Sabres on Thursday. Quick celebrated his from zgr123's blog
As most teams hit the midway mark in their season this week, TSNs Jack Armstrong offers his thoughts on some of the players who have stood out to me in the first half. Nick Castellanos Tigers Jersey . Here are his mid-season NBA awards. MVP: (KEVIN DURANT-Thunder) - Has been sensational this season and more importantly, the most consistent player in the league. Considering that his team has been without star guard Russell Westbrook and with the free agent departure of sharpshooter Kevin Martin, hes had to carry the majority of the load to not only keep his team afloat but more importantly, at an elite level. Hes delivered on every level. Sure, LeBron James is the best all-around player in the game today yet hes had stretches where he seems to have it on cruise control. Durant brings it for you all the time and for that, I give it to him at the midpoint. ROOKIE: (MICHAEL CARTER WILLIAMS-Sixers) - Simply put, brilliant. His team has been abysmal without him and yet have a decent (considering theyre in tank mode) 12-18 record when he plays. This guy is a better player than he was in college at Syracuse, much like Russell Westbrook at UCLA. He impacts the game on so many fronts its ridiculous. I love watching him play and if I cant catch his game, I make sure I check the boxscores from his games to see his eye-popping stats. I shook my head when they traded Jrue Holiday to the Pelicans on draft night but now I completely understand why they did. Theyve got a major impact guy to run their team for years to come. Special talent. COACH: (JEFF HORNACEK-Suns) - Could have gone with Terry Stotts of the Trail Blazers or Frank Vogel of the Pacers here but who figured the Suns would be this good this year? No one. They were one of the teams in the discussion as being in full tank mode yet a funny thing happened on the way to the lottery. This team plays really hard. Wonderful decision to team the two point guards together (Dragic and Bledsoe). They play with energy and a purpose. Outstanding role definition and they share the ball. To me, the coaching has been a major factor bringing it all together nicely. The injury to Eric Bledsoe is a major blow and Im not sure if they can hold on to a playoff spot but at this point, youve got to give major props to Hornacek and his staff for a job well done. DEFENCE: (ROY HIBBERT-Pacers) - All he does every night is block and alter shots and make you think twice and a third time about bringing your game into the lane. On top of that, he rebounds and is a physical force in the paint. The Pacers are the leagues best defensive team and a huge reason is the fact that they have outstanding rim protection and it all starts with this man. Offensively, hes become a much more polished player as well. He said his goal was to be the top defender in the league and in my book, hes it. MOST IMPROVED: (LANCE STEPHENSON-Pacers) - This second round pick has continued to get better and better. He had a lot of rough edges to his game and his personality coming out of Cincinnati but to his credit, hes slowly but surely emerged as a significant part of the attack of the leagues top team. He can score, rebound, pass and guard for you. Plays with great passion and intensity and has slowed his game down and now plays at a controlled speed with a purpose. Will get a nice raise this off-season. Well earned and well deserved. RAPTORS MVP: (KYLE LOWRY) - No doubt about this pick. Hes been a constant with his leadership, defence and clutch play. Has major league competitive spirit in his personality and zero back-down as well. Give him credit, hes in the best shape of his career (I love guys in their contract year, its amazing how it happens like this so often) and it shows in his game. His ability to get in the lane and create for teammates has grown nicely along with his consistency with the 3-point shot which makes him a greater force in the screen-and-roll game. Ultimately, you watch this team this year and his personality and will to win and pay the price has made this an enjoyable first half of the season for Raptors fans. Yes, there have been plenty of bumps in the road but when you think of Lowry, hes been a major bright spot. Good for him, hes paid the price and gives it to you consistently. Willie Horton Tigers Jersey . Each day, TSN.ca provides the latest rumours, reports and speculation from around the NHL beat. Keeping The Captain? Brian Giontas agent Steve Bartlett told La Presse on Tuesday that the Montreal Canadiens want to keep their captain - an unrestricted free agent on July 1 - in the fold, while sources tell the paper that the two sides will start talks this week. Lance Parrish Jersey .Those stars, most notably the top line of James van Riemsdyk, Tyler Bozak and Phil Kessel, struggled against the Montreal Canadiens and must be better as the Leafs look ahead to facing the Pittsburgh Penguins and New York Rangers this weekend.(SportsNetwork.com) - The Vancouver Canucks recovered from a fluke goal early last time out to knock off one of the top teams in the league. Jonathan Quick and the Los Angeles Kings made things easy on themselves by not giving up a goal at all. The two streaking clubs meet for the first time this season on Saturday night as the Canucks continue their road trip versus the Kings. After beginning a four-game swing with a shootout loss to Phoenix, Vancouver visited a San Jose club on Thursday that had yet to lose at home in regulation. Things didnt go the Canucks way early, but they stayed composed and earned a 4-2 victory to improve to 6-1-1 in their last eight. Roberto Luongo was a victim of an odd bounce on the Sharks first goal just 1:17 into the game. San Joses Joe Thornton dumped the puck wide and the rolling disc bounced off the back boards, up the net, over the crossbar and off Luongos shoulder before dropping in. However, Luongo recovered to make 22 saves and the offense got goals from Chris Higgins, Zack Kassian, Brad Richardson and Mike Santorelli. "No matter what happens in the game, weve been resilient as far as staying focused," Luongo said. "Just sticking to the game plan. Lots of things have happened already this year, but weve reesponded every time. Detroit Tigers Alex Avila Jersey. Thats a really good sign for our team." The only thing that ended up going wrong for Vancouver is that Henrik Sedin was held off the scoresheet, snapping his career-high 12-game point streak. Luongo is 14-9-4 with a 2.21 goals against average and three shutouts in 27 career games versus the Kings, who are coming off a 2-0 win over the Buffalo Sabres on Thursday. Quick celebrated his 300th NHL game with his 26th career shutout and first this season. He ended with 19 saves and the Kings got power-play goals from Mike Richards and Anze Kopitar in winning for the sixth time in nine games. "Well its the first time in a while that we did not give up a power-play goal or a penalty-kill goal, so thats a positive and something to build on," Quick said. "Were going to move on. Weve got Vancouver on Saturday and thats the focus now." Kopitar has a goal in three straight games while notching 11 points in his past eight contests. He helped Los Angeles prevail in a game that saw Jeff Carter, Jarret Stoll and Matt Greene all sit out with injuries. Quick has never recorded a shutout versus the Canucks, going 6-10-1 with a 2.04 GAA in 17 meetings. Vancouver is 6-1-2 in its last nine against Los Angeles.Cheap NFL Jerseys Cheap NFL Jerseys China Cheap Jerseys From China Cheap NFL Jerseys Authentic Wholesale Jerseys China Cheap NFL Jerseys China NFL Cheap Jerseys ' ' '
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