NBA weekly awards: Jarrett Allen, Gary Payton II and more

It’s time for the second edition of our NBA weekly awards series, where we pick a winner for every top accolade, from weekly MVP to Coach of the Week.

This week has a very Cleveland Cavaliers flavor to it, as two young Cavs frontcourt players made their way onto our ranking.

Without further ado, let’s jump right in.

MVP of the Week: Jarrett Allen

Weekly stats: 20.5 ppg, 16.3 rpg, 2.5 apg, 1.5 spg, 63.3 FG%

We had no choice but to go with Jarrett Allen as our MVP this week, and with good reason, as the former Texas standout had a monstrous week scoring the basketball, securing rebounds and causing havoc defensively, where Allen totaled 11 combined steals and blocks over the past seven days.

This week was nothing new for Allen, either, as the big man is off to a fantastic start on the campaign, sitting eighth in VORP, 19th in BPM and 12th in WS/48.

The Cavs also went 4-0 during Allen’s big week, proving that his numbers are far from empty calories.

Of course, part of Cleveland’s undefeated week had to do with Allen’s young frontcourt partner, who we’ll touch more on in just a moment.

For the latest Jarrett Allen rumors, click here.

Rookie of the Week: Evan Mobley

Weekly stats: 17.5 ppg, 8.8 rpg, 2.5 apg, 1.0 bpg, 54.5 FG%

Not only did Evan Mobley post the best week of any NBA rookie these past seven days, but he also capped it on Sunday with the most impressive performance of his blossoming career when he went off for 26 points, nine rebounds, five assists and one block and steal apiece, all while shooting 11-for-15 from the floor.

Cleveland would win that game, on the road, no less, over the New York Knicks by a final score of 126-109, and although Ricky Rubio (rightfully) got most of the headlines, Mobley was spectacular in his own right.

Mobley possesses so many special, unique qualities, and it’s going to be fun to see how his rookie campaign progresses as he continues to develop.

The Cavs have a potential franchise cornerstone on their hands.

For the latest Evan Mobley rumors, click here.

Defensive Player of the Week: Gary Trent Jr.

Weekly stats: 18.0 ppg, 2.5 rpg, 2.0 apg, 3.3 spg, 45.5 FG%

Although his shooting struggles continued this week, Gary Trent Jr. made a huge impact on the defensive end of the floor, racking up a whopping 13 steals this week, including a career-high six against the Cavaliers on Nov. 5.

Trent Jr. may not be thought of by the average fan as some elite point-stopping defender on the less glamorous end of the floor, but he’s quietly turned himself into one of the stingiest backcourt stoppers in the Eastern Conference.

Trent Jr.’s defensive impact was seen on Sunday when in roughly 13 possessions guarding James Harden, the former league MVP was held to 2-of-5 shooting for just four points while having a shot blocked, per PBPStats.com.

If Trent Jr. keeps this up, he’ll start to earn more credit for his point-stopping prowess.

For the latest Gary Trent Jr. rumors, click here.

Sixth Man of the Week: Gary Payton II

Weekly stats: 13.7 ppg, 4.7 rpg, 2.3 apg, 2.7 spg, 72.0 FG%

It was just a three-game week for the Golden State Warriors, but in just that small of a sample size, Gary Payton II did enough to earn Sixth Man of the Week honors.

Payton II was spectacular off the bench for the Warriors in the past seven days, making 18 of his 25 field-goal attempts while racking up eight steals in three contests, nearly performing at the level defensively his father would in the ’90s and ’00s.

Payton II’s energy levels off the bench have been a huge part of Golden State’s 8-1 start, and his impact as a reserve can’t be overstated, as in just nine games this season, the Warriors are an astronomical 33.1 points per 100 possessions better with Payton II on the floor.

For the latest Gary Payton II rumors, click here.

Most Improved Player: Jordan Poole

Weekly stats: 27.3 ppg, 2.3 rpg, 2.3 apg, 1.7 spg, 57.1 FG%

After a mundane week where Jordan Poole averaged 13.8 points on 13.5 shot attempts over four games while contributing little else on the rest of the stat sheet, the Warriors 2-guard bounced back in a big way this week.

Over the past three games, Poole put up over 27.0 points nightly while shooting over 57 percent from the floor in a week that saw the Warriors win by 22-, 41- and 13-point final margins.

Poole isn’t prime Klay Thompson, but his steady play alongside Stephen Curry has been massive towards Golden State’s early-season success and will allow the Warriors to bring Thompson along slowly when he’s ready.

For the latest Jordan Poole rumors, click here.

Coach of the Week: Doc Rivers

Doc Rivers has been heavily criticized throughout his career, sometimes unfairly, for certain shortcomings he’s had as a head coach.

But we also have to give credit when it’s due, and Rivers having the Philadelphia 76ers where they are this season, 8-2 through 10 games, No. 1 in the East and No. 4 league-wide in net rating (+8.9) shows why he’s one of the NBA’s premier head coaches.

And he’s done that while having to navigate nonstop Ben Simmons drama, as well as various injures and COVID-19-related issues affecting his roster.

Rivers was an easy call for Coach of the Week in this edition of our weekly series.

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