6MOY-Goran Dragic
It goes without saying if you have watched the Miami Heat play at all this season, Goran Dragic The Dragon, is breathing fire off of the Miami Heat’s bench. He is having one of his best stretches of outside shooting that he’s ever had in a Miami Heat uniform.
On top of the hot outside shooting from a personal comparative standpoint, when you think about how he stacks up against the rest of the league, the story remains the same. He ranks in the top five in both assists and scoring off the bench in the NBA.
He’s averaging 16.1 points per game and 5.1 assists per contest as well. The only thing that may prevent him from achieving this accomplishment is the fact that reigning and frequent Sixth Man Award winner Lou Williams is ahead of him in both statistical categories, leading all bench players in both scoring and assists.
ROY-Kendrick Nunn
Kendrick Nunn has been a welcomed revelation for the Miami Heat. Oddly enough and especially considering their circumstances now, you still can’t figure out how Golden State managed to let him get away from them.
He started the season off hot, shaking up the league and gaining the attention of many around the league. He got off to such a good start that he ended up first on the initial version of the NBA.com Kia Rookie Ladder, which ranks rookies from week to week throughout the season. While he was ranked at five in the latest edition, he is still on the list among quite a few impressive rookies.
Nunn ranks second among rookies in scoring at 17.8 points per game, fourth in assists at 3.2 per game, and first in steals at 1.6 per contest. Speaking of steals, he is looking like a steal of a find for the Miami Heat, while he might just end up swooping in and stealing the Rookie of the Year Award from another member of this extremely talented NBA rookie class.
Regardless of how things may end up shaking out, it is quite impressive that the Miami Heat boast players that are playing well enough that they are in these conversations. Hopefully, their play continues to remain at this level, as no matter who any of these individual awards may go to, maintaining their current level of play would give the Heat a great chance to claim the ultimate team reward.