Early Predictions of the 'Worst' Awards

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LOS ANGELES - NOVEMBER 12: Beno Udrih #19 of the Sacramento Kings looks on during the game with the Los Angeles Clippers on November 12, 2008 at Staples Center in Los Angeles, California. The Kings won 103-98. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges

MVP, NBA Champion, Most Improved Player, and 6th Man are all impressive awards to get.

Sometimes, however, it's a little more fun to look at the 'Not So Impressive' awards. These awards include:

-Worst Acquisition
-Worst Draft Pick
-Worst Team

and different awards of that nature. At the end, there will also be a 'worst position' section, where there will be the worst starting _____ of the league. The starters from that section are according to www.espn.com/nba/depth

Worst Team

Sacramento Kings

A team that only beat an Eastern Conference team once last season, and couldn't break 20 wins in 82 games hasn't done too much to improve their squad. They drafted Omri Casspi, and Tyreke Evans, when in reality they probably should've taken... a point guard? Say, Ricky Rubio? Hmm. I don't get it either. So now they've got two pretty good shooting guards in Evans, and Kevin Martin, and the newly signed Sean May and Desmond Mason, both of which who have averaged a TOTAL of 3.3 PPG in the preseason.

Other Candidates:
-New York Knicks
-New Jersey Nets
-Minnesota Timberwolves
-Houston Rockets
-Memphis Grizzlies
-Milwaukee Bucks

Worst Acquisition

PORTLAND, OR - DECEMBER 27: Zach Randolph #50 of the Portland Trail Blazers cracks a smile during the game against the New Orleans/Oklahoma City Hornets on December 27, 2006 at the Rose Garden in Portland, Oregon. The Trail Blazers won 100-85. NOTE TO US

Zach Randolph - Memphis Grizzlies

Zach Randolph wasn't acquired for anything important, just Quentin Richardson. But the sleeper for so many teams is looking to make a new name for himself in Memphis. Problem is, he won't. Memphis consists of a ball-hog team, with Allen Iverson and Rudy Gay topping the list, and OJ Mayo falling right behind them. He's not going to see the ball in his hands very often, and when he does, expect turnovers, or broken ankles.

Other Candidates:
- Shaquille O'Neal - Cleveland Cavaliers
- Allen Iverson - Memphis Grizzlies

Worst Starting Lineup

NEW YORK - DECEMBER 19: (L-R) Chris Duhon #1, David Lee #42 and Al Harrington #7 of the New York Knicks watch on from the bench against the Milwaukee Bucks on December 19, 2008 at Madison Square Garden in New York City, New York. NOTE TO USER: User expres

(according to ESPN.com):
Duhon, Chandler, Jefferies, Harrington, Lee - New York Knicks

Don't expect much out of this team. Although they won't be the worst team in the league, there aren't any stars in this lineup. They didn't even bother re-signing the best player they have until just a few weeks ago. It's all a stint until 2010, so even though it's the premier city of B-Ball, that title will be removed until next year.

Other Candidates:
Minnesota - Sessions, Wilkins, Gomes, Jefferson, Hollins
Sacramento - Evans, Martin, Mason, Thompson, Hawes
Milwaukee - Ridnour, Redd, Mbah a Moute, Johnson, Bogut
Detroit - Stuckey, Hamilton, Prince, Villanueva, Brown

Worst Win/Loss difference

Houston Rockets

The Rockets finished fourth last season with a lineup that included the signing of Ron Artest, who is now a Laker, and McGrady and Yao who managed to stay pretty healthy. Now that Yao is done for the year, and McGrady is going to be hurt, they've got to depend on Trevor Ariza and Aaron Brooks to lead the team. This could turn out alright, as they are both rising stars, but Kevin Martin and Tyreke Evans are rising stars too, and Sacramento is not going to the playoffs.

Houston will be dependent on McGrady being healthy and motivated in order to see themselves in the playoffs in 2010.

Other Candidates:
Detroit Pistons
Philadelphia 76ers
Milwaukee Bucks

Worst Draft Pick

NEW YORK - JUNE 25: Second overall draft pick by the Memphis Grizzlies, Hasheem Thabeet is congratulated by members of his entourage during the 2009 NBA Draft at the Wamu Theatre at Madison Square Garden June 25, 2009 in New York City. NOTE TO USER: User

Hasheem Thabeet - Memphis Grizzlies

Ricky Rubio isn't in the running, considering he's not here.

Hasheem failed to impress during the Summer League, and during the preseason. His most impressive statistic is probably his height at 7'2'', but otherwise you're looking at under six rebounds, under five points, and under two blocks per game in the preseason, of which he's started two games. All of the top six picks (not including Rubio, which is why I say six) have doubled his PPG. Sad.

Other Candidates:
-Ricky Rubio - Minnesota Timberwolves:
But we don't know yet.

