1. Goran Dragic:

2012-13: 14.7 PPG, 7.4 APG, 3.1 RPG, 44.3 FG%, 31.9 3P%, 74.8 FT%, 17.5 PER

2013-14: 20.4 PPG, 6.0 APG, 3.2 RPG, 51.0 FG%, 41.6 3P%, 76.0 FT%, 21.9 PER

And finally, we come to our No. 1 candidate for the Most Improved Player of the Year Award, Goran Dragic, Slovenian-born, Father of Dragons. Call me a homer all you want, but Dragic epitomizes what this award should be all about. The Dragon definitely has the “out of nowhere” effect going for him as one of the most entertaining players in the league and the driving force behind the biggest pleasant surprise of the 2013-14 season. Without Eric Bledsoe for 30+ games, Dragic carried the Suns at times and kept them afloat in a historically tough Western Conference playoff hunt.

Though his assists are down, Bledsoe’s presence undoubtedly factors in there. And if hockey assists were an NBA statistic, Dragic’s numbers would be even better since his deft dribbling through opposing defenses is what triggers Phoenix’s ball movement that usually leads to open threes and pick and pops. The way he manipulates the defense out of the pick and roll, the way he uses hesitation dribbles and beautiful stepbacks over helpless centers and the way he attacks the basket with reckless abandon all pass the eye test that establish Dragic as an All-NBA player this season.

Add in the fact that he’s in the top 20 in the league for points per game, assists per game, three-point field goal percentage, PER, assist percentage, offensive rating and offensive win shares and it’s easy to see he’s elite. Then you consider intangibles like the fact that he’s got a great nickname, lefties are fun and his accent is downright adorable and the question stands: How can you NOT cheer for this clear All-Star snub? There are 31 players in the NBA who have logged at least 1,500 minutes while shooting better than 50 percent from the floor. Dwyane Wade, Tony Parker and Goran Dragic are the only three guards in that group. Anytime a player goes from a decent point guard to the full embodiment of the heir to Steve Nash, that’s the kind of guy that should get the Most Improved Player of the Year Award.