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1. Stan Van Gundy, Magic: Regardless of how Shaquille O'Neal feels about him, SVG is pushing all the right buttons for the Magic, who knocked off the Celtics on Sunday and are just 3.5 games behind the Cavs for the best record in the East. (Last week: 1)

2. Mike Brown, Cavaliers: Cleveland, which is 21-12 on the road this season, needs one more victory to tie the franchise record set in the 1991-92 season for wins away from home. (Last week: 2)

3. Jerry Sloan, Jazz: The injury bug has bitten the Jazz hard -- causing Carlos Boozer to miss 45 games, Deron Williams 14 and Andrei Kirilenko 10. Jazz owner Larry Miller died a few weeks ago. Through all the adversity, Sloan has been there to hold everything together. (Last week: 4)

4. Erik Spoelstra, Heat: The Heat are five games over .500 and have won 19 games more than they did last season. He has done a good job of working Jermaine O'Neal and Jamario Moon into the rotation. (Last week: 3)

5. Scott Skiles, Bucks: This team, minus Michael Redd, would be the No. 8 seed in the East if the playoffs started today. Really, it would. (Last week: NR)

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There is little change in this week's top five:

1. Dwight Howard, Magic: (Last week: 1)

2. Dwyane Wade, Heat: (Last week: 2)

3. LeBron James, Cavaliers: (Last week: 3)

4. Chris Paul, Hornets: (Last week: 5)

5. Kobe Bryant, Lakers: (Last week: 4)

Dwight Howard is the Defensive Player of the Year, and it was easy to see why Sunday as Orlando was knocking off the Celtics in Boston -- especially on two late plays that won't show up in his section of the box score.

First, let's briefly focus on what did show up in the box score.

Howard's 13 defensive rebounds kept the Perkins-Davis-Powe combo off the glass -- the three tallied only four offensive rebounds after running roughshod over the Cavs' interior defensive for seven offensive boards Friday night.

More impressive were his five blocked shots, mostly of the volleyball variety. His first one set the tone, landing about six rows back after Perkins dared try a jumper over Howard early in the first quarter. But not all the BLKs found the fans -- in the second quarter, he batted the ball Bill Russell-style to teammate Mickael Pietrus on the wing, then ran the 94 to beat Boston down the floor for a massive two-hand slam five seconds later. It was one of the more impressive end-to-end sequences we'll see all season.

But it was the two late plays that did the most to preserve the Magic's narrow victory.

With about 85 seconds left in the game, Ray Allen, who already had scored 15 in the fourth quarter, made yet another drive to the basket with the Celtics down five (they had been down 22 just minutes before).

As Allen drove and tried to make the sort of runner he had made several times earlier in the quarter, the whistle blew -- shooting foul on Courtney Lee. But Allen and Howard kept playing. A couple of minutes earlier, Allen had made a beautiful teardrop over Howard, but this time Howard got a little closer to Allen and spiked the ball back down to the floor, harmlessly. Allen made his two free throws, of course, but Howard had prevented an extra point that could have been crucial to Orlando's chances, getting a blocked shot that won't show up in the box score.

After Allen's free throws cut the lead to 3, Boston got the ball back with a chance to tie, and Allen ended up with the ball, wide open in the left corner. The man who will probably go down as the greatest 3-point shooter ever needed only to sink a shot that for him is like a layup to complete Boston's incredible comeback.

Howard found himself under the basket and could have stayed there -- that's generally what centers do. Instead, he flew at Allen and made the world's most frightening closeout, forcing Allen to rush the shot just enough to miss it. Dwight's flight was the play that allowed Orlando to maintain its lead and beat Boston for the first time this season.

D-12 will win Defensive Player of the Year because of the numbers. But on Sunday, it was the plays that didn't count that made the difference -- and made it clear who is the DPOY.