In a year when Detroit has gone from worst to first in the Eastern Conference, it's not surprising that the Shock also have a chance to take home nearly each of the WNBA's major end-of-season awards.

	Swin Cash and Detroit have lost just eight games this season.

Swin Cash is one of three candidates for the MVP trophy, and Bill Laimbeer and Cheryl Ford already appear to be locks for coach and rookie of the year honors, respectively. And Deanna Nolan and Ruth Riley each make a strong case for most improved player.

With two weeks to go in the regular season, here's our take on which players might take home the hardware:

MVP: Cash, Catch or Jackson?
If Lisa Leslie hadn't suffered a knee injury -- which has forced her to miss the entire second half of the season so far -- the Los Angeles Sparks' center probably would have won this summer's regular-season MVP award. Up until July 12, she was playing incredibly well and appeared to be on track to win her second MVP (Leslie also won in 2001).

How about some of the other typical MVP candidates? Houston's Sheryl Swoopes, another two-time MVP who won the honor last summer, is having a solid season, but her numbers aren't as stunning as usual (that doesn't mean we don't think Swoopes will win something; keep reading). And though Washington's Chamique Holdsclaw ranks among the league leaders in both scoring and rebounding, the Mystics have the second-worst record in the league and Holdsclaw has been hindered at times with injuries.

So right now, Cash, Indiana's Tamika Catchings and Seattle's Lauren Jackson are the three leading candidates for the award. And all three are having tremendous seasons.

Cash is a big reason Detroit has gone from winning nine games in 2002 to posting 20 victories this season. That's a great turnaround, and Cash has been the catalyst, averaging 16.4 points and 5.7 rebounds while shooting 44.4 percent from the field. Cash can score, run, rebound, and hurt you from the outside or inside, and she's constantly getting the people around her to play better. Turnovers are her only weakness; she leads the league with 90, or 3.3 per game.

Like the other MVP favorites, it's not surprising to see Cash playing so well. She was a winner long before she arrived in the WNBA, and that's because Connecticut coach Geno Auriemma did a great job preparing his kids perfectly for the next level. Laimbeer had a pretty fantastic foundation to work with and simply expanded it.

	Seattle's Lauren Jackson has notched six straight double-doubles.

Catchings, who ranks third with 19.4 points per game and sixth in rebounding at 8.2 boards, is the prototype of the future. She's strong and relentless, and though she's still probably not quite as good as Swoopes or Leslie, no one in the league can match her undying intensity. Catchings' versatility at the 4 also makes her very tough to guard, because very few players are as quick or as strong. She can take bigger players off the dribble or shoot the 3, and opponents are constantly changing their lineups to try to match up with Catchings. She leads the Fever in scoring, rebounding, assists, steals and blocks.

Still, Jackson is probably the leading MVP candidate. Both Cash and Catchings are surrounded by more talent. Detroit is deeper than Seattle, which basically relies on Jackson and Sue Bird. If one of them doesn't play well, the Storm are in trouble, whereas if Cash has an off night, her great supporting cast can rally and still lead the Shock to a win.

And that's what makes Jackson so valuable. She's only 22 and has a couple years to go before she can be called a savvy veteran, but Jackson brings a wealth of experience. She has already played in an Olympics and is older and more mature than most of her peers. She understands herself and how to play in different situations.

Statistically, Jackson is easily having her best year, and has notched six consecutive double-doubles, which tied her with three other players for the longest streak in WNBA history. She's shooting almost 49 percent from the field and 34 percent from 3-point range. If you foul her, her 83 percent accuracy at the foul line makes you pay. Jackson also is Seattle's best offensive rebounder and grabs about 8.5 total boards a game to go with a team-high 21.2 points. She also leads the Storm in blocks, is second in steals and tied for second in assists. Put all those stats together and that's an unbelievable season.

Since the All-Star break, Jackson has played very well, and she's only getting better. In last week's victory over Los Angeles, she scored a franchise-record 34 points (which also matched the scoring high in the league this season) on a WNBA single-game record 17 made field goals.

	Detroit and Bill Laimbeer won just nine games in 2002, but have the league's best mark at 20-8 this season.

Coach: All about Bill
There are very good coaches in this league but nobody else has taken his team from a nine-win season to the top of the East this summer, and Detroit's Laimbeer should win this award, hands down.

Sure, some of it was timing. Laimbeer and Detroit really benefited from the league's contraction. But everything he touched in the dispersal draft and regular draft came out right. Laimbeer's wizardry started a year ago, when he made a very unpopular trade, sending fan-favorite Wendy Palmer to Orlando for Elaine Powell. But it worked out because Powell came in to run Detroit's engine.

Then, with a strong nucleus of Cash, Powell and Deanna Nolan (Detroit's 2001 first-round draft pick) already in place, Laimbeer got Ruth Riley in the dispersal draft, added Cheryl Ford with the third overall pick and sent his other first-round selection, Kara Lawson, to Sacramento in exchange for Kedra Holland-Corn. So within a week, Laimbeer added a top-notch center, a smart veteran and one of the best up-and-coming rebounders. And after getting a nice blend of youth and veterans, he has done a fabulous job of communicating with them.

