Response to the initial announcement of the kPOY has been overwhelming. I’ve received correspondence from as far away as Ohio and while there have been many different questions, the most common one involves who would have won the award in past seasons. We only have comprehensive and accurate tempo-free player stats going back to the 2005 season, so let’s start there and see if this thing has any credibility. (And also, feel free to cut and paste these standings into the Wikipedia page, whomever creates it.)
2005
1. Sean May, UNC. (.497)
2. Andrew Bogut, Utah (.482)
3. Shelden Williams, Duke. (.405)
4. Wayne Simien, Kansas. (.401)
5. JJ Redick, Duke. (.394)
6. Spencer Nelson, Utah State. (.394)
7. Taj Gray, Oklahoma. (.378)
8. Joey Graham, Oklahoma State. (.370)
9. Hakim Warrick, Syracuse. (.364)
10. David Lee, Florida. (.355)
Bogut was the consensus POY in 2005 and while I don’t claim to have the best memory, I don’t recall that May was seriously considered. However, given the competition, he should have been. Keep in mind, I’m including tournament action in my calculations and that helps May a bit here.
2006
1. Shelden Williams, Duke. (.459)
2. JJ Redick, Duke. (.452)
3. Randy Foye, Villanova. (.435)
4. PJ Tucker, Texas. (.414)
5. Joakim Noah, Florida. (.412)
6. Glen Davis, LSU. (.383)
7. Tyler Hansbrough, UNC. (.366)
8. Brandon Roy, Washington. (.359)
9. LaMarcus Aldridge, Texas. (.342)
10. Aaron Gray, Pitt. (.331)
This was the Redick/Morrison year and Morrison is nowhere to be found because Gonzaga’s style of play broke my ratings. I said it then and I’ll say it again – if you consider defensive value in your POY thinking, then Williams had a case for being the most valuable Blue Devil that season. And using a formula I created, I find myself vindicated. Take that, people.
2007
1. Alando Tucker, Wisconsin. (.487)
2. Kevin Durant, Texas. (.461)
3. Tyler Hansbrough, UNC. (.429)
4. Acie Law, Texas A&M. (.412)
5. Jeff Green, Georgetown. (.398)
6. Greg Oden, Ohio State. (.391)
7. Joakim Noah, Florida. (.387)
8. Al Horford, Florida. (.385)
9. Roy Hibbert, Georgetown. (.384)
10. Carl Landry, Purdue. (.369)
I cringed when I saw that Tucker beat out Durant here. In the real POY, this was a two-player race until some point when people decided that Tucker didn’t play much defense, and I do think that was the right call. Wisconsin’s somewhat significant advantage in team rating helps put Tucker over the top.
2008
1. Michael Beasley, Kansas State. (.626)
2. Kevin Love, UCLA. (.622)
3. Tyler Hansbrough, UNC. (.531)
4. Stephen Curry, Davidson. (.508)
5. Luke Harangody, Notre Dame. (.438)
6. DJ Augustin, Texas. (.431)
7. Brook Lopez, Stanford. (.427)
8. OJ Mayo, USC. (.422)
9. Brian Butch, Wisconsin. (.413)
10. Roy Hibbert, Georgetown. (.402)
This was an epic race between Beasley and Love, who put up the two most valuable seasons for which I have data. Beasley gets the nod and just look back on that season. He was easily the team’s most efficient offensive player despite using the maximum amount of possessions that is humanly possible. But alas, he didn’t work as hard as Hansbrough, who essentially was a consensus POY for his work ethic alone. I think this season is the best example of why my award will eventually push aside Wooden and Naismith.
2009
1. Blake Griffin, Oklahoma. (.578)
2. Tyreke Evans, Memphis. (.524)
3. James Harden, Arizona State. (.486)
4. DeJuan Blair, Pitt. (.440)
5. Tyler Hansbrough, UNC. (.392)
6. Hasheem Thabeet, UConn. (.369)
7. Terrence Williams, Louisville. (.368)
8. Cole Aldrich, Kansas. (.363)
9. Earl Clark, Louisville. (.361)
10. Sam Young, Pitt. (.352)
I recall this being a slam dunk for Griffin with some contrarian support for Thabeet and Harden. I’m surprised Thabeet even made the list with a usage rate under 20, but the dearth of quality beyond the top 5 partially explains this.
2010
1. Evan Turner, Ohio State. (.548)
2. DeMarcus Cousins, Kentucky. (.442)
3. Jimmer Fredette, BYU. (.427)
4. Greivis Vasquez, Maryland. (.426)
5. Jon Scheyer, Duke. (.420)
6. Kyle Singler, Duke. (.416)
7. Greg Monroe, Georgetown. (.392)
8. Da’Sean Butler, West Virginia. (.380)
9. LaceDarius Dunn, Baylor. (.370)
10. Trevon Hughes, Wisconsin. (.353)
This was a Turner/John Wall race until conference play when support galvanized around Turner. Wall finished around 15th here for what it’s worth.
There you have it. In just two of the six seasons does the kPOY agree with the consensus POY. I’m happy with the choices in three of the four disagreements. Only the Tucker year bothers me. This seems like a worthy alternative to the traditional POY discussion, where the debate seems to end by mid-January. (By the way, I just learned that the last time the Naismith and Wooden awards went to different players was 1995. I mean, why even have competing awards?)
Back to the 2011 race, Jared Sullinger takes over the lead and his candidacy seems to be taking hold in the human awards as well. If he goes onto win, he owes South Carolina head coach Darrin Horn a thank you. Horn’s decision to let Sam Muldrow or Johndre Jefferson try to defend Sullinger one-on-one didn’t work out so well, with Sully lighting up the Gamecocks for 30 points and 19 boards. Memo to those Big Ten opponents who might reasonably expect to be a significant underdog to Brutus: Sullinger’s ability to bully opponents is more reliable than the Buckeyes’ ability to make three-point shots.
Data is through Sunday’s games.
1. Jared Sullinger, Ohio State. (Rating of .508, last week: 3rd)
2. Terrence Jones, Kentucky. (.501, LW: 1st)
3. Jon Leuer, Wisconsin. (.496, LW: 2nd)
4. Kemba Walker, UConn. (.453, LW: 5th)
5. Jimmer Fredette, BYU. (.438, LW: 4th)
6. Derrick Williams, Arizona. (.412, LW: 7th)
7. E’Twaun Moore, Purdue. (.396, LW: 8th)
8. Nolan Smith, Duke. (.385, LW: 9th)
9. Kawhi Leonard, San Diego State. (.384, LW: 6th)
10. JaJuan Johnson, Purdue. (.380, LW: NR)