5. I nominated Brandon Roy for Most Improved Player in our ESPN.com award votes Tuesday, and I suppose I should explain that pick. I've been an ardent Devin Harris supporter in that category for nearly the entire season, but when I looked over the full body of work one more time before submitting my vote, I realized that Roy's improvement was just as large in PER terms. And while Harris slumped a bit after the All-Star break, Roy kept chugging along.
Two other players -- Kevin Durant and Danny Granger -- had PER improvements in the same ballpark, so it came down to two factors for Roy. First, he wasn't a second-year player, like Durant, and I'm normally reluctant to put second-year guys in the discussion since so many of them make such huge strides in Year 2. (In fact, Jeff Green was arguably more deserving than Durant.)
Second, while Roy's improvement in PER terms was no larger than Harris', I would argue he did it at a more difficult level. Going from borderline All-Star to full-blown superstar, as Roy did, is a more substantial feat than going from a quality regular to an All-Star, as Harris did, in the same way that a leap from 55 wins to 65 is much more difficult than a leap from 35 wins to 45.
So after endorsing Harris all year, it was clear to me that Roy was the right pick.
