Selecting the All-MWC team

Just got a note from league headquarters inviting me to be one of the media/coach contacts to participate in selecting the All-MWC basketball team.

The ballots will be ready on Wednesday and due Sunday after MWC play has finished.

This is always an interesting deal. There doesn’t seem to be any art to it, although with statistics you can apply a little science. But even so, statistics don’t tell the whole story of just how good a player is.

I think Marcus Walker of CSU is a very good player, perhaps outstanding, maybe one of the best. But as the league’s leading scorer, he takes a ton of shots on the last-place team in the league. What does that mean? How much weight should be given to the number of shots he takes. Should he be handicapped or discredited just because the Rams are so badly in need of wins, any wins? It might be unfair to discredit his statistics and it might be unfair to pay too much attention to them. You see the challenge?

The player of the year should be interesting. I think it’s down to three players, Wink Adams of UNLV, J.R. Giddens of New Mexico and Lee Cummard of the Cougars. If Walker belongs in there as the leading scorer, a case could be made for him as a fourth candidate.

In selecting the All-MWC team, does one team, perhaps the champion, deserve two players on that team, or should it be spread around and be representative of the league’s top players. Can two players be among the top five in the league? Perhaps.

The Coach of the year selection should be interesting. Lon Kruger mades a great case, so does Steve Alford at UNM. Dave Rose might receive attention because he did lose the league’s MVP and is headed for a repeat title.

It will be an interesting ballot.

I welcome case arguments for the awards as I sift through the choices and decisions.

Fire away.