2011 Most Valuable Old Guy Award

It's the traditional kick-off to award season in the NBA, the Most Valuable Old Guy Award (or as it's called west of the Mississippi, the John Stockton Award). Before the better known accolades such as MVP, Rookie of the Year, Coach of the Year, and 6th Man are awarded, we begin it all with what has become a fan favorite, the MVOG. Quick shout-out to last year's winner, Marcus Camby. Here's hoping he gets things in good health for Portland's potentially epic playoff run. We hope he enjoyed his prize coupons.

Second Runner-Up:
Grant Hill, Phoenix Suns, 38 year old
Phoenix disappointed everybody this year. They'd won without Amare Stoudamire before, back in 2006 when Amare tore his knee up. But after a run to the Western Conference Finals last season, Phoenix is going to miss the 2011 playoffs. Steve Nash, an old guy in his own right (but not quite old enough to qualify for this award), played about as well as anyone could have asked of him. Alongside Nash, through thick and thin, has been Grant Hill, who answers "Yes" when Nash has asked for him to be the anchor of the suddenly not-so-sturdy Suns boat (with Nash as the captain). Hill is having a solid-stone season, marking a career high in 3-pointers with 44 and counting, and if he finishes out the year, which he should, he'll have played in at least 80 games for three straight seasons. Grant Hill has become the model of old guy consistency. His career numbers as a Sun look eerily similar from year to year. If the Suns had put together a stronger season, perhaps we'd be congratulating old Grant "G-Money" Hill with a bounty of prize coupons and a trophy the size of your arm.

First Runner-Up:
Jason Kidd, Dallas Mavericks, 38 years old
If you switch Kidd's first half with his second half, and he finished with the exact same stat totals, we'd probably be handing the trophy to him on Sunday night, in this, his first year of eligibility. But as it is with all old guys in the NBA, the season drags long, and unlike the high fliers of the younger generations, all of the twists and bumps heal much slower. For Kidd, it's resulted in the vanishing of his jump shot. Kidd was one of the top long distance specialists in the league, shooting .404 on 3s before March 6th. Because of his impressive abilities to stretch the defense with his 3s and also find teammates for open looks, Dallas was one of the best teams in the league. After March 6th though, it's a different story. Kidd is shooting just .223 from downtown in the stretch, and as a result Dallas has slopped their way down from the pedestal of contention into the swamp of underdogs.

2011 Most Valuable Old Guy:
Kurt Thomas, Chicago Bulls, 39 years old
It's long overdue ladies and gentlemen. It's a proud moment for everyone as we announce the winner of the 2011 Most Valuable Old Guy Award, #40 for the Chicago Bulls, Misterrrrrrr Kurt "Dock O' The Bay" Thomas! Thomas signed in the off season as a deep bench emergency center and found himself smack dab in the middle of numerous Chicago Bull emergencies throughout the year. After having averaged 17 minutes over the previous 3 seasons (remember, he was a Spur for two years? Yeah, me neither), KT has played over 23 minutes per in this, his first campaign with Chicago. With Joakim Noah and Carlos Boozer missing 34 and 23 games due to injury, respectively, Kurt Thomas has had to fill in unlike anybody else in the league. On what has become the hottest team, and one of the favorites to make it the Finals, Kurt Thomas has filled in and D'd up against all of the superior low post players in the league. Playing with a crazy spark of unclassified genius, Kurt Thomas doesn't budge. He's old as hell, and the Bulls wouldn't be in first place in the Eastern Conference without him. Congratulations Kurt. Enjoy your prize coupons, Sir.

Honorable Mentions:
Derek Fisher, Antonio McDyess, Marcus Camby

Least valuable old guy:
Juwan Howard, Miami Heat, 38 years old