Image via Complex Original
The 2012-13 NBA regular season comes to a close tomorrow night. Players have treated the fans to plenty of storylines and epic performances this year. Over the next few weeks, the league will begin handing out awards like the MVP (take a wild guess), Sixth Man of the year (we’ll riot in NYC if this man doesn’t win), and the lame often forgotten Sportsmanship award (we know who it’s NOT going to).
Anyway, rather than figuring out whose player efficiency rating makes them worthy of such accolades, we’re taking a look at which NBA player sonned the most stans on Twitter or who gave out the biggest facials (ayo!). From Mr. Ankle-Breaker to Bum of the Year, here are the 2013 Complex NBA Awards.
Bum of the Year
And the Winner Is...Andrew Bynum
It's hard to be Bum of the Year when you haven't played a single NBA second, but Andrew Bynum is no ordinary guy. He's had more hairstyles than Phil Spector and his knees are made of peanut brittle. Homie injured one of his knees while bowling and his acquisition drove Doug Collins to retirement. Who would've thought that the Denver Nuggets were the winners of the Dwight-for-Bynum trade?
Mr. Ankle-Breaker 2013
And the Winner Is...Kyrie Irving
If you couldn't already tell from the GIF, Kyrie is nasty. Whether you're a young'n like Brandon Knight or a vet like Jason Kidd, just about everyone is susceptible to looking ridiculous while attempting to guard Irving.
Mr. Irving broke plenty of ankles in the 2012-13 season but unfortunately a number of injuries—broken finger, broken jaw, and a sprained left shoulder—limited the All-Star guard to just 58 games this season. Despite the time missed, Kyrie was still your go-to-guy for highlight reel ankle breakers in 2012-13.
Mr. Social Media 2013
And the Winner Is...J.R. Smith
Whether he's inviting kids to a late-night bike ride or roasting a disrespectful follower, J.R. Smith has given a master's class on how to utilize (and how not to behave) on social media. Either way, J.R. has been unpredictable yet ridiculously entertaining with each tweet that hits our timeline. And while most NBA players play it safe on social media, issuing apologies or deleting messages deemed inappropriate or offensive, Smith simply rides to the beat of his own drum. Long live #koldgame!
The 2013 NBA Fashionista
And the Winner Is...Russell Westbrook
No surprise here. It's undeniable that the three-time All-Stars' tight pants and frameless glasses are talked about more than his on-court performance. Not only does Westbrook's quest to look like a trendy Steve Urkel make him appear as a real life Clark Kent to Durant's Superman; but it's also helped contribute (in a small way) to the increasing stupidity of SportsCenter's de-emphasis on sports.
Mr. Softee 2013
And the Winner Is...Pau Gasol
You know it's real when your own teammate tells you to "grow a pair" "put your big boy pants on." That's exactly what Kobe Bryant told Pau Gasol back in December when the Spaniard was battling knee tendinitis and having trouble adjusting to Mike D'Antoni's offensive system.
Pau's always had a bit of a Charmin reputation but the Lakers' struggles this season have only magnified his lapses in focus and fragility in the paint. Pau had career-lows in games played and started, PPG, and field goal percentage this year.
Trash Talker of the Year
And the Winner Is...Kevin Garnett
Did Kevin Garnett really tell Carmelo Anthony that his wife, LaLa, tastes like Honey Nut Cheerios? We'll likely never know the answer to that question but whatever Garnett said to Melo on that fateful night back in January irked the Knicks All-Star enough to wait by the Celtics team bus to confront KG. That alone solidified Mr. Garnett's spot as Trash-Talker of the Year. Not to mention the hilarious memes and, uh, interesting thoughtsit brought to mind.
Dunker of the Year
And the Winner Is...DeAndre Jordan
It would be wrong to give the Dunker of the Year award to anyone other than DeAndre Jordan. An esteemed member of the council of Lob City, when Jordan throws it down the Staples Center shakes. Seriously, Lord help anyone who feels foolhardy enough to even try and stop the big man once he takes it to the hole. Check out Brandon Knight's emasculation here by the way.
Big D has 173 dunks this season, many of which may have caused women to hide their children, and men to cry for their mamas. Jordan didn't have much of a reputation as a high-flyer when he first entered the league, but having Blake Griffin and Chris Paul for teammates will do that to a dude who's 6'11'' and 265 pounds of pure manimal. If you're still in doubt as to whether or not DeAndre Jordan deserves to be crowned Dunker of the Year just ask yourselves this, who else has inspired a T-shirt based solely off of one dunk? Show us your dunk face.
Mr. Underrated
And the Winner Is...Stephen Curry
Still think Steph Curry isn't an All-Star? Under the bright lights of Madison Square Garden Curry dropped 54 points on 64 percent shooting—a night after scoring 38 and being sonned by Roy Hibbert. Under the guidance of Mark Jackson, Curry has the Warriors in the 6th seed of the Western Conference and is turning into a star right before our eyes.
With a field goal and three-point average of 45 percent and a 90 percent average from the charity stripe, he's arguably the best shooter in the game. The guy can pull it from anywhere. We expect him to be a regular on the NBA All-Star team for years to come (if healthy, of course).
The Biggest Trick of the Year
And the Winner Is...James Harden
"It ain't tricking if you go it?" According to his five-year, $80 million deal with the Rockets, James Harden certainly has it and according to the gossip columns, he's spending it on a bevy of fine women. First there was the rumor of him paying Webcam model Jenna Shea $20,000 to "hang out" for a weekend. Then there was the stripper whom he "blessed" with stacks on stacks on stacks (see the third thumbnail).
Most recently he reportedly began paying video vixen, Blac Chyna, $50K a month to be his girlfriend. Six-hundred grand for a video vixen to be your wifey sounds pretty crazy. We'd like to add that Harden hasn't confirmed any of these stories and Shea denied the $20K rumor but where there's bands flying, there's groupies flocking. Or something like that.
The Fail King of the Year
And the Winner Is...Brandon Knight
Brandon Knight will make sure to burn all the footage of his 2012-13 season. The worst part of his year was how the collection of embarrassing lowlights spanned from All-Star Weekend to the end of this season. That's less than two months of constant ridicule. The worst part is Knight displayed his futility on both sides of the ball.
From his missed layup against Boston to Kyrie destroying his ankles to what has to be the dunk of the season by DeAndre Jordan, Brandon has had a rough go at it. Even this knockdown by Nikola Pekovic of the Timberwolves was just downright embarrassing. It's safe to say that Brandon Knight has officially made the Detroit Pistons #failcity with his inability to get out of the way. Just watch one of his videos on mute while playing this in the background and enjoy his lowlight reel.
