sloan

I'm not a big fan of handing out regular season awards just because a guy has never won before, but I might be willing to make an exception this year if the Jazz can make the playoffs.

Despite only getting 12 games so far from Carlos Boozer, 28 from Deron Williams, 33 form Memo Okur, and 35 from Paul Millsap, the Jazz are currently at 24-17 in the West and sit in the ever so important eight-spot out West.

Sloan has been able to keep this team afloat despite a rash of injuries to his best players. If he can lead them to a second half charge, one of the best coaches of our generation will finally be recognized as the Coach of the Year, an honor he most certainly deserves to have on his resume after 21 magnificent seasons on the Utah bench.

In the Rotation: The resurgence of the "cajones dance"

There is no more of a ridiculous/awesome celebration in sports that the "I've got giant cajones" dance that Sam Cassell made famous after an NBA player hits a big shot.

As I mentioned earlier, Kobe dusted off the "cajones dance" after hitting a huge shot in San Antonio against the Spurs Wednesday, only to have his shot immediately trumped by Big Shot Roger, Jr. seconds later, who pulled out his own version of the "cajones dance" on his way to the free throw line to bury the game winner that ESPN inexplicably never replayed.

Then, the following night, Kenyon Martin "cajones danced" his way back to the bench for the second time that I've noticed this season after his dagger three-pointer sealed a Nuggets win at home against the Phoenix Suns.

The real story here isn't that the "cajones dance" is catching back on, but that the dance itself must make David Stern furious. He's tried so hard to clean up the league's image over the past few years, the last thing he needs is every player in the league gesturing to his manhood every time he drills a big shot.

The thought of the league having to send out a memo to each team at some point in the near future that reads "any player caught gesturing to the crowd or opposing team about the size of his testicles will be fined heavily" is just high comedy.

The possibility of this memo becoming public is reason enough by itself to put the "cajones dance" in the rotation this week.

Out of the Rotation: The love-fest between Olympic teammates

This is the way great players should play one another.

If you don't have ten minutes to spare, I'll summarize what happens for you. Charles Barkley didn't like that fact that, in his opinion, Michael Jordan was getting all the calls that game and got a technical in the first half arguing his point.

Jordan took didn't like the fact that Barkley was complaining about him and let him know about it (as only M.J. could), and what transpired was one of the most epic trash-talking duels in NBA history.

Jordan scored 45 points, Barkley scored 35 and grabbed 14 rebounds, and the two never stopped jawing with one another the entire game.

The best part about this game is the fact that Jordan and Barkley were good friends at the time and remained good friends after the fact.

The point is that when the greatest players in the world get together, it should be an "I'm better than you and I'm gonna prove it at all cost"-type game, regardless of the players personal relationship off the court.

Instead, this season when players on last summer's gold medal winning basketball team get together it's more of a two-hour game of grab-ass than a fierce competition.

I understand that these players share a special bond and no doubt made memories with their Olympic teammates that will last a lifetime, but save the fun and games for dinner after the game.

I'd much rather see Kobe and LeBron try to rip each other's hearts out for 48 minutes this MLK day than see a two hour display of "look at how good of friends we are now."

Let's hope that as the season enters the stretch run we see more budding rivalries from these elite level players instead of the soccer-style friendlies that we have been getting so far.

Be sure to check back at Sports Central every Monday to see who cracks Scott Shepherd's rotation as he breaks down what is going on around the NBA.