Making his way to greatest of all time
By Russ Welluable, NBA.com
Posted on December 30th 2011 9:11
Okay - we are only two months into this season. No reason to exaggerate. No reason to already promise awards to players - you never know what's gonna happen. But honestly, if LeBron James does not win the MVP award this season, then because he has either lost a leg or an arm, or the Thunder or Bulls have won every game left in this season. And even if the Thunder did so, I wouldn't be too sure about Kevin Durant stealing the award from James. Actually, at the moment, it's the first time since more than a year, that Kevin Durant is not even among the top five players in the race. For a reason.
Some may wonder ... why is that? KD's playing as well as last season, is maybe even more efficient. But the Thunder, the upcoming team of last season are struggling. At 16-16, I don't see no reason for a player to be in the top five of the race, especially when he has team mates (Westbrook, Harden, Green, Young, Brooks, Ibaka) like the 23-year old franchise player of OKC.
29.2 points, 7.8 rebounds and 4.8 assists are top-notch, great, almost perfect numbers for a 6-11 forward. But no success, no MVP, this is how we handle it in the R2MVP.
While KD's team is struggling, LeBron James' Heat are the best team of the league and the "King's" season is burning it's way into the history books of the NBA. Right now, James is the leading scorer in the league with 32.6 points per game, is shooting over .500% from the field and has a PER of 39.2 (last year he had a PER of 28.2 by the end of the season).
LeBron still has no post moves like Kobe Bryant has, he still has no ring and has to proove that he is clutch, but if the Heat win it all this season, LBJ will definitely make a bid for the Greatest of All time.
His biggest competitor right now? Derrick Rose of the Chicago Bulls. The 23-year old point guard is the perfect example of how stars are not built during the season but in the offseason. Rose has improved his three point shot so much, that defenders have to respect him as a threat from distance, making it way tougher to guard the quick Bull. Thus, Rose has upped his scoring by more than six points per game.
Apart from these usual guests, the race welcomes a new candidate among the top five. Ty Lawson is not only an aspirant for the MIP award, he's actually playing an MVP-calibre season so far, being the league's fourth best scorer on the 2nd best team in the Western Conference.
Props also go to my man Dirk Nowitzki: The Mavs' only All-Star is playing in a more than mediocre team and even without Jason Kidd, who retired from NBA basketball last offseason, Dirk's super-efficient scoring keeps the Mavs on track in the West. A true MVP helps his team winning, no matter how bad it is. Mark my words, KD.