Udrih

1. Beno Udrih, Kings: An argument could have been made last season that he was the worst starter on the worst team in the NBA. Now, he's "string music" from deep, unguardable on ball screens, and finishing almost 80 percent of his shots inside off drives.

2. Josh Smith, Hawks: Don't let the similar scoring numbers fool you. Smith has changed his game with greatly improved shot selection and heightened defensive awareness.

3. Channing Frye, Suns: He's already tripled the number of 3-pointers he made in his whole career in just 24 games, hitting more than 44 percent of them so far.

4. Marc Gasol, Grizzlies: The Grizzlies are one of the best stories of the season, and Gasol is no longer just a solid player, but rather the team's anchor and leader. He scores, rebounds and defends. And he's like a coach on the floor.

5. Aaron Brooks, Rockets:For MIP, I prefer rewarding guys who are playing much better rather than players who are just getting more time and opportunity, but I can't ignore what Brooks has done. Houston looked like it was headed to the lottery this past summer, but he has energized the Rockets to heights no one outside of their locker room thought possible.

Smith

1. Josh Smith, Hawks: His highlight-worthy blocks get most of the attention, but the heart and soul of Atlanta's defense has provided much more than that. He has taken fewer plays off, makes up for teammates' mistakes with his leaping ability and has been getting more than his share of rebounds and steals. (Last week: 1)

2. Thabo Sefolosha, Thunder: Few players bring more passion to the defensive end of the court than Sefolosha, who has been the league's best perimeter defender this season.(Last week: 2)

3. Gerald Wallace, Bobcats, and Shane Battier, Rockets: The 6-7 Wallace is pulling down an eye-popping 12.2 rebounds per game (four more than his career high). He is also averaging 1.6 steals a game and is a strong candidate for the MIP award.

Battier contests every shot, keeps his man in front of him and never gives up on plays. (Last week: NR)

4. Rajon Rondo, Celtics: It is easy to peg Rondo as a defender who simply jumps passing lanes, but he shuts down opposing point guards as well as anyone. (Last week: 5)

5. Brook Lopez, Nets: He rejects shots from the weak side, pulls down almost six defensive rebounds a game and deserves to be playing in the All-Star Game in two months. (Last week: 3)

Harrington

1. Al Harrington, Knicks: How much longer will Harrington -- who is now starting -- continue to be on this list? New York is on a four-game win streak since he joined the starting five. (Last week: 1)

2. Jason Terry, Mavericks: He can score points in bunches. However, he hasn't been providing much else statistically for Dallas lately. (Last week: 2)

3. Jamal Crawford, Hawks: He is basically a sixth starter for Atlanta, averaging 16.5 points in 30 minutes per game. He dropped in a season-high 29 points against the Bulls. (Last week: 3)

4. Carl Landry, Rockets: He saves his best work for last, averaging almost seven points per game in the fourth quarter, which puts him among the league leaders. (Last week: 4)

5. Manu Ginobili, Spurs: He is healthy and averaging almost 20 points per game during San Antonio's current three-game winning streak. (Last week: NR)