Top Ten Players Remaining in the 2010 NBA Playoffs 英雄们，这舞台等着你们来战斗
Now that we are all settled into our NBA conference semifinals, only the best teams remain. Who are the most important players left still standing?
Each team has a superstar, and a player capable of winning on their own. Some have more than one.
These are, in my humble opinion, the ten most important players remaining in the 2010 NBA playoffs.
We will start things off with the always controversial Rajon Rondo. This man is a freak, and easily the best Celtic at this point.
Hate away Celtics fans. I wouldn't blame you.
However, Rajon Rondo is the gasoline that makes the on again off again Celtics go.
He has excellent stats as a point guard. His 13.7 points per game along with 4.4 rebounds and 9.8 assists per game keep the Celtics in every game.
Look at his stat line for the playoffs, though:
16.8 points per game, 6.2 rebounds, and 10.5 assists. Each number is up, and for whatever reason, he excels in the playoffs.
As scrappy and hated as any player in the league, Rajon Rondo would be even higher on this list if it was not for his atrocious free through shooting (62 percent? As a guard?).
It will not be long until "Hack-a-Rondo," "Rope-a-Rondo," or "Hogtie that Little Freak" tactics are a regular.
You need not wonder why Joe Johnson's name has been brought up so frequently with the super free agents such as LeBron James, Dwayne Wade, and Chris Bosh.
This kid is that good.
Twenty-one points, 4.6 rebounds, and 4.9 assists shows that he has great basketball skills in all areas. His involvement in all areas remind me of a less potent scoring version of Kobe Bryant.
He is the key leader of a young Atlanta team who has plenty of potential. He would shoot right up this list if he were a bit more of a reliable scorer.
Old Man River is still player basketball at a very high level. His numbers are dropping at small pace, but he is still an elite and intelligent forward capable of winning games on his own.
His shooting percentage is the highest this year at 51.8 since 2006. It is also the third highest shooting percentage he has shot in his entire 13-year career. This can be attested to his intelligence and ability inside the basket.
This is certainly not attributed to his three point percentage (18.7% on 2 of 11 shooting). That's not really a part of his game, so that doesn't really matter. At least his percentage is better than Dwight Howard's (1-19 Career... ouch).
The Spurs are playing at a high level again. They could challenge for the Western Conference championship.
No one in the league picked up after the All-Star Game quite like Amar'e Stoudemire. With 23 points per game and 8.9 boards, Stoudemire worked very hard for the Suns.
He struggled a bit with the Blazers in terms of rebounding, and the team suffered some.
The Suns are a hungry team. Steve Nash wants a championship, and he will have to utilize Stoudemire to get there.
全明星后，全联盟没人打的像小斯这么生猛。场均得到23分8.9篮板，小斯给太阳可谓贡献良多。
季候赛同开拓者的比赛他在篮板方面表现一般，球队也受到了一定影响。
太阳是一支充满饥渴的球队。纳什想要一座总冠军奖杯，他需要小斯鼎力相助以帮其达成心愿。
6. Antawn Jamison, F, Cavaliers
6.贾米森，大前锋，骑士
This year's Pau Gasol to Lakers trade was the Antawn Jamison to Cavaliers trade.
Both were traded for little more than a ham sandwich at the time instantly upgrading a championship ready team, while freeing up space for a soon to be rebuilding program.
LeBron finally has a 4 in No. 4 that can play offense and defense with the rest of the big boys. He can play anything from small forward to center.
If the Cavaliers want to go big, plug him in at LeBron's usual spot as the SF, with Shaquille O'Neal at the center, LeBron playing point, Big Z or Varejao at the 4, and Anthony Parker at the shooting guard spot.
Small? Jamison sits at center, with West and Williams in the backcourt, along with James at PF and Moon/Parker at the SF spot.
Jamison is the key to the versatility.
His 18.7 points and 8.4 rebounds per game helped the Cavaliers get second-chance points, and gave teams another big-bodied Cav to worry about on the offensive and defensive end
Possibly the most underrated player in the NBA right now. Yes, he is respected, and yes, people recognize the man's undeniable skill. At 19 points, 10 assists, and four rebounds per game, the strongest point guard in the game comes full force every game. Without Andrei Kirilenko and Mehmet Okur, the Jazz had no business handling the Denver Nuggets. Deron found a way.
或许德隆是现在最被低估的球员。我们尊重他，我们也被他无懈可击的球技所吸引。
场均砍下19分10助攻4篮板，这个强壮的控卫每晚都是全力以赴。
在失去基里连科和奥库的情况下，爵士毫不费力的淘汰了掘金，德隆的表现居功至伟。
4. Dwight Howard, C, Magic
4.霍华德，中锋，魔术
The scariest man in the paint at this point in the NBA. Not quite as dominant as Shaquille O'Neil was in his L.A. or Orlando days, but easily the best center in the league right now. Defensively, he is the best in the game. His savage blocks and physical presence are enough to make teams actually go out and get a certain player to counteract him (here is looking at you, Cleveland). That is some serious respect. Offensively, he improves a bit each year. His points were down from 20 to 18 this year, but his field goal percentage rose to 61 percent. He would be even higher on this list if it wasn't for the fact that he was nonexistent in the opening round game versus the Bobcats... Hack-a-Howard may be the best way to stop him.
Kobe Bryant is an amazing player, no doubt. One of the best of all time for sure. He is third on this list for a variety of reasons, but let's just say that this list isn't about who the best player is in the NBA. It is about the most important player in reference to their team. However, Kobe can apply pressure on any player in the NBA, as well as score in every possible way. No one is the scorer that Kobe is, in terms of consistency. He can play outside, inside, side to side, and he plays terrific defense. If the Lakers are in a jam, they can look to Kobe for a spark. He is the unquestioned leader of the Lakers, and is the only player on this list that I can see as a "floor general." As blasphemous as it sounds, he is not the most critical player wearing purple and yellow....
...Pau Gasol is. Kobe Bryant is NOT the most important Laker at this point in his career.
Without Gasol, the Lakers lose the opening series against the Thunder. Pau Gasol's last second shot to win the series against the Thunder is symbolic in many ways. L.A., meet your new playoff closer. Eighteen points per game, and 11.3 rebounds a game to go with 3.4 assists do not truly reveal the importance of Pau. Pau is the true key to the triangle running smoothly. His ability and intelligence level allows him to play the game thinking two steps ahead of everyone else. Kobe may be one of the best players to ever play the game... but Pau is the most important Laker in the 2010 playoffs.
LeBron haters, unite! "He's a selfish player!" (8.6 assists per game). "He hasn't won anything yet!" (Neither did Jordan at this point in his career). "He isn't good enough to carry a team on his own!" (The same ridiculous claim could be made on Kobe. Whether you like to admit it or not, his first championships were on Shaq's Laker team, not Kobe's, and Pau Gasol was necessary for the last). This is not a knock on Kobe. Kobe is one of the greatest players of all time. In fact, it is silly to continuously debate and compare Kobe, LeBron, and Michael Jordan. They are the top three players of the modern era, hands down. Leave it at that for now. From the vantage point of overall basketball production as of right now, you would be absolutely insane to argue the top spot here. Many Laker fans even say that as of right now, LeBron is the best overall player in the NBA. When he decides to turn it on in the playoffs this year, the Cavaliers do not lose. If the Cavaliers do not manage to win the title this year, people can begin grumbling about LeBron's inability to win the title. He finally has the supporting cast. No one should doubt his ability (29.7 points, 7.3 rebounds, and 8.6 assists per game.... ridiculous). All that is left is to get it done.
