Q-POW, but not Q-POY?
In case you haven’t heard, the Pac-10 awards came out on Monday. Here’s a link to the results.
As you’ll see in another really great piece here by a new contributor, Quincy Pondexter came up short for the Player of the Year award, despite winning his fifth Player of the Week award (a record). A questionable choice accoring to WhoLetTheDawgsOut. . .
Agree with the sentiments below? Disagree? Let us hear you in the comments section!
by WhoLetTheDawgsOut
DATELINE: WALNUT CREEK, CA
Pac-10 Commissioner: “And the winner of Pac 10 Player of the Year (POY) is…”
(pause for suspense… opens the envelope)
Pac -10 Commissioner: “…not Quincy Pondexter.”
Jerome Randle pauses for a second, only to give the best Michael Strahan smile of his life and accepts the trophy with gratitude and enthusiasm.
Q-Pon graciously claps for his comrade and does not show an ounce of disappointment or jealousy.
As the ceremony concludes, Q-Pon makes his way toward the door as Roscoe consoles his son.
Pac -10 Commissioner: “Quincy, where are you going? You forgot your door prize. You won Pac 10 Player of the Week (POW). Come on up and get your Tootsie Pop.”
(end scene)
The coaches may as well have just given Q-Pon the Sportsmanship Award instead today. Sometimes, a consolation prize leaves a bigger scar than receiving nothing at all. Simply put, today was a kick in the face to the record-setting five-time POW recipient.
The Question: What prestigious fraternity do Sean Lampley, Sam Clancy, Luke Ridnour, Ike Diogu, Brandon Roy, and James Harden all belong to?
Answer: Pac-10 Players of the Year who were not members of the Pac-10 champion that year.
The Takeaway: Past seasons have proven that Pac-10 coaches have recognized the best conference player based upon his merit, not just on the results on his team’s final position in the standings.
The Frustration: Why couldn’t they be consistent with that same assessment this year? Lorenzo Romar said it best today when he claimed that there “should have been a CO-MVP.” Playing for the conference champion shouldn’t win you that much favor when coaches are selecting the best player.
We have heard a lot about both players’ stat lines today when trying to pick a winner. But in my eyes, the most blaring statistical comparison that was overlooked was something I picked up in the 2nd grade: 5 > 1. When coaches were asked to vote for the best player in the past week’s games, they voted for Pondexter FIVE times and Randle ONCE.
Not to mention Q-Pon is leading a team, as a lone senior, with only two prominent scorers (himself and IT), whereas Randle (one of four seniors) is leading a team that has three scorers (himself, Patrick Christopher, and Theo Robertson). No person, this writer included, can even fathom the rationale used to leave Pondexter out pf at least a share of the crown this year. Were coaches too spellbound from Quincy’s ballet performance in The Nutcracker that they forgot about his on court performance? Not likely, but that’s the only loophole I can think of.
And even more frustrating: Randle delivered a presumably decisive final blow in the POY race with his 33-point statement game against UW in February. Does this cancel out his five point, eight turnover performance earlier this season? And further, did the Oregon game, when Quincy went for a career-high 34 points, not being televised (nor any highlights) have any impact on the decision? One has to wonder.
The Rebound: As gracious as Quincy has been through today, bet your bottom dollar that he has something to prove. We all know the Dawgs are on the bubble, playing for one of the last tournament bids. But, Quincy will be playing for much more than that. Today’s news today should serve as fuel to help ignite his game to another level.
But is this chip that Quincy is sure to carry on his shoulders enough to carry the Dawgs to a Pac-10 Tourney title? Dawg Nation sure hopes so.
What do you think?
Thanks for coming!