Rookie: Ford tough
Only one player (five-year veteran Chamique Holdsclaw) grabs more rebounds per game than Cheryl Ford. But no rookie has put on a bigger show this season. Ford is averaging nearly a double-double, pulling down 10.4 rebounds and 9.9 points per game. Ford also ranks tied for third in the league in offensive rebounds (2.8) and is shooting 45 percent from the field and a respectable 71 percent at the free-throw line.

Can she get better? Yes. But Ford, who has been so dominant on a very dominant team, already has exceeded everybody's expectations. And while Detroit is certainly benefiting from Ford, Cash also is reaping the rewards. Ford's rebounding not only frees up Cash to focus on her own responsibilities on the court, it's probably saving Cash years of wear and tear on her body. Instead of constantly having to get into the paint and mix it up, Cash knows Ford is there to get after the rebound.

	Sheryl Swoopes' cat-like quickness has her leading the league in steals.

Defensive player: Swoopes again
Though she's averaging almost three fewer points than last season, and not shooting quite as well, Sheryl Swoopes continues to kill you on both ends of the floor. Offensively, Swoopes ranks ninth in scoring, but defensively she is tops, ranking first in total steals (58) and steals per game (2.42). Swoopes is a big part of Houston's No. 1 defense, which allows just 63.6 points per game. That defense has helped the Comets win 13 of their past 15 games.

Swoopes' defense doesn't just affect the player she's guarding. Opponents tend to avoid her side of the floor on their initial attack. And even when you think it's open, the sneaky, cat-quick Swoopes pounces in the passing lane for the steal, and the next thing you know, she's cruising in for a layup at the other end. Swoopes, in fact, ranks second in scoring in Houston, but that doesn't matter to her. She's the most unselfish player I know and just does what she needs to do for her team to win.

Most improved: (De)Forge-ing on
Detroit's Nolan and Riley, and Connecticut's Katie Douglas deserve some consideration here. But this award should come down to Phoenix's Anna DeForge or Houston's Michelle Snow.

Despite playing on the team with the worst record in the league, the Mercury's DeForge has been a bright spot in Phoenix, and considering she didn't play in the WNBA in either of the past two seasons, her story is remarkable. DeForge was traded to Houston on draft day in 2001, but after getting sick in training camp, Van Chancellor waived her.

	After sitting out each of the past two seasons, Anna DeForge is Phoenix's top scorer.

DeForge forged on, and ended up as Kansas City's leading scorer in the NWBL that year. In 2002, the 5-foot-10 guard was assigned to Charlotte as a free agent but was let go during the Sting's final cuts of training camp. Again, DeForge didn't quit, and played another season (this time with Chicago) in the NWBL.

Then, prior to this season, Phoenix brought DeForge in as a free agent and ended up signing her in April. And now, she's averaging a team-high 10.5 points, almost three rebounds and two assists per game. DeForge, who is averaging 30.8 minutes and started 21 of 28 games, ranks eighth in the league with 41 3-pointers. She's shooting 37.8 percent from the field, 35 percent from 3-point range and 71.2 percent at the line. DeForge also ranks second on the team in assists, third in steals and fourth in rebounding.

While the stats are impressive, DeForge's persistence is really the highlight of her comeback. Despite sitting out for two years, when her only link to the league was watching games via satellite TV, she stayed in shape and got better. In 2000, her only year in the league, she scored 5.4 points per game, an average she has doubled this season.

And she did it by herself. Unlike in college where you have the facilities and weight room at your disposal, DeForge had to seek out these things, people to play with and competition. That requires a lot of mental toughness and tenacity. Then, even when she finally got invited to the Phoenix camp, she had to prove herself yet again, rebuild her reputation from rock bottom. She did it with no benefits and no bonuses, just hard work, and DeForge should be the prototype for any kid who wants to be a professional athlete.

Houston's Snow also had something to prove when she joined the league two years ago. Coming off of a somewhat shaky senior season at Tennessee where she was often criticized for her defense, Snow was drafted as the 10th overall pick in 2002 by the four-time defending champion Houston Comets.

In her first season, Snow started just two of 32 games, averaging 3.9 points, 3.7 rebounds and 15 minutes. But this summer, Snow has started all 28 games and is averaging 9.5 points, 8.0 rebounds, 30.3 minutes and 1.8 blocks and is shooting 51 percent from the field.

The Comets have won 13 of their past 15 games, and Snow has been pretty instrumental in that streak. She notched two 19-point performances and finished as Houston's top rebounder in 10 of those games, including a four-game stretch where she grabbed at least 10 boards. Snow also is giving Houston a solid presence on the defensive end. At 6-5, she can shoot over just about anybody, and we know she can dunk, but not many people are able to shoot over her. As a result, she's getting a hand on shots or at least altering them. And when you've got a shot-blocker in the middle, it allows you to gamble a little bit more on the perimeter because you know that when you miss, you've got someone inside to clean up your mess.

Of course, not even DeForge or Snow would be up for this award if Becky Hammon hadn't suffered a torn ACL in June. Hammon was having a career year, coming off the bench to average a team-high 14.7 points in 23 minutes while shooting 57 percent from the field, 47 percent from 3-point line and 95 percent at the foul line. Hammon, who in 2002 averaged about eight points and 20 minutes, would have been a unanimous pick for this award.

Nancy Lieberman, an ESPN analyst and Hall of Famer, is a regular contributor to ESPN.com's women's basketball coverage. Contact her at www.nancylieberman.com.