On the heels of the last week’s All-Hoopraker teams, our editorial board concocted another excuse to drink a few pints on Sunday night as we devoted the better part of three transcendent hours at a tiny, crowded table in our favorite temple of triglycerides to debate, gerrymander and tabulate the 2008-2009 individual honors: defensive player of the year, Conference player of the year, and coach of the year.
Again, the results below are certified the accounting firm of Monte And Stepson, “Oh, we’ll get your money, don’t you worry ’bout that, providing timely, aggressive results since Monte’s parole in 2002.“
Defensive Player of the Year
Damian Johnson
Defense is in the DNA of The Big Ten Conference. In this category, it was truly difficult to identify one player who stood out on the defensive end more than Chester Frazier, Travis Walton or Chris Kramer, all great defensive players in their own right. All three guards consistently caused grief for their opposition and in most Conferences would win the award going away.
But in the end, we’ve gone with Minnesota’s Damian Johnson. The long, cat-quick Johnson disrupted the offensive rhythm of more teams and impacted the game on the defensive in more ways than anyone else in the Conference. He deflects passes on the perimeter, blocks shots, makes steals, doesn’t take a possession off, and guards the opposition’s best players. The job he did on Louisville’s Earl Clark was textbook. Watching Johnson play defense has been one of the highlights of a great Big Ten season.
Big Ten Player of the Year
Evan Turner
The vote was close. Manny Harris and Kalin Lucas merited very serious discussion here. It’s hard to deny Lucas is the primary reason the Spartans, the regular season champs, could be starring at a Number 1 Seed if they plow through the field in Indy next week. With help from Durrell Summer and the stabilizing influence of Goran Suton, Kalin Lucas was the engine that propelled the Spartans during the absence of Raymar Morgan.
Still, it’s hard to deny Turner his due here. Morphing into a 6′6″ point forward midway through the season, the sophomore was given and took complete responsibility for Ohio State’s season. With obvious basketball smarts sowed by Gene Pingatore at St. Joe’s in Chicago, Turner’s combination of rebounding, scoring, passing and creating winning opportunities off the dribble is better than any other player in the Conference.
Coach of the Year
Ed DeChellis
Heading into last week’s thriller in State College, Bruce Weber was in the running to beat DeChellis. What the Penn State coach lacks in hair he makes up for with coaching acumen. With several big wins on his resume and an NCAA bearth in his hands, he’s gotten the most from a collection of marginal Big Ten recruits, most few schools wanted, including All-Big Ten performers Talor Battle and Jamelle Cornley. He’s called the right moves more often than not this year, from mixing up defenses to getting the ball into hands of the right player at the right time.
Right on the tail of DeChellis tail are John Beilein and Bill Carmody. Beilein’s big wins against Duke and UCLA overshadow his deft ability to call effective plays out of timeouts and the job he’s done getting Michigan to compete all season, through wins and losses. Carmody not only saved his job this season but he seems to have finally turned the corner in getting Northwestern to play at a competitive level and with mental toughness night in and night out in the Big Ten all the while without compromising the academic rigors of Evanston.
Original Story:
http://hoopraker.com/2009/03/09/with-...
