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gia · Guest

Put Swoopes' name on awards
Oscar Dixon, USA TODAY

The races for WNBA playoff positions show all signs of coming down to the final game. Equally as close are the races for individual honors, including MVP, most improved player and coach, rookie and defensive player of the year.

A panel of 60 sportswriters and broadcasters votes on the awards. Coaches don't get an official vote and usually disagree with the media. So in a USA TODAY survey, all 16 coaches listed their top three picks in each category. Their top pick was worth three points; second, two; and third, one. Fans also weighed in by casting their votes on wnba.usatoday.com. USA TODAY's Oscar Dixon picks his leaders and lists the fans' choices and the top three coaches' picks.

MVP
Leading candidate: Sheryl Swoopes, forward, Houston Comets.
Why: After missing last season with a knee injury, Swoopes has rebounded to her MVP form of 2000, when she led the league in scoring (20.7) and steals (2.81). Going into Tuesday's games, she was No. 1 in both categories, averaging 17.8 points and 2.91 steals. Swoopes gets the edge over Los Angeles' Lisa Leslie, who does not have to do as much because her supporting cast is playing much better, and Washington's Chamique Holdsclaw, who has been sidelined for seven games by an injured ankle.
Fans' choice: Holdsclaw, 47.6% of the votes.
Coaches' picks: Leslie, 30 points; Swoopes, 27; Holdsclaw, 24.

Most improved player
Leading candidate: Coco Miller, guard, Washington Mystics.
Why: Miller looked like another Mystics draft mistake last year when selected with the ninth overall pick. She averaged just 1.7 points in 6.9 minutes a game. Miller says this year she is getting an opportunity. She is playing 28.9 minutes a game and making the most of them by averaging 10.2 points a game. Miller's play is a major reason for Washington's success.
Fans' choice: Pollyanna Johns Kimbrough, Miami, 60.4%.
Coaches' picks: DeMya Walker, Portland, 14 points; Miller, 14; Penny Taylor, Cleveland, 10.

Coach of the year
Leading candidate: Marianne Stanley, Washington.
Why: Stanley has reached more franchise milestones than any of her five predecessors. The Mystics have broken team records for wins in a season and home victories, tied the franchise mark for consecutive wins (six) and should finish the regular season above .500 for the first time. Linda Hargrove gets a "last laugh" vote after being raked over the coals before the season for trading highly touted rookie Nikki Teasley to Los Angeles for Ukari Figgs on draft day. But Hargrove said she needed a proven guard, and Figgs has quarterbacked Portland into playoff contention.
Fans' choice: Stanley, 75.3%.
Coaches' picks: Stanley, 37 points; Candi Harvey, Utah, 15; Hargrove, 12.

Rookie of the year
Leading candidate: Tamika Catchings, forward, Indiana Fever.
Why: Catchings, who would have been MVP of the All-Star Game had the East won, has the best all-around game of any of the talented young players. She edges Seattle's Sue Bird in a close race. Catchings leads all rookies in scoring, rebounding and steals. Overall, she was tied for first in the league in scoring (17.8 ), fourth in rebounding (8.4) and second in steals (2.77) going into Tuesday's games. Catchings, drafted in 2001, was never activated after suffering two knee injuries.
Fans' choice: Teasley, 34.5%.
Coaches' picks: Catchings, 41 points; Bird, 38; Stacy Dales-Schuman, Washington, 16.

Defensive player of the year
Leading candidate: Swoopes.
Why: No player is more effective at turning defense into offense than Swoopes. She also has the ability to put any perimeter player in the league on lockdown at crunch time.
Fans' choice: Debbie Black, Miami, 60.5%.
Coaches' picks: Swoopes, 20 points; Leslie, 12; Black and Margo Dydek, Utah, 11.

Dunkin' Dan · Posted: Wed Jul 24, 2002 8:24 am Post subject:

I'm pretty surprised to see SDS 3rd in ROTY with no sign of Swin Cash.

Other than that the MVP award is certainly a 3 horse race (a far cry from last season's one horse race :twisted: )
Of the 96 total votes allocated by the coaches, the top 3 candidates received 81 between them.

Would be nice to see Grubin's name mentioned occasionally as an improved player too. She's turned out to be a nice pick-up.

gia · Guest

Unfortunately Grubin is inconsistant.......not to mention it's hard being named most anything when your team is on a monster losing streak :(