NBA midseason awards – MVP, Coach, Rookie of the Year

The 2016-2017 NBA regular season has just passed its midway point, so what better time to start handing out some early awards and honors?

While things are most certainly subject to change in the second half and down the stretch, there are few arguments to be had when it comes to which players (and coaches) have stepped up and made a tremendous impact at this point in the season.

So with all of that in mind, let’s hand out some hardware, shall we?

Coach of the Year: Mike D’Antoni (Houston Rockets)

In a strange and unexpected twist of fate, Mike D’Antoni is currently the best candidate for Coach of the Year. And while your first instinct may be to chuckle given his history in the league, his 2016-2017 resume speaks for itself.

After finishing 41-41 with one of the NBA’s worst defenses a season ago, expectations weren’t very high for the Rockets coming into 2016-2017. However, D’Antoni took over the job and not only rallied his players, but he also managed to get them to buy into his philosophy and maximize their individual potential.

If an example of that is needed, look no further than James Harden, who is not only playing great offensive ball, but he’s morphed himself into an all-around talent and MVP contender.

The Rockets still may not be the greatest team defensively, but they’re third in the Western Conference with a record of 34-13, second in the league behind only the Golden State Warriors in points per game (114.5) and are third in the league in point differential (+7.2). They also have 21 in-conference victories, which is good for second-most in the NBA.

“Mike D’Antoni is NBA Coach of the Year” may sound strange coming off the tongue when you consider the way D’Antoni was dumped by the Lakers and Knicks, but no one is even a close second this year. And it’s hard to believe much will change by season’s end.

Sixth Man of the Year: Eric Gordon (Houston Rockets)

Continuing the theme of Mike D’Antoni getting the most out of his players, Rockets guard Eric Gordon is having a better season than many realize.

After spending his career in the starting lineup, Gordon joined the Rockets knowing they wanted him for his shooting ability. He hs embraced being the team’s sixth man and has more than made the most of each opportunity.

Gordon is currently averaging 17.6 points per night, which would be good for the third-highest average of his eight-year career, and is also contributing 2.8 assists and 2.7 rebounds per night. But those stats, however solid they may be for a sixth man, don’t really tell the story.

If you truly want to grasp the kind of impact Gordon has had off the Rockets’ bench, look no forward than his three-point shooting.

Gordon currently is second in the league with 163 three pointers made this season, which is second only to Stephen Curry. And it’s not because he’s throwing up more three’s than Curry, either; he’s actually taken fewer shots from beyond the arc.

But perhaps above all else, Gordon’s presence has made the aforementioned James Harden a better all-around player. His style more appropriately compliments Harden, which Dwight Howard’s presence did not. And it’s that intangible that doesn’t show up in any box score that warrants Gordon the Sixth Man of the Year award.

Defensive Player of the Year: Rudy Gobert (Utah Jazz)

When the season ends, it’s quite possible that several players make up the debate for Defensive Player of the Year. For now, Jazz center Rudy Gobert gets the feather in his cap.

The Jazz sport one of the best defenses in the league, and that comes in no small part thanks to Gobert. Arguably the best inside presence in the NBA, Gobert defends the rim with ferocity and gets the ball back for his offense at an impressive clip. Currently he’s fifth in the league, averaging 12.7 rebounds per game, and leads the league with 2.6 blocks per game.

But as noted above, Gobert isn’t just doing big things individually — he’s also helping to make his teammates better. Through the midway point, with Gobert’s presence in the middle, the Jazz allow only 101.2 points per 100 possessions, which is second only to the Warriors by a tenth of a point.

Making Gobert’s half-season performance more impressive is that he’s done it with various lineup combinations due to injuries. Despite that, he’s maintained a huge impact.

Rookie of the Year: Joel Embiid (Philadelphia 76ers)

Of all the awards to be handed out, none seem more obvious than 76ers big man Joel Embiid winning Rookie of the Year. And that’s not necessarily a knock on his fellow rookies, but more an indication of his wildly unexpected level of play this season.

Embiid leads all rookies in scoring, averaging 19.9 points per game, but that’s not even the most impressive aspect of the stat. What’s truly telling is that the next closest rookie to Embiid is scoring over 10 fewer points per game (Dario Saric, 9.7 points per game).

Not only does Embiid lead his fellow rookies in scoring, but he also leads them in rebounds per game (7.8), blocks per game (2.5), free-throw attempts (238) and double-doubles (8). He’s also third among all rookies in field goal percentage (.462).

Still not enough? Consider that Embiid just posted a stretch of nine consecutive appearances with 20-plus points, which not only leads all rookies, but is the longest such streak since Blake Griffin went 14 straight games scoring 20-plus in 2010-2011. And Embiid did not played 30 or more minutes in any of those games.

If you still need a cherry on top to these numbers, since 1951-1952, which is when the Elias Sports Bureau began tracking minutes, no player in league history — rookie or otherwise — has scored 20-plus points in nine or more consecutive games while playing under 30 minutes in each of those games.

Yeah. Embiid winning Rookie of the Year will only be the beginning for this budding superstar.

NBA MVP: Russell Westbrook (Oklahoma City Thunder)

Like Lamar Jackson during the Heisman Trophy race, Oklahoma City Thunder superstar Russell Westbrook has made this a relatively easy pick. And while some could legitimately pound the drum for Rockets guard James Harden or even Golden State Warriors forward Kevin Durant, it’s Westbrook’s historic numbers and unparalleled pace that set him apart from the rest.

Currently, Westbrook leads the league in scoring, averaging 30.6 points per game, and is second in the league with 10.4 assists per game. He also leads all point guards in points per game, assists per game, rebounds per game (10.6), double-doubles and triple-doubles.

In fact, Westbrook leads the entire league with 21 triple-doubles on the year, which is the statistic that truly separates him from the pack and warrants the MVP award.

With those 21 triple-doubles on the season, Westbrook is now more than halfway to Oscar Robertson’s season record of 41 triple-doubles, which came in 1961–62. He’s also propelled himself up the all-time triple-double list with his dazzling display this season, and is now only one behind Larry Bird for fifth all-time.

Westbrook’s play has been nothing short of astonishing this year. He’s clearly got a chip on his shoulder and as a result, we’re all witnessing history in the making.