With the All-Star break among us—no games, no trade rumors—I decided to look back at the season up to this point and hand out some mid-season awards.
Celtics MVP: Kyrie Irving
This pick was pretty simple. Irving is the team’s leading scorer at 24.7 points per game and he adds five assists per night, too. Without him, the offense is stagnant—if not lost—and the Celtics have lost to young teams like the 76ers and the Bulls by wide margins.
Celtics MIP: Jaylen Brown
People often overlook how Jaylen Brown so effectively filled in for the Celtics for Gordon Hayward went down with a scary injury.
Up from 6.6 points per game last year to 14 points per game this year, Brown is the team’s second-leading scorer. He’s also adding five rebounds per game to the box score. Without a doubt, especially when considering how he’s filled what seemed to be a glaring hole, Jaylen Brown is this team’s Most Improved Player.
Celtics DPOY: Marcus Smart
This was probably the closest battle on the team, as Smart and Al Horford have both played great defense so far. I gave the edge to Smart for two reasons – one more specific than the first.
Firstly, he is leading the team in steals. That’s the simple part. Secondly, I looked at two matchups against the defending champion Warriors—one with Smart and one without.
With Smart, the Celtics gave up 88 points and Steph Curry scored nine points. Without Smart, the Warriors put up 109 and Curry poured in 49. Obviously, that’s not all on one player but there is definitely something to be said for Smart’s impact on Curry’s game, and if the Celtics want to advance in the playoffs, Smart is their defensive catalyst.
Celtics Sixth Man: Terry Rozier
Scoring off the bench hasn’t been a strength for the Celtics this season, but that is nothing against Terry Rozier.
Averaging 10.1 points off the bench, he’s been a spark for this team, and he’s done remarkably when given the chance for more minutes in Irving’s absence. When Irving went down with an injury in late January, he made his first career start in which he ended with a triple-double. In the next game, Rozier scored 31 points. Rozier has done everything you can ask for from a backup point guard, and even more when he’s had the opportunity.
