I’ve been looking forward to producing this list for a while now…I’ve labored over statistics for a while, but some of these picks just feel good. I might have been a bit biased this month, but who cares – it’s my opinion anyway.

Eastern Conference Player of the Month - LeeeeeeBron. 30 / 8 / 7  for the month of January. That’s MVP caliber play right there. He’s picked up the pace too with recent injuries to Delonte West and Mo Williams. His back might get sore, but I envision him having no trouble carrying the Cavs deep into the playoffs. Now, whether he stays there or not is a different story…

Honorable Mention - Rajon Rondo. Why, you ask? Let’s consider this – for January, Rondo averaged 16 pts, 9 assists, 5 rebounds, and 2 steals a game. He also leads the league in steals and leads the Eastern Conference in assists. Put the stats aside. He is more pivotal to this Celtic team than any other player on the court. Yes, the men in Green have KG, The Truth, and Ray-Ray. But injuries have really hurt this team and their depth has been questioned (their big men love fouling). Rajon Rondo will be the main reason if the Celtics make it to the NBA Finals. Mark my words.

Western Conference Player of the Month -Kevin Durant. Averaging 32.1 points and 8.1 rebounds a game. Oh yeah, he blocked a dude’s layup with one shoe on. He continues to impress me every game, and to be honest I don’t see the ceiling on his talent yet. I think he has the ability to lead the ThunderCats to their first playoff birth in Oklahoma City.

Honorable Mention - Kobe. He loves killing teams in the final seconds. Ask Sacramento and Boston. He’s also doing all this with a plethora of injuries. His numbers did dip a bit for January (23 points per game, down from 31 in December). That being said, he’s a game changer – and January wasn’t any different. I also considered Zach Randolph and Brandon Roy in this spot.

If Boston and LA get to the finals again, I might have to start filming Celtic Pride 2.

6th Man of the (Year) Month – Jamal Crawford. Seriously, give him the award already. He doesn’t start, and is in the top 40 in the NBA in scoring. If you look at points scored per 48 minutes, he 16th in the NBA, next to teammate  Joe Johnson. That’s INCRBL.

Rookie of the Month – Tyreke Evans. It’s really tough for a rookie who’s team won 2 games in January (still, better than the Nets). Averaged 20.7 points per game in January, shot around 45% from the field, and was 84-102 from the charity stripe. This foul shooting, especially the attempts, have gone up every month (86 in December, and 67 in November). That is a good sign for Evans, who is starting to figure out that he can drive to the basket, get the call, and not be Dwight Howard/Shaq at the line.

Team of the Month - Memphis Grizzlies. There, I said it. Not the Lakers, Cavaliers, Celtics, Magic, Hawks, or Nuggets. The Memphis Grizzlies. It feels SO GOOD to talk about a non-elite team for this category. They were 13-5 over the course of January, including wins over – Phoenix (2), Utah, Orlando, San Antonio, and even the beloved Thundercats! I’m not even going to count the win over LA (because it was in February), but this team is slowly turning heads around the league.

More importantly, they aren’t doing it with a household name (unless you count the 13 games Allen Iverson was with the team). There are 3 players on this team that are over 28, and only Zach Randolph makes over 5 million a year. It is such a good story for the Grizzlies, who often have been hovering in the basement of the NBA standings since 2005-06. Kudos to Lionel Hollins for taking this team and coaching them to (hopefully) a playoff bid in the Western Conference. If he doesn’t win coach of the year, then the award shouldn’t be handed out. Ever again.

I’m on the Grizzlies bandwagon for the rest of the season. LETS GO!

Honorable Mention : Denver Nuggets. They keep winning (12-3 for the month), partially without Carmelo Anthony. This team is so deep – especially when you have players like JR Smith and Ty Lawson playing major roles off the bench and contributing solid points in limited action. If Denver is 100% healthy and firing on all cylinders  come playoff time, I don’t think they can be stopped. Also considered Utah here.

Buzzer Beater of the Month – SUNDIATA GAINES! I love pulling for the lil’ guy. His shot lifted Utah over Cleveland in the final seconds of regulation. He was on a 10-day contract with the Jazz and has been a D-league journeyman. It was awesome to see this on TV. I couldn’t believe my eyes…

and now…the infamous INCRBL and TRBL awards (heard someone say “TRBL” at a Hoboken, NJ bar once…)

INCRBL – Goes to Andre Miller. Criticized on this site as an underachieving player, he shut us up with his 52 point performance over the Dallas Mavericks on January 30th. Nicely done, Andre.

INCRBL – Nate the Great proved he was worth the playing time he got. Benched since 12/1, Nate got off the new year off to an amazing start, dropping 41 points, 8 rebounds, and 6 assists in a Knick road win over Atlanta.

TRBL – Now named the “Los Nets” award, as it will forever pertain to the futility of the New Jersey Nets basketball franchise. They are currently a 4-44. In honor of their team an win total, I’ve decided that there was only one thing “fitting” to do…

I’m still laughing that it says “Great Choice!” at the top.

Let’s hope February brings out the best in all of us (including you, New Jersey),

-Duts