2005 Awards Watch

After a 0-9 start the Bulls became one of the best young teams in the NBA, posting a solid 47-35 record, and earning home court in the first round, as Scott Skiles taught the Baby Bulls how to walk.

Emeka Okafor behind 15.1 ppg and 10.8 rpg gets the nod over Ben Gordon, playing on an expansion team Okafor is the perfect player in which the Bobcats can build their entire franchise around.

Ben Wallace should have no problem reclaiming his throne as the best defensive player in the NBA as his 12.2 rpg and 176 blocks guided the Pistons to a division title, and in position another title run.

After the departure of Vince Carter Chris Bosh helped fill the slack by increasing his PPG by more then 5 over his rookie year to 16.8 per game, as the 2nd year PF is now the foundation of the Raptors future.

Off the bench Rookie Ben Gordon showed veteran poise with 15.6 ppg including 134 3-pointers to help lead the Bulls back into the playoffs for the first time since the end of the Michael Jordan era in 1998.

Shaq may have the flashier stats, but without him the Heat are still a strong team. When Nash missed a few games the Suns struggled as his 11.5 apg led the Suns to rise from 29-53 to a NBA best record of 62-20.