Worst Dependence on One Player

ORLANDO, FL - MAY 30: LeBron James #23 of the Cleveland Cavaliers locks arms with teammate Ben Wallace #4 before Game Six of the Eastern Conference Finals against the Orlando Magic during the 2009 Playoffs at Amway Arena on May 30, 2009 in Orlando, Florid

Cleveland Cavaliers - LeBron James

The King, the MVP, the best player in the league. The only player on the Cavs.

Where would Cleveland be without LeBron? They'd have Shaq, Mo, and Anderson V. The Cavs added depth this year, but it was all just additions to LeBron's talent. The team is so dependent on him that if James went down on an injury, they wouldn't make the playoffs. They'd probably get one of the top five picks in the draft. Mo Williams is an All-Star, but not a team leader.

Other Candidates:
Houston Rockets - Tracy McGrady
Indiana Pacers - Danny Granger
New Orleans Hornets - Chris Paul
Philadelphia 76ers - Andre Iguodala
Oklahoma City - Kevin Durant
Minnesota Timberwolves - Al Jefferson

Worst Team to Watch

Milwaukee Bucks

Where's the hype? Where's the excitement? Where's the dunker? Where's the player who'll bring the house down?

There isn't one.

The Bucks drafted the fun Brandon Jennings, but without players to surround him, his play will go unnoticed. Michael Redd isn't exactly an exciting player either. A brilliant shooter, but isn't a crowd pleaser.

Other Candidates:
New Jersey Nets
Charlotte Bobcats
Detroit Pistons
New York Knicks

Worst Overhype

Oklahoma City Thunder

A playoff potential team? Could be the biggest turnaround of the year?

Yeah, they added one player, who isn't even in the starting lineup. True, Kevin Durant has a little more experience under his belt, but the team isn't going to just magically shoot up from last year. Remember, this was a team that was worse than the Timberwolves, Grizzlies, and Warriors last season. While Kevin Durant will eventually lead this club to the playoffs, don't start reserving your seats.

Other Candidates:
Orlando Magic
Los Angeles Clippers
Phoenix Suns
Denver Nuggets
Washington Wizards
Toronto Raptors

The Position Awards

LOS ANGELES - MAY 31: Kevin Garnett #21 of the Minnesota Timberwolves loses his balance against Karl Malone #11 of the Los Angeles Lakers in Game six of the Western Conference Finals during the 2004 NBA Playoffs on May 31, 2004 at Staples Center in Los A

Some less in depth awards that'll just be more of a quick scroll through thing.

And I just liked this picture.

Worst Point Guard

PHILADELPHIA - APRIL 30: Lou Williams #23 of the Philadelphia 76ers walks with his jersey in his mouth against the Orlando Magic during Game Six of the Eastern Conference Quarterfinals at Wachovia Center on April 30, 2009 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. N

Lou Williams - Philadelphia

Other Candidates:
Chris Duhon - New York Knicks
Luke Ridnour - Milwaukee Bucks

Worst Shooting Guard

PHOENIX - FEBRUARY 08: Damien Wilkins #21 of the Seattle SuperSonics looks on against the Phoenix Suns on February 8, 2008 at US Airways Center in Phoenix, Arizona. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using th

Damien Wilkins - Minnesota Timberwolves

Other Candidates:
Dahntay Jones - Indiana Pacers
Morris Peterson - New Orleans Hornets
Marco Belinelli - Toronto Raptors

Worst Small Forward

DENVER - NOVEMBER 30: Desmond Mason #24 of the New Orleans/Oklahoma City Hornets is shown on the court during the game against the Denver Nuggets at Pepsi Center on November 30, 2005 in Denver, Colorado. The Hornets won 102-95. NOTE TO USER: User expr

Desmond Mason - Sacramento Kings

Other Candidates:
Luc Richard Mbah a Moute - Milwaukee Bucks
Jared Jeffries - New York Knicks
Ryan Gomes - Minnestoa Timberwolves

Worst Power Forward

AUBURN HILLS, MI - OCTOBER 29: Amir Johnson #25 of the Detroit Pistons walks across the court during the game against the Indiana Pacers on October 29, 2008 at the Palace of Auburn Hills in Auburn Hills, Michigan. The Pistons won 100-94. NOTE TO USER:

Amir Johnson - Milwaukee Bucks

Other Candidates:
Zach Randolph - Memphis Grizzlies
Brandon Bass - Orlando Magic
Boris Diaw - Charlotte Bobcats

Worst Center

TEL AVIV, ISRAEL - APRIL 29: Danish national player David Andersen #13 of Montepaschi Siena watches a lost play against Skipper Bologna during the two Italian teams' semi-final match April 29, 2004 in the 2004 Euroleague Final Four tournament in Tel Aviv

David Andersen - Houston Rockets

Other Candidates:
Erick Dampier - Dallas Mavericks
Kwame Brown - Detroit Pistons
Jeff Foster - Indiana Pacers
Nedad Krstic - Oklahoma City Thunder
Spencer Hawes - Sacramento Kings
-temporary-
(because of Love injury also:
Ryan Hollins - Minnesota Timberwolves)

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